Why so many conservative intellectuals became Trumpists

The Week ^ | February 7, 2017 | Damon Linker

[2ndDivisionVet]

Which GOP do you belong to? That's a question every Republican has been pondering since Donald Trump commandeered the party and won the White House.

There is, first, the old Grand Old Party — the party of Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, John McCain, Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan, and an array of conservative movement activists, think tank staffers, journalists, and lobbyists. This party favors lower taxes (especially on the wealthy), less regulation, and smaller government, except when it comes to military spending, which it aims to increase to maintain America's position of global dominance and role as "leader of the free world."

Then there are the Trumpists — populist and nationalist Republicans (like White House senior counselor Stephen Bannon) who blend a mania for cutting taxes and government programs with an enthusiasm for trade tariffs, border walls, and immigration bans from majority-Muslim countries. This GOP also promises to increase defense spending, but not to contribute to the leadership of anything. It advocates putting "America first," by which it means that the United States should do whatever it wants anywhere it wants, including, perhaps, "taking the oil" from Iraq, backing away from our commitments to NATO, and turning a blind eye to Vladimir Putin's aggression in Eastern Europe....

[IDontLikeToPayTaxes]

I'll defend the right of transgender people and any one else not to be bullied or subjected to violence. Any conservative would. That doesn't mean that they should use the other sex's bathroom.

And there is the "Conservative" retreat, in full display.

40 years ago, was the topic of cross-dressing weirdos a subject of civil rights?

Of course not!

You just displayed "The Conservative Case for Transgender Rights!"

The rest of us former Conservatives had no idea that Transvestites were so important to the Conservative movement!

Thanks for letting us know how much Transvestism is to American civil rights!

Of course I'm being sarcastic. You have displayed the loser pathetic mindset of Conservatism for all to see.

Conservatives ALWAYS retreat. EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

They always give up ground to the enemy.

It's a movement of defeatists and losers.

Let me know when the LAST Conservative leaves the planet.

[TBP]

Not at all, just principle and consistency. Everyone has equal rights, including the right not to be bullied. Taht means (among other things) that the gays don’t bully us ane none of us bullies them.

That doesn’t in any way imply support for “transgender rights.” There is no such thing. but EVERYONE has the same rights as every other person, regardless of whatever their circumstances are. “All men are created equal” and “endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights,” remember?

I’ll defend as a legal principle your right to do whatever you want, as long as it doesn’t harm anyone else’s right to do the same. As a constitutional conservative, as a defender of Western society, as a lover of liberty, I am simply willing to protect the rights of those with whom I disagree. I would hope you would do the same. (It’s not a popular view in today’s society.)

[TBP]

Taht you would use a term like “cuckservative” shows that you’re not conservative, no constitutionalist, no friend of freedom.

[central_va]

Trumpist is a derogatory term. Screw this.

[central_va]

The third camp: You mean Free Traitors™, right?

[central_va]

I mostly stopped listening to Rush because of what he DOESN’T talk about.

[TBP]

Principled conservatives who tend to be skeptical of populism (as we’ve been taught by the likes of Russell Kirk) and who were skeptical about Trumnp’s political history. So far, he’s been excellent. But his history gave some conservatives reason to be skeptical about him.

[central_va]

He DID say he would use government power to force companies to stay in the country. That's not "Conservative." That's actually heresy to "Conservatives."

This is not true. The power of the US federal government to levy trade tariffs is in the Constitution. The Republican party was THE tariff party until WWII. Free Trade is not conservative at all, historically.

Continue....