The Self-Immolation of the Republican Party

[mystery-ak]

http://freebeacon.com/columns/self-immolation-republican-party/


The Self-Immolation of the
Republican Party
Column: How the GOP lit itself on fire

BY: Matthew Continetti
June 17, 2016 5:00 am

The Darwin Awards is a popular website that “commemorates individuals who protect our gene pool by making the ultimate sacrifice of their own lives. Darwin Award winners eliminate themselves in an extraordinarily idiotic manner, thereby improving our species’ chances of long-term survival.” I’d like to nominate a certain political party for one. It should win hands down.

The competition is tough. “All human races, cultures, and socioeconomic groups are eligible,” according to the contest rules. Though these rules do not specifically mention political institutions, the Republican Party, founded in 1854, meets the criteria for entry. No doubt about it.

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[Jazzhead]

Self-immolation? No. This was a hostile takeover.   

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

The GOP has listened to stooges like drug-addicted, pill-popping, Douche LImblob, who propped up the idiot boy Trump, for too long. We need to turn off the talk radio.

[Oceander]

Self-immolation is a good description. 

[sinkspur]

I know the Trumpkins won't bother to read the article, so I'll quote the last three paragraphs.  This is one of the best articles I've read on the sad state we find ourselves in:

Trump supporters will tell me that I am paying too much attention to the polls, even though they fetishized the same polls throughout the primary. They are wrong. Any serious campaign analyst looks at the polls. It is mid-June, Clinton has had a consistent lead that is beginning to widen. What is likely to change the trajectory of this race? The terror attack in Florida did not change it. Whatever bounce Trump gets from the convention will dissipate by October. The debate—and there may be only one—is unlikely to move the needle in his direction. He’ll probably be able to hold himself together for about 35 minutes, then the moderator or Clinton will say something and he’ll let himself go, ranting about Monica Lewinsky and how Mitt Romney is a choke artist and all the people Hillary has murdered. And when we are in late October, and Trump is still behind, his supporters will dismiss the polls as skewed, as phony. And when Trump loses, his cheerleaders in talk radio and on the Internet won’t accept a smidgen of responsibility, but will blame the neocons and the media and the Republican establishment for not doing more to help a lunatic become president.

It’s a joke. All of it: his candidacy, the apparatus of propaganda and grift surrounding it, the failures of governance and education and culture that have brought us to this place. What disturbs me most is the prospect that Donald Trump is what a very large number of Republican voters want: not a wonk, not an orator, not a statesman, not even a leader, really, if by leader you mean someone who persuades and inspires and manages a team to pursue a common good. They just want a man who vents their anger at targets above and below their status.

How cathartic it is to give voice to your fury, to wallow in self-righteousness, in helplessness, in self-serving self-pity. It’s what one expects of teenagers, artists, bloggers, pajama boys—immature, peevish, radical, self-destructive behavior. If that is how Republican voters would like to end their days, in a defensive posture of suspicion and loathing of this big crazy wonderful country that has made them literally the wealthiest and most entitled generation of human beings in the history of the world, well, that’s their right as Americans, I suppose. Best of luck. The Darwin Award will be ready for you November 9.

[Jazzhead]

Douche LImblob

LOL!   You may have a future as a writer for Mad magazine! 

[Chieftain]

Well written and to the point.  I agree with much of it and I believe Trump will be the next President.

Now let us see the same kind of incisive analysis of what happens to Hillary when the FBI indicts her and every Democrat who knows her.  It is certain that there will be innumerable charges that will either disqualify Clinton from the Presidency whether they come before the Convention or after.  If she is elected before the charges, she will immediately be open to impeachment and removal from office.  If that happens, Elizabeth Warren (likely Veep at this point) will ascend to the Presidency, and that possibility requires deep and serious consideration.

