This is my 10th presidential campaign, Lord help me. I have never before seen such a bunch of vile, desperate-to-please, shameless, embarrassing losers coagulated under a single party's banner. They are the most compelling argument I've seen against American exceptionalism. Even Tim Pawlenty, a decent governor, can't let a day go by without some bilious nonsense escaping his lizard brain. And, as Greg Sargent makes clear, Mitt Romney has wandered a long way from courage. There are those who say, cynically, if this is the dim-witted freak show the Republicans want to present in 2012, so be it. I disagree. One of them could get elected. You never know. Mick Huckabee, the front-runner if you can believe it, might have to negotiate a trade agreement, or a defense treaty, with the Indonesian President some day. Newt might have to discuss very delicate matters of national security with the President of Pakistan. And so I plead, as an unflinching American patriot--please Mitch Daniels, please Jeb Bush, please run. I may not agree with you on most things, but I respect you. And you seem to respect yourselves enough not to behave like public clowns.
While I hold no such confidence that Jeb Bush or Mitch Daniels are really that much better than the current crop of ridiculous Republicans teasing the voters about possible 2012 Presidential run, I do share Mr. Klein's view that this whole thing is ungodly embarrassing.
Let's face it the rise of the Teabaggers has signified the intellectual bottom dropping out of the GOP.
The only way to gain support in today's Republican party is to pander to the most under educated, simple minded, and racist group of Americans in the country. That is just a cold hard fact of life.
And by the way, if you are looking for whom to thank for that, you need look no further than Fox News, Sarah Palin, and Evangelical right.
Mitch Daniels, who makes it embarrassing to be a Hoosier. The twirpy little beancounter who oversaw the federal budget under Bush? The mental midget who pushed a union busting right to work for starvation wages bill, who will sign into law one of the most restrictive anti-choice women's reproductive rights bill, and dismantle the public education system in Indiana and send tax dollars to religious schools via vouchers, in clear violation of the separation of church and state - that Mitch Daniels?
ReplyDeleteDon't write before you learn a bit more, Gryphen.
What wouldn't surprise me, is the stupidity of the American people to follow these banners. As we've seen in history there's an amazing possibility of the 'unwashed masses' to make the most idiotic choice, just because of the voice with the biggest illusions shouts the loudest. Wether its religion or exceptionalism (both very subjective), they're a belief, often without any foundation in reality.
ReplyDeleteThe current crop of potential Republican candidates provide stark testimony to the dumbing down of this country. They all seem to be trying to outdo each other to see which one can be the biggest doofus of them all in order to appeal to the dumbest, most racist, least educated, and most narrow-minded among their party. I don't care for either Daniels or Jeb Bush, because the morally bankrupt ideology is exactly the same. The fact that they don't make jackasses of themselves does not amount to an endorsement of their ruinous ideology. However, I can easily relate to Joe Klein's embarrassment at the stupidity of these folks as well that of people who would vote for them.
ReplyDeleteanon 12:44 - As the headline states, it's Joe Klein writing about the embarrassment and pleading for Mitch Daniels to run, not Gryphen.
ReplyDeleteGryphen's comment is "I hold no such confidence that Jeb Bush or Mitch Daniels are really that much better than the current crop of ridiculous Republicans teasing the voters about possible 2012 Presidential run"
Perhaps Joe Klein needs to be better informed.
12:44...it wasn't Gryphen urging Daniels to run, that was in Klein's quote...don't write before you pay attention
ReplyDelete8)
Klein lost me when he said Tim Pawlenty was a decent governor.
ReplyDeleteFrom MNPublius...
Pawlenty left office with a $6.2 billion deficit, which he quickly attempted to claim was a surplus. That’s despite raiding just about every fund he could find, from a state tobacco settlement to the health care access fund, and treating our schools like his personal piggybank. After eight years of fiscal mismanagement, he’s learned absolutely nothing. His advice to other states with massive deficits? Just declare bankruptcy.
