Tuesday, November 24, 2015

SO THIS IS THE GOP'S NEW ESCAPE-FROM-TRUMP FANTASY

Hot Air's Allahpundit, who can sometimes be a surprisingly sensible political analyst, tweets this:



To which Bill Kristol replies:



So this is how the right now fantasizes about rescue from Donald Trump? Jeb was going to take his rightful place at the top of the polls using money and breeding, but that didn't happen. Fiorina was going to be the candidate who had outsider appeal but had actually read a couple of briefing books; that didn't happen. Sensible people were going to flock to that thoughtful, experienced John Kasich. Nope. Rubio? Apparently not. So now it's Cruz?

I should acknowledge that Allahpundit and Kristol are probably genuinely rooting for Cruz -- in effect, he's their Trump, a guy who, unlike Trump, will apply government experience, a working knowledge of the lawmaking process, and a knowledge of American history to the project of smashing everything to bits.

I know Cruz is making gains in the polls, but Trump, for voters who aren't professional pundits, is what Cruz wishes he could be, someone seen as capable of remaking everything without limit. Cruz has been in the arena, and has failed to destroy liberalism; therefore, he's suspect. Trump has no such problem.

But just think about this. The GOP is so crazy now that the new "insider vs. outsider" fantasy of the primary race has Ted Cruz as the establishment choice. And who knows? That may be an accurate read on the party.

Oh, and if you think Trump would refrain from running third party in the fall if running third party means running against Cruz, you're delusional. Trump surely believes he'd win that battle. I'd love it if Kristol's scenario played out. And no, Cruz wouldn't seem centrist by comparison -- the two of them would out-wingnut each other all the way to November.

*****

CLARIFICATION: This is presumably in response to a Quinnipiac Iowa poll in which Cruz is surging:
Donald Trump gets 25 percent of Iowa likely Republican Caucus participants in a too-close-to- call race with Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas who is at 23 percent, double his support from four weeks ago, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. Dr. Ben Carson has 18 percent, with Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida at 13 percent.
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5 comments:

  1. Anonymous9:25 AM

    That may be an accurate read on the party.

    It IS an accurate read of the party, at least among the non-talk radio set.

    The key here, I think, is that everything is centered around the dislike of Trump's affect. Its not his positions (such as they are) that they're against (with the exception of immigration).

    He's uncouth and this makes it harder to argue for the reasonableness of the conservative position on racism/immigration/more money for rich people. He's doing overt assholery, and they want upper-crust drawing room style cheerful dishonesty.

    Falling back to Cruz as a professional who might make nice with the Right Sort of People is the sign of desperation here.

    max
    ['They're in the closet, politically speaking, and they want to stay there.']

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  2. Anonymous9:30 AM

    Speaking of the dead, by the way, on the front page of the NYT right now: Christie’s Bid Gains New Life as He Invokes Sept. 11
    The attacks in 2001, along with the recent events in Paris, have brought a sudden intensity, attention and focus to the once-moribund candidacy of Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey.

    They HAVE? Wow! When did they discover this exciting new trend in lifestyle accessories?

    max
    ['No, no, not THAT bullyboy! THIS bullyboy!']

    p.s. C'mon blogger, no blockquote?

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  3. Glennis10:47 AM

    "The attacks in 2001... have brought a sudden intensity"? I've heard of short attention spans, but this is silly.

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  4. Victor11:14 AM

    Steve,
    Don't have too much hope:
    Bill Kristol's scenarios never play out.
    Not never.
    Not ever.
    Not once.

    He's Col. Klink of conservative punditry - always reliably wrong.

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  5. Itchybod3:42 AM

    Victor, sheer quantum probability sez that streak's gotta end SOME time.

    And it ain't 'just' Kristol for Cruz: go to just about one of the more extremist websites listed on the right side column at Hot Air (I've read a fair bit of Allahpundit & Cap'n Ed there, & I'd adgree those two are by some distance the least disordered of the entire ilk.), the column that starts "Ace of Spades HQ" ['acing spades' being, like 'flopping aces', another site in the same thrombosed vein, with each being a reference to exactly the horrifying thing you'd guess), Cruz is their destroyer of choice, and not by any close margin.

    That entire subgenre came together under one motto in 2008 - to ENFORCE that all references to new President Obama be accompanied in every case with a set of initials standing for 'stuttering clusterfk of a miserable failure' - EVERY TIME, or else after a warning or so the reader-commenter would be banned; and again came together as one after 2012 under the motto of "Let it burn" - nominally about the GOP establishment they regard as squishes, but more pointedly at the Obama administration thru paralyzing national governance.

    Those are the blogs read by the kind of folks beating up on protesters at Trump rallies & shooting into #blacklivesmatter crowds.

    ReplyDelete