Speaker Paul D. Ryan endorsed Donald J. Trump for president on Thursday, finally giving his backing after weeks of reluctance to the man who ran against the party’s establishment, of which Mr. Ryan is the titular leader.Members of the liberal commentariat are already expressing concern for Ryan's welfare (and the welfare of other former Trump opponents who've emerged from the reeducation camps):
Does Paul Ryan realize he'll still be a "supporter of Donald Trump" 3 yrs from now? Just checking.
— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) June 2, 2016
Trump is poisoning not just GOP prospects this year but destroying future prospects of entire generation of GOP pols: Ryan, Rubio, etc.
— Jeet Heer (@HeerJeet) June 2, 2016
What are they worried about? The political establishment is so invested in the notion of Both Sides Do It that nothing Trump can possibly say or do between now and November will define him as truly beyond the pale, assuming he doesn't actually don a sheet and burn a cross. (Hey, Hillary Clinton is unpopular too! And she's had scandals, so that's precisely equal to Trump's flirtations with fascism and white nationalism, his utter ignorance of policy, his embrace of torture ...!)
What's more, even if Trump just plunges further and further into the gutter, remember that the GOP never suffers long-term consequences and always gets a do-over at the earliest possible opportunity. Two years after Newt Gingrich crashed and burned, George W. Bush made it into the White House after running as the media favorite in the presidential race; two years after Bush's presidency ended in utter ignominy and Democrats seemingly took over D.C., the Tea Party rebranded the GOP and the GOP gained the House back. The same thing is going to happen to the GOP post-Trump -- rebranding will happen and the slate will be wiped clean.
And if I'm wrong and some Republicans do see their careers suffer because of Trump, rest assured that media darling Ryan will be spared. Hey, he did this with his fingers crossed behind his back!
I'm pretty sure that Paul Ryan endorsing Trump means Ryan is 99.999% sure Trump is gonna lose.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) June 2, 2016
If Ryan actually thought he might have to deal with a President Trump, I don't think he would have endorsed him.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) June 2, 2016
And what did Ryan say about Trump, really?
Paul Ryan endorses Donald Trump https://t.co/6sqe6eJvVS the key here is that he does NOT "endorse"
— Jennifer Rubin (@JRubinBlogger) June 2, 2016
Yes, it's true that Ryan said he'd vote for
In a column on GazetteXtra.com, Mr. Ryan made clear he believed that Mr. Trump was the best candidate to help establish the agenda that he himself wants to get through Congress. A spokesman for Mr. Ryan, Brendan Buck, wrote on Twitter that the column constituted an endorsement.But it will be remembered that Ryan squirmed briefly before endorsing, and avoided the E-word -- so we'll be told that he really didn't mean it. He'll emerge from this smelling like a rose. The Establishment will never stop rooting for him.
I consider Trump "flirting with fascism" and not being victimized by liberal smears when he attempts to organize a paramilitary, a Putin-like Nashi etc.
ReplyDeleteNot that I blame Putin for doing so, considering all the promises the US empire has broken regards NATO expansion, not overthrowing Khadaffi, etc.
If tRUMP loses, Ryan can say that he threw himself upon the pyre for the good of his party!
ReplyDeleteNot really all that brave, considering he dove in knowing that the MSM has provided a flame-proof suit for him, and has a lot of water nearby just in case... They'll save those oh so blue eyes if it's the thing they do.
I am really confused here. There seems to be a lot of hullabaloo about the fact that Ryan didn't say the word "endorse". Since when is "I support this candidate" or "I plan to vote for this candidate" NOT an endorsement? Since 2 days ago, when Jerry Brown unequivocally endorsed Clinton without using that word? February, when Harry Reid endorsed her without saying the word?
ReplyDeleteWhat kind of thesaurus-less hellscape have I been dropped into?
Solid work, tmc. Very solid indeed.
ReplyDeleteSteve, as usual, a spot-on assessment. Though, you might want to change one of the names in the third to last paragraph. #formernewspaper
So not so much a Ryan Endorsement as The Ryan Hedge. And even then, once we get into the fall debates, Ryan can issue am even more evasive cautionary, then claim victory when Trump loses.
ReplyDeleteAnd I predict he will, because "assuming he doesn't actually don a sheet and burn a cross", to me, is just taunting the history muse, Steve.
Thanks, Paul. Fixed now.
ReplyDeleteHas THIS ever happened in America's political history?
ReplyDeleteThe House leadership of a major Party NOT "endorse" its nominee for POTUS.
This all but confirms these facts ...
The GOP/Republican Party (one of 2 major political Parties in a historically American 2 party system) has been hijacked by a reality show serial con artist.
Though this Party touts that it wants to "do" the will of the "American peoples" ... this hijacking happened exclusively because of the GOP/Republican electorate and not THE entirety of the American peoples.
The entirety of the American peoples DID express its will by electing POTUS Obama twice and their response was not to be a constructive opposition party but a historically damaging (some would say racist) "obstructionist" party.
Now the Leaders of GOP/Republican led US Senate and House are denouncing THEIR nominee's racist statements regarding a US Federal Judge.
This is yet ANOTHER stellar example of GOP/Republican governance in 21st Century America starting with Bush/Cheney (2000-2008) inept, disastrous, destructive and historically divisive presidency.
I find is troubling that MSM is once again attempting to separate the GOP/Republican Party governance FROM its current and factual Senate and House leadership.
ReplyDeleteExample Bush/Cheney 2008-2008 ...ALL of the disastrous, damaging legislation, both wars, an invasion, etc of that presidency occurred when the Party had the Presidency, Senate and House.
This Party's presumptive nominee like Bush/Cheney IS the face of the Party and can NOT act apart from or without the participation of its Leadership ...period!
ReplyDeleteRyan is quite aware that all that is left now is to plot and assign the people & corporations that receive the "out-sourced" responsibilities of the US presidency that Trump is neither expected or willing-let alone capable-to preform. Who will be the Cheney ring leader for all this out-of-shop contractor corporations & people?