Posted on 01/21/2016 9:06:53 AM PST by Isara
It’s pretty clear Donald Trump isn’t a conservative. The problem is many voters in the Republican Party think he is. These voters are real, they care about the constitutional principles that make America exceptional, and Trump needs them. He can’t afford to have the base of the Republican Party leave him for Ted Cruz.
This is why he needed Sarah Palin’s endorsement. This is why he went to Liberty University and talked about “2 Corinthians.” This is why Cruz’s comment about New York values was problematic for him. Many pundits made the mistake after the last debate of thinking the comment would hurt Cruz. It didn’t. It opened the door for everyone to see how liberal Trump truly is. This exchange with Tim Russert is damming (emphasis mine):
Russert: Do you think homosexuals should get married?
Trump: It’s not something I’ve given a lot of thought to. I live in New York City, and there’s a tremendous movement on to have and allow gay marriages, something that is too premature for me to comment on.
Russert: How about gays serving in the military?
Trump: It would not disturb me. I mean, hey, I lived in New York City and Manhattan all my life, ok, so my views are a little different than if I lived in Iowa perhaps, but it’s not something that would disturb me.
Russert: Partial birth abortion. The eliminating of abortion in the third trimester. Big issue in Washington. Would President Trump ban partial birth abortion?
Trump: I’m very pro-choice, and again, it may be a little bit of a New York background, because there is some different attitude in different parts of the country, and, you know, I was raised in New York and grew up and worked and everything else in New York City.
Russert: So you would not ban it?
Trump: No, I am pro-choice in every respect.
Trump’s own words are a ringing endorsement of his liberal values, and despite the whining from the New York crowd about Cruz’s comments, Trump knew he had a problem. He had to fix it. He clearly says in the Russert interview that New York values are very different from Iowa’s values. And with the Iowa caucus not far off, he had to do something to stop the bleeding. Enter Palin: the conservative darling of the Tea Party.
Many are applauding her endorsement and predicting how it will strengthen Trump’s support among conservatives. Maybe it will, maybe it won’t. That depends on the conservatives—whether they’re already in his camp or thinking about joining it. It’s to these conservatives that I ask this question: If Trump is indeed repentant of his liberal sins—if he is actually a conservative—then why does he need Palin? Why not stand on his own as the true conservative in the race?
And here’s another question: If he is not a conservative—which appears to be the case, because he does, in fact, need Palin—then why would she support him? She’s supposed to be a conservative, right? If he’s not a conservative, then why endorse him? Why not endorse a true conservative?
Of course, none of us can really answer that last question because we don’t live in Palin’s mind. Whether it’s hunger for the spotlight, a promised place in the Trump administration, personal loyalty to a friend, money, or simply that she thinks he can win and believes the shtick that he’ll make America great again, the fact remains: she is abandoning her conservative principles to support Trump.
Should conservative voters do the same? Should conservatives sacrifice their principles on the altar of populist passion and pride? This is the only question that matters. Personalities don’t matter. Celebrity doesn’t matter. Promises made in the heat of campaign rallies don’t matter. Roaring rhetoric on a debate stage doesn’t matter. All that matters is this: Do you believe in conservative principles or don’t you?
If you do, your candidate is not Donald Trump. Palin’s endorsement doesn’t bolster his conservative credentials—it proves they don’t exist.
Where do you stand, conservatives? The time to choose is now. Up to this point, many of us who call ourselves constitutional conservatives have been silent in our support of any one candidate. We’ve been watching patiently as we’ve seen Trump take a wrecking ball to the Establishment. We didn’t attack Trump for his liberalism or his authoritarianism or even his elitism because we wanted him to continue to tear down the Establishment elites. It had to be done. They were the oozing scab that needed to be ripped off, so we could get to the infection underneath. Trump was the man to do that—and he’s done it well. We conservatives who have been fighting for America for years stood aside, even applauded, and often explained the reasons for the rise of Trump populism.
But we never believed for a minute that Trump should be president. We saw him as clearing a path for another, for a true constitutional conservative. That could have been one of many early on (Rick Perry, Rand Paul, Ben Carson), but now there is really only one: Ted Cruz. Now is the time to rally around him as the candidate who can channel the forces of populism in a principled conservative direction.
Granted, many populists won’t want to come along because they have never held to conservative principles. But that’s not the case for others. Many Trump supporters are conservative to their core, but they have populist sensibilities and sympathies. It’s to you that I’m making this appeal. The Trump juggernaut has done its job. It’s time to leave him and support the candidate who is truly committed to the Constitution, who respects states’ powers, who values individual rights, who is unquestionably pro-life, who understands the need to make our military strong in defense of this nation, and who is willing to repeal Obamacare. It’s time to support the true conservative in the race who has actually fought for your rights and liberties.
If conservatives fail to make a decision to stand for constitutional principles now that the Trump wrecking ball has done its job, then the unprincipled populist genie will never be put back in its bottle. It will continue to grow bigger and bigger until the reasoned voices of those who are actually fighting for our country are silenced.
