What does the GOP Old Guard think?
Commenter Barry Meislin writes
…”the older generation has had FLAT NOTHING to say about the abusive behavior of either Obama’s outfit or Biden’s….”
THIS is, in fact, the most chilling aspect of this vicious farce.
Dershowitz, whether one agrees with him or not, is unafraid when it comes to defending the Constitution and the rule of law, as he understands it.
The silence of the Old Guard of GOP leaders—and one might assume “decent” Democrats—is deafening, chilling and sinister…
(Or ought one say, “most disappointing”?…)
Many years ago, in my more naive days, I might have thought that most of our “elder statesmen” would be condemning the sort of behavior we’ve seen from the FBI and DOJ under Obama and Biden. I no longer expect such things.
But the comment made me wonder, who are these “Old Guard” of GOP leaders – apart from the Bush/Cheney crowd who hate Trump, because (among other things) he was quite vicious to them over Iraq? I recall Trump saying Bush should have been impeached and that he was evil. In fact, I wrote an article about it – you can find the article here. So one thing that is not a mystery is why the Bushes and Cheneys hate Trump. And many people who support or are allied with Bush/Cheney hate Trump for their own reasons, or on Bush/Cheney’s behalf.
Other Old Guard Republicans? It’s interesting to contemplate that, until Trump’s election, the most recent non-Bush Republican president was Richard Nixon [NOTE: Oops, I was in such a hurry I somehow left out Reagan].
The only non-Bush-allied elder statesman I can come up with is Gingrich, who has pretty consistently defended Trump and criticized Obama and Biden. Googling for a few others I see that John Ashcroft has defended Trump, Kay Baily Hutchison was his NATO ambassador, and Bob Dole endorsed and defended Trump from the start. The only thing Dole split with Trump on was he said he thought Trump lost the 2020 election (“I regret that he did,” Dole added). Dole certainly would be considered the Old Guard – he was 98 when he said that, and close to death.
Sarah Palin, who is a Trump defender, doesn’t really qualify as Old Guard. She’s rather young still, and relatively Trumpish herself.
That’s the Republicans. The silence (or even praise) of old-school Democrats for Obama and Biden’s machinations doesn’t surprise me in the least. Most people are not Dershowitz or Turley; most are not profiles in courage.
Gingrich, on the other hand, who is 79, has been very active on cable news defending Trump and criticizing Democrats and the left. A sample: this and this. Actually, take a look at just about anything Gingrich has said in the last few years and it’s very hard-hitting. Is he elderly enough to be Old Guard? I think so.
Also, for what it’s worth, erstwhile Democrat Joe Lieberman has been consistently critical of Obama’s and now Biden’s Iran Deal, and was pro Abraham Accords.
When I think “Old Guard of GOP leaders” I think Mitch McConnell and Lindsey Graham. I don’t know if either of those guys have expressed an opinion on the MAR Raid and/or the current state with the FBI.
“Other Old Guard Republicans? It’s interesting to contemplate that, until Trump’s election, the most recent non-Bush Republican president was Richard Nixon.”
The Gipper? Am I missing something / someone??
[ Does Gerry Ford count? ]
I wonder how many good old guys on each side have stared in Epstein’s home movies. That might explain some of the inaction we are currently observing.
Dan Quayle is long retired from politics. To the extent he has an expressed opinion, it’s been favorable to Trump. Rudolph Giuliani’s been prominent for > 30 years.
Process-oriented Democrats like Michael Dukakis and Jimmy Carter should have been critiquing Obama and Biden. Not aware they’ve said a word. Gary Hart offered anything? How about Elizabeth Holtzman? (Who has favored impeaching three of the last six Republican presidents and accused Gerald Ford of having cut a deal with Richard Nixon to pardon him).
And, again the googoo groups like Common Cause and the League of Women Voters have been scandalous.
Has McConnell said anything about the Mar a Lago raid, or about Biden’s horrible speech last Thursday?
And Kevin McCarthy is about to pronounce a “Commitment to America,” vaguely like Gingrich’s “Contract,” but not nearly strong enough, in my opinion.
They’re still afraid to step aside from the Fusion Party.
This is what Carter had to say when asked in 2019
“Well, the president himself should condemn it, admit that it happened, which I think 16 [of the] intelligence agencies have already agreed to say. And there’s no doubt that the Russians did interfere in the election. And I think the interference although not yet quantified, if fully investigated would show that Trump didn’t actually win the election in 2016. He lost the election, and he was put into office because the Russians interfered on his behalf.”
https://www.npr.org/2019/06/28/737008785/jimmy-carter-says-he-sees-trump-as-an-illegitimate-president
Again note that comment was made in *2019*, after the Mueller investigation was complete and found there was no evidence of collusion with the Russians.
