Radical Right -- Conservatives At War With Themselves

October 27, 2009

by Faiz Shakir, Amanda Terkel, Matt Corley, Benjamin Armbruster, and Zaid Jilani

RADICAL RIGHT

Conservatives At War With Themselves

After spending weeks arguing over talk radio host Rush Limbaugh's leadership role in the Republican Party earlier this year, tensions within the GOP and the wider conservative movement are escalating again. This month, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) sharply criticized Fox News' radical right-wing host Glenn Beck, saying that "only in America can you make that much money crying," and Beck is "aligned with cynicism" (criticism which Beck described as a "badge of honor"). Graham later argued that the Fox News host "doesn't represent the Republican Party," and in front of a group of fired-up tea party activists (who are now also fighting amongst themselves), the South Carolina senator said bluntly, "We're not going to be the party of angry white guys." Soon after, Beck lashed out at Graham. "You gotta ask yourself, is the problem the angry white guys or is it the Obama-lite guys?" Beck said referring to Graham. "I think I'm going to stick with the angry people over there. Because they're only angry about you," Beck exclaimed. But the backlash against Beck from the conservative establishment has begun to boil over. On Sunday, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich expressed concern with the latest Weekly Standard cover that identifies Limbaugh, Beck, and former Alaska governor Sarah Palin as the faces of the GOP. "You know, you can have a very, very intense movement of 20 percent," Gingrich argued, referring to their respective bases of support, adding, "[but] you can't govern." Indeed, Gingrich has been making the very same arguments in a new intramural dispute over which conservative candidate to support in New York's 23rd Congressional District special election coming up next month -- a dispute that has split various factions within the conservative movement.

THE OLD PARTY: President Obama forced a special election in New York's traditionally Republican 23rd when he named the district's incumbent, Republican John McHugh, as his Army secretary. The local Republican Party nominated State Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava, who has since drawn a challenger from the right, Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman. Scozzafava backs abortion rights and has "broken with the Republican conference...on high-profile issues such as same-sex marriage, greenhouse gas emissions, sex education in schools and gender identity discrimination." The race "has put two former House GOP leaders on different sides, the NRA against the Club For Growth...the House GOP leadership against its own back-benches," and "purist" versus "big tent" Republicans. Gingrich, who has taken "considerable heat" from right-wing activists for supporting Scozzafava, defended his approach as a means to rebuild the GOP. "I just think it is a mistake for the Conservative movement, to think splitting in the special elections is a smart idea, if we give that seat to the Democrats, shame on us," he said. Gingrich also lashed out at his critics. "If some people in the Republican Party want to go around the country purging everyone they disagree with, they're going to rapidly make this a minority party for a generation." He also accused Hoffman backers of trying to "impose national values on a local race." The NRA backs Scozzafava for her solid support of gun rights, and the House GOP leadership -- including Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH), Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA), and NRCC chairman Pete Sessions (R-TX) -- have donated to her campaign. Rep. Peter King (R-NY) lashed out at Hoffman's base of support. "A vote for either of her opponents is a vote for Nancy Pelosi and her far-left, radical agenda."

THE TEA PARTY: At the same time, Hoffman -- who is in a competitive race with Scozzafava and the Democratic candidate Bill Owens -- has garnered considerable support among activists, right-wing bloggers, and more far right Republicans. Former House Majority Leader (and de facto tea party movement leader) Dick Army called Hoffman the "real Republican" in the race, while former Alaska governor Sarah Palin made a purist argument in offering support for the Conservative Party candidate. "Unfortunately, the Republican Party today has decided to choose a candidate that more than blurs the lines, and there is no real difference between the Democrat and the Republican in this race," she said. Other high profile conservatives such as the Weekly Standard's Bill Kristol, former senator Rick Santorum, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), Steve Forbes, and former senator Fred Thompson have all said they support Hoffman's candidacy. Just yesterday, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) endorsed Hoffman, again making the purist argument. "We cannot send more politicians to Washington who wear the Republican jersey on the campaign trail, but then vote like Democrats in Congress on issues like card check and taxes," he said in a statement. Hoffman has also been endorsed by the Club for Growth, Concerned Women of America, and evangelical leader Gary Bauer. Even House Republican Conference chairman Mike Pence (R-IN) -- who recently dismissed the notion that pundits like Limbaugh and Beck "only speak for a small group of activists" -- has refused to endorse Scozzafava.

ATTACKS ON GINGRICH: Last night on his Fox News program, Beck attacked Gingrich for supporting Scozzafava. "Now they have a true conservative candidate with major firepower behind him that they can fully support," Beck said of Hoffman, adding, "Only problem, the GOP continues to back the Obama-lite Republican." After airing a clip of Gingrich saying, "My bias is to be voting for the nominee of the local party because I don't want to second-guess the local party," Beck lashed out. "Well, I do, I do. I couldn't disagree more with you on this one. You don't defer to the party because they think she has the best chance to win. You vote for a person you agree with most, not on all things, the one you say OK and it doesn't matter what party they're in," Beck complained. He then cried out, "How can you sleep after voting for the ACORN-supported and accepted candidate? It's ACORN, for the love of Pete!" "Gingrich does this all the time," Club for Growth Executive Director David Keating said. "He does whatever the party committee asks him to." Keating added that Gingrich "likes to cultivate this image of being an innovator and a thinker and so on, and then he endorses the most tired, worn-out, special interest-genuflecting candidate you can possibly find." Last night on Fox News, Gingrich shot back at his critics. "I just find it fascinating that my many friends who claim to be against Washington having too much power, they claim to be in favor of the 10th Amendment giving states back their rights, they claim to favor local control and local authority, now they suddenly get local control and local authority in upstate New York, they don't like the outcome," Gingrich said.

