Posted on 08/17/2015 7:17:27 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
TRUMP’S TRUMPERY
I’m feeling better about Trump mania. It’s obviously too soon to tell for sure, but I think we’ve reached Peak Trump.
Still, vigilance is required. And on that note, I’d like to raise a gripe about what is supposed to be Donald Trump’s greatest strength: his vaunted un-PCness. There’s a consensus out there — among friends and foes alike — that Donald Trump’s success stems from his willingness not to abide by political correctness (that and his willingness to build a wall the Mexicans will pay for). This alleged bravery has managed to convince a great many people that Donald Trump is a conservative. And not just a conservative, but the sort of conservative that one must admire and support if one is to be permitted membership in conservative ranks. Only “RINOs” and worse have problems with the man, I hear hourly.
Let me just say I have exactly zero sympathy or tolerance for this claim. To me this isn’t a matter of opinion, but one of simple fact. I have little patience for people who tell me I have to support Ted Cruz if I’m going to call myself a “real conservative.” But I at least understand that argument. I think it’s wrong. But I get it. It has an internal logic and consistency to it. I feel the same way about intellectual figures as well. William F. Buckley is a hero to me, but I don’t think you have to be a fan to be a conservative. Ditto Edmund Burke, Russell Kirk, or for that matter George Will or Charles Krauthammer. But when you try the “RINO!!!!!!!!!” argument out on Donald Trump’s behalf, I have to assume your digestive and respiratory system works backwards, because I think you’re talking out your ass. By any reasonable or objective metric I am more conservative than Donald Trump and I have a vastly more consistent record of my conservatism (ditto Kevin Williamson, Rich Lowry, George Will, Charles Krauthammer, Charlie Cooke, etc.). You of course are free to say that this is open to debate. You are also free to say that turtles crap glow-in-the-dark yoyos made of marzipan. That doesn’t make it so. And I’m not much interested in debating the proposition.
WHO’S UN-PC AGAIN?
There’s still this bit about Trump being un-PC and how he’s worth giving the nuclear codes to because he challenges the “establishment.” I was on Bill Bennett’s radio show the other morning and a caller said something to the effect of “You know why I like Donald Trump? Because he befuddles people like Jonah Goldberg . . . Political correctness has been destroying this country and blah blah blah.” (Obviously, I’m quoting from memory).
So first let me say, as I said to the caller, that I agree that political correctness is a huge problem, one I’ve written about many times (often punctuated with many un-PC jokes). Second, as I also said to him, maybe I’m not the one who is befuddled. Perchance Trump fans are the ones who are confused, while I see the man more clearly.
Third, and this I wish I had said on air: What the kind of screwed up standard for picking a president is that? Let’s choose the candidate who most annoys Jonah Goldberg! By that standard, Mt. Rushmore would be lined up with the visages of Carrot Top, Alec Baldwin, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, and Tom Friedman.
It is a lie that Donald Trump stands athwart political correctness, yelling Stop. But here’s the important point: It is a lie that Donald Trump stands athwart political correctness, yelling Stop.
For example, you may recall that Donald Trump and I got into a Twitter fight a few months back. At one point I wrote that he was “relentlessly tweeting like a 14-year-old girl.”
How did Trump respond? If you guessed with Churchillian statesmanship, you guessed wrong. If you guessed with anti-PC fearlessness, you guessed wrong again.
Instead, he played the political-correctness card. He said my tweet was a “horrible insult to women. Resign now or later!”
I still love the “or later.”
He followed up with more demands that I lose my job because of my insult to women:
"People have been forced to resign positions for far less than @JonahNRO’s “tweeting like a 14 year old girl”
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 21, 2015
In words Donald Trump could never say sincerely, I know this isn’t all about me. So recall that Trump — the man whose best selling point for some people is that he’s inarticulate when discussing Mexicans — bashed Mitt Romney for being too “mean-spirited” about immigrants. In response to the backlash against his immigration remarks, he’s been slowly revising his position. He’s now for a convoluted kind of amnesty that involves rounding up illegal immigrants and then re-admitting them on an expedited basis if they are “terrific.”
All this week, he’s been defending himself against the charge he’s piggish towards women by attacking Jeb Bush for his gaffe on women’s health. Meanwhile, on the actual issue of Planned Parenthood he’s been all over the place, saying it does great work one moment, saying he’d shut it down another. All the while he says Ivanka Trump is his guide on women’s health issues and he wants everyone to know what a “big heart” he has. What could go wrong there?
Trump’s defenders — and Trump himself — say his liberal record shouldn’t be held against him. He’s “evolved.” The while you find inconsistency on the issues if you go back and look at his record — hence the “he’s evolved” defense — you also find a remarkable consistency on his approach to the issues. He makes things up as he goes along. What informs that process? Liberal conventional wisdom (particularly prior to 2010), reality-show pandering, advice of yes-men, Ivanka Trump, and, of course, whatever direction his mouth is wandering off to at any given moment.
It’s totally worth making that kind of guy the nominee. I mean, after all, he bothers me — and that’s all that really matters.
Trumps recently released immigration policy will bump his poll numbers
up.
Goldberg does not have a clue.
Jonah seems a tad defensive this week. He is still chanting the Donald Trump is peaking mantra. LOL!