What was Pawlenty’s legacy aside from eight years of failing to deal with our deficit? A long slide toward mediocrity, as the state saw its ranking on just about every economic indicator [PDF] decline. Our courts are desperate for funding, according to Pawlenty’s own appointees. And property taxes have soared.
Minnesota had a very nice surplus when he became governor. We are now 6 billion in the hole.
Anon 12:44
ReplyDeleteGryphen agrees with you about Daniels. He said . . .
While I hold no such confidence that Jeb Bush or Mitch Daniels are really that much better than the current crop of ridiculous Republicans teasing the voters about possible 2012 Presidential run, I do share Mr. Klein's view that this whole thing is ungodly embarrassing.
It was Klein's statement begging Daniels or Bush to run.
Yeah, what ever in the hell did the American people do to Rupert Murdoch? That man and his company have a lot to answer for.
ReplyDelete12:44
ReplyDeleteDid you notice that the comments about Gov Daniels were not written by Gryphen,that he in fact seemed to agree with you more than the author in that respect?
The tea party is made up of a bunch of old farts who are my age. But believe me, I don't agree with their dimwitted crap that they throw around. They are nothing but a bunch of bullies and S Palin is dumber than a box of rocks! Why is the GOP pandering to this group of complete idiotic imbeciles? Is it because they all have guns and the party is shaking in their boots? These old cronies will be dying out soon and they will leave the country in shambles.
ReplyDeleterepublicans have no courage.
ReplyDeleteThey have no guts.
They are sheep.The follow the loudest sheep, not the leader.
They do not deserve our respect or our votes.
I was hoping that America would realize this after the disaster that was the presidency of GW.
I did not think that republicans could get any worse.
But these people are worse. They will not stand up to the minority of the party. They are bough by corporations that spend millions on the politicians, but nothing on the people.They do not stand on principle, but on fear.
This is not the same party of Abraham Lincoln. Could you imagine this party if they had to denounce slavery today? DO you think they would have the courage to do it?
No!!!
They are sheeple. They deserve no respect.
I think you misunderstood Gryphen. Klein said he wanted Mitch Daniels to run. Gryphen said, "While I hold no such confidence that Jeb Bush or Mitch Daniels are really that much better . . ." and then agreed that the whole lot was an embarrassment.
ReplyDeleteOT good news: The Wisconsin judge ruled that the end-run renegade posting of the law online (following a court order not to publish it) did *not* put the law into effect. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42363513/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/
I believe it is true that the Teaparty exemplifies the "dumbing down" of American politics, but that process began with Mr. Murdoch and FOX news. The Teaparty is just evidence that the "dumbing down" is complete.
ReplyDeleteWilliam Buckley would roll over in his grave. I think George Will is appalled.
I am one who actually enjoyed sparring with informed "righties". There are so few of them anymore.
I haven't laughed that hard in such a long time!! I'm still laughing over that post!!
ReplyDeleteHow the hell can a Muslim/Atheist even exist?? LOL!!
How the hell do they think they can win a general election when they spew crazy like this??
My God, I'm STILL laughing!
Anonymous 12:44:
ReplyDeletePerhaps you misread Gryphen's posting. He specifically said that the two candidates that Joe Klein is suggesting are not much better than the other ones:
'While I hold no such confidence that Jeb Bush or Mitch Daniels are really that much better than the current crop of ridiculous Republicans'
The one thing that jumped out at me in Joe Klein's piece (besides the inane equation that Mitch Daniels or Jeb Bush = viable Republican candidates with some integrity, blech) is that Sarah Palin isn't even mentioned. She's so far beyond the category of "vile, shameless, embarassing losers" that she doesn't register...she's just so MEGA vile and shameless she's now, more and more, being ignored.
ReplyDeleteThe so-called conservative movement today is a fucking joke, and I say this as someone who tends to lean toward what could be considered "traditional" conservative preferences (ie, I'm not a liberal).