Trump's candidacy cannot be considered in a vacuum.  For a year the media has downplayed and tried to ignore the tremendous baggage the Hildebeest is toting around by going 24/7 on Trump.  I think he stands and excellent chance of picking up horrified democrat voters who feel no better about the Democrat Party than deep-red conservatives do about the Republicans.  Times are ripe for a populist candidate to deeply plow a new constituency from among the many disenchanted American voters from all political stripes.

Regardless of who wins, there are always consequences for losing an election to go along with whatever gains may be perceived by the winners.

[sinkspur]

Trump cannot win without some external circumstance (a major terrorist attack, the bottom falling out of the economy) changing the dynamic.

He will not change and voters are already solidified against him.  It's too late for him to win this on his own, which is apparently the way he wants to try to win it.

[Bigun]

Self-immolation is a good description.

I think it's a perfect description.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

Trump cannot win without some external circumstance (a major terrorist attack, the bottom falling out of the economy) changing the dynamic.

He will not change and voters are already solidified against him.  It's too late for him to win this on his own, which is apparently the way he wants to try to win it.

He's setting up a ready market for TrumpTV, coming next Spring!

[Oceander]

Well written and to the point.  I agree with much of it and I believe Trump will be the next President.

Now let us see the same kind of incisive analysis of what happens to Hillary when the FBI indicts her and every Democrat who knows her.  It is certain that there will be innumerable charges that will either disqualify Clinton from the Presidency whether they come before the Convention or after.  If she is elected before the charges, she will immediately be open to impeachment and removal from office.  If that happens, Elizabeth Warren (likely Veep at this point) will ascend to the Presidency, and that possibility requires deep and serious consideration.

Trump's candidacy cannot be considered in a vacuum.  For a year the media has downplayed and tried to ignore the tremendous baggage the Hildebeest is toting around by going 24/7 on Trump.  I think he stands and excellent chance of picking up horrified democrat voters who feel no better about the Democrat Party than deep-red conservatives do about the Republicans.  Times are ripe for a populist candidate to deeply plow a new constituency from among the many disenchanted American voters from all political stripes.

Regardless of who wins, there are always consequences for losing an election to go along with whatever gains may be perceived by the winners.

Clinton will not be indicted prior to the election, if ever.  No sane DOJ would want the political heat from being seen to have interfered in an election, particularly in a way that could trigger a constitutional crisis. 

[MACVSOG68]

Clinton will not be indicted prior to the election, if ever.  No sane DOJ would want the political heat from being seen to have interfered in an election, particularly in a way that could trigger a constitutional crisis.

I don't see it either.  If it were up to the FBI, she likely would be, but that's outside their authority.  If the AG would do it at all, it would be before the convention when some alternatives are available.  Even if the FBI concludes its investigation, the report may well be sealed until after the election, unless it clears her.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

Clinton will not be indicted prior to the election, if ever.  No sane DOJ would want the political heat from being seen to have interfered in an election, particularly in a way that could trigger a constitutional crisis.

She is, for all intents and purposes, now above the law.

[Bigun]

She is, for all intents and purposes, now above the law.

And the once great USA has been reduced to a banana republic.

[Maj. Bill Martin]

I just want to say that I don't like Trump, and didn't intend to vote for him.  But what I've been reading on TBR has convinced me otherwise.

I absolutely cannot stand Trump.  I think he's vile, and unworthy of the office.  My hope/thought was that defeating him would clear the field for the GOP to run a much better, actually conservative candidate in 2020.  What I've been reading here over the last week or so has convinced me otherwise.

