I wonder if he is now considered a RINO and traitor to the conservative cause by Commodore, bobmarley and the like. http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewi...acare-pushers-owe-fellow-gopers-a-big-apology Norquist: Defund Obamacare Pushers Owe Fellow GOPers 'A Big Apology' Americans for Tax Reform Leader Grover Norquist slammed Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and his fellow tea partiers who pushed a defund-Obamacare strategy in an interview with the National Review. "It’d be a good idea if they stopped referring to other Republicans as Hitler appeasers because they opposed the strategy they put forward which failed," Norquist told National Review's Betsy Woodruff. "I think if you make a mistake as big as what they did, you owe your fellow senators and congressmen a big apology — and your constituents, as well, because nothing they did advanced the cause of repealing or dismantling Obamacare." Though Norquist didn't name specific Republicans, he singled out the strategy championed by Cruz. "They hurt the conservative movement, they hurt people’s health care, they hurt the country’s economic situation and they hurt the Republican party," Norquist continued. "And a lot of congressmen and senators are not going to win because we spent three months chasing our own tail — or at least, parts of the conservative movement spent three months chasing their own tail." Norquist also told Woodruff that the strategy was similar to the failures in the most recent Iraq war. "These are the people who said, ‘Plan: Step One, Invade Iraq. Step Two, It turns into Kansas,’” Norquist said. “Could I ask if there’s anything in between Step One and Step Two? ‘Oh ye of little faith.’”
Ha! I wasn't really serious, but looking at the comments on National Review, it does appear half the people think he's a traitor and RINO: http://www.nationalreview.com/corne...ders-owe-conservatives-apology-betsy-woodruff
He only said this because he's on the outside and has nothing to lose. If right-wing kooks still liked him, Norquist would not have made these comments.
I think even he recognizes a complete failure of strategy. That said, I agree that he's fighting for relevance. It's amusing to watch such a public civil war within the GOP. This is a fight they've needed to have for a long time - I thought it would have come after after 2012, but apparently it got delayed a year. The primaries next spring and summer will be fascinating to watch.
The primaries may be fascinating to watch, but none of the Tea Kooks have much of a chance. It will be a repeat of Mitt vs. the Freak Show except Chris Christie will probably be the guy.
Oh sorry - I was referring to 2014. I think the House races are where the real civil war will happen within the GOP.
Lonegan losing tonight certainly showed that the Tea party is limited, but don't underestimate how strong they are in their gerrymandered districts. There may be few tea party senators and governors. There will likely never be a Tea party president. But I wouldn't be surprised to see the Tea partiers retain their House seats, if not grow in influence. Don't kid yourself, there's districts that wanted a government shutdown, and that support the "compromise=death" mindset that many of their ilk carry. As such, there's going to be a ton of gridlock for the foreseeable future. Tea partiers won't cooperate with the Democratic Senate or President, nor will a Republican President/Senate be able to drum up enough support from the Democrats and moderates to not pander to the Tea Party. Like it or not, they have a considerable amount of power, and there's not much we can do without redrawing districts (which may happen if the GOP "elites" get desperate enough).
I have no sympathy for Grover Norquist. He helped to feed the extremism in the Republican party through his organization and ridiculous pledge.
It is humorous that people like Norquist and Karl Rove that engineered the tactics that are now fueling the tea party are all of a sudden trying to be the voice of reason. Those jokers spent decades empowering this electorate and now that they've lost control, they're trying to act responsible.
Yep, they created the monster and now the monster is loose and they can't control it. These guys never think farther ahead than the next thing. They never understand the consequences of their actions and how it affects the future beyond the next thing.
LOLZ....no he's not. Morey is in his role for the long haul....Cruz is only trying to move up in rank.
This is what happens when logical cynical people build their power based on top of the ignorance of others. They are now reaping what they have sowed.
Saw this passage in a WaPo article: Funny that the group Rove started to take out Dems is now spending a lot of energy taking out wingers. You know it's a a true civil war when they start eating their own. Unfortunately for Rove, Grover, and the boys, you can't turn off 40+ years of rhetoric that you yourself put out there to reach your own ends.
