The GOP establishment is running around in a panic because of Newt Gingrich’s recent win in the South Carolina Primary…
The Daily Beast
The Republican establishment is beside itself after Newt Gingrich’s upset victory in South Carolina—but Paul Begala says it just shows that Romney may not have the chops to win, either.
Reactions to Newt Gingrich’s stunning and impressive victory in the South Carolina primary form a symphony. First, of course, we hear the cheers of South Carolina Republicans who have chosen their champion. From Ronald Reagan in 1980 through John McCain in 2008, the winner of this primary has always gone on to be the Republican nominee.
Then, of course, we can hear the buttons popping from Newt Gingrich’s shirt as his ego swells to Macy’s parade size. If you listen carefully, you can hear the soft sobs of Mitt Romney and his consultants, crying in their chocolate milk. But above it all we can hear the weeping, the wailing, the gnashing of teeth of the Republican establishment as Gingrich’s victory sends them into full-blown panic. I’m not talking about mere fear, nor normal nervousness. Not even the feeling you get when the captain says, “We’ve lost power in one of our four engines.” No, this is worse. Worse even than when your doctor says, “I don’t like the looks of that shadow on the X-ray.”
This is terror. Chest-clutching, breath-sucking, soul-shaking panic. This is your teenage daughter telling you, “I think I’m in trouble.” This is a Turkish border guard pulling you into a holding room when you’ve got a baggie of coke in your pocket. This is what George H.W. Bush famously called “deep doo-doo.”
The Republican Party has never seen anything like it. Republicans are hierarchical, orderly, disciplined—everything the Democrats are not. They nearly always nominate the guy who was runner-up last time: Ford beat Reagan, and Reagan got the next nod. Reagan beat George H.W. Bush, so Bush Sr. got the next turn. And then Bush beat Dole, who in turn was rewarded with the 1996 GOP nod. Then they got all wild and crazy and nominated the son of a former president, but then quickly reverted to form and nominated the guy he defeated, John McCain. And who did McCain beat? Mitt Romney.
Related articles
- Chris Christie: ‘Newt Gingrich has embarrassed the party’ (kaystreet.wordpress.com)
- Why A Reformed Moderate Is Better Than a Progressive Republican (fullback23.wordpress.com)
- Former President George H.W. Bush backs Romney (thehill.com)
- Newt Gingrich’s Surprise Win in South Carolina Panics Republicans – The Daily Beast (tribuneofthepeople.com)
- Romney visits George H.W. Bush (thehill.com)
- President George H.W. Bush Gets Behind Mitt Romney (inquisitr.com)
- GOP campaign 2012, in the abstract (brobrubel.wordpress.com)
It also panics civilized human beings everywhere.
It’s a phenomenally scary situation, WK. Between the 1% trying to rig our Democratic process and the far right loons trying to get a bigger voice, it appears our nation is on a downward spiral.
I say “appear” because having lived all of my 65 years in The United States of America, I have seen some of the most hopeless cases of injustice and inequality get knocked down by the voice of the people. So, I expect the same this time around. #99 per cent.