by (Dan here…lifted from Robert’s Stochastic Thoughts) by Robert Waldmann I disagree with Jennifer Rubin Conservatives object to the Washington Post defining never-ever-ever Trumper Jennifer Rubin as a conservative. Reflecting, I had to admit that I hadn’t disagreed with anything she wrote for months. Now, finally, I do. But, sadly, this isn’t evidence that she is still a conservative. She has clearly become a radical centrist third way mugwump (RC3WM).She argues that the 2018 blue wave shows that Democrats should reject Bernie Sanders and rely on a poll conducted by “The Third Way”. I think this is nonsense consisting entirely of setting up an oxymoronic straw man and pretending that values shared by conservatives, liberals, centrists, progressives,
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(Dan here…lifted from Robert’s Stochastic Thoughts)
by Robert Waldmann
I disagree with Jennifer Rubin
Conservatives object to the Washington Post defining never-ever-ever Trumper Jennifer Rubin as a conservative. Reflecting, I had to admit that I hadn’t disagreed with anything she wrote for months. Now, finally, I do. But, sadly, this isn’t evidence that she is still a conservative. She has clearly become a radical centrist third way mugwump (RC3WM).She argues that the 2018 blue wave shows that Democrats should reject Bernie Sanders and rely on a poll conducted by “The Third Way”.
I think this is nonsense consisting entirely of setting up an oxymoronic straw man and pretending that values shared by conservatives, liberals, centrists, progressives, socialists, and fascists belong to conservatives.
My comment
I don’t see any evidence that people rejected Sen Sanders’s policy proposals, which are actually fairly moderate. It is very easy to get issue poll results one wishes by choosing the questions. Notably, the ACA is only moderately popular (50% approval) while Medicare for all has 70% approval (recently including Donald Trump).
On entitlements the moderate centrist approach is to achieve trust fund solvency with balanced tax increases and benefit cuts. The vast majority of the public wants more generous pensions, expanded medicaid and an increased Medicare budget.
The case that Americans are conservative is that they believe in hard work (and the family). Notably, this is the position of mainstream and left wing Democrats. Conservatives have convinced each other than non-conservatives are Leninist hippies. Totally aside from the fact that “Lenist hippy” is an oxymoron, very few people are Leninists and very few are hippies.
Conservatives point to the free love socialist demon Nancy Pelosi- who is the mother of 5 children. I’m sure she loves them dearly but I think it has something to do with her deep religious faith which prevented her from using artificial birth control (see flustered Stephen Colbert). I don’t know if she has changed her views,since she has had perfectly natural menopausal birth control for about 3 decades by now.
The idea that conservatives have something to offer which a majority of Americans want is based on falsehoods about the alternative (which have convinced a solid minority of Americans but which are, nonetheless false).
Elisabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, Corry Booker, and Sherod Brown are Berny Sanders with better manners. They have the same policy proposals. I really hope one of them is elected in 2020.