This is the sort of thing that drives me nuts
On many blogs on the right I see commenters saying things like, “If Corker and/or Flake cave on Kavanaugh, that’s it for me. I’m voting third party and the GOP will be dead to me forever.”
That makes zero sense. But I’ve heard that sort of thing for years from the right.
Why do I say it makes zero sense? Because Flake and Corker are two people, not the entire GOP. The remedy is not to surrender power to the Democrats, which is exactly what the Democrats (and the MSM) want you to do, and exactly what will happen if you follow that path. The remedy is to elect more, and more conservative, Republicans.
That seems so obvious I would think it doesn’t need saying. But apparently it needs saying. I’ve been saying it for many years.
The only reason that Corker and Flake have such power is that the Senate is almost evenly divided between the two parties. That magnifies the influence of a single vote yea or nay. Corker and Flake love that power. But if, for example, there were 55 GOP senators to 45 Democratic ones, or an even greater disparity, their votes and their RINOism wouldn’t matter. They wouldn’t be able to hold the entire party hostage.
Now, you might say that McConnell should be able to control them in the way the Democrats are controlled by their leaders. But the GOP doesn’t do the party line thing as well as Democrats, and that is for temperamental and philosophical reasons. However, that would be moot if there were more Republicans in the Senate, with more room for a few dissenters.
You might also say that if there were more Republicans in the Senate, more would be going the way of Flake and Corker. I don’t think so; that’s not historically the way it’s been, although unfortunately there haven’t been all that many times in recent history that the GOP has had a really strong majority in the Senate.
But one thing I do know is that allowing Democrats to win—by either not voting, or by voting third party—is not the answer. In my opinion, it’s a dangerous indulgence in juvenile anger, a form of tantrum, and I fear it will happen in the 2018 elections and jettison all of Trump’s conservative nominees.
I made the exact same point somewhere here yesterday. Democrats are the main villains, why assist them and obstruct President Trump even further by not voting when like only two of our own are traitors, why give the traitors what they want? Why reward the people you dislike the most and make their day because your side is not perfect? We won, we are in a much better place than if Hillary had won, appreciate it, don’t self doubt and give up just because things are not going perfectly, you knew the devils would fight back fiercely, have you not seen empire strikes back? why don’t we come out to vote to give president a bigger margin to work with so we don’t need votes from traitors like flake (even though he won’t be around that much longer)
“But one thing I do know is that allowing Democrats to win—by either not voting, or by voting third party—is not the answer. In my opinion, it’s a dangerous indulgence in juvenile anger, a form of tantrum, and I fear it will happen in the 2018 elections and jettison all of Trump’s conservative nominees.”–Neo.
“…juvenile anger”…This!
by refusing to vote, basically you are punishing Trump because of Flake’s betrayal, consequentially causing Trump’s impeachment which is what Flake and his nevertrump friends want. logic fails
It’s an expression of frustration followed by resignation, really. A tantrum. Unfortunate, yet an understandable consequence of human nature.
(I say this as a voter who has, on multiple occasions, thrown votes to hopeless third-party candidates when it was clear that, campaign promises aside, neither choice stood in my interest. That was a luxury that can no longer be indulged in.)
One of the points often missed in this reasoning is also this: Primaries Matter. Not happy with the choice between a useless (or spiteful) squish and someone who holds you and your values in total contempt? Then where were you in the primary process?
Fortunately, I think more voters understand this today. The GOP really has been forced into a transformation of sorts, and it’s been evident in primaries. So far, the Ds have been able to isolate it, but #WalkAway might be a sign that their time is coming also. (I sense that this could be a big factor in 2020, although the outcome of these midterms will have an effect. If we still have a republic that long, that is…)
Now, I can’t speak regarding Corker, but I can speak regarding Flake as a former consituent (On a prior thread, I’ve commented on his unfortunate and rapid transition once reaching the Senate).
A very key reason that Flake is acting this way is because he wisely concluded that he could not win the GOP primary this time around. Thus, he feels that he can afford to go out and take an adversarial position, because there’s no longer a constituency or coalition for him to maintain any level of trust with. What does he have to lose? At least he goes out with some level of notoriety.
(That, and I also think he learned the fine art of spite from his late predecessor…)
Ergo, that primary vote is much more important than we tend to think. Look around at other GOP candidates and notes the ones who have chosen not to run again. There’s a basis for this.
We do adapt and learn. Not always in time, unfortunately.
I live in a state that is very conservative with pockets of liberalism popping up in the cities with universities and the larger population areas. But, overall, we are still conservative.