BUSINESS -- CHAMBER OF COMMERCE PRESIDENT QUESTIONS CLIMATE CHANGE: 'IS SCIENCE NOT RIGHT? I DON'T KNOW': The U.S. Chamber of Commerce recently launched an all-out public relations offensive following a series of high-profile member defections due to the business federation's denial of climate science and its lobbying against energy legislation. Earlier this year, Chamber officials pledged to put climate change science on trial in a "Scopes monkey trial of the 21st century." Not only is the Chamber spending millions to derail the energy legislation before Congress, but a recently leaked memo also revealed that the Chamber is assisting the oil industry in orchestrating astroturf "EnergyCitizen" rallies. Their PR strategy revolves around claiming that their organization does not deny climate change and is actively involved in working towards a clean energy future. Chamber spokesman Eric Wohlschlegel told the New York Times last month, "We've never questioned the science behind global warming." And earlier this month, Chamber Executive Vice President David Chavern told NPR, "We want a climate change bill." Yet yesterday, Chamber President Tom Donohue let the cat out of the bag, revealing that his organization is still standing in the way of climate change legislation by denying basic climate science, telling Politico, "Is the science right? Is science not right? I don't know." Of course, Donohue has long been an obstacle in the way of a clean energy future. He sits on the board of a company that ships coal, forced the Chamber into a climate change denial position, runs ads mocking cap and trade, touted books questioning climate change, and promoted a myth of a global "cooling trend." Despite the U.S. Chamber's continued global warming denialism, local Chambers of Commerce have begun to come together to repudiate the national organization's backwards stance on climate change.

Hundreds of protesters from the Service Employees International Union and National People's Action picketed the offices of Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo yesterday, calling for strong regulatory reform and the breaking up of big banks. The protests coincided with the annual meeting of the American Bankers Association, the trade group of the banking industry.

After "nine months of being nearly invisible," President Bush spoke to nearly 15,000 people yesterday at a motivational seminar in Forth Worth, TX. Bush "used much of his 28 minutes onstage to talk about lighter topics such as picking out a rug design for the Oval Office that reflected his "optimism." Attendees said they enjoyed his speech, although they acknowledged that he "wasn't the best speaker."

Foreign Service Officer Matthew Hoh has resigned in protest over the continuation of the war in Afghanistan. "We want to have some kind of governance there, and we have some obligation for it not to be a bloodbath," Hoh told the Washington Post. "But you have to draw the line somewhere, and say this is their problem to solve."

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's (D-NV) decision to include an opt-out public option in the health care bill headed to the floor "means that he will need the votes of all 60 members of the Democratic Caucus to move it forward." Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) said in a statement, "I am deeply disappointed with the Majority Leader's decision to include a public option as the focus of the legislation."

Despite its aggressive attempts at green marketing, Toyota has stated that it refuses to join other companies and leave the U.S. Chamber of Commerce over the alliance's refusal to recognize global warming. A Toyota spokeswoman also said the company opposes a cap-and-trade program. MoveOn.org Political Action has launched a campaign to tell Toyota to stop opposing clean energy.

Refuting conservative claims about global cooling, the AP's Seth Borenstein "gave temperature data to four independent statisticians" in a blind test and "the experts found no true temperature declines over time." "Saying there's a downward trend since 1998 is not scientifically legitimate," said retired Duke University professor David Peterson, who criticized "people coming at the data with preconceived notions."

Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) has proposed "freezing interest rates and fees on existing credit card balances" until some key provisions of a credit card law take effect next February. The bill is necessary because banks are raising rates "to squeeze customers," Dodd said, adding, "At a time when families are struggling to make ends meet, jacked-up rates can quickly create crushing debt."

"The F.B.I.'s collection of wiretapped phone calls and intercepted e-mail has been soaring in recent years, but the bureau is failing to review 'significant amounts' of such material partly for lack of translators," a new Justice Department report found. "Not reviewing such material increases the risk that the F.B.I. will not detect information in its possession that may be important," said the report.

And finally: It may not be surprising to most people that President Bush was a "Jack Bauer kind of guy." The UK Daily Express reveals that a few years ago when Bush ran into Carlos Bernard, one of the stars of the show "24," Bush was dying to know if Bernard's character, Tony Almeida, was a goner. Bernard said that while at a baseball game, "A big guy came up to me and said, 'Excuse me, the President would like to speak with you.' I went over, and it was George W. Bush, and he said 'Hey Carlos, when are you coming out of that coma? All I can do is watch that show of yours. Are you coming back?' I was like, 'You don't have anything better to do?'"

Demanding pay cuts on Main Street while condemning them on Wall Street.

A Barbie that really represents black women.

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) won't say if Cheney is "helping or hurting" the GOP.

How will the Senate's "opt-out" work?

Who is winning? Compare the compromises the insurance industry has made with the compromises progressives have made.

The wife of an Iraq war vet with PTSD is fighting deportation.

The Washington Post's Fred Hiatt attacks health care bill for not including provisions it includes.

Karl Rove takes credit for "enemies list" attacks.

"Right now, America's seniors are looking for reassurances that their current coverage won't be hurt by a government takeover of health care, and Washington Democrats are unable to oblige. That's because their trillion-dollar, 1,000-page plans would leave seniors with reduced benefits and fewer health care choices."
-- House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH), 10/26/09

VERSUS

"None of the 'savings' or 'cuts' (whichever you prefer) [in the health care bills before Congress] come from reducing current or future benefit levels for seniors."
-- FactCheck.org, 9/09/09

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Conservatives At War With Themselves

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