Cruz: Those who bolstered Trump 'will bear that responsibility going forward'

[Sanguine]

I think I laid out my argument clearly and cogently. Both Trump supporters and detractors seemed to be able to understand it and many if not most agreed with it.

You seem to be the only one with a problem here.

I do have a problem with what you've said - it's flat out wrong.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

I'm sorry but I have to disagree. You said words should never lead to violence. Wars, real wars, start with words that move people to action. Words can be very powerful things.

They can lead to violence, but that should never happen. And in our society and country you should never have to fear violence because of words. Period.

[Bigun]

Here's the thing. You first have to get comfortable with the fact that we did not arrive here overnight, so we are not going to extract ourselves overnight. Personally I don't think fixing this is possible but I intend to do all I can to try anyway.

As such it would take several elections at least. We are never going to fix this in our lifetime. It took many decades to screw up an it will take double that to set right. Assuming it is fixable at all. We have to begin the process for our kids.

But you have to start. If not now, when? 10 years ago I said this stuff. Today we would be 10 years advanced in the process. And I was far from the only guy in America saying this.

Every election all we hear is why we can't. Why next time we will but not this time. Personally I'm tired of apologizing to my daughter for the world we collectively are leaving her.

If the GOP does not get votes, it goes away. Might take a couple elections but the Whigs will tell you nothing remains without voters. No group will invest in a dead party.

You need black and white. Left/right. Grey in political parties is what we have now where the GOP promotes leftism and the DNC talks patriotism. So you work on what you can. Eliminating the gray/left from the right. And you do that by stripping the people providing that ambiguity of power and control.

I agree with this entirely and would add that our children, even the highly educated ones, generally can't find Spain on a globe or name even half the states much less discern what's going on in their government!

[SuperSyn]

Generally, yes.  That's exactly what happens.  This case may be different just because Trumo's flaws are pretty obvious.

There are only two ways to reverse this: 1) nominate more conservative GOP nominees, or 2) start another, more conservative party. 

Personally, i think 1) is by far the best ootion. Creating a new party doesn't manufacture any greter number of conservstive voters.  It's just having the conservatives that already exist splinter off.  And if there aren't even enough of us to gain control of the 30% of the electorate represented by the GOP, then how would there be enough for that third party to win anything.

The math says our best shot is to keep working to nominate a good conservative nominee.

The strategy should be to do both.

1. Work in the GOP to resist the squishes, and continue to promote at the national level for the time being.

2. Work locally to recruit, nominate and elect conservative grassroots leaders for a 3rd party. Start in the more conservative counties and cities, elect them to city councils, local courts, county positions and state legislatures. That will start to render the GOP meaningless, as local elections tend to be less ideological and not party driven anyway. This will help a 3rd party gain some say and brand recognition. If those elected officials truly keep their word and stick to the platform, it will attract the disenfranchised in increasing numbers. As that happens, expand the party to more places for local and state elections, and start nominating national candidates. Eventually the GOP will have to own being the centrist party, and will have to choose whether they align in a coalition with the democrats or 3rd party. If they have any desire to have any say in DC, they will align with the 3rd party, or continue to get swallowed up by the democrats.

3. Work with the elected national representatives and senators to switch to the 3rd party when the time is right. At the national level, the GOP will have to agree to a coalition approach, or none of their initiatives will get through. The 3rd party can agree to the same, but will hold much more power than trying to influence the McConnells etc from within, where they will continue to be ignored. If the GOP refuses to do that, they will become irrelevant, as they are flirting with doing today anyway. In the coalition agreement, a mutual platform should be agreed, and a stronger voting block can emerge.

Not an overnight solution, for sure, but the only way I see a long term future for conservatives having any say. If this doesn't happen, we will continue to get stabbed in the back by the DC GOP, and I, for one, am sick and tired of that betrayal.

[DCPatriot]

They can lead to violence, but that should never happen. And in our society and country you should never have to fear violence because of words. Period.

EXACTLY!   

[Henry Noel]

The strategy should be to do both.