My senators are not up for reelection, so I have donated/will donate to other campaigns where they need help. I do not donate to the general RNC appeals.
It would be helpful if other Neo readers help us to know who to assist.
– I concur with Steve C. that primaries are important. But, if your guy doesn’t make it, still vote for the most conservative person. Learn to use that phone & email to tell your elected officials what your think.
Thank you, Neo. This idea that not voting, or not voting for Republicans, will somehow help drives me nuts. I know people whom I respect who couldn’t bring themselves to vote for Trump, because they disapprove of his personal life history. What I said to them, after he won, was, “I’m just glad there weren’t more of you!” I felt the threat from the Clinton presidency would be far greater than any harm Trump could do — and in fact, he has performed well beyond my hopes.
Principles before principals. Philosophy before party. A conservation of principles that are internally, externally, and mutually consistent… or do as humans do: strive.
Democrat news conference. Objecting to a Monday hearing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2qSkJVcHjU
Senator refers to spectacle of Anita Hill at 2:30 in the video acting like Anita was treated very horribly.
Senator Mazie Hirono at the 5 minute mark says women should be believed. Yes – Keith Ellison’s accuser actually had a police report. Believe her !
The Left is for collectivism and seeks to join and participate in and achieve a hive mind without individualism or individuals. Thus the intense antipathy felt towards any heretics or towards those who only profess love for 90% or even 99% of the collective ideology — even though this ideology may change, as needed, per circumstance.
The Right is for individualism, and is composed of individuals, many of whom value proclamations of their individualism and uniqueness far above any submersion of “self” in order to resist and/or fight the aggression of the collective.
The media is/was supposed to be an impartial arbiter. It is not. But it has disguised itself, and still disguises itself, saying “Oh we’re neutral,” or “We try to be neutral,” or “Sometimes we’re neutral,” and Reality often doesn’t seem Real unless everyone sees it, and for the most part the media control our eyes right now.
A lot more is going on and needs to be factored in. Such as, obviously, the role of Law and how Law can be twisted and then used as a weapon. But: the Individual vs the Collective. That is the war we are in.
n.n.: “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.” – Emerson
Not only should people vote Repub, they should also get more involved locally to find stronger candidates. We seen too many times that our side takes a bit of rhetoric thrown at them and assume that that is a good philosophical and practical reason for support. One of the things that Trump’s deregulation has done is give more power to locals. That power has to be used at every level from towns to counties to states. And we need people who can sell our programs, not just stamp their feet. Look how popular Hogan is in MD. It’s because his programs work, not because he became a rabid Trumpster. In fact he has been quiet about national politics and concentrates ondoing his job.
Anita Hill was 27 years ago. It was 1991. It was the year I moved from liberal to conservative. There were many factors that year including these hearings, the LA riots, and learning about the environment, budgets, etc from visits to the library that year.
I do NOT have the memory of the Anita Hill hearings painted by the Democrats in the YouTube video above.
individuals need to form alliance to achieve a greater goal or overcome a grave adversary. no man is his own island, you can’t accomplish nothing by everyone acting individually without any organization or cohesive strategy. Why have generals, why form troops, why not just send a bunch of soldiers into enemies territory and have them fight how ever way they want to fight. this bastardized version of individualism is exactly what traitors like flake tries to pollute your minds with to divide and conquer the conservatives for the benefit of his true masters.
Senator Patty Murray in the news conference hasn’t talked to the accuser. Begs the question, “Where in the world is the accuser?” Why can’t she be reached by phone?
If people are justifiably outraged at the behavior of Flake or Corker–assuming they go through with their threats–they should call for punishment of Flake or Corker. Unfortunately, this pair of miscreants appear to be beyond reach since both of the rascals (euphemistically speaking) are retiring–with life time pensions at our expense no doubt.
The Senate has become a cesspool of monumental egos, further contaminated by Democrat obstructionism. It is time for the electorate to take up their pitchforks, rhetorically speaking.
Barry Meislin on September 18, 2018 at 7:53 am at 7:53 am said:
“We’re finally experiencing a cultural shift in this country, to a place where sexual abuse and harassment will no longer be tolerated, and Congress needs to lead by example…”
Heh (TM)….
FWIW, here’s “example” #1:
https://pjmedia.com/instapundit/307831/
* * *
This is what appears at the link; PowerLine bloggers have been raging on this one for months.
SEPTEMBER 18, 2018
RAPE CULTURE, KEITH ELLISON EDITION: Woman Accusing DNC Co-Chair Of Abuse Describes How Democrats ‘Smeared, Threatened, Isolated’ Her.
