David Brooks: Conservative Movement Has "No Leaders," "No Coherent Belief System," In A "World Of Pain"

Conservative columnist David Brooks envisions very tough times ahead for conservatives. On "Face the Nation" this morning, Brooks says the conservative movement has "no leaders," is in a "world of pain," and lacks a "coherent belief system." Watch a clip from the show (via ThinkProgress).

Comments

[rajoro]

What is the mystery? Look even though we have two party system it is still all about coalitions.

The Republicans lost their coalition. As is the case with all coalitions, over time dissaffected elements fracture. In the case of the Republicans, they used and didn't deliver to the rabid evangelical right.

Bush/Rove just used them so Cheney and the neocon global corporatists could have their way with the US Treasury and military. They never delivered on their anti- intellectual, anti-science theocratic dream. Their war and economy drove a wedge in the ranks and the extremist loonies took over forcing a Palin-esque candidate on the ticket for all the world to see their ignorance.

[luke150]

Agree with him or not, Brooks is an intellectual. All he is saying is that the Reps don't have relevant ideas and are just looking for a savior to save them somehow. And he thinks that is not very probable. Palin is a divisive figure, even if one forgets about her other defficiencies, that is enough to disqualify her. How do these people think that the independents will ever vote for her? In 2012 it has to be a miraculous Extreme Makeover for her to make her electable.

[realpolitic]

If Brooks is an intellectual, perhaps he should come up with some ideas?

[HurryUp1212009]

The next Republican President will be the first Republican to completely repudiate the current "base" (good term) of religious phonies and under-educated, otherwise ignorant whites who are not - repeat not - necessary to win the nomination within the Republican Party. Keep an eye on Pawlenty and Jindal; Romney is too strident and Guiliani is a one-trick (9/11) pony. As for Palin and Huckabee, they both represent the aforementioned "base" and appealing to that group is now suicidal in anything but a Republican Primary.

[fetchezlavache]

The Republican Party should disband, change its name and start over.

[priscianusjr]

"Agree with him or not, Brooks is an intellectual. All he is saying is that the Reps don't have relevant ideas and are just looking for a savior to save them somehow. And he thinks that is not very probable."

Which, when you think about, is a pressing and immediate personal problem for him as an intellectual, and for any other conservative intellectual that expects to be able to say anything anybody's going to pay attention to.

He and his ilk, if they have brain one (which many of them don't) are now being forced to realize it, but it's really nothing new -- I've rarely been able to get beyond the first couple of paragraphs of a David Brooks column.

[StillAmused]

If anyone knows, it's Brooks, veteran right wing warmongering majorette.

Careful, David -- don't trip over the other smear artists and hypocrites rushing to grab an empty chair before the post-election music stops.

[realpolitic]

Yes, four years ago Brooks was telling us how wonderful Bush was, just like he was just recently telling us about how wonderful McCain would be! There is not greater oxymoron than the term "conservative intellectual."

[Crix]

Do you think the Republican Party would really nominate a former Hindu, current Catholic named Piyush Jindal? There would certainly be some heads exploding on the right - the ones that didn't already explode Tuesday night.

[cornagainstsorcery]

Of course they would. You forget. It's always okay when it is someone from their party.

[Amalek]

I would never believe this country would elect a president whose middle name was Hussein and whose last name sounds like Osama. I am starting to believe that any young person in America can grow up to be president.

[realpolitic]

Even Jindal does not believe in evolution. The conservatives are in deep doggy doo.

[Daly]

Romney; he and his Mormon faith was not good enough for the RP so they hitched their star to a damaged Dino.

[Bettysdad]

From the dawn of time, conservatism has been about one thing, and one thing only:

Exerting maximum control over the maximum number of people for the maximum material gain of a tiny minority. End of discussion.

That's exactly what it is now, and guys like Brooks just try to put up a smoke screen to try to make conservatism appear to be a legitimate ideology.

