Posted on 03/02/2016 5:20:51 AM PST by Kaslin
Is Joe Scarborough having his Colonel Nicholson moment?
That's what I wondered Monday morning as I watched the host of MSNBC's "Morning Joe" insist that Donald Trump's inability and unwillingness to simply and plainly denounce the Ku Klux Klan in a Sunday CNN interview was "disqualifying."
For those who might not have seen "The Bridge on the River Kwai," it's partly the story of British Lt. Col. Nicholson, played by Alec Guinness. Nicholson, a prisoner of war held by the Japanese, convinces himself that he and his men should help his captors build a strategically invaluable bridge over the Kwai River. Nicholson thinks that if he shows the Japanese what good British discipline is all about, he will win some kind of moral victory. Of course, if they finish the railway bridge, the Japanese military will win an actual victory.
Only at the last minute -- spoiler alert -- does Nicholson realize the error of his ways. "My God, what have I done?" he says with his last breaths as he falls on the TNT plunger, destroying the very bridge he built just seconds before a Japanese train goes over it.
Nothing so dramatic transpired on "Morning Joe," where Scarborough and co-host Mika Brzezinski have been among Trump's most valuable boosters for nearly a year. And will likely remain that way. Indeed, it may be too late to stop the Trump train anyway.
But it would be nice to hear "My God, what have I done?" from a lot of people. A rich mixture of resentment (both misplaced and well-earned), incompetence, wishful thinking, greed and celebrity worship has led us to where we are: An intellectually and ideologically unqualified, and often unhinged, demagogue is poised to become the Republican nominee for president.
For months, GOP pooh-bahs, cable personalities (including some friends and colleagues of mine at Fox News), talk radio hosts and politicians stood by and watched -- or cheered -- as Trump built his populist cult of personality almost unopposed. Now that Trump has a personal relationship, as it were, with his followers, he can do no wrong.
Trump famously joked that he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue and not lose his support. That remains to be seen, but he can play rhetorical footsie with the KKK, reveal that he thinks judges "sign bills," subscribe to vile "truther" explanations of 9/11 and the Iraq War, embrace the health-care mandate, traffic in reprehensible sectarian tribalism and vow to weaken the First Amendment so he can exact vengeance on journalists who don't kowtow to his Brobdingnagian ego -- yet not shake loose his fans.
That "success" has bred more success, as politicians jump on board the train. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie set a torch to his integrity by endorsing a man who stands against nearly everything Christie once claimed to believe, Christie has confirmed all the darker aspects of his reputation as a cynical, self-interested, spiteful bully.
Many decent and sincere Republicans, in and out of the Republican leadership, have been operating on the assumption that Trump will fade and that the gravest threat is a third-party run by the dean of Trump University. There was a time when that concern was defensible. But once it became clear that he was favored to win the nomination outright, Republicans should have realized that a third-party run was more like a best-case scenario.
Better the GOP do battle with a know-nothing bigot (and lose the presidency) than become the party of know-nothing bigots (and still lose the presidency).
That's why I embrace the Twitter hashtag #NeverTrump, initiated by conservative talk show host Erick Erickson. For too long, Trump has benefited from the assumption that the non-Trump faction of the party will be "reasonable" and support the nominee. Such thinking paves the road to power for demagogues.
Trump says he gets along with everybody and will unify the country, even as he suggests that an inconvenient judge is biased because he's Latino, vows to ban all Muslims from the country, insists his Central Intelligence Agency will torture people, and boasts that he will declare war on disloyal journalists.
When your opponent is that unreasonable, the reasonable response is not surrender.
I don't know whether Trump will win the nomination or the presidency. But I am fairly certain that if he does, a great many people will one day say, "My God, what have I done?"
Get over it Jonah!!! If Trump wins, it will be IN SPITE of manufactured nothing-burgers like this:
Its hard to get over a cult of personality ...
The butt hurt of the establishment class is strong. It is fun to see.
Do we have to hear this childish drivel. Whatever Trump has ever done.. he’s exposed the “righteous” media... the powerful media... the self elected media... go on and on about the horrible thought of losing their powerful position in their elite club. Exposed as to who they are and what they actually think. They all can be listed as liars, performers, and were able to fool most of the people most of the time.. (past tense).
There sure are a lot of people out there auditioning for the part of Joseph Goebbels and the “big lie” technique. Goldberg has now thrown his hat into the ring, along with Kristol, Krauthammer, Goldstein, Diamond, Podhoretz, Milbank, almost an endless stream of them.
to put this in perspective...... who is the worst enemy of America?
The KKK or CNN?
Trump and all the others should denounce CNN
Jonah Goldbrick: Go to hell and take NR with you.
“For months, GOP pooh-bahs, cable personalities (including some friends and colleagues of mine at Fox News), talk radio hosts and politicians stood by and watched — or cheered — as Trump built his populist cult of personality almost unopposed.”
“almost unopposed”????
That is a prime example of historical revisionism, besides being a blatant lie. Trump has been opposed by those he mentioned from day one.
Jonah Goldberg is becoming more unhinged in his pursuit of his Trump-hate.
These articles seem less like well thought out essays and more like disconnected ramblings every day.
Kiss my a$$ Jonah.
“Its hard to get over a cult of personality”
For the most part I do not believe the current level of support has anything to do with the man, Trump.
Trump found the message that resonant with many people, he is their voice.
It is not his personality, it is the message.
This would explain why all these ad hominem attacks fail.
So if you truly believe that all his support is because of a “cult of personally” it just shows you do not understand what is really going on.
That's a childish slur. It simply proves your inability to see the world as it is.
This whole Trump/KKK thing is a manufactured ‘macaca’ issue, part of the ‘full Mississippi’ character assassination treatment that is being organized against Trump by the GOPe and either willfully or gullibly propagated by many in the media.
Get over IT; not everyone supports Cruz or Rubio.
Preferably a Col Jessup Moment!
***
Remember how the media demonized Obama when he spoke at KKK Kleagle Bobby Byrds funeral. I don’t either.
20% dems which is a very high number have crossed over in a spoiler to ensure a hildabeast win. The usual is 5%.
This is why I never trusted Joe. Joe is too PC.
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