Posted on 02/20/2014 4:18:41 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
"...................................In 1980, Tennessee Senator Howard.....Bakerwho had won the nickname The Great Conciliator and supported President Carters giveaway of the Panama Canalran for president. Reagan, of course, had famously opposed Carter on the Panama Canal issue and incurred the wrath of the GOP establishment by going from one end of America to the other saying we built it, we paid for it, its ours and we should tell Torrijos [then Panamas ruling military dictator] we are going to keep it. Baker lost resoundingly to Reagan. During the 1980 GOP Convention in Detroit, Howard Baker was spotted standing at the rim of the Convention Floor, studying the enthusiastic Reagan delegates. Said Baker in a tone of puzzled astonishment: These arent my people.
And so they werent. Any more than those grassroots Americans preparing to give Senator Cruz a heros welcome are not the people of the GOP establishment that is today so furious with Ted Cruz that a reporter suggests Cruz needs a food taster to attend lunch. There is a disconnect here. A big one. A disconnect between the grassroots base and the establishment. At this point in American history, it should be crystal clear that the reason the GOP has its minority status in the Senatenot to mention that come 2016 it will have been locked out of the White House foris precisely because it rolls over and effectively plays politically dead when push comes to shove.
Simply put, Ted Cruzlike Ronald Reagan before himunderstands what it takes to make a majority. And hes doing it. Over the vociferous objections of the same kind of people who kept warning Republicans that if they listened to Ronald Reagan they would get clobbered. Which is exactly why Ted Cruz is being greeted as a hero.....
(Excerpt) Read more at spectator.org ...
The demonRATs love linda grammy, ole' john{his brokeback buddy} and turtle mcconnell.
They are so fearful of Cruz and us they will jump through hoops to avoid facing him in 2016. No smear or lie will be avoided in the coming months.
I remember Michigan Gov. Milliken was chair of the Bush delegates to the 1980 convention; he made some crack about the Reagan delegates in the delegation consisting of “truck drivers and such”, not the “usual” Republicans. What Gov. Milliken and other members of the Bush faction of the Party needed to realize is that the “usual” or “proper” Republicans of the country club stripe constitute about 2 percent of the US population and are a small minority within the Party. They cannot win without the rest of us, which is why the Bushes would always mouth their adherence to conservative principles right before an election and promptly disavow them after the election.
At this point in American history, it should be crystal clear that the reason the GOP has its minority status in the Senatenot to mention that come 2016 it will have been locked out of the White House foris precisely because it rolls over and effectively plays politically dead when push comes to shove.
Simply put, Ted Cruzlike Ronald Reagan before himunderstands what it takes to make a majority. And hes doing it. Over the vociferous objections of the same kind of people who kept warning Republicans that if they listened to Ronald Reagan they would get clobbered. Which is exactly why Ted Cruz is being greeted as a hero.....
And it isn’t only democrats who want to shut Cruz up - as Jeffery Lord highlights in his piece above.
And the “Big Tent” Republicans would love to replace those truck drivers and NASCAR watchers with more suburban bimbos from hell (h/t Blackelk).
Time for us to turn on the light!
Former Michigan Governor Milliken endorsed Kerry in 2004 and almost “disendorsed” McCain in 2008 for being “too critical” of Obama (who, him??) in the October before the presidential election. Another Charlie Crist/John Lindsay Republican who can find a better home, and more accommodating fellow country club types, in the other party.
Keep drawing that flak senator.
These are the GOPe types who are militant on only one issue, taxes, especially estate taxes. They want to protect their stash, often the money made for them by their grandfathers. Lacking fat inheritances, conservatives are passionate about preserving liberty for their children, the best thing they can leave them.
They are fearful because they see in Cruz the face of the future of the US Senate which will be a lot more conservative.
....And it will fail them.
"Those causes are not being served when Senator Cruz undermines the election chances of the only political party that has any chance of undoing the disasters that Barack Obama has already inflicted on the nation and forestalling new disasters that are visible on the horizon.
There really isn't a question as to whether we, the conglomeration of people who once all called ourselves Republicans, are now two diametrically opposed groups.
One believes in comfortable, second-tier power that is maintained by self delusion and appeasement, and who is maintained in office by voters who have the same delusion Sowell has.
The other group believes in the true meaning of freedom and honest dealings - it believes in the Constitution, not its rewriting. Principles and rule of law, not comfort and appeasing ease that is masked by such things as "show votes".
“...........[TX Sen] Cornyn, the minority whip in the Senate, was introduced at a fundraiser in Longview, Texas, on Sunday by [Karl] Rove.
[TX Sen candidate Steve] Stockman told WND, Rove got on stage and said, John Cornyn is the second-most conservative senator, which begs the question, who is first? Who is the most conservative senator? Is it Mike Lee? Is it Rand Paul? Is it Ted Cruz?
Answering his own question, the congressman continued, No, in 2010 the National Journal ruled that John McCain was the most conservative member of the Senate. So it puts my opponent in an awkward position, because it means John Cornyn is more liberal than John McCain.
Stockman pointed out that Rove and Cornyn do not mention who did the ranking. Indeed, it was the National Journal that declared McCain the Senates most-conservative member in 2010.
The congressman also pointed out that the conservative Heritage Foundation ranked him and Cruz as the most conservative Texans.
As for the poll showing him dramatically gaining ground on Cornyn, Stockman told WND, I am very encouraged. I am hopeful that its true. If it is true, it will rock the establishment and defy the declarations that we are running a horrible campaign and dont know what were doing......
http://www.wnd.com/2014/02/titanic-shift-in-key-senate-race/
A most astute observation!!! Well said.
It reminds me of the times (before an election) when George Bush would show up at NASCAR, chomping on pork rinds. I’m sure he is a nice and decent man (my Dem friends love him as a “model” Republican, always “one of the few” they respect) but I always wondered whether that was due to the fact that outside of foreign policy, he was totally ineffective.
The progressive wing of the GOP is not going to go down without a fight (surrendering is reserved as an approach to the progressives).
The progessives in the GOP have to be eliminated in their districts. The GOP leadership will not take notice otherwise.
But they’re entitled to own and run the GOP. I had a local young GOP volunteer tell me how “they” own the country club. I told him, yeah, that’s the problem. They should be meeting at the Big Boy and not the country club.
I still say I am right on this one though. This year’s midterms could very well become a bigger wave election. Look at the number of Dems who are stepping down. They see the writting on the wall. Count on it.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.