1. Work in the GOP to resist the squishes, and continue to promote at the national level for the time being.

2. Work locally to recruit, nominate and elect conservative grassroots leaders for a 3rd party. Start in the more conservative counties and cities, elect them to city councils, local courts, county positions and state legislatures. That will start to render the GOP meaningless, as local elections tend to be less ideological and not party driven anyway. This will help a 3rd party gain some say and brand recognition. If those elected officials truly keep their word and stick to the platform, it will attract the disenfranchised in increasing numbers. As that happens, expand the party to more places for local and state elections, and start nominating national candidates. Eventually the GOP will have to own being the centrist party, and will have to choose whether they align in a coalition with the democrats or 3rd party. If they have any desire to have any say in DC, they will align with the 3rd party, or continue to get swallowed up by the democrats.

3. Work with the elected national representatives and senators to switch to the 3rd party when the time is right. At the national level, the GOP will have to agree to a coalition approach, or none of their initiatives will get through. The 3rd party can agree to the same, but will hold much more power than trying to influence the McConnells etc from within, where they will continue to be ignored. If the GOP refuses to do that, they will become irrelevant, as they are flirting with doing today anyway. In the coalition agreement, a mutual platform should be agreed, and a stronger voting block can emerge.

Not an overnight solution, for sure, but the only way I see a long term future for conservatives having any say. If this doesn't happen, we will continue to get stabbed in the back by the DC GOP, and I, for one, am sick and tired of that betrayal.

The environmental nut-jobs say "think globally, act locally." They're nuts, yes, but that's a good concept when applied to politics generally. We've got 57 states and numerous municipalities to work with.

[XenaLee]

The environmental nut-jobs say "think globally, act locally." They're nuts, yes, but that's a good concept when applied to politics generally. We've got 57 states and numerous municipalities to work with.

Yes, by Obama math, we have 57 states.  But per usual, when dealing with leftists, reality is always 180 degrees from what their perception is.

By the way, hi there.  Good to see you.

[XenaLee]

McCain was my last. Never again. I voted for him to get Palin. Clearly that was a bad idea/Mistake. All it did was ensure that they run a 'Romeny' in 12 and keep the cycle going..

I did the exact same thing, hoping against hope that Palin might make a difference and stop or slow this progress toward.....well... "progressiveness"..ie communism.  On the basis that even false hope is better than no hope at all.  Which also induced me to hold my nose and vote for Romney in 2012 (hey, at least he believes in Jesus Christ as our savior, right?).  But....this time.....thanks to the progressive left and the useful idiots on the right, we're left with virtually NO choice at all.  Hard to imagine that after 2008 and 2012 our 'choices' would get even suckier.  But here we are.

[Bigun]

 If enough people decide not to play Prisoner's Dilemma with the major parties we can beat them both!

 Just sayin!

[Henry Noel]

Yes, by Obama math, we have 57 states.  But per usual, when dealing with leftists, reality is always 180 degrees from what their perception is.

By the way, hi there.  Good to see you.

Same here! Thanks again for leading me here. It's like being a refugee from East Berlin, having put up with ToS as long as I could!

[NavyCanDo]

I did the exact same thing, hoping against hope that Palin might make a difference and stop or slow this progress toward.....well... "progressiveness"..ie communism.  On the basis that even false hope is better than no hope at all.  Which also induced me to hold my nose and vote for Romney in 2012 (hey, at least he believes in Jesus Christ as our savior, right?).  But....this time.....thanks to the progressive left and the useful idiots on the right, we're left with virtually NO choice at all.  Hard to imagine that after 2008 and 2012 our 'choices' would get even suckier.  But here we are.

You are so right. One thing possitive living way out here in the Pacific NW, is long before our polls close, the election has been decided by the East Coast and Mid West. So I carry no guilt writting in a candidate, and I will sleep well for the next 4 years that I had no part in electing him or her.

[Smokin Joe]

They can lead to violence, but that should never happen. And in our society and country you should never have to fear violence because of words. Period.

December Seventh, nineteen forty one, a day that will live in infamy...

I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!

