The Republican Response

Joe Klein:
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Waaat?
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They won’t, of course. Boss Rush would disapprove. But I suspect the G.O.P. will pay the price for courting this sort of insanity soon enough.
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How so? Who will make them “pay the price”? What will it be?

Stuart Zechman–The history of this country is pretty clear about the inevitable failure of bilious extremism. The arc of history is long, but it bends toward justice…and all that. I’m not a fortune teller, but Americans tend to reject bigots and haters in the end.

Joe, have you any idea how paternalistic you sound. Oh so now you Van Jones is okay because he’s in his proper place? Perhaps you didn’t mean it that way, but is sounds that way and as a writer you should know that. Republicans have been courting the remnants of the Birchers for some time now and I would have thought the denouncements would have begun after the irony of kicking Buckley Junior to the curb, since his father was the one to rid GOP of this fringe vermin once before.
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Frum, despite his inconsistent denouncement of Palin has told his fair share of lies. He may have jumped on this bandwagon now, but he does not have complete clean hands. He has more than once danced around Republican responsibility for our economic condition and he has not necessarily embraced the concept of their failed policies. If you want to point to a Republcain with real character, I suggest you point to Kathleen Parker who was the first to face the death threats and has continued to call crazy, crazy from day one, rather than wait to the backlash was forming to jump on the bandwagon.
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It was real easy for Frum to denounce Sarah Palin, because he turns up his noise to women in general. Let me know when he stands up to not just Limbaugh, but the Gingrich’s and Cheney’s then we’ll consider the term courageous. Let me know when he follows in the footsetps of Colin Powell or even Mark McKinnon.

Bilious: “of or relating to bile b : marked by or suffering from liver dysfunction and especially excessive secretion of bile c : appearing as if affected by a bilious disorder”.
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I actually had to look that one up!!

“I disapprove of Jones’s rhetoric and tendency toward radical politics, I think his work attempting bringing green jobs to the poor is valuable and admirable. He will be able to continue it now, which is a good thing.”
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I do remember that you called for his silencing, Joe. I seem to have missed You calling him out for his resignation? When did you write that up?
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Also, what will Jones be able to continue? How as Director of Color of Change going to make an impact on green jobs for inner city folks? Did you mean to also mention that Jones was welcomed back into the “communitarian” arms of John Podesta?
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When should we expect your write up and investigation into the actions and lobby tactics of the Center for American Progress and their links to the Apollo Project?

“…but Americans tend to reject bigots and haters in the end.”
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…but have the Republicans finally abandoned the Southern Strategy[tm]?
(I miss paragraph breaks)

Well, here’s hoping the MSM mentions that bit of news.

Yeah, right.

Rep. Jean Schmidt has identified herself as a Birther as well. Do you think she should lose her job or is that limited to black liberals?

Thanks so very much for responding to commentary with additional thoughts, Joe Klein, it is very much appreciated.

@ JK: David Frum…who now has started this website…

Happy Face Conservatism…Same sentiments, now with kinder words…also included, ‘Conservatives With Dogs’!…

“Goshgollygeewillikers, will Obama ever learn?”

When you are tired of Smiley Frum but don’t want to wade into freeperville, try this site.

For the health of the Republic, the Beck-Limbaugh-Boehner-Huckabee Republicans must be cast back into their caskets. Imagine what an important role a thoughtful, fiscally conservative party would have to play right now. Instead, we have a party of ignorant, tribalist white people. (Actually, I misread the line in there as “a former birther–that is, one of those paranoid whites…”). What a catastrophe.

Joe did you even browse this website before you put up a link and called Frum an honest conservative?
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What is clear to me is first of all there is no such thing as an honest conservative, because even those who come closest to that title lie by omission. Because basically they can’t sell the policies without leaving out the less appealing aspects.
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The truth is every time a conservative promotes their policy as good for the middle-class they are telling a lie and the know it. Even Frum’s opposition to health care reform is a lie, because he knows full well that it won’t end private industry — what it will do is force private industry to make a better more competitive market. He rails against bailing out the car companies, but it is the conservative obsession with American exceptionalism that has allowed America to live off it’s reputation rather recognize it has become lazy, could learn from others and that each generation’s job is to perfect the union.

