The Conservative Moment: GOP leaders squelched the opportunity offered by the Tea Party, but..

The National Review Online ^ | September 4, 2014 | Neal B. Freeman

[Cincinatus' Wife]

[SNIP]

"......Imagine if you would a prayer breakfast in Washington attended by the leadership of the GOP — Messrs. Boehner, McConnell, Priebus, and their associates. They drop to their knees, bow their heads, and invoke divine intercession in the country’s troubled affairs, and in the party’s parlous condition. Would it be too much to ask Him to deliver unto them a mass political movement, self-financed and benignly led, God-fearing and well-mannered, almost all of whose members believed in the literal version of the Republican platform and almost none of whose members wanted anything from the federal government but constitutional restraint?

Yes, it would have been too much to ask, but, yes, it has been given unto them, anyway. The Tea Party arrived in vast, friendly numbers and said to the GOP, “We’re not from the federal government and we’re here to help.”

What happened next was not pretty. Or smart. The GOP brass responded with insults, attack ads, collaborative media trashing, and, finally, over the past six months, the charge of McConnell’s geezer brigade seeking to “crush” the Tea Party. And here we thought congressional Republicans were too prone to compromise, too quick to split the difference.

Our colleague M. Stanton Evans once said of the two-party system: “One is the evil party and the other is the stupid party. I’m proud to be a member of the stupid party.” I am as well, but sometimes party stupidity asks too much. Here we have before us an epochal opportunity to revive the national enterprise, and we are woefully (and smugly) ill prepared to realize it. As we look forward to 2016, where do we find ourselves? We find ourselves, in my estimate, with no candidate, no message, no coalitional unity, and a thoroughly rusted party machine. Only this question remains: Can we rally in time to save the country from a terminal identity politics that could over the next few cycles bring us not principled and experienced leaders, but (regardless of their qualifications) the first woman president, the first Hispanic president, the first gay president?

I wouldn’t bet the rent money on us. But I know that we have no chance whatsoever unless we divide the labor and begin to engage now. So let’s roll.......

[SNIP]

........Seize it as a teachable moment, Mr. Speaker, an occasion to remind every government executive that the essence of the job is to allocate limited resources.

And to our friends in the GOP: Make nice, Mitch. Nobody likes a sore winner.

Continued...

[txrefugee]

There were millions of missing conservative votes on Election Day 2012 and Mitt Romney was defeated. What did the GOPe blame it on? No enough freeloaders and brown people in the party. Honestly, they are terminally stupid.

And they will be surprised again when conservatives refuse to vote for those who vowed to “crush the TEA Party.”

[DeaconRed]

"And they will be surprised again when conservatives refuse to vote for those who vowed to “crush the TEA Party.”

They are stuck on STUPID.
If they get the HILDABEAST elected we are so screwed.

[867V309]

I aint votin 4 mica, gope gave us slumrail in fl. pos.

[no-to-illegals]

Has been a sad time for the Citizens of America and the People. Never thought I would witness the America of today in my lifetime and neither did we fail not to lose. Good thing is that America is still America and one has to wonder will Americans quit and stop trying to gain the attention of the people that lead by our votes? We might and that leaves only one remaining option. One which nobody in one's right mind would entertain or would we? I do not know but believe the reason for all the strife is a planned strategy. War is also a planned strategy. Too big to fail, FAILED

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Good idea to read the ENTIRE piece. It’s worth it. So is gaining the majority in Congress with a huge sweep in 2014 and 2016.

Here’s a good video: “Conservatism is Calling.” - And it is. We’ve made gains. Let’s not leave it to Harry Reid and Hillary Clinton to continue advancing the Left’s” transformation of America.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42JK3ukEIbo

[savedbygrace]

The GOPe has closed the tent flaps. No TEA Party voters for them.

The Big Tent has shrunk.

[Olog-hai]

If they were really conservatives, then they would be stupid. But they are liberals, so they are fine with this.

[Sybeck1]

I won’t be missing in November. I will be voting against Thad Cochran.

[VRW Conspirator]

One word, corrupt. A given lobbyist (Chamber of Commerce?) gives more in one donation to a politician than a dozen Tea Party people. The math is simple.

[hopespringseternal]

The problem is that Boehner and McConnell's incompetence at governing is really no less than Obama's. As seen in MS, they even campaign like him, using identity politics that can only hurt republicans.

They can only win by losing. Which is why even a republican victory only means that our decline is only more orderly and proceeding at a slower rate than with the clearly insane democrats running things.

Stupidity is no antitdote for evil.

[nathanbedford]

A great problem with the war on drugs is that the more it succeeds the more it is doomed to fail because as it drives down the supply of drugs it drives up their price and makes the drug trade more lucrative thus inducing more entrepreneurs to enter the business.

A great problem with expecting Republicans to reform government waste, our Byzantine tax system, and crony capitalism is that the more they succeed the less they are needed. The modern incumbent politician is in the business of ameliorating problems for wealthy donors, he is not in the business of solving those problems for society. If he were to solve them, he would not be needed to come to the rescue.

The war on drugs fails because we expect the law to compel people to act against human nature. They undertaking to reform a corrupt government is hopeless in a culture that is itself corrupt and the culture of Washington is entirely corrupt.

The Article V movement has a chance of working because it is of a culture foreign to Washington, corrupt yes but in a different way, and with a different set of incentives.

[mazda77]

So what is Sandy Adams doing now? Most don’t know that the target on her back was just as big as the one on West. If she were still in office, she had the capability to have been as big a star as Gowdy.

[Truth29]

Stuck on stupid or collaborators? The GOP is thoroughly compromised with agents from the left in positions of power and far happier taking their payoffs than upholding the Constitution and defending freedom.

[lucky american]

Here in NH Kelley Ayotte has endorsed Scott Brown the gun grabbing carpetbagger. The Media has given him Carte Blanche and the rest of the candidates are not mentioned.
I am voting in the primary but if Brown wins I will not vote again. My husband,daughter and son in law agree. We will not vote.
You cannot change the system by endorsing the system. People will not change until things become very uncomfortable for them.

[867V309]

So what is Sandy Adams doing now?

I don't know.

I voted for her, and smith this year. my big decision is to vote for mica's opponent or not at all, a very tough pick, i hate them both, ugly pols.

will vote for for scott.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Let’s say the end game we’re looking at is the difference between ISIS/Assad/Obama (with no dissent in their ranks) and GOP/Boehner/McConnell (with a strong conservative dissent in their ranks). I choose the latter while continuing to squeeze out the moderates and working to build the conservative base/elected officials - sell conservatism (it certainly is getting another look). Get rid of the GOP-e extremists and work on continuing the conservative transformation of the Congress. We have a lot of good people in there and with things teetering on the edge, they need smart not dumb strategy.

[jacknhoo]

“... the first woman president, the first Hispanic president, the first gay president?”

Well, I think we have the first woman president, Valerie Jarrett, and the first gay president, bath house Barry, and the first Hispanic president, Cecilia Munoz, already.

[mazda77]

10-4; I am the same way with Crenshaw (who?) as you are with Mica. I really wish I lived about three miles further south so DeSantis was my Rep.

[WaterWeWaitinFor]

We have a lot of good people in there and with things teetering on the edge, they need smart not dumb strategy.”

Agreed. Thanks to all the folks - with good intentions - that stayed home, we have zippy with valjar in place for these last 4 years to be “more flexible” and boy is he/she ever!!

Work from within and don’t throw a hissy fit and stay home or vote for a dem! The time for heavy work is during the primary. By the time we get to the November election it’s too late to stomp your feet!