We’re getting to the end of the conservative movement that really kicked into gear with the election of Ronald Reagan, and now we’re seeing the inevitable final stages, as the loons on the far right start reeking havoc on the Republican Party.
Future historians tracing the crackup of the Republican Party may well look to May 8, 2010, as an inflection point.
That was the day, as is now well known, that Sen. Robert Bennett, who took the conservative position 84 percent of the time over his career, was deemed not conservative enough by fellow Utah Republicans and booted out of the primary.
Less well known, but equally ominous, is what happened that same day, 2,500 miles east in Maine. There, the state Republican Party chucked its platform — a sensible New England mix of free-market economics and conservation — and adopted a manifesto of insanity: abolishing the Federal Reserve, calling global warming a “myth,” sealing the border, and, as a final plank, fighting “efforts to create a one world government.”
You can read the rest of the article for some of Glenn Beck’s greatest hits.
What’s left of the conservative movement and the Republican Party?
We have the Reagan worshipers who have become so dogmatic that they think tax cuts solve everything at every time in history, regardless of the circumstances. These folks seem to forget that George W. Bush enacted huge tax cuts that would be followed by the greatest economic collapse in 80 years. These folks also turn on former allies like Bruce Bartlett and David Frum who dare top open a debate on how conservatives might adapt to the changing circumstances of today’s economy.
Then we have the religious right, who’s leaders keep getting caught up in sex scandals. All these folks who preach morality can’t keep it in their own pants. Most of the public has tuned out these self-righteous fools at this point.
We also have moderate Republicans who would like to see the government spend less and who also tend to be social liberals. These reasonable folks abandoned the party and the conservative movement long ago.
And finally we have the Tea Party clowns. Many of these folks are angry as hell – some are angry at everybody, while others don’t know why they’re angry. As noted above, they can be a force at times, and they may be the GOP’s not-so-secret weapon in the fall as anti-incumbent fever hits new highs.
Or, they may just turn off everyone else with their peculiar brand of crazy. Nuts like Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin and and Michelle Bachman can rile up these nut jobs, but they may end up giving the Democrats a lifeline as well.
Most people don’t like the crazies. The GOP did a great job for years of exploiting the loony left and painting the Democrats with a broad brush, and now the tables are turned, and the Tea Party folks are giving Democrats some good talking points for the fall.
We’ll see how it plays out.
Posted in: Conservatives, Culture War, Lunatic Fringe, Politics, Republicans
Tags: abolishing the Federal Reserve, angry right, anti-incumbent fever, Bruce Bartlett, calling global warming a myth, conservative crackup, conservative movement, David Frum, dogmatic conservatives, manifesto of insanity, one world government, Reagan worshipers, religious right, Robert Bennett, Ronald Reagan, sealing the border, Tea Party, Tea Party clowns, the end of the conservative movement, Utah Republicans
You may want to update this “death of conservative” post
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/3017002/tea_party_favorite
_rand_paul_wins_smashing.html
Although Rand is a “libertarian,” his views are certainly more conservative then liberal.
Obama is 0 for 4 in his endorsements http://www.startribune.com/politics/94231194.html that says where the country is politically, and it ain’t liberal.
Nick – As usual you completely missed the point of the post
The point was not that conservatives would stop winning individual elections. In some parts of the country they have the advantage, no matter how crazy they get.
Rand Paul is a good example. He won the GOP primary, and in a conservative state he has a good chance at the general election. That said, his recent comments on the civil right act show he may be ready for prime time.
The point is whether a movement that only embraces the true believers and kicks out smart thinkers who challenge the established orthodoxy can survive.
If by “smart thinkers,” you mean Bruce Bartlett and David Frum this post is way off base. It was that type of “conservative” that hurt the conservative movement, badly. They were part of the “conservative crackup.” Those goofs, McCain, Arlin Specter, and those you would call “moderate,” all hurt the conservative movement (I’m talking conservatives like William Buckley and Ronald Reagan-yea I said it!).
Who on the left challenges liberal thought in print or anywhere? What liberal can get away with supporting the right to life? Or lower taxes? Or a strong military, or any conservative belief? So called purity is found in liberal thought, and consistent strong conservative beliefs are what’s been lacking on the Right, but that’s changing thanks to our President.
We’ll see what happens. From my side it looks like a Progressive blood bath, and the spectacle of the liberal democrats giving an ovation to the president of a 3rd world country that basically says the US is a terrible and racist country (in well of our own congress, no less-WITH the president standing there like a goof), certainly pissed off a lot of people (among a HOST of other idiotic thing those idiots have done so far).
We’ll see.
G-
Color me surprised you harbor such distaste for the Tea Party movement. Regardless of its origin and if freely expressed as envisioned by the First Amendment, Dissent is healthy unless blatant sycophancy is what the Left seeks. Or the Right for that matter. And seeing that the Republic in which we consent to be governed is a superfluous extension of the governed, the emergence of dissent is not only a entertaining byproduct of democracy, but an integral ingredient as well.
As historical experiene has so clearly taught us, today’s radical is tomorrow’s establishment lackey.