DNC Deputy Chair and Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison has been accused domestic abuse by former girlfriend Karen Monahan. Monahan broke her story earlier in the year, claiming to have video evidence of Ellison physically abusing her and using sexist slurs toward her.
Monahan has been slowly telling her story through Twitter, explaining how Democrats in her state attempted to silence her and “isolate” her. When a follower asked if Democrats believed her claims, Monahan said, “I’ve been smeared, threatened, isolated from my own party.”
Monahan alleges she provided medical records to back up her claims of abuse, but state Democrats did nothing: “I provided medical records from 2017, stating on two different Dr. Visits, I told them about the abuse and who did it. My therapist released records stating I have been dealing [with] and healing from the abuse.”
“I knew I wouldn’t be believed,” Monahan said of her Democratic colleagues.
“Believe the women” only applies when there’s partisan advantage to doing so.
Posted by Glenn Reynolds at 7:06 am
Two important articles by J E Dyer – relaying and analyzing info on several fronts.
https://libertyunyielding.com/2018/09/16/they-had-you-at-roy-moore/
https://libertyunyielding.com/2018/09/18/kavanaugh-accusers-lawyer-is-with-soros-funded-activist-group/
I’ll be the token odd person and say that I disagree in principle, but a very important principle to impart. We have accepted pretty much without question the idea that ours is a two-party system. For some there can be no other way. Although most would concede there are many other ways of thinking, many of which are less sclerotic than the current status quo. Yes, the Corker’s and Flake’s are enjoying the fact that they stand for nothing, and yes, that is offensive. That is their right. They are creatures, parasites if you will of our two-party system.
But, to imply that when one does not take a side that you de facto side with the opposition is preposterous. As a conservative libertarian, I will never cede my right to vote as an individual on any issue at hand even if it means giving power to people I oppose. To do so would be live in the illusion of freedom while existing in tyranny.
Jackson:
You can vote however you want, of course. No one is taking away your right.
But to vote without realizing and factoring in the real world consequences of your vote is to be out of touch with reality in a dangerous way. Votes matter, and if your “principled” vote ends up in helping the triumph of that which you despise, then you need to listen to Sancho Panza more than Don Quixote.
Yep. Watch the Democrat news conference Jackson.
Then take a gander at the Clarence Thomas hearings. I was glued to the TV in 1991 because I worked 11 PM to 7 AM in the morning. I lost a lot of sleep watching that pubic hair on a coke can debacle.
we have principles because we believe these principles are beneficial to our life and our family’s in the long run. It is counterproductive and against the goals of having principles if the principled vote you cast is guaranteed to make life worse for everyone you love. We pretty much can’t get any closer to an Armageddon than Democrats winning this midterm, especially by the atrocious tactics they have been using.
https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/09/brett-kavanaugh-democrat-accusations-not-enough-evidence/
“Some more not-so-fun facts. Not that long after Clarence Thomas’s nomination was very nearly defeated, and within easy memory of Bork’s character assassination, President Bill Clinton got to nominate two Supreme Court justices. How did Republicans react? They couldn’t leap on the confirmation bandwagon fast enough. Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer were confirmed by the lopsided margins of 96–3 and 87–9, respectively.
See how this works?
Justices Ginsburg and Breyer were well qualified. But, of course, so had been Bork and Thomas. Because they were Democrats, however, Ginsburg and Breyer sailed through. The two things Democrats and Republicans have in common are 1) abiding respect for the personal integrity and legal acumen of Democratic judicial nominees and 2) effective acceptance of the Democrats’ claimed prerogative to “Bork” any Republican court nominee, no matter how impeccably credentialed, no matter their obvious integrity.
Republicans have defeated Democratic nominees, but they never Bork them. They never demagogue Democratic nominees as sex offenders, racists, or homophobes. There are no “Spartacus” moments.
Even when Republicans are put off by a Democratic nominee’s progressive activism, they seem apologetic, quick to concede that the progressive in question adheres to a mainstream constitutional philosophy — one that is championed by leading American law schools and bar associations because it effectively rewrites the Constitution to promote progressive pieties. Old GOP hands then typically vote “aye” while mumbling something about bipartisanship and some “presumption” that the president is entitled to have his nominees confirmed (a grant of deference that Democrats do not reciprocate, and that actually applies only to offices in the executive branch that exercise the president’s own power, not to slots in the independent judicial branch).