I think “old guard” doesn’t just refer to elected politicians but to the whole Chamber of Commerce branch of the GOP.
Mike
McCarthy’s remarks were lame.
Bitc* McConnell crapped out entirely. One thing that induces one to despise the Senate Republican caucus is that they’ve been content to leave him in charge of it for 15 years.
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2022/09/06/mcconnell-remains-silent-on-bidens-speech-attacking-maga-republicans/
This is what Carter had to say when asked in 2019
What was agreeable about him 40-odd years ago is that he was policy-oriented, disliked it when money and favors were slung around for the well-connected, didn’t have any personal scandals, and was more economically literate than about 90% of the Democrats in Congress. As he ages, you can see he was over-rated.
And Kevin McCarthy is about to pronounce a “Commitment to America,” vaguely like Gingrich’s “Contract,” but not nearly strong enough, in my opinion.
His roommate is Frank Luntz. How much has what ails the Republican Party been derived from listening to Frank Luntz?
Bill Frist, Lamar Alexander, Trent Lott, Orrin Hatch (before he died in April).
Mitt Romney is not a Bushie.
Cornyn, Rubio, Johnson, Ernst, Cruz, Kennedy, Rand Paul (and his dad), McConnell, Thune, Grassley. All have been around for a good while. Some have been much better than others.
Gingrich and Cruz have been strong.
How about Mike DeWine and John Kasich. Haven’t heard a peep out of either.
I wonder if DeWine will join Trump at the rally Sept. 17 in Youngstown. Probably not, doesn’t want or need the endorsement.
Most of the old guard see Trump as a threat to their rice bowls.
Anything that would take Trump out will be fine with them.
Of course it would never do for them to come out and say that. The rubes might get the wrong idea.
MJR:
I’m away from my computer, but I’ll correct my Reagan error when I get back. Obviously I left him out; I have no idea why. I had an appointment and wrote the post in a HUGE hurry, but it’s really an insufficient excuse.
people I know in Ahia, aren’t keen on mike dewine, his health secretary astor was almost as bad as a blue state nazgul
Not really sure who is eligible to be considered “Old Guard” in politics — retired politicians who no longer hold office, or current office-holders who could be considered “elders”? How many of either group would anyone want to hear from? There’s been a custom for former presidents to stay out of the public commentary business, especially on subjects directly related to the current President, and I for one am happy that Obama, Bill Clinton, and Gore have by & large respected this. The current Republican leadership is weak, and unless some one of them has abilities comparable to those of DeSantis, there’s not much to be gained by hearing them speak.
reagan was why the eleventh commandment was devised, because the rockefeller wing took repeated shots, at the conservative wing,
I voted for guiliani, gingrich and cruz, in the respective primaries, because mccain romney and jeb proved their bonafides,
Reagan a Bush Republican?
I thought Neo was writing this blog – not John Podhoretz.
Cruz was also abused, severely, by Trump in the primaries…but Cruz is forthright—courageous?—enough to understand that when the country’s at stake, holding grudges is absolutely insane.
Which might one lead back to the original question, reformulated as: Is it ONLY grudges/hatred/feuds that prevents the Bushes and Cheneys, etc., from defending their country? (Put another way, are they Albanians? Or Americans?)
– – – – – – –
Regarding “…Obama, Bill Clinton, and Gore have by and large respected this…”, I would beg to differ regarding Obama. Clinton, it would seem, is so utterly compromised that he would be wise to remain silent (even if he hasn’t entirely). As for Al Gore… Al Gore who?
In Congress, those we criticize are those who remain silent, demonstrating that they place self-aggrandizement before country.
They are TWANLOC.
interests, it took me till suleimanis death, that I figured out what was liz cheney’s agita, mcconnell has family ties to xi’s circle,
you know it’s a little like this modern finance series, devils, the villain, dominic morgan, is a big time banker who helped create the globalization wave, but he has second thoughts, the anti hero, the italian massimo, was also part of the wave, but has qualms about what he has wrought,
As far as I can tell, the RNC has done nothing to stop the Dems from vote cheating.
If the Dems can steal votes in Atlanta, Philly, Pittsburgh, Madison, Milwaukee, Las Vegas, Detroit and Phoenix, the GOP is screwed. Again.