The sheer nastiness of so many conservatives towards those supporting Trump here has been pretty stunning.  I'm sick of the "bleep" and all that crap, and yes, I know that the Trump supporters at FR, and some here, have been doing the exact same thing or worse.  But here's the difference:

Very predictably, the mass media that enjoyed stirring the GOP pot by going easier on Trump has completely reversed course now that the general election is in sight.  It is 24/7 anti-Trump by the MSM, Hillary will have over a billion dollars to run an anti-Trump media campaign, and now, a great many Republican office holders and "#Nevertrumpers are hopping on board.  Many Republicans and conservatives in general, both here and in the larger world, are almost tripping over themselves to shout from the rooftops how rotten Trump is, with barely a mention of Hillary, or what Obama has done to the country.  The result of that can be seen in the aftermath of the Orlando shootings, where the entire narrative has become 1) Trump is an a-hole, and 2) we need more gun control.  The Republicans who should have been front and center pointing out Obama's responsibility in all this, and how Hillary wants to bring in 60,000 more refugees and deprive people of the means to defend themselves, were instead gleefully just bashing Trump.  Pathetic.

The net effect of this is that Obama and Hillary Clinton are getting virtually a free pass by those very same Republicans and conservatives who are busy expending all their ammunition at a guy whom the Democrats and media are already attacking 24/7.  I don't ask or expect anyone to defend Trump -- he's vile, and underserving of defense.  But good grief, how about directing some fire at the horrible people who are going to be running the country when Trump gets clobbered in November?  Where's the thoughtful criticism of Obama's statements?  Or Hillary's?  If you look at the threads here that get the most traffic here, they are almost invariably the anti-Trump threads.  Obama and Hillary are barely an afterthought.  And this is supposed to be a Republican/conservative website?

If someone doesn't want to vote for Trump, fine -- don't vote for him.  That's where I was as well until all this.  But what seems to be getting overlooked is that the more we (and Republicans/conservatives at large) spend their time attacking Trump and not attacking Obama/Hillary, the more likely it is that we are facilitating a Democratic sweep in November.  We need to convince voters that a Hillary Presidency must be balanced by a Republican Congress.  Instead, this uniting with the MSM and Democrats is just making Hillary look much, much more attractive in comparison to Trump.  We are doing their work for them, and actually amplifying whatever anti-GOP effect Trump has on his own.  We're making things worse.  Why can't we just disregard Trump and go after the Democrats?  The only answer I can come up with is that people take more pleasure in venting their anger over the primary than in challenging the left.

I'm just looking at what we've become.  I read the threads on who is really a conservative, and have concluded that we're not going to elect a conservative in 2020 no matter what.  We are simply too balkanized, too eager to go nasty on anyone who varies from our individual orthodoxy, and we will never be able to assemble a coalition necessary to unseat the Democrats.  We'll just tear each other to shreds again in 2020 even without a toxic joker like Trump.  I can already see it coming from those who have a particular candidate in mind, and seem to view him as the only acceptable choice come 2020.

I suppose I've come around to @INVAR , and have concluded that we're screwed.  We won't win, and frankly, we really don't even deserve to win anymore.  So given that Trump is going to get clobbered anyway, I'll vote for him solely as an FU to my fellows who seem to take much more pleasure in attacking an orange headed joke doomed to lose anyway, than the leftist schmucks who are ruining this country.

@Mesaclone

[Bigun]

I just want to say that I don't like Trump, and didn't intend to vote for him.  But what I've been reading on TBR has convinced me otherwise.

I absolutely cannot stand Trump.  I think he's vile, and unworthy of the office.  My hope/thought was that defeating him would clear the field for the GOP to run a much better, actually conservative candidate in 2020.  What I've been reading here over the last week or so has convinced me otherwise.

