Some consider the Nation’s Capital as “Fantasyland on the Potomac”. Other outsiders are “Fed Up” with the Federal City. It's better to consider D.C. as “the District of Calamity” (sic).
Charles Krauthammer, the renowned conservative commentator, has not been seen on Fox News in ten months. Viewers knew it it was for health reasons. But today, Krauthammer released a letter to bid all farewell. It seems that as he was on the verge of recovery from abdominal cancer surgery last October, the cancer returned and he may only have a few weeks to live. In this letter, Krauthammer graciously thanked his colleagues, viewers and readers hoping that he played a small role in conversations that help guide our nation's extraordinary destiny. Honoring Krauthammer's wit and wisdom, it is worth savoring this pearl on how to understand Washington.
Although Krauthammer does not hold religious convictions, it has been a blessing to have him be a thoughtful conservative commentator for decades after initially serving as Vice President Mondale's (D-MN) speechwriter.
Democrats have been fulminating for months about Donald Trump's refusal to release his tax returns, as most modern Presidential candidates have done. When these calls for transparency fell up Donald's deliberately deaf ears, Democrats have threatened consequences in governing. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) taunted President Trump to release those tax documents or else he should expect efforts to reform the tax code to go down to defeat. This threat seems disingenuous, as Schumer vowed not to cooperate with the Trump Administration unless it acceded to every Democrat demand.
As Tax Day loomed, Between the Beltway pundits pondered if Mr. Trump would reveal his personal IRS papers. Conservative columnist Charles Krauthammer pulled no punches with his prognostication. Krauthammer pithily predicted that the issue was "a dead parrot", a reference which harkened back to Monty Python's Flying Circus. It gladdens the heart that when "The Hammer" goes down, he can be mirthful in making his pessimistic political prediction. I wonder if he would say "Ni". I doubt it (sic).
The RNC added another debate in Salt Lake City in late March that would be hosted by Fox News. After Donald Trump won four of five Ides of March primaries, the GOP front runner refused to attend, citing a conflict with a prior commitment with AIPAC (which had not yet scheduled its speakers' schedule). Governor John Kasich (R-OH), fresh off of winning 66 delegates in the Ohio primary was full of himself and also declined to debate Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) without Donald Trump being on the rostrum. Fox News commentator Charles Krauthammer questioned the conundrum of Kasich complaining about not getting enough time in prior Republican debates, yet declining two hours sharing the spotlight with just one other candidate.
With only a win in his home state, it is hard to take "Ohio President" John Kasich as a serious contender for the Republican nomination. This shift in postures from whining about not getting enough time to declining the debate stage makes him hard to take seriously period.
Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) made a piercing floor speech denouncing the tactics of Majority Leader Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) of reneging on promises about floor votes over the Export-Import Bank. Majority Leader McConnell used the parliamentary tactic of "filling the amendment tree" to only add the Export Import Bank Amendment to the must pass Senate Highway Bill and a symbolic Repeal Obamacare vote (which was doomed to fail cloture), Senator Cruz lambasted protecting the vested interests of the Washington Cartel through legislative legerdemain which ousted Senate Majority Leader Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) made famous.
Thereafter, it was unlikely that Senator Cruz was going to be invited to any future Cocktail Parties by the Washington establishment. But Grand Old Party establishment grey beards like Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), denounced the lack of decorum, which opaquely criticized the Junior Senator from Texas. Of course these attacks were more restrained than earlier criticisms of young turk's aggressive ways in Washington, which colleague Senator John McCain affectionately attributed as "wacko birds".
Ronald Reagan had popularized the political "11th Commandment" -- to not speak ill of your fellow Republican. In fact, Senator Cruz has been conspicuous for not denouncing Donald Trump because Cruz does not want to attack fellow Republicans on the campaign trail. Charles Krauthammer considers Cruz's floor speeches to be an example of hypocrisy.
The question is whether telling the truth is included in Reagan's 11th commandment is key to discerning party loyalty.
Many have attributed the wave of support for Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump to dissatisfaction with Do Nothing Republicans who will not speak the truth. If the Trump boomlet ends, has Ted Cruz positioned himself to gain the support of those who want to Make DC listen again?
A broader question for the Grand Old Party faithful is whether the electorate should not register their protest for elected officials that campaign one way but govern in another that is almost indistinguishable from the Democrat opposition.
Dr. Ben Carson, the retired chief of Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins University Hospital, has experienced a meteoric rise in conservative political circles since he upstaged President Barack Obama with a speech at the National Prayer Breakfast in 2013. Carson’s mild mannered delivery of critiques of the Obama-nation coming from a faith filled physician with a compelling personal story stole the show.
Just after the Exploratory Committee announcement, Dr. Carson was drawn into a debate on CNN’s “New Day” with Chris Cuomo on whether homosexuality is a choice. Carson commented that convicts "go into prison straight -- and when they come out, they're gay. So, did something happen while they were in there? Ask yourself that question," This view syncs with Dr. Carson’s Seventh Day Adventist background and traditional marriage premises but did little to advance his candidacy.
Shortly afterwards, Carson backtracked on the statement saying "I realized that my choice of language does not reflect fully my heart on gay issues." Later, Carson declared that he would no longer speak about gay issues. But the damage had already been done. Glenn Beck called this quote “the dumbest thing I’ve every heard”, which led Beck to declare that Carson’s candidacy was over just as it begun. That may have been hyperbole, but it was unwise for Dr. Carson to touch today’s third rail of politics in a wonton way. Carson squandered his wider introduction to the public by allowing himself to be painted a bigot for a peripheral point.
