Take THAT, reality! Ron Paul wins CPAC straw poll
If CPAC is the future of the “conservative movement,” bring it on. The convention that supposedly defines right wingery, and which is supposedly going to remake the big spending, Middle East invading Republican Party into something much more “conservative” was a masterstroke of incoherence. Read more
Matthews v. Palin, round 2: ‘nothing going on mentally’
Chris Matthews renewed his Sarah Palin fusilade last night, saying she “has nothing going on mentally” and calling her “dangerous.” Watch, as Mark Halperin is equally tough on her, though he hasn’t gotten the same amount of ink for it:
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Matthews’ case against Palin is that because she knows so little about so much, she is an “empty vessel, ready to be filled with aneoconservative ideology she doesn’t even understand,” a la Dan Quayle or George W. Bush (the latter of whom proved that you don’t have to be bright to become president.) That’s not such a far fetched case, including according to Ron Paul, who says the neocons have already infiltrated the tea party movement, of which Palin is the undeclared but clear leader. (She’s also the leading figure, besides Rush Limbaugh, in the Republican Party, something the party may not like, but it’s reality.) More on Sarah’s 2012 prospects (shudder…) here.
Tea parties turn on Ron Paul: is this the beginning of the end?
Allahpundit asks: if Ron Paul isn’t safe from the tea party movement, who is? And it’s a good question. The tea party movement began as a sort of Libertarian/conservative uprising, focused on shrinking government, ending bailouts and cutting taxes. It definitely had an element of Obama Derangement Syndrome grafted onto it, but in theory at least, it also was anti George W. Bush. Clearly it has morphed into something else — a confederation of people who reject the results of the 2008 election, mainly Palinites (the angry mobs who shouted “kill him!” and “off with his head!” at Palin’s ‘08 rallies look an awful lot like those making up the tea rallies these days…) George W. Bush defenders, neoconservatives (who really don’t seem to fit in, but whose beef with Paul is that he opposes foreign adventurism, a la Iraq) plus the well-documented fringe of racists, nativists, birthers and just plain angry white people. Throw in Tom Tancredo leading the lobster-gobbling, pinky in the air Nashville conventioneers and you get a strange gobbledygook of race baiting and snobs who can afford to pay $800 to hear Sarah Palin say what you can hear her say for free on Fox News, and what you’re left with is a very strange brew. Read more
When Ron Paul meets Michelle Bachman
Right wingers who think the tea party movement and the “Republican Revolution” are precisely on the same page watch out … I read a bit of Ron Paul’s “The Revolution: a Manifesto” this afternoon at Barnes and Nobles. Funny how it doesn’t quite fit in with the Big Brother neoconservatism of right wing talk radio (which used to include Glenn Beck before he suddenly discovered he’s an “Independent,” after eight years of lapping up to George Bush…) Case in point:
Yesterday, the Young Americans for Liberty sponsored an event at the University of Minnesota that brought together the odd pairing of Reps. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) and Ron Paul (R-TX). Bachmann solicited Paul for the event, hoping that his presence would help her attract support from young conservatives and libertarians.
Writing for The Daily Beast, Maureen O’Connor notes that the event melded two “wingnut worlds“: “the fanatically religious Bush-era neocon, a flag-waving patriot who likens gay sex to bestiality and fantasizes about lobbing nukes at Iran” and the libertarian “Ron Paul Revolution.” Indeed, for Bachmann, the presence of Paul created numerous awkward moments, particularly as the Texas congressman sermonized at length about his isolationist views. For example, Paul said:
– We should never go to war if they’re telling us a lie about what’s happening. … We took the position, over my strong objection, we took the position that we had to have regime change in Iraq.
– What they’re getting ready to do is put very, very strong sanctions on Iran. … But sanctions, and blockades, and prevention like this is an act of war.
– The proper foreign policy under the Constitution is non-intervention and mind our own business.
– I say bring all the troops home — Japan, Korea, and Germany.
For Bachmann — a typical neoconservative on foreign policy issues — Paul’s rhetoric stunned her into stone-cold silence…
Read the rest here (with video). The funny thing is, Republicans in the Bachman wing (the Sean Hannity crazy corner) used to call Ron Paul a nut. And Bachman, well … pretty much everybody thinks she’s nuts. So which wing of the wingnut party is nuttier? Inquiring minds.
UPDATE: The HotAirian nation doesn’t like Ron Paul.
The Axis of Crazy: Paulites, Palinites, teabaggers, militias and crackpot Pastor Anderson
The nexus of these groups is coming into focus. It seems that the origin of the wingnut ascendancy might be the failed, quirky candidacy of Ron Paul. More and more, the craziest forces on the right appear to be a combination of Ron Paul adherents, Sarah Palin fans and fringe miliita types, all brought together by media figures like Glenn Beck. One piece of evidence: “Pastor” Steven Anderson, the guy who wants President Obama dead (specifically, melted like a salted snail) was the star of one of those ubiquitous July 4 “tea parties.” Watch:
So, do this blogger and others like him, still think Anderson is “great?” Read more
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