...We shall fight on the beaches,
We shall fight on the landing grounds,
We shall fight in the fields and in the streets,
We shall fight in the hills;
We shall never surrender, and even if, which I do not for a moment believe, this Island or a large part of it were subjugated and starving, then our Empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the British Fleet, would carry on the struggle, until, in God’s good time, the New World, with all its power and might, steps forth to the rescue and the liberation of the old.”

 When in the course of human events...



So many words have led to violence, but is that always a bad thing?

It is human nature that the insults levied by one group against another, or by tyrants against the masses will be endured until overthrown, seldom by peaceful means, but more often by abrupt and violent ones. Without words to communicate the outrage, to communicate the hopes for the future, would men fight for their freedom?

Certainly, those words can be used to enslave, to destroy without intent of rebuilding, to perpetrate evil, or they can be used to fight that slavery, and to incite the masses to do what is necessary to fight that evil through either peaceful means or the most vicious.

Human nature suggests that we endure the most pervasive and perfidious insults before finally rising to overthrow that burden, and the results are seldom peaceful. By the time enough gumption is raised to do something, there is no patience for the soft and gentle reversal of policies deeply entrenched over decades.

Then, too, angry people often do stupid things.

[Smokin Joe]

If enough people decide not to play Prisoner's Dilemma with the major parties we can beat them both!

 Just sayin!

I agree. The biggest reason a third party candidate can't win is that so many have been told that a third party candidate can't win. Talk about circular reasoning and self-fulfilling prophesy.

[roamer_1]

I agree. The biggest reason a third party candidate can't win is that so many have been told that a third party candidate can't win. Talk about circular reasoning and self-fulfilling prophesy.

@Bigun

It has long been stated that in a three candidate race with two liberals, the Conservative will win the plurality.
I would very much like to test that theory this season.

[Bigun]

@Bigun

It has long been stated that in a three candidate race with two liberals, the Conservative will win the plurality.
I would very much like to test that theory this season.

Right there with you!  I'll do my part!

[RetBobbyMI]

It has long been stated that in a three candidate race with two liberals, the Conservative will win the plurality.
I would very much like to test that theory this season.

With both polling at around 40% each and both with almost 65-70% negatives, it wouldn't be that difficult to strip off some more.  Just got the get the social media train moving, because the Lame Stream Medial won't cover a conservation other to bash their insensitivity to liberal causes.

I'm already in. Darrell Castle will get my vote in MI.

[EC]

The strategy should be to do both.

1. Work in the GOP to resist the squishes, and continue to promote at the national level for the time being.

2. Work locally to recruit, nominate and elect conservative grassroots leaders for a 3rd party. Start in the more conservative counties and cities, elect them to city councils, local courts, county positions and state legislatures. That will start to render the GOP meaningless, as local elections tend to be less ideological and not party driven anyway. This will help a 3rd party gain some say and brand recognition. If those elected officials truly keep their word and stick to the platform, it will attract the disenfranchised in increasing numbers. As that happens, expand the party to more places for local and state elections, and start nominating national candidates. Eventually the GOP will have to own being the centrist party, and will have to choose whether they align in a coalition with the democrats or 3rd party. If they have any desire to have any say in DC, they will align with the 3rd party, or continue to get swallowed up by the democrats.

3. Work with the elected national representatives and senators to switch to the 3rd party when the time is right. At the national level, the GOP will have to agree to a coalition approach, or none of their initiatives will get through. The 3rd party can agree to the same, but will hold much more power than trying to influence the McConnells etc from within, where they will continue to be ignored. If the GOP refuses to do that, they will become irrelevant, as they are flirting with doing today anyway. In the coalition agreement, a mutual platform should be agreed, and a stronger voting block can emerge.

Not an overnight solution, for sure, but the only way I see a long term future for conservatives having any say. If this doesn't happen, we will continue to get stabbed in the back by the DC GOP, and I, for one, am sick and tired of that betrayal.

Welcome in!

In your point 2, you missed both the easiest to achieve and the most vital. TAKE THE SCHOOL BOARDS BACK! Without that ... you're pissing in the wind trying to halt the march of socialism.

