Frank Rich On The Conservative Crackup: "The Cockfight Among The Losers Has Only Just Begun"

ELECTION junkies in acute withdrawal need suffer no longer. Though the exciting Obama-McCain race is over, the cockfight among the losers has only just begun. The conservative crackup may be ugly, but as entertainment, it's two thumbs up!

Over at Fox News, Greta Van Susteren has been trashing the credibility of her own network's chief political correspondent, Carl Cameron, for his report on Sarah Palin's inability to identify Africa as a continent, while Bill O'Reilly valiantly defends Cameron's honor. At Slate, a post-mortem of conservative intellectuals descended into name-calling, with the writer Ross Douthat of The Atlantic labeling the legal scholar Douglas Kmiec a "useful idiot."

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[peacegurl48]

Bravo Frank! The GOP is hopeless until they realize that the politics of hate and fear are repugnant to most Amercians. They also need to realize that anti-intellectualism only appeals to the base and that we need bright, articulate, thoughtful men and women in government...not rabid ideologues. (guess that would eliminate the vapid Palin).

[mulegino]

Any winning side has a right to celebrate, but I think that it is far, far too early to start celebrating the demise of GOP, Inc. and the renaissance of the old replublican party of fiscal conservatism, efficient government, and less military interventionism world wide.
It was not even 6 years ago when W was at his flight suit apogee, poised for re-election, fooling 80+ percent of the American people, and riding high to re-election with the GOP in power in both houses of congress. Political fortunes turn on a dime-euphoria, fed by hubris, can very quickly change to discouragement and then defeatism.

[concernvoter]

The Republicans need counseling.

[kellygrrrl]

Who will lead the GOP out of the darkness?
Mittens and the MagicMormonUndies?
SarahPentacostal?
HuckabeeEvangelee?
BobbyTheExorcist?

Enquiring Minds want to know!

[woody1291]

None of the above will lead them anywhere but where they are or lower than they are now but I don't believe they have learned their lesson yet. I look for a new party with more moderat views to surface in the future.

[kellygrrrl]

agree! I definitely think they will splinter into two distinct parties.

[pons1595]

Rich is the best political opinion writer going today. His analysis of the "brain dead" opposition party is so right on and incisive. A vast majority of the American electorate has finally grown up and realized the teenage culture issues that has fed this party is completely fast food and without nutrition; all it has is sugar and calories. Except for "gay" issues, which still somehow gets to these numskulls, the 60's culture issues are dead as far as moving large groups of folks.

Ironically, today's gay issue is comparable to the issue of slavery. As a gay man, I can easily tell you I did not choose to be ridiculed and tortured by the wide array of haters in the male world. I pretended to be straight for years, and the words of Bishop John Shelby Spong from an essay on homosexuality rings quite loudly on this issue:

"The Bible, for example, was once quoted to support slavery, to oppose science and to prevent women from achieving equality. On every one of those issues the Bible was quite simply wrong. To quote it now to uphold the evil of homophobia is no less wrong. These efforts will fail as they always do. The ultimate tragedy is, however, that some church leaders, ever on the wrong side of great moral questions of history, never seem to learn history's lesson that any prejudice once publicly challenged by a new consciousness is doomed."
http://www.johnshelbyspong.com/bishopspongon_homosexuality.aspx

[levibatgirl]

Frank Rich right on target as usual!

[Helloise]

They just need a unifying slogan. How about, "We're all losers now!"

[CyrusBeaucephus]

How about "F*ck America Because you are Afraid!"?

[kellygrrrl]

think of all the freaks at the Convention who were saying about Sarah:
"She's just like Us!"

[rabiddog6708]

The Repub (un) Civil War has begun. Here's hoping there's lots of casualties on all sides.

[kellygrrrl]

I think they will splinter into two groups

[StillIRise]

Good article. The Republican has become the party of OPPOSITION. They oppose everything that is ideally American. America has evolved, demographically and culturally, but the Republican worldview remains stuck in the past. Because of its demographic and cultural evolution, America has become a more tolerant nation, and the Republicans have inversely become less tolerant. They see diversity as a threat to the exclusive white patriarchal Christian society that once defined America and that they still envision America to be. So they stand in opposition to the reality of America, and persist in promoting the delusion, and project their own fears with fear-mongering rhetoric, with the assumption that Americans are as deluded as they are - and unfortunately, some are, which comprises their loyal base.

I remember watching the 2000 Republican Convention and thinking, "How stupid do they think we are?" The black gospel singers and dancers were performing before an all white audience, which reminded me of the Apollo Theater in the early twentieth century, when blacks were excluded from entering the theater as guests, but were always the main attraction on stage. This is the Republican mindset. They are a Party of the past who stand opposed to the future.

[ebanks84]

TO HUFFINGTON POST:

The VIRAL KOOK is back again and his posts always end with a link having [MY REALITY TELEVISION] behind it. He claims it's a youtube when the link itself is NOT utube. He should be banned from ever submitting a link such as the [MY REALITY TELEVISION] link. Please keep this angry person from harming our computers. Thank you.

[ebanks84]

The GOP needs some closet cleaning to do before they can be a responsible adversary again. Their old-style ways need to be updated and their party agenda has to be changed. Otherwise, the same old party shenanigans won't bring them out from under.

People know who they are, what they stand for, and don't like them. Divisiveness, fear, and all that negative el crapo won't make it in the future of this country. If you're not bringing us together, you're not worthy of being a representative party in America.