Even in 2016, when Republicans blocked Merrick Garland, President Obama’s late-term gambit to fill the vacancy created by the titanic Justice Antonin Scalia’s death, there was no besmirching of Judge Garland’s character. It was pure political calculation and exactly what Democrats would have done if roles had been reversed (minus the character assassination).”
Andy McCarthy
https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/09/brett-kavanaugh-democrat-accusations-not-enough-evidence/
“President Trump says a lot of things that are not true and says a lot of other things that are foolish and unsavory. But his supporters are drawn to him, in large part, because he is willing to get into the muck with Democrats, fight them on their own demagogic terms — especially on things he cares about, like his nominees. They are tired of Republicans’ being caught flat-footed, continually underestimating how low Democrats are willing to go, how much they are willing to destroy reputations, institutions, and traditions in order to win.
We’re beyond the time when it’s still possible to live well. If Democrats get away with what they are trying to do to Kavanaugh, the only decent people in politics will be decent progressives; people who reflect the broader range of opinion and civility in the country will not participate in or pay much mind to our politics because it is too savage. The cut-throat operators who do not believe in the Constitution, pluralism, and civility will be running the country, until they inevitably push too far and provoke ugly pushback.
That’s what our politics is supposed to prevent. But you can’t go on forever under circumstances in which only one side of our politics gets the benefit of decorum and the presumption of good faith and rectitude. We can’t continually have judicial nominees — and everyone else — treated under different sets of rules depending on whether they’re Democrats or Republicans.”
Liz- “It would be helpful if other Neo readers help us know who to assist”
Please consider supporting John James, the Republican nominee for the US Senate here in Michigan, who is going up against the Democrat incumbent Debbie Stabenow.
John is a 37-year-old conservative African-American. He’s a West Point graduate who flew over 400 combat missions as an Apache helicopter pilot in Iraq, then came home to earn an MBA from the University of Michigan and serve as CEO of his family business. He’s a man of faith and a huge Trump supporter. I’ve been to a couple of John’s rallies and he is an exciting and charismatic speaker. In my opinion this guy is exactly what the Republican Party needs going forward.
Stabenow has a huge financial advantage, but John has been working tirelessly across the state and I firmly believe he can pull this off if he can get enough support. Check him out at johnjamesforsenate.com.
Flake has so irritated his home state Republicans that he’s been compelled to retire because he could not raise sufficient funds to mount a competitive campaign in a Republican primary. Corker’s also retiring and working to subtly undermine the campaign of the Republican campaigning to succeed him. Both have been disagreeable prima donnas the last two years and they’re now breaking china on their way out the door. What’s interesting is that this sort of behavior has very little popular constituency if any at all. Another thing that’s interesting is that Ted Cruz, who has real personal beefs with the President, is not calling attention to himself in this manner. This pair of butt-hurt Capitol Hill insiders cannot get out of town too quickly.
See John Hinderaker: Jeff Flake has been striking poses as an exponent of True Conservatism (TM) contra the Trumpheretics and then he works to sabotage with his shenanigans on the Judiciary committee, and the motives are almost certainly a function of personal pride. Distasteful, to say the least.
Mea Culpa (Ok, not sure if spelled right but you get the gist). I was berated by Neo several yrs ago on this very issue. Yes she is right and I was wrong. That said sometime my so called Republican Senator here in CO forgets who brung him to the dance. I get angry. And yes he is somewhat marginally better than a Dem.
By the way our outgoing Gov, Hinckenlooper of Beer fame is forming a PAC to explore running for Pres. Not going to be his yr in 2020 or ever in the Dem Party. He is too White, too Male, to “Moderate”, to tall and his name is too long.
Here in Florida, it’s ‘absent without leave’ DeSantis VS ‘Marxist and proud of it’ Gillum for Governor. And, ‘I pretend to be a conservative but I’m really a GOPe RINO’… Scott VS ‘I call myself my own man but I’ve voted with Hillary 84% of the time’… Nelson.
Those “choices” perfectly illustrate why Congress is a cesspit.
Obviously I’m voting for De Santis and Scott, yet that’s just a slower march to the collectivist’s gallows.
I am suspicious of anyone claiming to be a True Republican, True Conservative, True Christian, True Gentleman, etc. That goes for Flake, Trump supporters, George Will, David Brooks, Pat Buchanan, National Review, whoever. If you have to say it, you ain’t it.
The people who keep finding others not quite pure enough in doctrine forget what politics is and who politicians are. My standards aren’t that high. My right to vote might be sacred, but my actual votes are often profane. I just want someone to be better than the other guy/gal. If that’s 51-49%, I don’t like it, but I’ve done it and will do it again.