[realpolitic]

Remember when Chrchill said that "never have so many owed so much to so few"? Conservatives are the party where so few have profited so much off so many! This saying should be their party mantra!

[Jazzcomedian]

Guns, fear, xenophobia, anti-intellectualism, intolerance, the determination to hang onto every penny they make, and disinterest in the larger society or the less fortunate seems to be all the GOP conservatives exemplify these days. And since Reagan (their Mao) they have been financially irresponsible to devastating effect. This will be the second time in sixteen years that a Democratic administration will be forced to clean up a financial disaster left by a GOP administration. Why govern if they don't believe in government?

When the GOP adds things like justice, compassion, equality, tolerance, honesty, and integrity to their agenda and philosophy, they'll be relevant again. The every man for himself philosophy they so revere, is turning our society into a Darwinian, and Dickensian jungle with plutocratic overtones.

Respect for the individual spirit, freedom, and genuine concern for the larger society need not be mutually exclusive. That's the true message of the voter's verdict this year, and the GOP needs to come to grips with that.

[CarolinaDem]

gosh that is a nice post

[Amalek]

You seem to be suggesting that the Republicans need to become Christians, or at least to accept Christian values. How dare you tell them that justice, compassion, equality, tolerance, honesty and integrity are values they need to embrace? Weapons, fear - especially of foreigners, anti-intellectualism, hatred and greed are values too! Republicans have a right to practice this religion they call evangelicalism, even though it does not resemble Christianity in any way.

[mandoboy]

Spot on, Amalek! You should be a guest columnist.

[realpolitic]

Conservatives only call to people is that of selfishness and maximizing their individual net worth. It is not a very idealistic call to young people and is fine as an economic strategy, but does nothing to confront the problems we face as a society. It is a morally bankrupt philosophy!

[TrueBlue1112]

True to the last word!

[0whole1]

Or, to sum up, Republicans needs to stop coming across like jerks and start sounding like they want to help people.

[Crix]

The Republicans need to get rid of the psuedo-Christian wackos, the racists, and the angry a-holes. They simply cannot win in the future with that type of representation. They are the cancer of the party. Reasonable, moderate, itelligent Republicans need to cut them out and hit the reset button on their party. It may take some time to be successful again, but Americans will ultimately blame us Dems on the problems of the nation again and put them back into power, if they make the neccessary changes.

[HurryUp1212009]

Jesus would never condone the narrow-mindness and outright bigotry of these so-called Christians. In making calls for the Obama campaign, every time someone used the N-word, I asked them if they were a Christian, and 100% of them exclaimed absolutely they were! Like their religion gave their racial bigotry some license.

[ThatDeborahGirl]

Well, you have to understand...Christianity was used to justify slavery. That there must always be slaves and always be masters and that the "white race" being the masters was simply the "natural order of things."

And there are still people who believe this to this very day. To the intelligent person it is appalling but there are people who truly believe that blacks being subservient to whites is biblicaliy sanctioned. So yes, to them, religion does give their bigotry license.

I love that white people are discussing these things again - and not just in whispers, behind closed doors or only with close family or friends! But In the open...on blogs and with black people! That's the last thing people who believe atrocities want - open, logical discussion - that kind of light shatters their beliefs and exposes them for what they truly are - shallow, unintelligent, misinformed people.

Don't stop!

[realpolitic]

They should keep those groups you describe for the very reason that they can not win with them!

[thatsitfortheother1]

My favorite inanity among Repigs is "It's not the job of the government to take care of people."

OK, what other legitimate function does a democratically elected government have? Certainly not to spy on the citizenry or make laws restricting what someone can do with their own body.

Provide for the common defense, perhaps. But sheesh. It's as though the Repigs paved their own streets, built their own libraries, sutured their own wounds.

