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Thank You, Peggy Noonan
I had just wandered through a generally so-so observation about patrician and plebeian elements in our present political situation. I was not sure that I had made my points clear enough for the normal pleb to grasp fully (we are generally too preoccupied with life’s minor distractions such as rent, food, and selecting the right brand of beer).
But one can always count on their betters to provide. So Peggy Noonan was kind enough to write a Wall Street Journal piece that explains it much better than I. She, of course, is an established member of the GOP Order of Patricians and her concern was about the unwashed plebs generally known as Trump voters. Hope among her fellow elitists was that more and more of this group would abandon the notion of the former president seeking the office again in 2024, that support for him would fade and he would pass from the public’s eye. As it is turning out, that simply isn’t happening. In fact, it appears to some that their numbers might even be growing.
This is so despite the continuous dumping on the former president. Or maybe even because of it. The latest anti-Trump production is turning into a huge disappointment. It actually seems to have the opposite effect intended. Interest in the show trial sometimes called the J6 hearings has been weak and far below what was hoped for. In fact, it is probably having the opposite effect. Only the most gullible or pre-disposed believe in them and for the rest they are far too transparent. For most, they leave the distinct impression of Star Chamber episodes intended not to learn anything but to influence an election by removing a leading candidate. Plebs must be protected from their limited intellects by narrowing their choices to only acceptable options.
In any case, Trump is actually increasing in support from this sideshow. So a fresh approach in pleb management has shown its face recently. That is to agree that the plebs do have some real concerns and that maybe the down and dirty Trump demeanor helped to create attention for them. But now he has served his purpose and it is time for candidates with smoother edges to carry the banner. For the moment, they are even willing to accept some candidates who might be a little “Trumpy” themselves as long as they are not the original. For the moment, that is.
But in the end, the real call will be for “reasonable” candidates who can hopefully worm their way into those “purple” vote without really confronting the matters that will change us as a nation and having to win a thoughtful and passionate argument for Liberty. You know, the kind of candidates who made Trump possible in 2016, the kind who knows in his (or hers, or …..) heart that something can be worked out to get us by if the patricians were left to bargain among themselves.
Noonan knows enough to begin every con job with a compliment, sort of. She is impressed that every Trump voter does love America even if it is “not always been a fully thought-through love but it’s generally fully felt”. She even concedes that this is “admirable”, even if the thought process was so incomplete. So plebeian. If it got any more simple-minded, it would be on my level.
A little deeper into the piece one is able to get a clearer picture of the patrician view of those millions upon millions of the GOP base who are so regularly called on by the party elites but rarely listened to. She tries to reinforce the Dem contention that Trump was told by all reasonable and sane people that the 2020 election was fair and square but he chose to listen instead to a collection of “kooks, crooks and freaks” which was not hard to find since “Trumpworld has more than most”.
Her appeal to wayward plebs is to drop Trump or lose the shining chance to dominate in the coming elections. Everything is so very bad that just about any Republican will surely win. Any except, of course, Trump. “Only Trump” would lose.
But the truth is as soon as Trump can be eliminated, the patricians will begin to try and thin out any of the other non-conformists with plebeian tendencies. Before the discussion is over they will hope to be back to the old standard GOP patrician because they could win “in the middle”. You know, that legendary middle where gun rights can be narrowed, where new entitlements have been created, where “comprehensive” immigration reform lives, where government dollars represent educational concern, where … Oh, hell my simple mind and stubby fingers are over-loaded … You can fill in the rest.
What is so desperately needed is a clear, objective American agenda for all, with disregard for who you are speaking to. The principles of the Founding and the principles which build successful lives will reach all levels of society.
The great swath of middle America that I have spoken of very much feels the loss of our Constitution even if the patricians don’t. The party elites have yet to realize that MAGA is not a Trump thing. It is a grassroots American plebeian thing. Trump simply put a slogan behind it and then did his best to implement it.