…being the “jaundiced” individual that you are, I woulda thought that the meaning of that woulda sprung instantaneously to mind….

…..you mean, LORD Boustany? Please God, make that story be true!

http://gawker.com/5355236/meet-the-gops-latest-political-sacrifice

Joe:

I love your 20/20 hinsight reporting on Jones. Until it became an issue that would not go away, the MSM (meaning you) had its head up a posterior body orifice hoping it would go away.

I also find it intriguing that the so-called brilliant liberals here cannot find a discernible difference between a “birther” and a “9/11er”.

A birther is seeking confirmation that someone does meet the Constitutional requirements of the job. Simply providing a copy of a birth certificate would not seem to be a huge task. Reminds one of Kerry’s records and the accusations flung at Swift Boaters. I think we are still awaiting the release of the records from Kerry that he promised. Simple task. The Media spent more time examining forged documents trying to distort Bush’s National Guard record.

A 9/11er believes that our own government planned and assisted an act to kill over 3000 of its own citizens.

Let’s see Constitutional requirements versus Treason, and the left sees them as equivalent.

Stuart… Here is another example of liberals seeing right and wrong as a gray area.

He is also a co=sponsor of thew “death panel” provision in the House health care bill. Wonder how the GOP will explain that one? Oh – they won’t…

http://www.political-buzz.com/

In case you missed it, Arianna Huffington had an interesting post on Van Jones, who she actually knows as opposed to only knowing what Glen Beck said about him.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/thank-you-glenn-beck_b_278839.html

BTW deconstructiva – paragraph breaks don’t work in Reply to… but do work in regular comments. (Yet another reason the Reply to annoys me.)

“The truth is every time a conservative promotes their policy as good for the middle-class they are telling a lie and the know it.”
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Unfortunately, that’s a very important truth you are unlikely to ever hear from the pen of Joe Klein. You see, Joe is more concerned with Frum’s courage in confronting the craziness that it’s now OK to confront (but not the craziness that still passes for inside-the-beltway “conservative” CW) and that any future craziness from him be met with “mutual respect”. Much like opposing a public insurance option because industry opposition has made it politically difficult, it’s always about the politics and rarely about the important substance.

…and this is why I’m an independent. sigh.
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And thanks for mentioning newmajority.com, I’ve recently been frequenting it quite often, and have so far been very impressed and somewhat optimistic.

Dee, Frum wrote an op ed that was on the cover of Newsweek (I think in May) titled, “A conservative’s case against Rush Limbaugh”. It was a picture of Rush on the cover with the words “ENOUGH” over his mouth. It was a scathing critique, for which he was put to the coals for by most conservative talk radio voices.

Although I disagree with some of his ideas, I think that’s to be expected when you consider he’s conservative. But I do agree with Joe Klein in this sense; the man stands up to some of the most radical, and popular, in the conservative party. I give him credit for that.

Yes, while I do agree that the birthers and 9/11 truthers are both insane, I hardly see how a question of constitutional fitness can be equated with the murder of 3,000 of our citizens. What would be worse: an ineligible person holding office, or our government killing 3,000 of our own people? Almost sounds like a rhetorical question.

apollyon

Well if one agrees that both are off base, then the 9/11er in a position of high government would be worse. Not a rhetorical question at all.

David Frum is to the Republican Party as “Some Guy at a protest with a puppet” is to the Democratic Party.
As in “fringe element”.

apollyon07

Breaking: Charlie Sheen demands
Obama meeting on 9/11 cover-up

The left is bringing in the big guns!

Honestly Apo? Become a Republican again and take your party back. I’m serious. The only way the Republicans get out of their inevitable death spiral (did I just contradict myself there?) is by new younger voices dictating the direction. I don’t think you’re near as alone as you think, and between you and Neo I’ve seen a bunch of positive and thoughtful criticism. It’s going to be a fight, though, but I’ve seen how you scrap in the Swamp, so I think you could handle it.
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Is this self-serving? Yup. An honest and thoughtful opposition is light years better than what we have now.

The only nitwit I see here is the writer. There is no hiding the so called news that have been brough and paid for by the Obama crowd. Sad that so called news has sunk so low.Time used to be a good,fair maz. now just another Obama rag.