[iceage7]

The problem with Republicans is that they got away from electing presidents based on intelligence. They vote for presidents based on social issues Gays, Guns and God. Now if you are against these issues then it does not matter who you are anybody under the sun can get elected to represent the republican party. All they do is just put any candidate that fits these issues (3Gs) and they will sell he or her as the most qualified candidate America has ever seeni.e Palin and Bush. Bush is just happy to be president. He acts on what others tell him and what he wants to hear. Palin is the same way. Now we know these 2 have neither the intellectual capacity or curiosity to understand National or International issues comapred to the democratic candidates who are usually very smart, intelligent, knowledgable, curious about National and International affairs. It is really a disgrace that America gets sold these kind of leaders. And the world keeps wondering why AMerica the post powerful country in the world elects these leaders.

[darker]

PEEPING TOMS Conservatives' latest BULLSHIT and FRAUD is their "new movement" to
"Protect the sanctity of marriage".

NO THANKS. We don't want THEM pretending to "protect" our marriage just like they CRASHED AMERICA!

CONSERVATISM = FRAUD & CORRUPTION wrapped up in self-righteous HYPOCRISY!

[Just4theHalibut]

On PBS (Lehrer News Hour) when gay marriage was brought up, David Brooks said that he disagreed with the socially conservative claim of "marriage" being "threatened" by gay marriage. He said it was a wonderful institution, important to his own life, and as such we should be welcoming more Americans to it, rather than meanly preventing them from fully participating in it--(or words to that affect). Brooks is the type of conservative that, as a progressive, I will at least listen to-- and hope to heck that conservatives will listen to as well.

[Judyisacutie]

The RNC says, 'You want a woman? Here's Sarah Palin. You want a minority? Here's Bobby Jindal.' They are still the party of gimmicks. They just don't get it.

[KarateKid]

In a perverse way, it would be funny to see Palin and Piyush Jindal go at it. (Yes, Piyush. Bobby is not his real name). Imagine the Limbaugh faction 527s having fun with that.

[johnmarkorg]

OMG... who is Piyush "Bobby" Jindal?

[realpolitic]

Wow, if Jindal runs for president then conservative talk radio can spend all day speculating on whether he is a Muslim.

[bentax645]

I agree. It is all smoke and mirrors and no essential substance or a "Raison D'etre". A shell without a core...

[realpolitic]

Agreed! They just throw any woman out there like other women will vote for anyone with two x chromosomes. Women are concerned, I would think, with many issues such as equal pay, health care for children, the right to choose, and in a lesser way access to birth control. Sarah Palin stood against almost all the issues that women hold dear. Republicans are so deaf to women's and minorities' issues that they think they can just throw anyone of a certain group out there to collect the votes of the others in that group. It does not work that way in the real world!

[macohmz]

They have a coherent belief system. They believe they can coherently sell a nation down the river and everything will go on as it always has. For them anyway.

[johnnynyc]

So Brooks thinks this "lack of a belief system" is something new? Where has he been the past 24 years the Republicans did and said anything to win elections?

The Republican Party hasn't participated in reality based politics since Reagan's campaign in 1980. Reagan was very stage managed during that campaign but he did have a belief system.

Download the current podcast of NPR's On The Media and listen to Stefan Forbes, director of Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story, talk about how the senior Bush facilitated the rise of both Atwater and Rove in the Republican Party and how those two cynically ginned the game to win elections.

Unfortunately for the Republican Party, the current wars and crises forced the American public to see through the fog this time.

[rpr]

Fear, first of the Soviet Union, then of the terrorists, of "the liberals" and "the left", and always the fear of "moral decay" that keeps the religious right aligned, is all they have to run on now that the rest of the neocon ideals have imploded.

I saw "The Power of Nightmares", a BBC documentary about the parallels and relationships between neocons and islamic terrorists. It has never been shown on US TV. Get it and watch it - it's all over the Net, eg at http://www.archive.org/details/ThePowerOfNightmares .

[darker]

NO LEADERS? NO PLAN? NO NOTHIN'?
BECAUSE? BECAUSE conservatism is A BIG FRAUD HATCHED to defraud America.

WHAT A BUNCH OF BUMS.