The Peggy Noonans still talk and act as if this was about a loose-mouthed billionaire and not the saving of the republic as founded. But they do sense the shift away from them and that is what they hate, what they fight against. If Trump is at the head of the column or not is hardly the central question. The real question is the uncompromising direction of the column.
We might be in a dangerous position with our future but more and more I believe that the people who will make the long-term difference have finally realized that the damage done to us by the “warriors” on their side, it is not near the problem as the damage done by the cowards and blinded on ours. Hopefully, Noonan will save her condescension for her own kind.
By the way, if any of you fellow plebs actually want to read the Noonan column you will find it behind a paywall. Unless you have the devious computer skills to bypass “the wall”, you will have to take my word for the content of the piece. Otherwise, you can join me in some simple plebeian pleasure as I take off these smelly socks, let the air hit these more than smelly feet, pour three, possibly four fingers in a cup, and soak up the quiet of an evening that has finally begun to cool.
Published in General
I don’t find this as important as you do. The numbers are pretty close to Trumps overall approval numbers. This may just be people who never liked Trump still don’t like Trump.
It also missed some context. Not just what they think but how much they care. Majorities of people think Global Warming is a problem. When give a chance to list important issues it never reached double digits. People may believe something/say something to a pollster but not really care that much about it.
The first three witnesses testifying today are Republicans. All of these three voted for Trump in the election. One of them, Arizona Speaker Rusty Bowers appeared with Trump.
Two important things to remember about these poll numbers.
First, it was a poll of merely 545 people.
Second, here’s how the question was worded:
As you may know, Donald Trump encouraged his supporters to march to the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, where the riot followed. Do you think Trump should be charged with a crime for his role in this incident, or do you think he should not be charged?
This is called push-polling, and it’s inherently dishonest.
Anyone citing this poll for any reason other than to provide an example of dishonest polling should be ashamed.
The absolutely absurd framing of the question certainly produces the desired result.
Hasn’t this whole circus been about producing a desired result? (Rather than, you know, getting at the truth of the matter?)
We are in a post-truth society. Now it’s all about power.
At least we knew it from the start when the minority was denied the right to pick its members.
Yep. One of the committee members recently gave the game away when he said that the
showtrials weren’t moving the polls.Who are the Iakov Agranov and Nikolai Krylenko of this trial?
Gosh, how about going after both Black Lives Matter and Trump?
In case you missed Vice Chair Liz Cheney today:
Yeah this is push poll. It is a tiny sample size when looking at a National poll of all adults. This gives it an oversized margin of error of 4.5%.
Only 34% of people are following the hearing and only 9% very closely. So like I thought, most of the respondents aren’t paying any attention and just answering in an “anti-Trump” fashion, not because of “evidence” but because they already did not like Trump.
How about getting your priorities right?
Is she Agranov or Krylenko?
Picture of Liz Cheney hugging the Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives.
She could be Krylenko, but it’s likely Kinzinger. I’ll go with Pelosi for Agranov.
What crime had he committed to earn such punishment?
Did she accuse party leadership of having “enabled white nationalism, white supremacy, and anti-semitism”?
Oh wait, that was last month’s rant.
This is really just giving away that this is a TV show and not a real Committee Hearing. The continuation of an actual hearing would not have this level of “opening statement” with video clips. they would call witnesses and ask questions and grandstand like usual.
Troll.
Why are you posting this [REDACTED]?
See #290 above. :)
Because Liz hugging a witness goes to the credibility of the witness?
So what?
BLM happened earlier, why not deal with them first?
Better yet, how about apologizing to Ole Summers for all the turds you keep dropping on his post? Start your own you [Self Deleted].
It also happened all summer, had huge economic impacts and impacted way more people.
A couple hundred idiots at the Capital did nothing. It impacted virtually no one.
For better or worse the comments tothis post left the initial premise of the post. I am just following the conversation.
That riot at the capitol had no effect — except on those whose lives have been turned upside down because when the cops let them into the building, they didn’t realize it was entrapment.
As someone has already pointed out comment #5 derailed the post.