As part of the media barnstorming effort, Dr. Carson engaged in a thoughtful radio interview with Hugh Hewitt, a politically center right Salem Radio host who prides himself on not conducting ambush interviews. Since the 2016 Presidential Campaign cycle may well pivot on foreign policy issues, Hewitt asked about Russian provocations and Western response. When asked how NATO should respond if Putin made a move on the Baltic States would we go to war, Dr. Carson responded: “Well, if we have them involved in NATO. We need to convince them to get involved in NATO and strengthen NATO”.
Hewitt later followed up on an inference that Carson did not seem aware that the Baltic States were part of NATO. Dr. Carson rejoined: “Well, when you were saying Baltic state, I thought you were continuing our conversation about the former components of the Soviet Union. Obviously, there’s only three Baltic states.” Unfortunately that clarification was as clear as mud as Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia were former components of the Soviet Union and have some ethnic Russian speaking communities still residing there (which was the pretext for Russia effectively seizing Crimea and try to take the Donbass). Hewitt is known for in-depth interviews and going into the proverbial weeds to explore military issues. Carson’s ignorant answers on defending our Baltic State NATO partners exposes a serious chink in his campaign armor and exhibited a lack a preparation.
Dr. Carson granted a long form interview with GQ magazine which was conducted at Armstrong Williams abode. The resulting piece from Jason Zengerle : “What if Sarah Palin were a brain surgeon?” frames Dr. Carson as the Tea Party’s great White House hope, while sliming him with the Alinsky inspired animus associated Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK). The pull quote from Carson’s GQ interview involved Armstrong Williams egging on Ben Carson to opine on Obama’s optics. The soft spoken Dr. Carson pronounced: “Like most psychopaths--that’s why they’re successful. That’s the way they look. They all look great...he's trying to sell what he thinks is not true. He’s sitting there saying, ‘These Americans are so stupid, I can tell them anything.’”
Dr. Carson is a renowned neurosurgeon, not a psychiatrist, so taking a swipe at President Obama as a psychopath is off the mark. Such a distant diagnosis from Charles Krauthammer (who was trained as a psychiatrist) seems reasonable, but from Dr. Carson it seems like a harsh characterization. Part of Carson’s political charm is his mild mannered air of authority. Being bombastic by characterizing the Obama obsession with optics and fooling “idiotic” Americans sacrifices this strength. Moreover, this pugilistic “psychopath” trope was nothing new and unlikely to garner much new support.
Ben Carson has proudly declared: “I'm not a politician and that I never intend to become a politician. Even if I'm elected to office, I'm not going to be a politician because they tend to do things that are politically expedient. And I'm not trying to do things that are politically correct.” In this day and age, not being considered a Beltway Establishment politician is an advantage to base voters who tire of political lies and political correctness.
However Dr. Carson is making plenty of rookie mistakes in on the political field. Allowing a Draft movement to exploit donations which never really make it to the actual campaign may dismay donors. Opining on hot button issues like homosexuality without successfully connecting it to preserving traditional marriage, which should really be an ancillary campaign issue in the first place. Taking partisan pot shots like labeling the incumbent a psychopath which mars his soft spoken demeanor and popular appeal. Giving extensive access to media outlets like CNN and GQ on the proto campaign roll out which would play gotcha journalism. Then there is the sin of going on friendly media like Hugh Hewitt unprepared, exposing a key weakness of the candidacy, namely foreign policy chops.
That perspective may be provocative and perspicacious as a pundit, but it sounds like another thing altogether on the campaign trail, especially with spin coming from other campaigns' opposition research laundered through the compliant press.
As Dr. Carson continues to move closer to declaring his candidacy for the Republican Presidential nomination, he has come out swinging for the fences. Unfortunately, he seems to be off balance for some of the pitches and creating lots of wind. To mix sports analogies, the off balance stance on the campaign hustings makes him prone for sucker punches from the Lamestream Media.
Dr. Carson could make great contributions to shaping the campaign conversation in the 2016 Cycle. His tremendous personal story shatters the liberal labeling of Republicans as the party for old white men. Dr. Carson’s faith history underscores a potential appeal to evangelical voters, which would be key to victory in the Iowa Caucuses. As a physician, he would be given great credence for critiquing Obamacare. So Dr. Carson should eschew some of his ardor against being a politician and get good advice which best represents his brand as a thoughtful outsider who will not abandon promises because it is politically expedient.
Some political pundits are incredulous that President Barack Obama refused to assume any responsibility for the Democrats "shellacking" from the GOP wave midterm election results. Jeff Greenfield took to Twitter after the POTUS presser to wonder if our Dear Leader was in denial.
But "De Nile" is a river in Egypt. Based upon precedent, our President prefers Greco-Roman mythos.
Narcissus would be proud.
Alas, the Republican lead Senate is not poised to play Echo across Pennsylvania Avenue.
So who will whisper into Caesar's ear "Remember, you are no God" and would be effectively heard?
Yet even at President Barack Obama's 2014 speech before the United Nations General Assembly, the UWS Commander-in-Chief continues to harbor the dangerous illusion that we can choose our wars. And based upon Mr. Obama's announced approach of not committing American combat forces on the ground in the conflict theater, we should not have great expectations of "remission."
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) recently declared that "The border is secure". On FNC's Special Report with Brett Baier, Dr. Charles Krauthammer commented that Reid had gone off his meds.
Although Dr. Krathammer is a trained clinical psychologist who helped define secondary mania, he was not offering a long distance diagnosis of the Senate Majority Leader, but offering an incredulous exclamation about how willingly blind to reality Reid seems to be.
