The Blame Game (The Trump Ascendancy)

American Rattlesnake ^ | September 9, 2016 | Gerard Perry

[OddLane]

One of the arguments which has preoccupied American journalists-and I’m being generous when I use that term-since Donald Trump’s nomination revolves around who is ultimately responsible for his political ascent. Likewise, conservative Never Trump pundits have spent the last few months assigning blame for his capture of the GOP-offering culprits which range from Barack Obama to the seemingly ubiquitous scapegoat, the social justice warrior. The shared conceit among these two very different groups being that the rise of Trump is a regrettable, even horrifying, political development.

While it’s perfectly understandable why someone who works for The Weekly Standard, Commentary or National Review-or online bastions of never cons like The Federalist and Red State-would believe this to be so, that doesn’t mean it’s a correct assumption. Beyond exposing the foregoing publications for the shallow, utterly worthless institutions they are, Trump has managed to accomplish some things which are equally admirable, regardless of what you may think of him as either a politician or person.

He’s decoupled, perhaps permanently, the Republican Party from the neoconservative/nation-building impulse which has brought discredit not only upon the GOP but the philosophy of conservatism, to say nothing of the cost in lives and treasure to the United States. If the only thing Trump’s campaign accomplished this election cycle was to consign the opinions of John McCain and Lindsey Graham to political irrelevancy, and to force the likes of Robert Kagan and Max Boot to become standard bearers for the Democratic Party, then I would count it a success.

[Lurkinanloomin]

It’s really very simple.

The citizens are fed up ith the illegal alien inundation.

The GOP refused to do anything about it.

Donald Trump said he would.

[lee martell]

Sung to the tune of “The Name Game” by Shirley Ellis;
“Hillary, Hillary, Bo Billary, Banana, Fana, Fo Killary,
Fee-Fi Mo Pillory, Hillary!”

[Alberta's Child]

If the only thing Trump’s campaign accomplished this election cycle was to consign the opinions of John McCain and Lindsey Graham to political irrelevancy, and to force the likes of Robert Kagan and Max Boot to become standard bearers for the Democratic Party, then I would count it a success.

This ought to be etched in stone.

Nothing has done more to damage the image of the Republican Party than George W. Bush and that bunch of @ssholes who were responsible for U.S. foreign policy and military affairs during his administration.

If you have any doubt about that, just consider the political fortunes of the one Republican in the 2016 field whose political future is so thoroughly destroyed that the author didn't even bother using his name when mentioning his "irrelevant" Republicans -- JEB BUSH.

[amnestynone]

The GOP country club amnesty crowd is responsible.We told them time after time not to do this. We wrote letters sent emails visited our Congressman's office and in a hundred and one ways said, “donot do this”. And they kept trying and trying and trying. we finally had enough and searched for someone who would listen to us. We don’t know who is the strongest candidate or who is the most prepared but Trump came thorough loud and clear as to where he stands.If they had listened to us a while ago Marco Rubio or some such person would be nominated and probably on his way to election by a comfortable margin. But,no they would not listed to us. Whether we did right or wrong to nominate someone who listened to us it your country club fault that we had to do this. So mister country club GOP elitist blame yourselves and your greed for cheap labor for nominating Trump. Oh by the way Chamber of Commerce if you want more tax cuts for business and other "job creators" who are hiring everybody who swam across the Rio Grande forget it.

[ClearCase_guy]

A large part of Trump's platform is:

"I will enforce the laws passed by Congress."

This has been sufficient to have him branded as a racist, a bigot, a misogynist, and an idiot. The Democrats hate him for it. The Republicans hate him for it. The media hates him for it.

And millions of We The People shrug and say, "Why wouldn't the president enforce the laws passed by Congress? And can you put Hillary in jail while you're at it?"

[Robert DeLong]

I didn’t know Max Boot was a Russian immigrant.

[PGalt]

If the only thing Trump’s campaign accomplished this election cycle was to consign the opinions of John McCain and Lindsey Graham to political irrelevancy, and to force the likes of Robert Kagan and Max Boot to become standard bearers for the Democratic Party, then I would count it a success.

HOORAY G. Perry!

[OddLane]

Another corollary benefit of the Trump candidacy is that it ensured no more Bushes would occupy the Oval Office.

[Behind the Blue Wall]

Exactly right IMHO. W. left a horrible stain on the Republican Party.

[The_Harlequin]

It would be revealing and instructive if someone were to do a national poll of GOP never Trumpers and ask them who they voted for in their state’s primary. My guess would be that they were mostly Cruz supporters. Any other guesses?

[OddLane]

What amazed me about the Cruz campaign was how brittle its support was.

By the end, even the people who cast ballots for him couldn't stomach him-and said so publicly.

[maine-iac7]

fl

[Luircin]

Cruz is an example of how you can’t fool all the people all of the time.

He talked a good game and managed to capture quite a few conservatives who were thirsting desperately for someone, anyone, to actually stand up for our interests, and he used that to try to further his own ambitions.

But then Trump showed up and proved who was the better candidate, and Cruz fell apart and revealed who he really was. His former supporters probably hate him even more than the people who were opposed to him from the beginning. Just another politician who talks a good game and then shivs us in the back, and we’d sent him money that we couldn’t afford too.

I don’t know why there are still a bunch of sore Cruzers around who loathe Trump with a passion. Sunk cost fallacy, perhaps.

[OddLane]

I think his appearance on GMA was the beginning of the end as far as the Cruz campaign went.