ReplyDeleteIf the GOP wants to calculate that most conservatives long for a seemingly stable, white, simpler post-war America and think that we're losing our way if that's what we're moving away from, all the power to them. I hope like hell though that there are enough reasonable conservatives left who won't simply be swayed by fear and hate and nostalgia for a time that is now in the past. Fuck these guys. Newt, Trump(WTF!?), Pawlenty, Huckabee ... That these guys say what they do is surreal. They're gearing up to officially kick off their campaigns and they're on this birth certificate nonsense? Really??? The insinuations have gotten old long ago. Yes, we get it guys. You want us to fear that Obama might really be a trojan horse terrorist planted here by Al Qaeda, or, maybe he's the Anti Christ. Got it.
Then they wrap themselves in this phony fucking patriotism and fake religious garb and somehow these morons who are so desperate to believe eat it up.
This is what Joe Kline is talking about. More Republican teabagger Kenyan birther stupidity. Just look at this picture from a Michelle Bachmann campaign appearance today. The sign says:"SomeWhere in Kenya a Village is missing an IDIOT"
ReplyDeleteWonkette says
Jabbering fucktard clownfish Michelle Bachmann was one of the twelve or so teabaggers to “protest” in Washington today, by utterly failing to have a protest. But at least she posed with this sign announcing that she had escaped from Kenya, and that this strange white suburban wingnut village in Kenya was now missing its main idiot. Then Michelle Bachmann walked into a tree and thanked George Washington for ending slavery and writing the bible, the end.
Link to the picture and the rest of the Wonkette story
http://wonkette.com/441940/dave-weigel-proves-michelle-bachmann-is-kenyan-idiot
What little respect I had for Jeb Bush (the smartest of the Bush clan) left me when he got involved in the Terry Schiavo case. Really, really not his place as governor. A good organizer during disasters, though, from what I hear.
ReplyDeleteWonderful. Somebody finally articulated what I've been thinking since the candidates started the work of impressing their base with the most heinous BS that they could muster.
ReplyDeleteOne of the comments at Frum Forum
ReplyDeletehttp://www.frumforum.com/trumps-birther-obsession
"I knew Barack Obama when he was a first year law student at Harvard where he was a legend because he was so superior to the other students; I used to hear the stories about his constitutional law classes where at times he and the professor were the only two to speak and they marvelled at his intelligence and his personality which was kind. As his professor from that class has said of those years, Barack was not only the smartest student he’d had in thirty years; he was not only the most resourceful of all the research assistants he’d ever had; he was the only student in all those years to give up the proferred Supreme Court appointments, the make-you-rich jobs offered to him when he graduated; he was the only one to choose to work for poor people."
Glad to read Mrs. Palin does not even get a "dishonorable mention".
ReplyDeleteJoke Line is a raging asshole in his own right. If HE thinks the Repuke lineup is bad, then it's very, very, very bad. But his attempt to polish those equally revolting turds Jed Bush and Mitch Daniels is proof that even the lowest Repuke can't go low enough to totally turn Joke against him.
ReplyDeletehttp://politicalwire.com/archives/
ReplyDelete2011/03/31/lawmaker_worried_war
_could_escalate_into_africa.html
Lawmaker Worried War Could Escalate Into Africa
Rep. Tom Marino (R-PA), a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told the Scranton Times Tribune that he supports efforts to remove Moammar Gadhafi from power in Libya but said President Obama should have consulted Congress before acting.
Said Marino: "Where does it stop? Do we go into Africa next? I don't want to sound callous or cold, but this could go on indefinitely around the world."
Of course, Libya is in Africa.
Isn't it a good thing that the Republican primary field is so pathetic and cringe-worthy? Why does Joe Klein want better candidates? The more these guys make a fool of themselves, the more likely it is that many Republicans will be so turned off that they choose to stay home or vote Democrat.