Zuckerberg spent millions in 2020. He’s certainly at it again. And will be in it Big Time in 2024 to steal the election for Sheryl Sandberg. The first woman, first widowed and first Jewish President. Historic!
Cornyn, Rubio, Johnson, Ernst, Cruz, Kennedy, Rand Paul (and his dad), McConnell, Thune, Grassley. All have been around for a good while. Some have been much better than others.
Huh? McConnell was born in 1942 and has been on public payrolls since 1967 (the period running from 1970 to 1975 excepted). John Thune has been on public payrolls or on the staff of political organizations since he was in his 20s; he is now 61. Grassley is 88 years old and has been in Congress since 1975 (and in the Iowa legislature before that). Cornyn hasn’t been in private practice since 1984.
Ernst, Cruz, and Rand Paul were elected to Congress in 2010-14; none of them held public office prior to age 35. They all have done other things with their life. Cruz and Paul would have had a more agreeable existence following their previous professions (law and medicine).
Rubio’s much more the career politician than are Ernst, Cruz, or Paul, but in Tallahassee rather than Washington; he entered Congress at the same time they did. He is not a contemporary of Grassley or McConnell, but of their children.
As far as I can tell, the RNC has done nothing to stop the Dems from vote cheating.
Don’t know what they’re up to. It’s the state parties and their associated legislators who should be busy, filing suits, introducing legislation, and lining up volunteers.
neo (4:38 pm), thanks for the response.
I and your readers really do realize that you have obligations and responsibilities aside from contributing to and overseeing this blog. Absolutely, utterly no sweat regarding any hurried oversight. We appreciate your efforts here immeasurably.
Is it ONLY grudges/hatred/feuds that prevents the Bushes and Cheneys, etc., from defending their country? (Put another way, are they Albanians? Or Americans?)
Bush, McCain, and Paul Ryan were all hostile to immigration enforcement. This antedated Trump.
Wow. Neo made an unintended mistake, i.e. leaving Reagan out. You are such an information and communication stud Neo, I was certain that there was some good or at least intended reason for that.
FWIW, I think that the GOP at this point is broken, hacked, and neutered. That McConnell is still the leader is a scandal. I’d explain more (maybe later) but I’ve got to run. If I dashed it off, there’d be a half dozen mistakes.
Oh yeah, Gingrich was always an outsider in the GOP/GOPe. Part of the reason he got pushed out of the House was because some GOP turncoats.
In my opinion, the silence of the Republican Party is a dereliction of duty. One way or another, they owe their voters the courtesy of a coherent political platform, and yet they refuse to articulate it, they refuse to group up, coalesce as a party, and present the public unified face to the voting population. Most of them are bereft of message, and without ideas – except for their own cynical political survival, presumably for the harvest of benefits.
No, I’ve become completely disillusioned. My own Senator Cornyn is Establishment through-and-through – he should re-spell his name, ‘Crony’. Ted Cruz I admire and support for his efforts. But the upcoming election holds trepidation for me: I fear what Scott Pressler, that tireless political activist who puts his time and energy to productive use, is forecasting: That, in the absence of a coherent message, by its silence when the defense of an individual’s Constitutional rights and American values are crying out for reinforcement, the American Public is feeling disenfranchised by their own party, and is no longer willing to put in the effort of working on their behalf. They are not reliably invested in American culture, and it shows, and people are noticing and changing their behavior accordingly. (end of rant)
The older the odds are they moved to the Uniparty if not the Deep State
they do concur in disarming the people, sending weapons to ukraine, allowing this sham reconciliation that has let loose 87,000 locusts upon our country,
flight 93, crashed despite the efforts of beaman and co, 21 years later the progs seems intent on completing the destruction, the 19 hijackers did, is it hyperbole only slightly, cuomo and deblasio killed more people than bin laden, he tips his turban to them, from hell,
Aggie,
What you have described might well be EXACTLY what continues to buoy Trump, and Trump’s choices (much to the dismay of some….).
IOW, there STILL is no choice.
Personally, I think there may be more of a choice than meets the eye—taking into account that the MEDIA is doing its damned best to either repudiate or entire conceal those people (E.g., DeSantis and others…)
edmund burke once said ‘all it takes for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing’ * I put it to you, if the top men, qualify there, twenty years of war, and when the terror came to America, murdering cops, tearing down statues, burning store fronts, they emitted a mild eek, now this delta house jamboree, which mostly involved parading, but live ammo was issued this is the ‘insurrection’ that should haunt our dreams, like water buffalo man, in a hammer film, grassley does his best pantomine horse, but when it mattered he was silent,
Have you seen the recent Rubin Report with Jarrod Kushner? He talks about the pushback he got from “experts” in the US and the Arab countries. Most seemed to be desperate not to be shown to have failed by Kushner/Trump trying something different.
