The Silent Clapping
One thing that explains the determination of the Movement to stop McCain (they pretend to support Romney but in reality despise him as well) is that a Rodham Regime is useful far beyond political punching on Capitol Hill. That’s a given.
The entire infrastructure of radical 501(c)(3)s and (c)(6)s that spread like athlete’s foot is currently feeling the blues. Sure they can fund raise off a Democrat Congress. But let’s face it — Harry Reid makes a faint punching bag. How to make repeal of Sarbanes Oxley sexy has so far frustrated almost all the usual Rightist hacks. But tie it to Rodham? Slam dunk. At the moment, the wallets for the infrastructure — while not closed — are not as open. And direct mail, which rarely yields more than 2.5% return, now hovers around 1%. We’ve spoken to the heads of 501(c)(3)s — allegedly non-partisan “research” organizations — that are desperate for HRC.
McCain or Romney (for obvious reasons) or perhaps Obama — that remains to be seen — would be far harder to fund raise against. Buchanan’s oblique and sometimes not oblique defenses of HRC are of a piece. Sure, judicial nominees and a few other presidential perks would concern social Movement types. But overall, for the permanent Movement class, those that see people like DeLay come and go, they know they actually prosper when the other party is in power. It is an empirical truism. People assume that the revolving door of lobbyists under the Warlord is emblematic of the entire Movement. Not so. Of course, the lobbyists always trope towards the party in power. For the most part they served and will continue to serve corporate or corporate-related agendas under any administration.
Rush and a few others may be savaging McCain. He and others argue (counter-intuitively to much of his audience but not Stiftung readers) that they should support HRC. It’s a distraction. The real game is to see the silent hands clapping. The Movement’s Permanent Class will be the ultimate beneficiaries if they can but survive McCain or the fading Romney.
Bizarro Tuesday (From DC Comics)
What to make of a plaintive David Brooks writing that McCain in the past did not care about core conservative values and sought a Movement loyal to him alone? Actually, Kristol says it better. His AgitProp was always more con vivo. Projectionism? Who knows? But the struggle to assume the empty shroud of Leader continues. Then again, who didn’t long ago cease paying attention to Brooks et. al?
Today during a commute, Limbaugh at the Advanced Institute for Conservative Studies (his irony is fully intended — Rush above all an entertainer) couldn’t decide whether his loathing for McCain (nearly pathological) trumped his inherent recognition that Team Mitt was an empty suit.When we waited in the massive, massive line to say goodbye (hours and hours), so many came to pay their respects — for whatever reason(s). Today, all fighting over the remnants of a moth eaten mantle. Claimed by so many as to mean nothing. Even today, whatever would (could) the pre-illness Gipper say in this 24 minute news cycle?
We’ve always known what Brooks and Limbaugh are saying today; the extreme Right will not align behind McCain. Which means either they stay home or create a strange, fringe Pat 3rd Party SA effort.
Good times. Good times.
Send In The Clowns
The primary circus in California runs out of steam. First, Rudy inevitably bows out. As readers know, we’ve had a soft spot for him from our working together years ago; we avoided helping out mostly because of his Neocon posse (nor were we approached in any event).
Watching McCain tonight pound Team Mitt without mercy stokes mixed feelings. Readers also know that back in 2000 we were on the ground for him in South Carolina and had a crestfallen but fun late dinner with part of his family. Later, when he was Chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, the Stiftung worked closely to pass solid legislation of front page media note; and with McCain’s support rolled McConnell, Lott et al. in conference all the way to WH signature.
Truly McCain was the anti-christ of Movement and Rightist Republicans, as you know. The true venom on Capitol Hill is hard to convey here in text. The deviationism? Intolerable.
So to watch him 2004-2007 warp into some parody of the Warlord is so sad, so hypocritical he should implode into thin air. We actually think that McCain truly changed. His warped calls for endless war and admission of economic ignorance not only invite glee from opponents but should scare us all.
Perhaps when Arnold endorses him tomorrow, Arnold will give away free copies of “Jingle All The Way”.
The Sky Is Falling
Watching the bloated and ineffectual “Lion of Camelot” endorse the Crown Prince pretty much seals the deal from the Stiftung’s point of view. In passing we note:
(a) Kennedy’s lack of any real accomplishments over the many years except to stutter and mumble to Roger Mudd in 1980, or
(b) the alleged sustained “partying” with women and Chris Dodd upstairs at the famous Capitol Hill bar “The Monocle”; or
(c) the fact that in his atrocious K car convertible he careened around a corner at the Dirksen SOB and nearly killed the Stiftung back in the day;
Kennedy and Crown Prince are coeval. Putting aside Rightist paranoia, we saw much of the media — such as the “Situation Room’s” concierge — feverishly repeating “Camelot” and the Kennedy mystique. 2 weeks ago Kennedy likely would have had to fight his way past the producers to get 2 minutes with The Beard. So not a bad deal for all involved.
It’s also a perfect karmic comment that today is also witnessing an NRO satellite on uncontrolled re-entry. Back in 2003, when the shuttle crashed over Texas with an Israeli aboard, the Stiftung would mention to those who would listen that the Chinese long ago believed (and still do in many ways) that this was a sign that the regime no longer had a mandate from heaven. In this vein, the Kennedy endorsement similarly poses symbolic imagery if only we could just catch a “fleeting glimpse out of the corner of our eye”. Surely “Change” is today’s version of Ford’s hilariously whacky and useless buttons, “Whip Inflation Now” (WIN).
The final black spot to make our trifecta? The Warlord’s inevitably irrelevant swan song tonight. A pathetic Tattoo You on the whole sordid thing and perhaps 2008 overall.
None of this is meant to excuse any other campaign for bare political sucker punching — on either side. Thinking about the whole thing gives the Stiftung new empathy for Lloyd Bridges’ character and performance in the movie “Airplane!”
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