The sheer nastiness of so many conservatives towards those supporting Trump here has been pretty stunning.  I'm sick of the "bleep" and all that crap, and yes, I know that the Trump supporters at FR, and some here, have been doing the exact same thing or worse.  But here's the difference:

Very predictably, the mass media that enjoyed stirring the GOP pot by going easier on Trump has completely reversed course now that the general election is in sight.  It is 24/7 anti-Trump by the MSM, Hillary with have over a billion dollars to run an anti-Trump media campaign, and now, a great many Republican office holders and "#Nevertrumpers are hopping on board.  Many Republicans and conservatives in general, both here and in the larger world, are almost tripping over themselves to shout from the rooftops how rotten Trump is, with barely a mention of Hillary, or what Obama has done to the country.  The result of that can be seen in the aftermath of the Orlando shootings, where the entire narrative has become 1) Trump is an a-hole, and 2) we need more gun control.  The Republicans who should have been front and center pointing out Obama's responsibility in all this, and how Hillary wants to bring in 60,000 more refugees and deprive people of the means to defend themselves, were instead gleefully just bashing Trump.  Pathetic.

The net effect of this is that Obama and Hillary Clinton are getting virtually a free pass by those very same Republicans and conservatives who are busy expending all their ammunition at a guy whom the Democrats and media are already attacking 24/7.  I don't ask or expect anyone to defend Trump -- he's vile, and underserving of defense.  But good grief, how about directing some fire at the horrible people who are going to be running the country when Trump gets clobbered in November?  Where's the thoughtful criticism of Obama's statements?  Or Hillary's?  If you look at the threads here that get the most traffic here, they are almost invariably the anti-Trump threads.  Obama and Hillary are barely an afterthought.  And this is supposed to be a Republican/conservative website?

If someone doesn't want to vote for Trump, fine -- don't vote for him.  That's where I was as well until all this.  But what seems to be getting overlooked is that the more we (and Republicans/conservatives at large) spend their time attacking Trump and not attacking Obama/Hillary, the more likely it is that we are facilitating a Democratic sweep in November.  We need to convince voters that a Hillary Presidency must be balanced by a Republican Congress.  Instead, this uniting with the MSM and Democrats is just making Hillary look much, much more attractive in comparison to Trump.  We are doing their work for them, and actually amplifying whatever anti-GOP effect Trump has on his own.  We're making things worse.  Why can't we just disregard Trump and go after the Democrats?  The only answer I can come up with is that people take more pleasure in venting their anger over the primary than in challenging the left.

So, I'm just looking at what we've become.  I read the threads on who is really a conservative, and have concluded that we're not going to elect a conservative in 2020 no matter what.  We are simply too balkanized, too eager to go nasty on anyone who varies from our individual orthodoxy, and we will never be able to assemble a coalition necessary to unseat the Democrats.  We'll just tear each other to shreds again in 2020 even without a toxic joker like Trump.  I can already see it coming from those who have a particular candidate in mind, and seem to view him as the only acceptable choice come 2020.

So in a way, I suppose I've come around to @INVAR , and have concluded that we're screwed.  We won't win, and frankly, we really don't even deserve to win anymore.  So given that Trump is going to get clobbered anyway, I'll vote for him solely as an FU to my fellows who seem to take much more pleasure in attacking an orange headed joke doomed to lose anyway, than the leftist schmucks who are ruining this country.

@Mesaclone

Very well argued but a bit premature IMHO.  Get back to me when the republican party has actually handed the keys over to Trump and we'll talk further.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

Very well argued but a bit premature IMHO.  Get back to me when the republican party has actually handed the keys over to Trump and we'll talk further.

How would that work though? The delegates will just deny Trump even though he won? Frankly I think that would be even worse than the oranged-tinted Turd sandwich we're stuck with now.

[Bigun]

How would that work though? The delegates will just deny Trump even though he won? Frankly I think that would be even worse than the oranged-tinted Turd sandwich we're stuck with now.

In a word yes. And they have every right to do just that.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

In a word yes. And they have every right to do just that.

I could be wrong but I don't think that will happen.

[Bigun]

I could be wrong but I don't think that will happen.

We will just have to wait and see won't we?

[Maj. Bill Martin]

I could be wrong but I don't think that will happen.