I go back to this from Charles Murray in May 2016:
“Without getting into the comparative defects of Clinton and Trump (disclosure: I’m #NeverTrump), I think it’s useful to remind everyone of the ways in which having a Republican president hasn’t made all that much difference for the last fifty years, with Ronald Reagan as the one exception.”
https://www.aei.org/society-and-culture/a-reality-check-about-republican-presidents/
The ‘Old Guard’ and Bushie Republicans hate being bookended by Reagan and now Trump. The Sovietologists hated Reagan because he proved them WRONG and rendered their careers academic. And remember, the “experts” in DC had us on the road to war with North Korea before Trump.
My vague memory is that Lindsey Graham was critical of Obama, but he does tend to hedge his bets, tipping this way and that. He’s a part of the Washington blob, an institutionalist, so he’d speak out against Obama or Biden but drag his feet on doing anything about abuses in their administrations.
My guess is five groups are considered as the “Old Guard.”
The first is the old line WASP elites who were once the backbone of the party but now have largely abandoned the GOP and gone over to the Democrats. Even the Eisenhower family has done so. The smaller fry, the local Country Club or Chamber of Commerce Republicans, are split, but the richer and more coastal they are the more they lean Democrat.
The second is the Bush-Cheney-McCain War Republicans who really don’t like Trump.
The third is the “Movement Conservatives” or “Conservatism, Inc” the people who believe that they started a conservative movement and deserve to go on running it. This group has split between supporters of Trump and Never Trumpers, with some people moving back and forth. There is some overlap between this group and the Bushites.
The fourth is Wall Street and Corporate America. The bigger the company, the more likely it is that their directors and executives have also gone over to the Democrats.
The final group is senior Republicans in Congress. I think they’re a mixed bag. Some supported Trump. Some tried behind the scenes to block him. Some just go about their business. The problem may be that Republicans like Graham and Grassley are contented with expressing opinions, and Democrats don’t rest until they take action.
One thing to ask, what are they guarding? To me, I think of both parties as guilds or unions. The guards are protecting the structure of those parties. Trump destabilizes the party by not needing its structure to get elected. They didn’t like Ted Cruz either, because he worked outside the party to beat then Lt. Gov David Dewhurst for the Texas Senate position. If more people don’t need the structure of the party, then the leaders can’t control members with fundraising dollars. The more we, the voters, give our donations directly to preferred candidates, the more it hurts the party and pisses off the old guard. Of course, they could fix the problem by listening to the voters, but they still work on an old model of promising “next time” to fundraise. At least that is how I see it.
Leland,
Some years ago I read a book by Fareed Zakaria, in which he suggested each presidential campaign was essentially its own entrepreneurial effort, somewhat outside of party money or control. I don’t recall that he claimed this applied to congressional or state level campaigns, but some of that may apply for selected candidates in some races.
I agree with you or others that a semi-formal Contract with America from the R party would be helpful going forward – only going negative against Biden et al. is not enough to create the energy for overcoming the Leftish putsch, or TDS.
But the recent program offered by FL Senator Rick Scott (AN 11 POINT PLAN
TO RESCUE AMERICA) has not gotten off the ground, as far as I can see.
It seems no n has mentioned the multi-trillion dollar prize at stake — every year, if not to three times a year. For, like, 15 years, ever since 2007, Congress has had no federal budget. None. No annual spending appropriations
Instead, we have EMERGENCY spending bills because that emergency of the Great Recession required it. The Tea Party formed to combat it, then faded. But the US Chamber of Commerce is MAGA enemy number one,
It used to be said, pace Reagan, that there is no immortality except a government spending program. Updated, there is no immortality but for emergency federal spending.
How else did Biden reverse Trump’s budget that stopped state income taxes deductibility from federal income taxes? Thus saving the Blue States from bankruptcy — instead of sending them there where they belonged.
Consider how Biden managed to get most of the Communist Green New Deal passed — yes, the creator that the far Left Dems FDR style money for everyone was written by the Sunrise Movement, an explicitly communist enviro front group.
