As the Donald Trump juggernaut gathers steam and continues to roll over conventional wisdom like an army of wrecking balls, signs of panic are beginning to be seen coming from the establishment wing of the GOP (the GOPe). From the halls of power the whispers have started: 'These idiots can't be serious, can they? Trump??!?” Last week this panic took the form of an
As political strategies go, “Insult the base” is an interesting one, but the fact that the GOPe has chosen it speaks volumes. They call this the political “silly season” for a reason. A seasoned political operative uses this time to gauge public mood and attitudes so that they can get out in front of it for the real election season. If your party is in power in one or more branches of government, it's a good time to craft some legislation in sync with the prevailing trends. Candidates should start to sharpen their rhetoric to match the emotions of the moment. Right now, the only people interested in the political process are the hard core folks on either side. These people may or may not form a majority within the party, they certainly aren't a majority of the country, but they are the ones who will be doing the scout work so necessary for victory next year, door knocking, donating, manning phone banks and the like. Right now the GOP base is sending a strong message to the GOPe that they are not happy. Faced with that reality, the GOPe has lashed out at the base itself. That's the kind of innovative and dynamic thinking that gave us Healthcare.gov.
They think this is about Trump. It isn't. Trump's a huckster, a flim flam man. He's not even part of the actual circus, he's running the Three Card Monte table in the parking lot. The message being sent is not “We <3 Trump”. It's not even that immigration is the most important issue of our times, or that suddenly everyone woke up hating Mexicans. No, the message from the base that they're missing is “>we hate and despise YOU, GOP political class.”
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And still they don't get it. The Republican response to this groundswell of opprobrium is this pathetic Muppet flail of an article. The Senate response is to break all of its precedents and rules by inverting the treaty oversight requirement from 2/3 to 1/3, handing Obama the ability to enter into this disastrous agreement with a country that has been at war with the US since 1979, one that is responsible for killing or maiming tens of thousands of our sons and daughters who served honorably in the sandbox this past decade. The base notices these things, even though the GOPe thinks they don't. The base is mad as hell, and they're not going to take it anymore, and the GOPe continues to shoot itself in the foot by ignoring their anger. The article linked above is a perfect example of this. Its main points are as follows:
You’re angry as Hell, and by God, you’re going to teach the GOP a lesson. Maybe they do get it. Dimly, because the article continues with: Even if it means...that Hillary Clinton...names 3 or 4 Supreme Court justices. Ahh yes, the old SCOTUS boogeyman. If the base keeps their little temper tantrum going, why, they'll miss out on stalwart Republican Justices like Anthony Kennedy and John Roberts. This isn't about “teaching a lesson”, this is this close -----[ ]----- to being a divorce.
You’ve decided to become one-issue voters, and immigration is the be-all, end-all issue. The Republican Party has repeatedly rolled over on amnesty after running promising to oppose it. Again, and again and again. They've been lying to the base for years, spitting in their faces and telling them it's raining outside. The base elected the GOP to oppose amnesty. Specifically. They haven't. They've supported it, and now the base is rethinking its support for the GOPe.
You think we’re dismissing the message, but we’re dismissing the messenger. No, as a point of fact, you are dismissing the message, not by your words, but by your actions. The GOPe's emergency backup RINO in case Jeb fails is Marco Rubio, Gang of 8 superstar. They have no credibility on this issue. THE BASE DOSN'T BELIEVE YOU.
You don’t know and don’t care why the professionals want Trump in the rear-view mirror. Professionals like who? Like the Barbour boys down in Mississippi, colluding with Democrats to get establishment puppet Thad Cochran elected by hook or by crook?
Every minute wasted on Trump hurts the eventual nominee in the general election. No it doesn't. This is the sideshow, the freak tent. It's an amusing distraction before moving on to the Big Top for the real show. The only people watching are the real circus aficionados, people who love the smell of greasepaint and the crunch straw underfoot as they walk down the midway. It could become a disruption, very, very easily. When the ringmaster doesn't pay the freaks well and treat them with respect, the time will come when they will march on the center ring as the show starts. The freaks have their torches lit, and they're about to march inside and demand the respect that is their due as members of the Republican circus. If the GOPe ringmaster continues to mistreat, lie to, and take the base for granted, they will march forward and burn down the Big Top, and no screeching and wailing about how doing so will benefit the Democrats will stop them. If the GOPe hopes to remain a viable force in politics, they had better wake up fast and listen to, really listen to, the people who actually vote, or 2016 really will be Hillary time, thanks to the arrogance and conceit of the GOPe.
And just who will be the clowns then, huh?
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