FWIW, I'm with you.  Trump is going to be the nominee, and we'll see the MSM, the Democrats, and far too many Republicans/conservatives tripping over themselves to say how horrible he is.  Hillary will look like freaking George Washington by the time the election rolls around.  And I truly believe there will be a hell of a lot of people absolutely thrilled with a GOP massacre in November, because they'll then be able to stand up and say "see, we told you what would happen if you nominated Trump!"

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

FWIW, I'm with you.  Trump is going to be the nominee, and we'll see the MSM, the Democrats, and far too many Republicans/conservatives tripping over themselves to say how horrible he is.  Hillary will look like freaking George Washington by the time the election rolls around.  And I truly believe there will be a hell of a lot of people absolutely thrilled with a GOP massacre in November, because they'll then be able to stand up and say "see, we told you what would happen if you nominated Trump!"

I agree with you that that is deplorable (hoping for a GOP massacre). On the other hand, Trump does some truly dopey stupid things on an alarmingly regular basis and covering for him will do nobody any good, least of all him. I can't keep my mouth shut as Trump digs himself a hole and I don't intend to. And I will not allow Trumpsters to delude themselves into thinking Trump is doing better than he is. He's sucking hard right now, mostly by his own fault (and that of his enablers).

Just my $.02.

[roamer_1]

The net effect of this is that Obama and Hillary Clinton are getting virtually a free pass by those very same Republicans and conservatives who are busy expending all their ammunition at a guy whom the Democrats and media are already attacking 24/7.  I don't ask or expect anyone to defend Trump -- he's vile, and underserving of defense.  But good grief, how about directing some fire at the horrible people who are going to be running the country when Trump gets clobbered in November?

This is predictably what happens when one elects a celebrity populist with no regard to the principles that the party stands for.

Without standing upon those principles, there is *no* unity, as the principles are what bind us... and that is complicated by so much of the Republican base, the Conservatives, having eschewed membership - They are no longer under obligation of any kind, preferring the principles to the pragmatic approach the Republicans have fostered for years.

Infighting necessarily follows. Surely you can see that.

You will have no unity *whatsoever* sowing fear of Hillary Clinton as the only reason to band together.

[Maj. Bill Martin]

I agree with you that that is deplorable (hoping for a GOP massacre). On the other hand, Trump does some truly dopey stupid things on an alarmingly regular basis and covering for him will do nobody any good, least of all him. I can't keep my mouth shut as Trump digs himself a hole and I don't intend to. And I will not allow Trumpsters to delude themselves into thinking Trump is doing better than he is. He's sucking hard right now, mostly by his own fault (and that of his enablers).

Just my $.02.

Everyone's free to say what they wish, and I certainly don't expect anyone to defend Trump.  What I see as deplorable is the preference for attacking a guy who already is getting blasted by the MSM, Obama, and Hillary's $1B anti-Trump warchest, and essentially giving (by comparison) a free pass to both Obama and Hillary.

That's enough for me to punt on the "movement", and just cast a spite vote at this point.

[roamer_1]

And I truly believe there will be a hell of a lot of people absolutely thrilled with a GOP massacre in November, because they'll then be able to stand up and say "see, we told you what would happen if you nominated Trump!"

Believe me, I would much rather not have to say 'I told you so'.
I would much rather people would heed the warning in the first place.

Sheesh! How hard is this? The Democrats serve the very most liberal wing that is their BASE. They know they will not win without them. And because they served their base with slavish attention, they get a unified army to go to battle with.

For some idiotic reason, Republicans are notably ALWAYS trying to shut their base up, never fighting for their base, and never standing upon the issues that cause their base to unite. They wrap themselves in conservatism only for the purpose of getting elected, and then intentionally work against their constituents.

FOOLS! This is not pragmatism. It is suicide. Throw your base under the bus, yet again, and expect the win. Beat your base like a 2 dollar mule expecting it to haul your fat ass over the finish line, when you haven't fed it for years decades.

This end is entirely predictable, and Conservatives have been shouting it from the rooftops all the way along.