[SuperSyn]

Welcome in!

In your point 2, you missed both the easiest to achieve and the most vital. TAKE THE SCHOOL BOARDS BACK! Without that ... you're pissing in the wind trying to halt the march of socialism.

Yes,I missed that one, and shouldn't have. Just worked for a school board election to get the conservative into our local ISD, and keep out the immigrant that was going around bad-mouthing America.

[libertybele]

If enough people decide not to play Prisoner's Dilemma with the major parties we can beat them both!

 Just sayin!

That's been my thought as well!   

[sitetest]

First, how many interviews does a candidate get with 14 candidates? When are they going to mention those issues? Cruz was asked about the riots and he responded that the responsibility for the actions of the rioters belonged with the rioters.

It doesn't get any more simple and plain than that.

At the time, Trump's rhetoric was angry, capitalizing on the anger and frustration of the voters, with protesters inside the rally being handled roughly by his supporters.
Anyone who thinks that didn't attract some backlash is silly. Add in an (allegedly) Soros backed rentamob, and Trump practically had the airwaves to himself.

If the other candidates can't mention more than one issue in a press conference or an interview, where does that leave us? It is up to the voter to be intelligent enough to listen to what is being said and understand it.

As for tone of campaign inviting a response by protesters, where were the street riots in front of Rubio rallys? Or Carson? Or Kasich?  Or JEB? Not there. Maybe if they had hired themselves a rentamob they would have had more airtime in the MSM.

Soros is a buddy and financial backer of the lying liberal fraud.   The fraud probably asked soros, as a favor, to send a rentamob to give the fraud more credibility.  Just a favor between brother plutocrats.

[Smokin Joe]

Soros is a buddy and financial backer of the lying liberal fraud.   The fraud probably asked soros, as a favor, to send a rentamob to give the fraud more credibility.  Just a favor between brother plutocrats.

That thought did cross my mind. Stage riots to dominate media time when Cruz was going to get some because he was a contender, then blame that contender for allegedly blaming you so you can be a "victim", too. At the time, I thought even the Donald wouldn't be that bad, but from the rest of the lies and slanders and downright nasty crap, I wouldn't put anything past the guy who seems to think the ends justify ANY means.

[ConstitutionRose]

Welcome in!

In your point 2, you missed both the easiest to achieve and the most vital. TAKE THE SCHOOL BOARDS BACK! Without that ... you're pissing in the wind trying to halt the march of socialism.

Great point. That's exactly where I started this year.  By actively supporting a conservative for each school board district. 

[oldmomster]

Welcome in!

In your point 2, you missed both the easiest to achieve and the most vital. TAKE THE SCHOOL BOARDS BACK! Without that ... you're pissing in the wind trying to halt the march of socialism.

Have been working for conservative candidates for both my school board and county committee.  Over the past four years, as the small businesses crash and burn & big company employers relocate or just close, the turnout of the EMPLOYED people in our district (aka union members) has voters lined up around the building when one of their own is running.  School board is populated by retired teachers or their spouses.  The couple of conservative candidates were roundly defeated.  Still working at it, but I dont see much hope till we have a better class of PARENTS.   

[sitetest]

That thought did cross my mind. Stage riots to dominate media time when Cruz was going to get some because he was a contender, then blame that contender for allegedly blaming you so you can be a "victim", too. At the time, I thought even the Donald wouldn't be that bad, but from the rest of the lies and slanders and downright nasty crap, I wouldn't put anything past the guy who seems to think the ends justify ANY means.

The fraud has proven there is no lie so great, so ridiculous, so outrageous, so idiotic ally obviously untrue that the fraud will not utter it.  Thus, "Sen. Cruz' father was involved with Lee Harvey Oswald."

I put nothing past the lying liberal fraud.

[libertybele]

Welcome in!

In your point 2, you missed both the easiest to achieve and the most vital. TAKE THE SCHOOL BOARDS BACK! Without that ... you're pissing in the wind trying to halt the march of socialism.

Agreed.  Washington is a disaster.  Working to insert conservatives from the ground up is the key.