Katie Pavlich: 'There Aren't as Many Conservatives in the Country as We Thought'

PJ Media ^ | 8-14-2016 | Christian Toto

[Sir Napsalot]

The weekend's last RedState Gathering panel tried to keep a stiff upper lip in the face of the Trump Revolution.

Only reality kept getting in the way.

Katie Pavlich, a Townhall editor and Fox News contributor, spoke what was probably on many attendees' minds Sunday. She clearly didn't take any joy in putting it out there.

"There aren't as many conservatives in the country as we thought there were," Pavlich said during the last of three intellectually packed days in Denver. The rise of Donald Trump, compounded with avowed socialist Bernie Sanders, made that all too clear over the past six months.

"When people like [conservative Sen.] Ben Sasse are the 'enemy,' we're in a really bad spot," she added.

Pavlich shared the stage with Townhall.com's Guy Benson, RedState Managing Editor Leon Wolf and radio talker Erick Erickson.

The focus? Moving forward after Election Day.

No votes have been tallied yet, but the panel agreed on the outcome. Trump will lose, and lose badly to Hillary Clinton.

(snip)

The group pointed to leaders like Carly Fiorina, Josh Hawley and Sasse in particular as reasons for optimism.

"These are some good people, and they're on our team," Benson said.

[Vendome]

Bingo...

[ThePatriotsFlag]

Yes we are still here Katy...you just don’t notice us now that you’ve gone over to the dark side with the National Review crowd.

[hsmomx3]

Katie is a whiny anti-Trump kind of gal.

[hsmomx3]

Her voice gets on my nerves, too....

[Nacho Bidnith]

“...... he needs to get off the media attacks and on message fast”

I can see why she wants him to stop the media attacks, since the most prominent #NeverTrumper’s ARE the media.

[Balding_Eagle]

Donald Trump is incorrect on bathroom gender invasion policies

I'm quite sure Trumps position on that is that the states, not the Federal Government, should decide.

Please correct me if I'm wrong on that.

[Nifster]

Glenn voted for Obama in 2008

[Nifster]

You are correct

Katie is a doofus

[Chgogal]

The snotty, snooty, millennial Witch with a “B” speaketh. Who cares what she says. She IS wrong.

[jpsb]

This is it, either we win in November with Trump or we lose the country to the globalist Marxists FOREVER. Hillary legalizes tens of millions of illegals and gives the democrats a super majority FOREVER. Hillary appoints three Marxists to the Supreme Court and the Constitution is dead FOREVER. Hillary brings in millions of Muslim "refugees" and our culture is dead FOREVER.

The above are the stakes in this election and I will never forgive or forget any so called "conservative" that does not go all in for Trump. Especially those that broke their pledge to do so.

The #NeverTrupers are war time deserters, they should be ashamed of themselves and they deserve to be shunned by all patriotic Americans. .

[Balding_Eagle]

Trump is the only hope but he needs to get off the media attacks and on message fast

Give this a moments thought; What if the media were honest in it's reporting on both Trump and Hillary, and I don't mean squishy, but hard hitting and FAIR to both of them? With equally difficult questions and followups during interviews? Razor sharp assessments of their rally speeches? And as equally hard hitting and fair about their supporters?

Do you think they would be tied in the polls?

I don't, I think it would be at least 65% Trump over Hillary, and maybe even 75% Trump over Hillary at 25%.

If you agree with that assessment, who is the real enemy Donald is fighting?

[wild74]

Just goes to show that you don’t know what a true conservative is.

[Cen-Tejas]

Ditto

[Agamemnon]

I was not a Trump supporter during the primary and I don’t believe he has morphed into a solid conservative across the board, but he is on the right side of the key issues of the day (illegal immigration, Obamacare) and he has shown the willingness to fight to roll them back.

I am exactly where you are.

My time in the conservative movement goes back to Goldwater in 1964 and his "Conscience of a Conservative." We are talking about a time before the ascendancy of Reagan to the governorship of CA in 1966, and watching Nixon beat back the domestic anti-Vietnam communists in two electoral wins in 1968 and 1972.

I am talking about a time 16 years before Ronald Reagan finally won his first landslide in 1980.

I am talking about a time 32 years before FreeRepublic was launched.

Some of us have been both in the trenches and carrying the flame of conservatism for a very long time. With the exception of Reagan we've been betrayed and poorly led for decades.

Trump has not been a conservative in both word and deed for very long, but I believe he can do significant damage to both the (D)s and the GOPe who have sold out America for their own parochial interests for far too long.

Pavlich and Sasse are correct to say Trump is not conservative - and by that I mean a "movement conservative" like myself. The savaging of many movement conservatives by "Johnny-come-lately's" on this board has been galling in fact.

When Cruz said "Vote your Conscience," I heard, "Vote the 'Conscience of a Conservative.'" I am betting a lot of movement conservatives did too, and we are all smart enough to know we have only one choice this Fall and that that one choice is Trump.

Trump may not yet have the "Conscience of a Conservative" as I might prefer, but there is still time for him to mature under the tutelage of folks like Mike Pence and Jeff Sessions.

Trump should consider mending fences with Cruz. Trump was able to walk back a few things with Kelly, when she did her 1-on-1 interview with him later in TrumpTower, and I think he could do so with Cruz too. A public hand shake would go a long way and would rally the party faithful.

At the moment Trump appears to be more interested wooing the disaffected Bernie supporters than the Cruz supporters, who as represented at the Convention amounted to 25% of those who would and could be his base. Trump could make good use of Cruz's superior ground organization.

Point is this: I believe Trump can with time become movement conservative once given the power to trash those RINOs in the GOPe who have been holding back the progress of movement conservatism for generations every bit as much as any (D) has.

And in this way, I am hopeful for Trump and for his resounding victory this fall.

Let it start with mending fences.

FReegards!

[Pelham]

“When people like [conservative Sen.] Ben Sasse are the ‘enemy,’ we’re in a really bad spot,” she added.

That’s true, but just not in the way that Katie Pavlich intends it.

[higgmeister]

Note how the (R) wing of the Uniparty has tried (with some success) to usurp the term “conservative”.

You remember a time when there was such a thing as a Democrat Conservative such as Larry McDonald, Zell Miller, and Sam Nunn. I even voted for Zell Miller.

[sport]

If the Democrats and Elite Republicans manage to steal the election for Hillary, there won’t be a next time.

[stars & stripes forever]

There aren’t as many GULLIBLE AMERICANS in the country as they thought and TRUMP/PENCE will win in a landslide.

[Pelham]

“Or do the never Trump idiots turn out to be people you just don’t like. Like the obnoxious kid in high school.”

As one FR wit said these were kids who convinced themselves that they were the smartest in the 6th grade- no one liked them then and no one likes them now.

[Pelham]

good post