[BPCentrisAmerican]

To many ideologues with to few ideas, they can only articulate what there against, things that most normal people want like healthcare, stable economy, end of stupid wars. smart foreign policy, effective government, good infastucture. You can't be anti-government and want to run it, low tax fundamentalism is not a message, effective government is, expertly when-your wiped out in natural disaster, or lose you job because of the free trade fiction.

[Rog49Thomas]

Predictions of the death of the RP are a bit premature.

Perhaps, it's a fading memory but I seem to recall that before the economy exploded, Honest John and Sister Sarah were within striking distance of victory.

The rich history of the USA would suggest that fears and smears are highly successful tools for winning elections.

[ebanks84]

You jest. They were nowhere near "striking distance" of victory. I don't know what you were looking at but from what I saw, they never had a chance. Fears and smears have di.ed a de.ath in this country as of the Obama election. There is NO GOING BACK. Americans will look forward to people who brings us together instead of dividing us. Obama will spoil us for the "better" forever more. How can you go back when you've had the best?

[Rog49Thomas]

No I am deadly serious. You may believe I'm wrong in my analysis.

As to the dawning of the Second Enlightenment in this country, that would be nice.

But I don't think history or current events support it.

An African American candidate got elected in the worst economic conditions since 1930. All that proves to me is that when people are scared enough about the economy they temporarily let go of their prejudices.

I'd note that the press reports an increase in hate crime activity since Brother Neo was elected.

Perhaps, with time (and assuming some favorable breaks on the economy and foreign affairs) Brother Neo's tenure may move the country further along towards greater tolerance.
But I rather doubt he will lead us to nirvana.

[StillIRise]

I don't necessarily agree. I think McCain's selection of Palin was the nail in the coffin of his election, and the economy crash just drove the nail in. The energy that exploded with the Palin pick that gave momentum to McCain's numbers was a temporary illusion. The more we saw and heard from Palin, in spite of the economy, the more of McCain's base turned away from him, and they were essentially left with the fanatics, the die-hard Republicans and the racists - both Democrats and Republicans - who would never vote for a black man. These are the only people who embraced the fears and smears that defined McCain's campaign.

I do agree that fear-mongering can still be successful, particularly if the climate of the country at a given time makes the population more amenable to fear (i.e. terrorist attack), But, as this election showed, it will be a little harder to use fear to win elections than in the past. If it didn't work to defeat the first black man in the history of our nation who will now be the leader of the free world, then it's obviously lost some of its steam!

[Rog49Thomas]

I think this election took place in extreme circumstances - a failed presidency (Pan) and more importantly the worst economic meltdown since 1930.

Had Pan been slightly more competent in execution or a bit more careful in policy choicees, I believe Brother Neo would not have been successful.

The true test of enlightenement in this country will be when there is an election during normal times. In this election one fear (the economy) temporarily trumped other fears.

As an indication, there was a focus group where the folks agreed that Brother Neo was a friend of/soft on terrorists but they were going to vote for him anyway because they felt he would be better for the economy than the RP's candidates.

[KarenT]

McCain's numbers spiked after the RNC but then dropped after the Couric interviews. Palin gave McCain a short-lived boost until her lack of thought and ability to speak coherently was exposed by her interviews. The economic crisis in itself was not the final demise, it was McCain's reaction to it in stark contrast to Obama's response which was very thought-out.

[Rog49Thomas]

Well, let's agree to disagree.

[canucklivinginUSA]

I would expand on your thought and say that Dems better watch out and not be too complacent. We are going to need both sides of coin to help out with this mess. Remember how you felt when Boosh and co won, don't repeat their mistakes by rubbing it in

[timberdoodle]

The GOP consider the Jesus freaks their base and as time goes on more and more sensible people see them as agents of intolerance who have no concerns other than forcing their own warped agendas on the Country and the world.

Bottom line is the GOP will continue to fade into the anals of history.

[cminri]

Can I get an Amen!!!!???

[ebanks84]

I send that Amen.

[ebanks84]

I meant, I second that Amen.

[Mahi Joe]

Specifically it is the Evangelicals who have tunnel vision and base their entire campaign on two moot issues, abortion and homosexuality. They hypocrisy of these pseudo-relligious zealots has been exposed and no longer will their fear mongering be tolerated. America spoke.

[wpiv926]

The religious right has ruined the GOP. Until they get back to the principles of the "Rockefeller Republicans" - Wise on budgetary matters and moderate on social issues - they will be hard pressed to win a national election in the future.

[ebanks84]

Rockefeller, smockefeller, those principles are about money only and has nothing to do with social issues. The republicans have never had an agenda that concerns social issues because they have never cared about social issues. To them, the poor should look out for themselves. So I don't know what you're saying.

[chaos4700]

Well... to be fair, way back in history the Republicans used to have an interest in social issues -- the quintessential example being Abraham Lincoln. However, starting perhaps with Hoover and continuing its downward spiral with presidents like Nixon and Reagan, the party has shed all investment it had in the average American and set about manufacturing an ideology to justify their naked greed. That's basically, in my view, what the Republicans have become and unless they lose that -- and I'm not confident they will even try, let alone whether they can -- the Republican Party will become increasingly marginalized as the influence of its voter base declines -- something else they are responsible for, ironically.

[StillIRise]

Under Karl Rove's direction, the Republican Party USED the religious right to build upon their base for votes. Now, the religious right OWNS them. It's an ironic twist of fate, but they deserve it.