Its funny to see someone from National Review questioning someone else’s conservative credentials. Ha ha! What a joke that website has become.
Set up a straw man then knock it down
Or we’ll cheat until we get Jebby ..!!
I guess you left that part out. LOL
“Now get on the bus and support Jebby!!!”
Finally, someone on FR that gets it. (see my tagline) :)
Well Jonah..... the donald has succeeded.
He is controlling your mind to write about him. That’s all that maters at present.
since peak can only be determined by hindsight, he has you at a disadvantage of likely being wrong..... again
the rule is “ don’t piss on Superman’s cape”
Quote: “Jebby is finished.”
First, let us say you are correct, which I hope you are. Since when has that mattered to our “betters” inside the Beltway. They will keep trying to drag his carcass across the line. Even then, they will work to actively undermine any candidate not named Jeb.
Second, if you are wrong, Lord help us if Trump collapses. The GOPe will be going all “we told you so” on us.
...“Democrats have opened our borders to all manner of horrific Third World violence, crime, and disease. The GOP has supported and endorsed this vile activity every single step of the way. Trump has tapped into the fury of the American people over the unrelenting anti-American NWO push of our paid employees in government. Trump could win this on this one issue alone. Americans are tired of being betrayed by their government on both sides of the aisle.”...
Right now, the GOPe is NOT THINKING about dragging any carcas across the finish line of Jeb.
Rather the GOPe is looking for clean undies after peeing in their pants in regards to Trump.
So what I’ve come to understand is the Establishment of the Republican Party is shaken to the core that the base is actually done or close to it with them. And they will do everything to destroy one man who has hit on this movement. Because that is what Donald Trump has tapped into and is beginning to lead: not anger at the establishment, not a “throw the bums out rally cry”, not I’m mad now but will vote for the nominee later over Hillary, and not a short memory of past lies, betrayals, and broken promises.
Trump’s leading a movement of those who’ve had it with being lied to, catered to when a vote or money is needed and then summarily dismissed. Like me, Trump sees that this country is two wheels from going over the cliff and he’s determined to stop it. I BELIEVE him when he promises to make America Great Again. Or to put it another way, he’s never lied to me yet, broken a promise to me, or betrayed me, as has the GOP on too many occasions to count.
To the Trump haters on this site or those who feel Trump is a bad investment that he isn’t conservative, here is why I’m voting for the man. Donald Trump speaks my language now at a time when no one else does except for Ted Cruz and Dr. Carson. As for Trump’s conservative chops, well point out to me other than Cruz or Carson, a true conservative in this field of candidates replete with Trump’s gonads and leadership. You can’t. That candidate does’t exist.
To the staffer assigned by the Republican Establishment to troll this site to see and document discontent in the base, well it would be wise to take note of this post. Because for every one of me, statistics say there are hundreds who feel the same way but haven’t posted heir thoughts.
Quote: “Or we’ll cheat until we get Jebby ..!!”
Therein lies the hilarity of the Trump run. They had already cheated to try and rig the game for Jeb. The GOPe has been laughing all the way watching the likes of Ted Cruz and Scott Walker and Ben Carson and so forth declare. The GOPe smirked knowing that early open primary states and the JEB! money truck would make it nearly impossible for any candidate not named JEB! to secure the nomination.
Along comes Trump and BOOM!!! He appeals to crossover voters. Damn, there goes the letting democrats choose our candidate so that JEB! can loose his liberal crapola. Trump has a ton of money. Damn, there goes using the JEB! war chest to go “Romney” on conservative candidates and trash them.
I love it when a plan doesn’t come together for the GOPe, you get elite whining at the highest pitch.
If not for Clinton Scandals /Monika Lewinski (sp) Jonah is on the clean up crew midnights at MacDonalds
“Jonah has sand in his vagina again.”
Jim, you owe me a new keyboard! There’s coffee in between the keys now!
I don’t like name-calling but Jonah Goldberg is the worst.
Trump is not a typical politician in that his failures and triumphs are well documented and he is not running away from either. He is a guy who says, “here I am, this is me. If you like me, fine, if not, screw you.” No apologies, no equivocation. Also, Trump has never been an elected politician and does not have that albatross around his neck.
Having said the above, there are other candidates in this race that have many of the same attributes. I think Ted Cruz has stood up to an impossible cabal in DC. I think Scott Walker has also stood up to the leftist hordes. Unfortunately, given the amount of money JEB! is willing to spend to trash them, I do not think they could withstand the assault. Again, therein lies the appeal of Trump. He seems to be the best equipped to foil the GOPe’s plans.
Yes, as confirmed in the Brietbart article today quoting Mark Halperin (!!!) as saying that GOP establishment now thinks Trump can win primary and “a significant number” think he can with the White House.
And another one bites the dust. It’s not Goldberg’s adolescent slamming of Trump, but the backhanded swipe at Ted Cruz and his supporters that did it.
Take your establishment RINO’s and shove ‘em, Goldberg. Don’t need you or NRO anymore. The times they are a-changing.
There’s still this bit about Trump being un-PC and how he’s worth giving the nuclear codes to because he challenges the “establishment.”
George Will:
Do We Really Want To Give Nuclear Weapons To Donald Trump?
No he’s not. He’s a red herring being used to sabotage Cruz, who is our perfect candidate.
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