In August, $370 billions for “climate” that does nothing to halt global warming? Yes. But it completely restocks far Left enviro and agitprop groups that will fraud for more spending and undoubtably be the firehose to mount agitation in enough states to keep the People from sending non-Left pols to the US Senate, and prevent the taxpayers money from being cut from being wasted on corrupting the “Process.”
It is THIS perpetual anti-Trump, anti-MAGA grotesque that McConnell and the US Chamber of Commerce keep gamed against honest politics, labor, and the People that lives on and on like a psychotic axe murderer in a horror flick.
You think I’m exaggerating? Then reconsider lawyer turned video blogger Viva Fred’s explication of Time magazine and Molly Ball’s February election steal confession by projection: listen again. The US Chamber of Commerce helped fund the 2020 stolen election.
THEY HATE YOU AND ME and America — except in so far as they can use her.
“They just had to brag about [stealing] it, didn’t they?
“They don’t like Trump, they don’t like you supporting Trump. They’ve made that pretty clear. Despite all the disingenuous calls for ‘unity’ from Joe Biden, they want those who worked for Trump punished if not ostracized, and Trump supporters ‘re-educated.’”
“They don’t even realize that it’s this demand for ideological conformity to the left or face consequences — either social or financial — is what caused Trump to win in the first place.”
DO YOURSELF A FAVOR, AND LISTEN AGAIN to their evil cynicism and gloat.
https://clashdaily.com/2021/02/watch-lawyer-breaks-down-the-infamous-time-article-about-the-secret-well-funded-cabal-that-fortified-the-2020-election/
The Twelfth Commandment: Thou shalt not overlook an iconic Republican president. 🙂
Another indication of just how grotesque is the problem facing the country:
“Prominent historians jump into political arena, advising Biden, attacking MAGA movement”—
https://justthenews.com/government/white-house/prominent-historians-jump-political-arena-advising-biden-attacking-maga
And a more-than-timely piece on Reagan…(for film buffs, but not only):
“A ‘Kings Row’ for the
Rest of Us;
“The American journey is a journey of free will and independence. Brokenness is part of the human condition but it need not be a determining factor in how one’s life
ought to continue.”—
https://amgreatness.com/2022/09/06/a-kings-row-for-the-rest-of-us/
H/T Powerline blog.
Related:
“When Is It Acceptable for Biden’s Team to Work With ‘MAGA Republicans’?”—
https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/when-is-it-acceptable-for-bidens-team-to-work-with-maga-republicans/
Which might raise several questions about the “jungle on the Potomac” (and the country) that “Biden” has established/built/imposed….
The main problem (issue/phenomenon/mystery/what-have-you)??
It is most remarkable that 80-odd years after Auschwitz, a prominent percentage of American liberals have ENTHUSIASTICALLY EMBRACED the POLITICS OF DEMONIZATION.
(Gosh…who woulda thunk it…?)
Ah, but I keep forgetting—DEMONIZATION…in order to MAKE THE WORLD A FAR, FAR BETTER PLACE!!…
(Now WHERE have we heard THAT before…?)
Ref: Sarah Palin…
Worth watching in full on C-Span (45 minutes!) even now is the extraordinary —and largely unprecedented in tone and content— acceptance speech then AK Governor Palin gave when she was tapped for the VP role in McCain’s presidential candidacy…
https://www.c-span.org/video/?280790-11/sarah-palin-2008-acceptance-speech
…It’s totally Trumpism avant la lettre!
Notwithstanding that the Repub ticket instantly surged ahead of the Obamazoids in the polls, the old guard GOPers knew exactly what kind of threat Palin represented to the Uniparty, if her star was allowed to rise as it was well on its way to so doing.
So McCain and his cabal brutally threw Palin under the bus, and every aspect of his campaign from that point forward was de-facto defeatist and accommodationist. Of course his polling immediately crashed and burned, but that was secondary to their longterm personal interests.
Palin never was much publicly associated with the Trumpistas, but I’d think that was likely more due to her coping with family pressing problems; rather than ideologically motivated.
@M Smith, that was an excellent list.
This feud is likely as old as the hills. As miguel noted, it goes back to the old ‘Rockefeller Republican’ days if not farther, and got revived with the Tea Party. I remember the ‘Republican Grassroots’ pins at the county fair GOP booth when my parents manned it. The phrase ‘Voodoo Economics’ goes back to the GHWB v Reagan nomination fight, not the Democrats (shades of the first mentions of Willie Horton and Obama’s birth certificate.)