Peggy Noonan used her perch as a columnist for the ultra-conservative and republican supporting WSJ today to absolutely bury Sarah Palin and throw down the gauntlet to republicans to get serious if they ever hope to lead this country again.
The title of her article "A Farewell to Harms: Palin was bad for the Republicans—and the republic." says it all. There is nowhere to hide. Noonan is one of the stronger, often sensible voices in the republican party and she pulls no punches here.
She echoes all of the points made so clearly by the Anonymous Liberal in his aptly titled post "The Emperor has no clothes".
And Andrew Sullivan has been all but jumping up and down on desks to bring attention the vacuous nature of Palin as phenomenon of republican politics.
Her last four paragraphs ought to be laser etched on stone and every American required to read them so that everyone understands just how rotted and dangerous the republican party has become
Here's why all this matters. The world is a dangerous place. It has never been more so, or more complicated, more straining of the reasoning powers of those with actual genius and true judgment. This is a time for conservative leaders who know how to think.
Here are a few examples of what we may face in the next 10 years: a profound and prolonged American crash, with the admission of bankruptcy and the spread of deep social unrest; one or more American cities getting hit with weapons of mass destruction from an unknown source; faint glimmers of actual secessionist movements as Americans for various reasons and in various areas decide the burdens and assumptions of the federal government are no longer attractive or legitimate.
The era we face, that is soon upon us, will require a great deal from our leaders. They had better be sturdy. They will have to be gifted. There will be many who cannot, and should not, make the cut. Now is the time to look for those who can. And so the Republican party should get serious, as serious as the age, because that is what a grown-up, responsible party—a party that deserves to lead—would do.
It's not a time to be frivolous, or to feel the temptation of resentment, or the temptation of thinking next year will be more or less like last year, and the assumptions of our childhoods will more or less reign in our future. It won't be that way.
We are going to need the best.
I agree fully with her characterization of the dangers this nation will face over the next decade and she doesn't include climate change or energy independence or health care.
I also think we have a great advantage over countries with parliaments and multiple parties. Our two party system has served us well except for the last three decades. But now with the total collapse of the modern republican party it is all at risk.
The way I understand it should work, is the party who wins an election gets to promote it's policy. The opposition party should be trying to influence the policies being advocated to pull them back from the extreme of currently dominant party towards the middle. When the dominant party then compromises and makes concessions to the minority party, consensus is reached that results in the bipartisanship everyone is so desperate to reach these days.
But the republican party no longer is willing to compromise and hasn't for two decades or more. Compromise is seen as weakness. It was clearly advocated by Dennis Hastert that he would not bring any legislation to the floor that was not supported by a majority of his majority even if the measure had enough support to pass with only a minority of republicans.
When the democrats originally brought up the SCHIP bill, the republicans complained about the uper level of eligibility, who could be covered, and one or two other issues. The democrats compromised on all three or four major items of concern and gathered a grand total of 0 republican votes.
But who are the new leaders of the republican party? Where are the great thinkers? Who amoung them are putting forward answers for the problems we are facing today? There aren't any.
And we are all going to be in more danger for the want of a credible opposition party. Plus the lack of democrats with any real spine.