Posted on 02/11/2016 7:57:59 AM PST by SeekAndFind
You can read his extended comments at his website. A Twitter pal tagged me this afternoon after Rush said this and claimed that he’d just endorsed Cruz; Redditors are interpreting it the same way. It does seem to follow logically that the biggest name in conservative talk radio, who’s been preaching Reagan conservatism to millions for 30 years, is dropping an endorsement when he calls a candidate the next best thing to Reagan himself. (Rush quasi-endorsed Mitt Romney in the 2008 primary in a similar way, complimenting him as the only Republican candidate who represented all three legs of the conservative stool.) But I assume Rush himself will deny that tomorrow, partly because he doesn’t formally endorse candidates in primaries and partly because of the noteworthy caveat he drops here:
They were going left as fast as Deion Sanders can backpedal. They were moving left faster than anybody I’ve ever seen go left. And I opened the program yesterday saying, “You will never, ever have to worry about that with Ted Cruz.” And then I expanded on it. And let me say one thing: If conservatism is your bag, if conservatism is the dominating factor in how you vote, there is no other choice for you in this campaign than Ted Cruz, because you are exactly right: This is the closest in our lifetimes we have ever been to Ronald Reagan.
In terms of doctrinaire, understandable, articulated, implementable conservatism, there’s nobody closer. But I think the electorate at this point in time… We don’t know, Brian. If you look at Trump’s coalition, there’s a lot of assumptions being made about it, because he’s running as a Republican and in the Republican primary, and it’s assumed the Republican base is who’s voting here. Therefore, it’s assumed the majority of Trump’s coalition’s conservatives. And there are a lot.
But he’s broad. He’s all over the spectrum.
That’s the last eight months of Trumpmania and talk radio synthesized in one bit of audio. We’ve got the truest conservative candidate since Reagan in the race this year, which, one would think, would merit some sort of enthusiastic endorsement — but Rush puts the brakes on. Cruz is the candidate you should support if “conservatism is your bag.” At best, it’s a qualified endorsement. Hearing that on his show of all places, that you may want to consider this or that if you’re into conservatism, is like hearing someone on the NFL Network say you may want to consider this or that if you’re into football. On the one hand, he’s simply recognizing reality: As he himself recently said, for some people (although not for him) “nationalism and populism have overtaken conservatism in terms of appeal.” True enough. For those people, Trump’s the guy. On the other hand, Cruz is facing a primary in 10 days that may very well decide the fate of the Republican nomination. Given the stakes there, with South Carolina forced to choose between a true-blue disciple of Reagan and a populist who seems capable of smashing the Republican coalition, the vote on February 20th is arguably the most momentous night the conservative movement will have experienced since 1980. If talk radio, which has been preaching conservative populism since the Reagan era, wants to give Cruz a boost over the nationalist Trump, now would seem to be the time. The fact that the quasi-endorsement comes with a qualifier anyway — vote Cruz, if conservatism’s your thing — feels like a bad sign. Just one more reason why I think Trump’s a heavy favorite for the nomination.
Actually, there’s another significant element to this clip. Would Rush praise Cruz quite so effusively, implicitly elevating him over Rubio (and everyone else) in terms of his conservative credentials, if he thought Rubio was still a plausible nominee? Remember, Rush has had warm words for Rubio lately, defending him as a bona fide conservative despite attacks on Rubio from the right that he’s some establishment water carrier. If Rubio had finished a strong second last night, creating a three-way race with Trump and Cruz, Rush might have felt obliged to hedge on Cruz being Reagan’s true heir or even included Rubio in the praise. Some of this, I think, is him bowing to the reality that, at least for the moment, Cruz is the only game in town if you want to stop Trump before he’s unstoppable.
“The latter is questionable as well since he voted AGAINST the TPA.”
Convenient amnesia on your part. Cruz worked with Ryan, and against Sessions, to help roll out TPA. He then voted for TPA, and when his vote was not needed, his handlers gave him permission to vote against it the second time. Google it.
Rush is right on Trump/Populist
Rush is wrong on Rubio/Conservative
RE: Your Canadian Preacher Cruz had ZERO experience. I can tell you, after election defeat, he had look for other profession.
Solicitor General who argued 9 cases in the Supreme Court and Senator are considered ZERO?
How much experience did Abraham Lincoln have prior to running for President?
“He simply defended ONE STATEMENT that Rubio made during the NH debate.”
That was Rush’s spin he put on that yesterday.
BEFORE New Hampshire, he said Rubio was a disciple of Reagan and a “full-throated conservative”. He spent days on that.
That is an absolute Crock. Cruz is no Reagan. In an way Reagan wasn’t Reagan. He was never as Conservative as most people think they remember. He was a practical politician that worked to solve problems. Thirty Six years later he has passed into Myth Like Status and people like Rush should know better.
