Posted on 11/27/2015 7:56:40 AM PST by Isara
I have a column up at RollCall today suggesting that the GOP should root for a Ted Cruz vs. Marco Rubio clash. Cruz, skilled at channeling indignation, is a better choice than Trump—if the “populist” lane wants a candidate who can beat Hillary. Likewise, Rubio, who can communicate compassion and optimism, would stand a much better chance in the so-called “establishment” lane than Jeb Bush.
But aside from the fact that Cruz has a better chance of beating Hillary Clinton than Donald Trump, I’m constantly hearing from Republicans who believe he is more cunning and “flexible” than he is an ideologue. The good news it that this might mean he can pivot and run a more centrist General Election campaign in 2016.
The suggestion is that his bluster in the U.S. Senate and on the campaign trail has been the product of a very smart and calculating politician who might eventually move to the center—when that suits his interests. (The fact that Cruz formerly worked in the Bush administration is cited as evidence that at least some of his current image is a reinvention—which suggests he might one day reinvent himself again.)
One smart conservative even recently suggested to me that Ted Cruz is a modern Richard Nixon.
No—nobody is suggesting Cruz is “Nixonian” in the sweaty, paranoid Watergate burglary sense of the term. Instead, the idea is that Cruz might follow Nixon’s path—which was to be an ambitious young conservative in a hurry, who then transformed into a savvy centrist in order to win the White House and govern.
Remember, Nixon was once seen as a hard-core Right-winger. The whole reason Eisenhower selected Nixon as his running mate was to balance the ticket—and keep the GOP’s Taft wing inside the tent. Running against Helen Gahagan Douglas, the anti-Communist Nixon once even famously declared she was “Pink right down to her underwear.” As Ross Douthat recently noted, “Nixon knew how to channel an angry, ‘who's looking out for me?’ populism without letting himself be imprisoned by its excesses.” Sound familiar?
But later, Nixon became a champion of affirmative action, the EPA, and all sorts of liberal policies. It was ironic, which is exactly why the expression “Only Nixon can go to China” exists.
It’s impossible to predict the future, but trust me when I tell you this theory is widely believed and whispered about. There is a real sense that Cruz, having rounded up the support of grassroots conservatives who might propel him to the GOP nomination, could later pivot—and run as a “kinder, gentler” Cruz. He certainly has the credentials, pedigree, and moxie to pull it off. And, frankly, it might not be all bad. As Douthat averred, “there are times, and this might be one of them, when the country needs a little Nixon.”
Liberals have no principles and do not understand those who do
Yup, the uniparty/msm received their instructions and are now carrying them out dutifully.
Well I’d never compare Cruz to Nixon. Nixon in my book was a horrible President even without the Watergate mess. I don’t believe he should’ve resigned but that aside he was a progressive Republican. Nixon was far more like Obama than Cruz in policy and demeanor.
Hillary Clinton is the new Nixon.
LOL! You certainly have a point! And, we are getting the business from both sides. I remain curious how the seed ever got planted, like this one:
” Are Trump and Cruz in a deal? “
Who started that one, outside of our own imagination?
Ditto.
Cruz has a better chance of beating Hillary Clinton than Donald Trump,LOL! They're propping up Cruz over Trump because they know Cruz can't beat Hillary...And because of blind faith you took the bait, hook, line and sinker.
liberals are a bunch of rabid crap flinging monkeys.And yet they seem to win more often than not.
The Greatest Generation voted for Nixon. Today, we have the Me, All Me and FU Give Me generation.
That is what the Washington cartel/media are pushing.
I absolutely do not buy that.
Cruz will win the battle with Trump and ironically the MSM may help and give more citizens a chance see Cruz in action.
not to mention the fact that Cruz doesn’t even believe the establishment bullshit that moving to the center is how you win general elections. History proves otherwise.
Isn't that how our Faux King President Obama got elected ?
Only an idiot fights on the enemy’s terms and the idiots are rushing to do exactly that.
Marketing tactic to create a sense of curiosity, or even validation.
Well, that and a need to confuse the LIVs.
Yabutt only 10% of the way H->! is in those categories.
Cruz’s greatest strength is that he has been the one politician to take a consistent series of principled stands against the Establishment.
This line of argument is designed to damage him with his base because the Establishment is afraid of him and they hate him. It will not work, and it must not.
If anyone’s the “Nixon” in this race (in the way that the article describes), it’s Donald Trump.
Thinking ahead what direction to take ;
FOCUS ON THE SENATE
Arguments and presentations in RINO quarters against Cruz should be expected. This is why conservatives in certain states should be focusing on Senate candidates who do believe in controlling the purse and getting the government out of our bedrooms, kitchens, backyards, churches, and schools.
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Even if it meant resorting to defunding and government shutdowns.
And by campaigning using those issues and asking why the go along, get alongs bipartisans refused to use these tactics which should have been applied with this bunch of socialistas bent on destroying this country.
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