http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/13/opinion/the-republicans-incompetence-caucus.html?ref=opinion&_r=1 An excerpt:
Over the past 30 years, or at least since Rush Limbaugh came on the scene, the Republican rhetorical tone has grown ever more bombastic, hyperbolic and imbalanced. Public figures are prisoners of their own prose styles, and Republicans from Newt Gingrich through Ben Carson have become addicted to a crisis mentality. Civilization was always on the brink of collapse. Every setback, like the passage of Obamacare, became the ruination of the republic. Comparisons to Nazi Germany became a staple.
Like the cannibalism in the House is some sort of epiphany to the enablers of this behavior?
David Brooks-- finally 'crying wolf!-- after the fact.
This article excuses you from nothing Mr Brooks.
You are culpable for your assistance to the disassembling of bipartisan governance.
Iāve felt for several years that Democrats are the thoughtful, sensible conservatives and Republicans are basically reverse Marxists. No wonder they admire Putin so much.
He was a regular on Al Frankens show on Air America. I always liked him too. It annoys me that a knowledgeable scholar doesnāt get more airtime than say a numbskull like, oh take your pick, theyāre mostly all numbskulls.
Iāve seen him some very rare moments when his republican water carrying facade is down, and while he isnāt particularly insightful, he does know what is going on.
But those moments are extremely rare and fleeting.
Basically, I donāt think he even believes a quarter of what he writes, but hey, its a paycheck and he is comfortable. So he tries not to rock the boat too much, which is pretty much his personality to a tee. Brooks is the poster child for āgoing along to get alongā.
The sad reality is that GOP Brooks imagined, never existed. And what it is today doesnāt even come close to resembling what he dreams, its pretty much the opposite of that.
Ryanās smartest play is to decline this. As Krugman pointed out, Ryan is an empty suit, a pseudo-intellectual, and a fraud. It wont take long in a continual spotlight for the whole country to find this out.
Willards staff figured it it quickly, and buried him in the hinterlands for the duration of the campaign. The fact that heās their best option confirms the utter desolation of the GOP. They are rudderless.
But Davey, the fact remains that Brooks writes for āthe paper of recordāā and his writing resonates for that reason alone.
If he carried (R) water for some backwoods rag or second-rate blog-- then his ignorance-- or reluctance to expose todayās revelations before-the-fact-- wouldnāt be noteworthy.
As it is? Heās another brick in the wall. Heās culpable for his propaganda/influence-- which over time is aggregate to the NYTās readership-- and those who reference it/him.
I canāt see this meltdown affecting the house Republicans anytime soon, from an electoral standpoint. Are any R house seats in danger of flipping to D as the districts are drawn right now? The Democrats better be working on their 2020 strategy right now, but iām not holding my breath.
āRather, he believes the best case scenario in the short term is for Boehner to ram through a debt ceiling raise and maybe even a broader budget package before he steps down, and for moderate Republicans to band with Democrats to outmaneuver the hardliners on other bipartisan priorities.ā
Huh?
Who are the āmoderate Republicans?ā Aside from maybe not wanting a govāt shutdown or default, how do their positions on key issues differ from others in the GOP? What are the ābipartisan prioritiesā that these āmoderate Republicansā would abandon their party over?
For someone as astute as Ornstein, this is a remarkably naive best-case scenario.
āWinfield Scott barely escaped death by losing in 1852.ā Steve, can you share Scottās method. If not, where might I find him today? Please reply soonest; my situation is earnest and grows more so with each hour. Help me if you can.
I think Pres. Obama winning just pricked the boil. The current Repubs were jerks and traitors before he came on the scene, while heās on the scene and will continue to be so when he returns to community activism and continues to do good for the country.
I donāt disagree. He also has a regular speaking engagement every Friday on PBSās Newshour, and is usually included in their campaign event coverage (like the 2012 debates).
But he is hardly what I would call an opinion maker. Opinion influencer is probably closer to to it. He never presents new ideas, he only repackages what everyone else is already saying (and it is everybody elseā¦he rarely(never?) presents ideas that some lone person put out there; Brooks will only talk about after some level of critical mass has been reached). Once the right has agreed on a talking point, one of the checkpoints is āCall Brooks and tell him what to writeā. And Brooks complies, and receives his next paycheck.
This piece is no different. I have seen the same thing said about a half a dozen time in both left and right wing outlets. So its only noteworthy because its in the Times. And my point is, Brooks does this on a routine basis, so even THAT isnāt particularly noteworthy.
As if electing the black dude wasnāt enough, that same black dude enacted health care legislation which people in places like Mississippi hated a lot even though theyāre sick and really needed healthcare.
Even within that excerpt is a brain-washed by the same lunacy thinking, only turned into milquetoast ācentristā sludge. He frames āObamacareā, the market-based GOP alternative to the dreaded āHillarycareā, as a āset-backā.
This is why just one example of how the Overton window has so shifted and distorted the āthinkingā of saps like Brooks who really are not bright people. And I mean that on a very deep level. Beltway Heathers like Brooks really and truly donāt get it, or grasp what things are valid and what isnāt. They go by current marketing in politics and posture as smart shoppers. They are simply substance free in their thinking at a deeper level.
Krugman yesterday in NYT tore Paulie a new one. Heās a con man, a dunce, whoās hoodwinked the media, and yet there are still TV talking heads who tell us how heās the only one who can save the GOOPs from themselves.
