GOP Draws Internal Battle Lines Around Sarah Palin

With the GOP looking more and more set to fracture as the possibility of electoral defeat looms, the cannibals' knives are out. Consider this quote, via Yglesias:

Jim Nuzzo, a White House aide to the first President Bush, dismissed Mrs Palin's critics as "cocktail party conservatives" who "give aid and comfort to the enemy".

He told The Sunday Telegraph: "There's going to be a bloodbath. A lot of people are going to be excommunicated. David Brooks and David Frum and Peggy Noonan are dead people in the Republican Party. The litmus test will be: where did you stand on Palin?"

Hold it now. They're serious about going all in with the Palin loyalty test? Uhm...apparently so! Nuzzo adds:

He said: "Win or lose, there is a ready made conservative candidate waiting in the wings. Sarah Palin is not the new Iain Duncan Smith, she is the new Ronald Reagan."

Yowee. So, for the sake of Sarah Palin -- who many conservatives correctly assessed as the candidate-born-yesterday -- a whole slew of Republicans-in-good-standing are going to be thrown under the bus? That's a serious civil war, or rather, a war betwixt the Serious and the Un-Serious. Keep in mind that Palin's critics are not marginal figures in the conservative movement. We're talking the aforementioned Brooks and Noonan and Frum, and we're adding Christopher Buckley, George Will, Kathleen Parker, Colin Powell, Charles Krauthammer, Matthew Dowd, and for the sake of argument, we'll throw in Chuck Hagel, Andrew Sullivan, and Christopher Hitchens, even though I hesitate to pin any of them to any sort of doctrinaire conservative group.

This is, indeed, a "bloodbath," and for what? A distinctly semi-pro Alaskan governor who's more or less made the charisma-free Tim Pawlenty look like What Could Have Been?

Additionally, this sort of line-in-the-sand drawing avoids another obvious truth -- come 2012, someone besides Palin is going to vie for the GOP nomination. Someone like, say, Mitt Romney, who famously earned the backing of the National Review, which called him a "full-spectrum conservative." What happens to Romney, now that he's on the wrong side of the Palin line? Because that's where he is:

Former Mitt Romney presidential campaign staffers, some of whom are currently working for Sen. John McCain and Gov. Sarah Palin's bid for the White House, have been involved in spreading anti-Palin spin to reporters, seeking to diminish her standing after the election. "Sarah Palin is a lightweight, she won't be the first, not even the third, person people will think of when it comes to 2012," says one former Romney aide, now working for McCain-Palin. "The only serious candidate ready to challenge to lead the Republican Party is Mitt Romney. He's in charge on November 5th."

[...]

Some former Romney aides were behind the recent leaks to media, including CNN, that Governor Sarah Palin was a "diva" and was going off message intentionally. The former and current Romney supporters further are pushing Romney supporters for key Republican jobs, including head of the Republican National Committee.

If I read this right, the GOP is set splinter into a trio of factions: the Palin-philes, the Romney remainders, and those excommunicated from the movement for daring to make a lick of sense at one point. Fitting isn't it, that a McCain loss might precipitate his party coming to resemble the factionalism of the Iraqi misadventure they all cooked up in the first place. Maybe Joe Biden can help them reach some sort of triple-partition solution!

Comments

[JeanPaulSatire]

Whether Winky runs for the presidency in 2012 or is just a historical footnote by then is not the real story. The real story, as Jason Linkins points out, is that the vitriol the Rethuglicans usually reserve for those outside the party will instead by directed at former co-travelers.

While this might at first seem a little surprising, it shouldn't be. Consider that the hard right-wing, conservatives did NOT want Mc Ancient (not conservative enough) and only became 'energized' (read: would actually bother to vote) once Blinky chose Winky as his running mate.

It was the hard right-wing conservatives who gave us Reagan and Bush 43, both of whom were true-believer 2-termers. Bush 41 was NOT a true believer, although he was willing to pretend enough to become prez but not enough to become a 2-termer.

This is why the hard right-wing believes that IT is the core of the party and anything that threatens that perception is a casus belli -- even if the threat comes from people with (R) after their names. (One thing that remains unclear is whether they will have to change their secret handshake so that only the true-believing hard right-wingers will know it.)

Some might say that the hard right-wing is willing to destroy the village in order to save it, but I believe they'd rather destroy the village than let anyone else run it.

[tainochef714]

Well it is obvious that the party is breaking down from the inside. While certain conservatives share this idea that Palins potential will exceed to a Regan statues, it just shows that there hoping our memory banks are set on short memory. For Romney I belive could have excuted far more eloquently in this campagin then any of the two now (Mccain, Palin). What republicans need to relize is how the philosophies of their party can bring solutions to the problems were facing. Not how there veiws are a pro america while everybody else against the Mccain & Palinology spectrum are dead wrong. This seems to be a tolterliern way of thinking. I think that republican supporters should be frustrated with how this campagin was ran, it was out of touch with its people. What this party should be focusing on is a bold, strong, and intellectual way to reinvent itself and stop relying on a base of religion ideaology. Also this idea of nation building of democracy by these neo cons on forgein soil has set them back. When were in muilti trillion dollar debt in this country, people have lost homes and jobs, the resources for people have deteriated, why would I want to spend more money on so called assit a forgein country on how the fruits of democracy work, when the people here are not an a stable state? This facination of Palinology will only bury the party further to the ground.

