Bill has nothing to worry about.
I read somewhere else this morning that Delay's fundraising has set a new record high in the last three months. The democrats tactics continue to backfire.
The connect the dots exercise is fine.All too well known here at FR maybe. Question is, what is the GOP gonna do about it?
Can we also PLEASE throw up some shameless, focussed, disingenuous, victory-at-all-costs politicians in the Dem mould?
Come to think of it, the conservative movement has ceded critical areas like education, popular culture and civil rights to the leftie-libs. A blunder of such proportions is not w/o consequences. Unless we conservatives see another survival threatening crisis, I doubt we'll do what is necessary, unabashedly, to win....
You think Conservatives are being criminalized now? Wait till Hillary gets into the White House. They'll be putting them into concentration (excuse me, re-education) camps.
Conservativss are held to the absolute letter of the law, even when trying their best to avoid violating any law, they sometimes fail. Now I don't think Delay has even done that.
On the other hand we have corruption by Liberals on a massive scale with stealing elections, stealing money, selling secrets to the enemy, sexual pervision, the list goes on and on. If anyone tries to hold them accountable, they are attacked in the most vicious manner by the media, and Democratic apparatus.
It really is that shocking.
Kristol has truly lost his mind, but then I never thought he had much of an intellect.
More like a useful idiot for McCain.
bflr
"If criminalization is seen to loom ahead for every conservative who begins successfully to act out his or her beliefs in government or politics, is the project of conservative reform sustainable?"
Yep! See the 2nd amendment. That's why it's there.
Excellent title and excellent article.
First of all, conservative Republicans do NOT control the legislative branch, which of course, hamstrings the President. The legislative branch is controlled by a cabal of Senate Democrats and RINO's.......and when you get right down to it, the Senate is controlled by 6 or 7 faux Republicans in the McCain, Chaffee, Snowe mold. One might also add to this the "gang of 14" which deftly seized control in the judicial appointments process, again hamstringing the President.
Second, Republican solons don't know how to fight back and they never have. They are not alley-cat fighters like the Dems have always been. This pussiness is always praised by purists as being something "noble". About as "noble" as the phoney Nobel peace prizes.
Right off the bat, the "new tone" in DC disarmed the GOP victors. It lulled them, and soon, they preferred the state of lullness to any meaningful confrontations. The GOP elected hierarchy are, for the most part, paper tigers big on talk, short on wielding the big stick.
Mr. Krystal, you know the answer to your own question as well as we, you are just too delicate, sensitive and wussy to articulate it. Perhaps you fear a more manly critique of the fighting spirit of the DC GOP might hurt sales of your magazine. If so, then you are part of the problem.
Years ago, GOP "compassionate conservatism" in DC morphed into "dispassionate conservatism".....and therein lies the rub.
Leni
Kristol is such a glowing moderate that I'm rather surprised he could wrap his head around this concept, pleasantly surprised.
The criminality of dissenting opinion is a central tenet of leftist strategy and rhetoric. These specific cases are merely the public tip of a very large iceberg.
Out here in the trenches, even the dimmest liberal conformist sheep know that the first reaction to criticism, dissent, or opposition should be to represent such opposition as a criminal attack on liberal rights. Last week, I spoke with a high school English teacher who was almost comically obtuse about this.
She literally could not conceive of the idea that criticizing, say, the Dixie Chicks was not a criminal attack on their rights. She had no conception of the irony of pretending that total stone silence from those with certain opinions was the only way to protect "free expression."
Two generations of Americans have now been indoctrinated to believe implicitly in these imaginary rights for liberals and leftists: the right to the forum of their choice, the right to an audience, the right to financial support, and the right to be taken seriously.
I haven't had much use for Kristol in recent years, although he was a hero in the old days. But he's right on target here.
What can we do about it? How about getting some backbones and fighting back? You can't blame the Democrats for using dirty tactics if they always work.
For one thing, why on earth have the Republicans kept that silly rule that the leader of the house has to step down if he is indicted? That's nothing but an invitation to indict, and as we have seen here it certainly doesn't contribute to what must have been the purpose of this stupid rule, that Republicans are cleaner than Democrats. Just the opposite. It give the media a free opportunity to say that Republicans are dirtier than Democrats. Get rid of that rule!
Also, why do we always agree to hold hearing and appoint investigative commissions, while the Democrats just dig in their heels and refuse? Under the rules Republicans seem to agree to, an indicted Republican is in a weaker position than a convicted Democrat.
Even Kristol, complaining about this, says that politics are more polarized than ever. Sure, but not equally. The Democrats have pulled out all the stops, while the Republicans just sit their with weak grins on their faces. How about fighting back?
NEOCON ALERT!