The Bill vs. Tucker Cage Match George Rasley
http://www.conservativehq.com/article/27276-bill-vs-tucker-cage-match
Those of us who have known and worked with Bill Kristol have been stunned by his behavior since Donald Trump cinched the Republican nomination for President. While Kristol isn’t the only longtime conservative thinker to exile himself to #NeverTrump island, his scorched earth diatribes against any conservative who sees a confluence of interest between Trump’s populism and movement conservatism have no equal in the conservative media.
In an interview with CNBC’s John Harwood, Kristol launched at Fox News’ Tucker Carlson his latest, and perhaps most vicious assault against those advocating a conservative – populist philosophy and agenda.
Saying that Carlson’s top-rated primetime Fox News show was close to “racism” Kristol delivered this astonishing monologue:
…I do feel now we’re in a different world. I mean, now you look at — Tucker Carlson began at The Weekly Standard. Tucker Carlson was a great young reporter. He was one of the most gifted 24-year-olds I’ve seen in the 20 years that I edited the magazine. He had always a little touch of Pat Buchananism. I would say, paleo-conservativism. But that’s very different from what he’s become now. I mean, it is close now to racism, white — I mean, I don’t know if it’s racism exactly — but ethnonationalism of some kind, let’s call it. A combination of dumbing down, as you said earlier, and stirring people’s emotions in a very unhealthy way.
And Kristol wasn’t done attacking Fox News in his appearance on John Harwood’s show. He also took to the air on anti-Trump flagship “Morning Joe” to offer this commentary on Fox News in general:
I mean, it’s funny, but it’s sad… I mean the Joe McCarthy clip you showed earlier — it’s sort first time, tragedy, second time, farce in a way, right? It’s not a farce, I mean — what really strikes me is Bannon is gone, the alt-right is sort of discredited. But Bannonism is winning. Look at the Hill Republicans, look at the conservative commentators, many of them — they are now in the possession of serious conspiracy theorizing, paranoia, hostility to basic American government institutions in a way that I would have a year, 18 months ago would have been impossible.
Tucker Carlson for his part offered this mild-mannered rebuttal:
I’m not even sure what he’s accusing me of. He offers no evidence or examples, just slurs, and then suggests that I’m the demagogue. Pretty funny. Kristol’s always welcome on my show to explain himself, though I assume he’s too afraid to come. What a shame. It would be revealing.
It would be revealing indeed, and we’d probably even pay to watch Tucker and Bill in the Octagon.
Round One could be a debate on the veracity of the charges against the Obama-era FBI and Department of Justice outlined in the Nunes memo now going through the public release process in the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and whether that memo legitimately calls into question the Obama-era FBI and DOJ’s commitment to constitutional liberty.
Round Two could be a debate on the accuracy of Donald Trump’s observations in his campaign speech at Monesson, Pennsylvania: This is not some natural disaster, it’s a political and politician-made disaster. The destruction of America’s middle class, wrought over the past two decades and continuing today, wasn’t caused by some inevitable, pre-destined economic force – it was caused by the leaders we elected and entrusted with our government.
Round Three could be a debate on this observation by CHQ Chairman Richard Viguerie: “Conservative principles—our products, if you will—are timeless, but some of our brands and marketing have gotten stale.”
Round Four… well we expect the match to be called for Carlson on a TKO by this point.
It is obvious to this observer of today’s political scene that the inside-the-Beltway conservative establishment, represented by Bill Kristol, is in serious need of self-reflection. However, Kristol’s attack on Tucker Carlson tells us that, rather than engage in a serious examination of how they became so disconnected from a significant percentage of country class America, it is much easier for them to viciously smear as racists those who disagree with their elitist brand of conservatism.
George Rasley is editor of Richard Viguerie’s ConservativeHQ.com. A member of American MENSA he is a veteran of over 300 political campaigns, including every Republican presidential campaign from 1976 to 2008. He served as lead advance representative for Governor Sarah Palin in 2008 and has served as a staff member, consultant or advance representative for some of America’s most recognized conservative Republican political figures, including President Ronald Reagan and Jack Kemp. He served in policy and communications positions on the House and Senate staff, and during the George H.W. Bush administration he served on the White House staff of Vice President Dan Quayle.
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