“Dealing with conservatives is like dealing with terrorists. You have to be right 100% of the time. If you are wrong once, you are dead to them.”
That’s not true. A lot of us conservatives are pragmatists. We’ve just gotten burned too many times to not be cynical about holding our noses and voting for some non-conservative moderate.
Some of us were very nervous that Trump was not a long-term ideological conservative. However, he’s performed more like a conservative than ANY president in my lifetime including Reagan.
He has kept his promises more than any politician I can recall.
Glad that Levin and people like myself were proved wrong and Trump is our president. I, unlike Levin, jumped on the bandwagon when it was apparent that he was going to beat Cruz.
The problem you are frustrated by is not conservatism; it is perfectionism which translates into ideological purism in politics. Sometimes this is a greater threat to success than the opposition.
There are some folks here that cannot cope with dissent or disagreement. I don't mind. I am a bit socially liberal, a bit mind you, as I have had a lot of good experiences with some folks that most here would not associate with. It's more enjoyable to have a nice healthy debate or argument than it is to call each other names and walk away. I have not always been this way, not by a long shot.
I also don't drink and post anymore which makes me less aggressive and more pliable. I miss my drunk drinking buddies. We had some pretty wild animated debates when we were drinking but we were always fine when we walked away. Or at least the next day, or week...
I am a highly principled conservative, and I decided to vote for Trump the day he announced.
I think that qualifies as common-sense pragmatism.