[bluguy8]

does than mean she's the grim reaper ?

[TheBlackCat]

As Chuch Hegel said, this is turning into a war between intelligent fiscal conservatives and
know-nothing social conservatives. Let's pray the former wins.

[AgeofReason]

If Republicans support Sarah Palin, their PARTY is dead.

[Moshe]

This is classic behavior among extremists idealogue groups: When leadership roles are reserved to only "true believers" those that will then have the strongest claim to leadership in these increasingly extremist ideological groups are the most rabid extremists (as the way to supplant your opponent is to prove that you are more extreme and rigid in your beliefs), and then the circle of those that remain ideologically pure enough to avoid being purged from the group keeps getting smaller and smaller.

The rabidly ideological neo-cons are a cancer within the GOP, they rapidly transformed the GOP into something that most of its prior members would have found revolting and unacceptable, and they have now almost killed the GOP.

[MDinOK]

The Republican party has become a party of intimidation. Quotes like "You aare either with us or against us", "There's a place in hell reserved for women who don't support other women.", and now "There's going to be a bloodbath. A lot of people are going to be excommunic­ated." If they run their campaign in this manner, just imagine how they would would run the White House.

[bluguy8]

funny thing is more people are against them--boy their just clueless

[neurogrl]

easy to imagine since it's our current reality

[mograph]

I'm not familiar with the Constitutional ramifications of it, but does anybody else smell the formation of a new party here? Where the GOP splits into two?

[AgeofReason]

It has nothing to do with the Constitution. Parties form, split, reform, etc.

[neurogrl]

Parties weren't written into the constitution. George Washington was solidly against the formation of political parties because they divide the nation and limit the scope of one's view of a given candidate.

[labman57]

So the GOP plans to hang their hat on the future of Sarah Palin, and as Palin goes, so goes the party.

Good luck with that.

Palin may very well return to a much more hostile Alaska. She was riding on the coattails of an over-inflated price for a barrel of oil that delivered huge profits to her state. People were willing to give her a pass with respect to her management style so long as they shared a piece of the profit pie.

Well, the price of oil has plummeted and as a result, the Alaskan economy will suffer. Her statewide ratings have already dropped 20 points, and the increased scrutiny of her conduct while governor has given many Alaskans another perspective of her leadership. I suspect we have only seen the tip of her "mismanagement" and "abuse of power" iceberg.

By the next election cycle, Sarah Palin will very likely no longer have the positive image or clout to contend for the presidency. In fact, she may be lucky to get re-elected as governor.

[dickmarg]

If she doesn't get reelected, Sarah Palin could always apply at Fox News.

[neurogrl]

Perfect position for her imo.

[PatriciaB]

Yes, she can be the Fox senior foreign news correspondent for Russsia and therefore stay in Alaska and report from her front porch.

Obama/Biden'08!!!

[bluguy8]

after this election--I don't think anyone will want to be associated with her

[Rog49Thomas]

Think again

they're still cheering her now
she gets bigger crowds than Honest John

When you're a true believer, facts are never an obstacle.

[corsair1917]

I can't believe that the RNC is willing to hang its hat on Sarah Palin when she has proven to be the reason McCain is so far behind in the polls. His first "presidential" decision and he picked Palin who didn't have the knowledge or experience for the job. She is devisive and from what we have slowly learned abused her power as Governor..­. They really need to get over this "you're either with us or against us" mumbo jumbo... I hasn't worked for them in the past and I doubt it will work for them in the future. If Sarah Palin is their future, we are all in big trouble.

Sounds like they are pretty sure McCain is going to lose...

[MrCrowley]

Well, I guess this is how the GOP elite enforce their lock-step. Whether right or wrong, unite or be culled. Nice folks.

[GeorgiaInFlorida]

I'm a registered Republican in Florida, and I am against Palin and have already voted for Obama. So if I'm dead to the Republicans, so be it.

[Retrofuturistic]

Gee, I must be dead to the party. (Whew.)

[bgfsh]

It was clear when Palin entered national politics that she was not the one to lead a party. Those that stand behind her are fools. The Rep party and all those clear thinking members - including me - will move past this talking head. The American people expect and deserve more from elected officials. And no, she's no Ronald Regan. Maybe Brian Regan - they're both funny at least.

[paixa3]

Palin is a hate filled airhead, not much more than that.

ANY political party who supports her are absolutely anti-freedom and most probably anti-americant, all in one fell swoop.

[MrCrowley]

Sadly it doesn't seem to be about right or wrong, it's about how many people are under your banner. If it "appears" that Palin has the support of the populace, she'll get her way. The GOP hate machine will ensure it. As long as there's voters who react to emotional buzzwords instead of making intelligent choices, there will be room for these slimy tactics. Just try and find another country where the election hinges around abortion or gay marriage or flag burning amendments. It's distraction theater, and we've got to keep fighting it.

I never thought the day would come that Nixon would seem like an ethical guy, by comparison­....