ReplyDeleteJeez anon 12:44, tell us how you really feel about ol' Mitch. Haha!
ReplyDeleteGryphen: "And by the way, if you are looking for whom to thank for that, you need look no further than Fox News, Sarah Palin, and Evangelical right."
ReplyDeleteAnd John McCain. Never, ever forget, John McCain, for providing a national platform for "America's most knowledgeable energy expert" Sarah Palin.
2012 is a wash. None of those jokers can beat Obama. The smart ones will sit it out until next time (except Newt, who's worried he might be dead by then). When Trump entered the fray, it completed the joke that Is the GOP primary. Sarah Palin (if she decides to run) will be the hilariously bad icing on the crazy cake.
ReplyDelete$carah could only see Russia from AK across the narrow Bering Strait. Joe Klein is able to see hypocrisy from across the entire Atlantic.
ReplyDeletePaYlin loses again!
At least, Klein calls "the most under educated, simple minded, and racist group of Americans in the country" by the moniker they deserve.
ReplyDeleteWhat Bill Maher has said numerous times becomes more relevant each day: We are a stupid country.
Meh... Gryphen chose to post Klein - and his rather tepid response. I'd like a little bit more clarity from Gryph on exact;y where he stands.
ReplyDeleteThe T-GOPers are so off the wall, over the top batshit crazy, the danger is that someone like a (not my man) Mitch, or a Jebbie Shrub II seems sane - yet is 10x more dangerous because there is absolutely no passion, no humanity there - in Mitch's case, there's a ledger sheet where a human heart usually resides.
Whenever some bash the President, I look around and any other alternative is scary or a joke.
ReplyDeletehe is not perfect but he is a good man trying to do what is best for all.
12:44, I think you are confusing Mr. Klein's words (in italics) with Gryphen's commentary.
ReplyDeleteJoe Klein aka Joke Line.
ReplyDeleteSo Joe has noticed something wrong with the Republican favorites? That's a real feat.
So Joe was partially right this time. So what. He's more often deluded and wrong. Not to mention just an ass kisser of politicians and the powerful. He hopes our asses will be saved by Mitch Daniels or Jeb Bush? WTF.
Sometimes Joe is stupid enough to tell the world what he really thinks. See what he had to say about busting Wisconsin unions.
Revolutions everywhere--in the middle east, in the middle west. But there is a difference: in the middle east, the protesters are marching for democracy; in the middle west, they're protesting against it. I mean, Isn't it, well, a bit ironic that the protesters in Madison, blocking the state senate chamber, are chanting "Freedom, Democracy, Union" while trying to prevent a vote?
Click on to read the rest of it here.
http://swampland.blogs.time.com/2011/02/18/wisconsin-the-hemlock-revolution/
My favorite part was where Joke states
And it seems to me that Governor Scott Walker's basic requests are modest ones--asking public employees to contribute more to their pension and health care plans, though still far less than most private sector employees do. He is also trying to limit the unions' abilities to negotiate work rules--and this is crucial when it comes to the more efficient operation of government in a difficult time.
Scott Walker's butt boy? Maybe Joke's changed his mind now. It's not even worth the time to check..
Jeb Bush? Are you kidding me? We've had enough Bushes running this country for 100 lifetimes.
ReplyDeleteRick
I think the dumbing down of the Tea Party folks started way before Murdoch and Fox news. I think it started with St. Reagan. He's the one who started all kinds of stupid ideas - like tax breaks are the answer to any fiscal problem, especially deficits. Stuff like that. He promoted outsourcing government functions to outfits like Blackwater. And more.
ReplyDeletePart of me thinks this push of unsuitable candidate possibilities is just a ruse. The people behind the scenes are trying to make a BUSH more palatable to us in a quick time frame. Don't fall for it. The last thing we need besides a Palin presidency is another Bush.
ReplyDelete