In this day and age trying to run as a so called “Principled” Conservative will not win the Presidency.
With Trump, when he says we will build a wall ... I believe him. When he says we will halt Muslim immigration ... I believe him.
With Cruz, when he says we will repeal every word of ObamaCare, I don't believe him.
Man-O-Man, is there ever a lot of that going on from both camps! Sometimes I look at the Bolshevik posted by the hard core fans of Trump and Cruz and would swear I had stepped into the Twilight Zone.
RE: BEFORE New Hampshire, he said Rubio was a disciple of Reagan and a “full-throated conservativeâ€. He spent days on that.
OK, let’s look at Rubio’s record.
Other than immigration ( which we can argue is similar to Reagan’s because Reagan signed the amnesty bill ), on what other issues he supports or opposes is he not a conservative like Reagan is?
I want some of what Rush is drinking these days. Cruz is no Ronald Reagan either in stature or policy. If I have to choose between him and Trump, it is Trump. And he scares me to death. Cruz would lose and bring down 10 senators and 30 house seats with him. Disaster.
No, he is not. Ted would not IMPOSE his will on Congress. There is ZERO evidence that he would. Trump talked like a freaking socialist the other night, but the excuses his followers make for him are limitless. It reminds me of the Obama cult.
Remember Al Gore with Reagan make-up, hair, and suit at a debate with Dubya? He looked like the jokester. To be yourself, for some people, must be pretty bad.
Golly, there is a surprise, someone working for one candidate and downplaying the qualities of his opponents while singing the praise of their current boss, who could have imagined that!
Why would I care who or what you regard as sacred?
See you don’t get it. Trump will lead people like that by their nose rings to do what he wants and what will be good for the country. That is the kind of “working with” and “consensus building” he talks about all the time. He’s not talking about the status quo “deals” we normally see from status quo politicians: The deals that have got us 19T in debt. He’s so many levels above what we are used to many don’t understand. Listen to what he’s said about it, and think about it for a while. He knows what he’s talking about.
Here’s a start;
At the Olympics in China, Bush walked over to Putin, bent down, and grabbed him and pressed his cheek up against Putin’s head.
You can probably find it on the internet.
Comments?
| Poll | Date | Sample | MoE |
Clinton (D)
|
Trump (R)
|
Spread |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RCP Average | 1/4 - 2/4 | -- | -- | 47.0 | 43.0 | Clinton +4.0 |
| QuinnipiacQuinnipiac | 2/2 - 2/4 | 1125 RV | 2.9 | 46 | 41 | Clinton +5 |
| NBC News/Wall St. JrnlNBC/WSJ | 1/9 - 1/13 | 800 RV | 3.5 | 51 | 41 | Clinton +10 |
| FOX NewsFOX News | 1/4 - 1/7 | 1006 RV | 3.0 | 44 | 47 | Trump +3 |
| Poll | Date | Sample | MoE |
Cruz (R)
|
Clinton (D)
|
Spread |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RCP Average | 1/4 - 2/4 | -- | -- | 46.7 | 45.7 | Cruz +1.0 |
| QuinnipiacQuinnipiac | 2/2 - 2/4 | 1125 RV | 2.9 | 45 | 45 | Tie |
| NBC News/Wall St. JrnlNBC/WSJ | 1/9 - 1/13 | 800 RV | 3.5 | 45 | 49 | Clinton +4 |
| FOX NewsFOX News | 1/4 - 1/7 | 1006 RV | 3.0 | 50 | 43 | Cruz +7 |
| Poll | Date | Sample | MoE |
Rubio (R)
|
Clinton (D)
|
Spread |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RCP Average | 1/4 - 2/4 | -- | -- | 48.0 | 43.0 | Rubio +5.0 |
| QuinnipiacQuinnipiac | 2/2 - 2/4 | 1125 RV | 2.9 | 48 | 41 | Rubio +7 |
| NBC News/Wall St. JrnlNBC/WSJ | 1/9 - 1/13 | 800 RV |
With Cruz, when he says we will repeal every word of ObamaCare, I don’t believe him.
______________________________________________
You don’t? Well then, you must be really happy with Trump and you must believe him when he says he will NOT repeal every word of ObamaCare.
“Yea but Rush never endorses anyone in the primaries...unless he’s getting desperate.”
Yes, that is the claim, but he couldn’t praise Cruz anymore if he officially came out and endorsed him. He gets dreamy when he thinks of Cruz.
RE: You don’t get to tell me what I call sacred.
SAME HERE. You might consider Reagan sacred. I DON’T.
He is a good but flawed individual like the rest of us.
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