If you’re still not swayed and are drawn to the populist ideals over your core principles, consider this: Trump isn’t a populist either. He made that clear when he made the following statement about getting deals done in Washington: “You get Congress, you get ‘em together, you get everybody together in a room, you cajole, you get along, you have dinner, and you make deals.”
Are those the words of a populist? Is a populist someone who wants to cozy up to politicians who rip our Constitution to shreds and sell out hard-working Americans to Wall Street cronies? Does a populist want to have dinner with the Establishment elites and Leftists while the people wonder what’s happened to their country? Maybe they’ll have a scotch and a nice Ramon Allones cigar. Maybe finish it off with a round of golf at Trump International. Is that a populist? Is that a fighter? Is that a leader who speaks for the people?
Clearly, the answer is no. Trump isn’t a conservative and he’s not a populist. Think on it. Think on it hard. Your rights and liberties hang in the balance. Your children’s future is at stake. If you’re still in doubt about the first point, ask yourself: Why did he need Sarah Palin? If you’re still in doubt about the second, ask yourself: Why does the Establishment want Trump and not Cruz?
It’s time for conservatives to make a choice. Stand for reason and constitutional principles or abandon them for madness and power.
Im not voting conservative vs liberal this election as much as im voting nationalist vs NWO internationalist.
Issue number one is the border. If that isn’t solved FIRST, there will be no conservatism to argue about because we will be an American EU with Canada and Mexico.
There is a reason they are bringing in tens of millions of Mexicans. Its so when they want to have national votes on the American EU, half of mexico will already be here.
Give it up. We’re not stupid and you’re not smarter.
We want Trump!
“The problem is many voters in the Republican Party think he is.”
Writer still doesn’t get it after all this time.
Constitutional Conservatism is my choice.
Anything else is progressive scumbaggery.
It is also clear that the Republican Party is not conservative either.
But at at least The Donald is a different kind of “not a conservative”, than the Republican Party.
When you are going through Hell, keep going. The only way out is through.
Check out the Constitution Party.
The Republicans are once again telling us that the solution to the Democrats driving us off a cliff at 80 MPH is to do it on the Republican bus at 70 MPH. And the notion that Trump is on a different trajectory is silly, he’s very much a part of the Republicrat mindset. Political salvationism is always absurd, but with Trump it has become self-parody.
In reality it’s now, more than ever that we have to ask ourselves who is thew most electable person that will effectuate the change we need. I think Trump fits that mold right now, though I would like to see a more conservative person hold that title.
If he wins the nomination I will vote for him.
If Trump is the nominee, I will vote for him.
See how simple it is?
This is my position as well. While I have all sorts of doubts and fears and suspicions about Trump (and I still consider Cruz to be about as perfect a candidate as we can get at this stage of the game), Trump and Cruz supporters have got to stop the animosity. If one side gets mad and has a hissy fit (staying home in November), then we're doomed. Don't do this!
Support your man in the primary and the winner in November!
Again, I feel like Trump is he first in what I hope is a long line and hopefully each one better than the previous.
The key to recovery of America as the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave is really not elected officials, but the American People re-taking ownership of THEIR Constitution and THEIR freedoms.
No way! The "Constitution Party" (formerly the "Taxpayers' Party") is a front for the Rushdoonyan "reconstructionists" in the John Birch Society. They are moreover anti-Jewish and anti-Israel as all get-out.
They don't worship the One True G-d, they worship an American national "gxd" (as to many Trump apologists, in my opinion).
The vote this year will be on one issue.
Illegal immigration
...and with it, people tired of politicians ignoring that the immigrants are “illegal.”
That leaves one candidate who is not pandering on the subject.
Trump.
I agree, the American people have to take charge, but our government has been doing a great many things for a long long while that are not in line with what it was mandated to do (from the lowly municipality all the way up to and including the fed gov).
I’ve never seen anything anti-Semitic from the Constitution Party (and I understand it’s founder to be of Jewish descent himself). I’m not at any rate. I’ve also never noted a link between them and JBS, if they even exist any more.
Let’s say there was an element in the Constitution Party that did harbor such views - would it invalidate their platform? The danger here is that conservatives keep breaking into factions and marginalizing themselves with purity tests that are not necessary. It’s quite necessary to recognize who is on the right side of the fence (which is why I reject most Republicans as unacceptable “republicats” for example), but beyond that I’d say we need to agree to disagree on non-foundational issues.
So, you believe that Trump will attack our rights and liberties as the current occupant of the White House has done?
My message is mainly constitutional state sovereignty and nullification of unconstitutional federal acts which by definition are acts of tyranny. That is independent state action by the people of that state and can and should happen right away.
The other effort which I support is the CoSG proposed Convention of States, but it is much more lengthy and requires multi-state cooperation and exactitude in every step.
I focus mainly on state nullification because first it strengthens constitutional state sovereignty concepts and can be done immediately.
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