The Reichstag Fire Changed Everything

How do you sell a Rudy Giuliani cover when America's Mayor (and Everyone's!) is tumbling down the polls like a Jenga tower in a hurricane? Like so:

Ah, the days when the Ron Paul right feared the coming Giuliani presidency. The days of… a month or so ago. TAC's package is here, and my story about Giuliani's liberal philosophy is here.

Comments

[drawn asunder]

Wait, what?

Conservative rag against the war, against Rudy? Nazis bad or good? Me confused.

[shecky]

What a great cover!

[Warren]

I, Rudy?? What is that alluding to? The only thing I can come up with is I Claudius.

[Fluffy]

That's hysterical.

Too bad for the mag that Rudy has been flushed down the toilet of history, like an alligator into the NYC sewers.

At least Dondero can frame this cover and use it to masturbate to.

[Bingo]

"Giuliani is stocking up on these stock characters not for real advice-he's not that insane-but rather to get out a sort of dogwhistle message to the true rightwing nuts, who are willing to forgive a guy anything if he will only pledge to nuke significant parts of the Middle East

Where's Dondero I need him to explain to me how Ron Paul has crazy racist supporters again. Rudy gets the support of people who's only policy objective is the total annihilation of a foreign culture and remaking it in our own image.

[Fluffy]

Weigel's right about one thing though: a month ago "the Ron Paul right" was tearing its hair out about the spectre of a Rudy Presidency. I know I was. It's funny how a month later Rudy is pretty much mere comic relief. Who knows what another month will bring?

[joe]

Fluffy,

I do.

More snow and Mike Huckabee.

Merry Christmas.

[dpotts]

Who knows what another month will bring?

Huck on the cover of TAC, wrapped in a flag and carrying a cross?

[Kwix]

dpotts | December 19, 2007, 3:31pm | #
Who knows what another month will bring?

Huck on the cover of TAC, wrapped in a flag and carrying a cross?

And dpotts wins the thread.

[J sub D]

I, Rudy?? What is that alluding to? The only thing I can come up with is I Claudius.

I, Robot. But that doesn't work either?

[smartass sob]

I do.

More snow and Mike Huckabee.

Merry Christmas.

Yeah? Well, Merry fucking Christmas to you, too, buddy.
🙂

[adrian]

uhh, isn't rudy still polling in first? And is huckabee any better than rudy?

[Lost_In_Translation]

I think its almost a forgone conclusion that no one person is going to unite the shredded republican party. The social conservatives are upset with the neocons and are farther away from the libertarians than ever before and the poor paleocons are shaking their canes from their rocking chairs in vain at these bickering upstarts. Ideally, the socons and liberts got along as long as they both agreed that being left alone was the best idea each other had, but then came the neocons and fucked up that coalition. We can only hope the party kicks out those idiots so the religious and economic right can again form a strong enough coalition to stop the democrats. As it stands now, though, the GOP is lost in the woods while the Hillobamards are taking the castle.

[James]

Actually I have to say that American Conservative is one of the few real conservative magazines out there, they are the real deal and have been against Bush for a long time, I think they endorsed Kerry.

[joe]

adrian,

He is still polling first nationwide, but is dropping like a stone in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina, which are bellweathers for the rest of the country.

[Lost_In_Translation]

Adrian,

I don't know the relative crappiness of Huckabee vs. Giuliani, but as I think both are destined to lose to the Hillobamards, it hardly matters.

[J sub D]

uhh, isn't rudy still polling in first? And is huckabee any better than rudy?

Rudy was in the 30-40 range earlier this year. Low 20s now. Still in first. Huckabee is now in the upper teens-low 20s, and will not get the nomination. Rudy still might though.

[James]

Rudy may be first still in the polls...but if he thinks that he can lose in Iowa(to Huck), New Hampshire(to Romney), and in South Carolina (to Huck), and still come back and win...he is crazy.

[Rattlesnake Jake]

"Where's Dondero I need him to explain to me how Ron Paul has crazy racist supporters again. Rudy gets the support of people who's only policy objective is the total annihilation of a foreign culture and remaking it in our own image."

No problem for Dondero, he supports that policy.

[crimethink]

I, Robot. But that doesn't work either?

Considering he's broken all three laws of robotics many times over, I don't think it would work.

[Rattlesnake Jake]

"Actually I have to say that American Conservative is one of the few real conservative magazines out there, they are the real deal and have been against Bush for a long time, I think they endorsed Kerry."

I just called in a subscription to them. I don't agree with their protectionism and theocratic viewpoint, but I like their anti-war viewpoint.

[crimethink]

We all need to bookmark this post for the next time Donderooooooooo arrives to tell us that US News & World Report called Rudy a libertarian, so it must be true.

[Bob]

The magazine TAC is very non-biased. They don't endorse candidates just because they label themselves "conservative".. They call a spade a spade, emphasis on American and not Conservative. Great Magazine too.

[James]

The New-Right Republican Party is not conservative or like the old Republicans(they are not the party of Lincoln), they are authoritarians, and I think American Conservative is the only conservative magazine that has kept honest.

[J sub D]

As y'all know, I try mightily to avoid offending other commenters here. So I need to know, how mant Os are in Donderooooooooooooooo?
In advance, Thanks.

[Rattlesnake Jake]

"Conservative rag against the war, against Rudy? Nazis bad or good? Me confused."

"The American Conservative" is a paleoconservative magazine. Paleoconservatives, as the name implies, believe in the old conservative values which are antiwar.

[joe]

The paleocons weren't antiwar during the Cold War. Pro-Korean War, pro-Vietnam War, pro-Grenada, pro-Contra.

Paleocons are realists, which leads them to oppose neocon wars, but they seem to be quite fond of wars intended to expand our power and check that of our adversaries.

[Daze]

The weirdest part of that cover is the Glenn Greenwald byline. Strange bedfellows indeed.

Given the choice between President Giuliani and President Huckabee, I'd take Giuliani.

[VM]

joe - do you know Richard Hofstaetter's book "American Political Tradition"?

dunno why I'm asking...

/kicks self

[Rimfax]

crimethink,

You can save it on a the unofficial Reason wiki somewhere. (http://reason.wikia.com)

Maybe on a Eric Dondero page?

BTW, Edward has already been over there to vandalize the Urkobold? page.

[Bingo]

I'm still trying to figure out the ideology that defines a paleo-con. It mostly seems being a grumpy bastard and hating new-fangled things and also thinking that Reagan was a pretty swell guy.

[VM]

Rimfax-

that's freakin awesome stuff!!!

and it passes the Mr Steven Crane, "this shit is teh funni" test!

[joe]

I've heard the name, VM, but I don't think I've read the book.

My model for a paleo-con is Barry Goldwater (although he stands out for his social liberalism).

[Mudkipz]

I think Reagan Administration is a pretty cool guy. Eh, kills aliens, doesn't afraid of anything.

[Cain]

I, Rudy?? What is that alluding to? The only thing I can come up with is I Claudius.

I, Robot. But that doesn't work either?

Let us not forget I Ching.

[crimethink]

Given the choice between President Giuliani and President Huckabee, I'd take the first available flight to Mars.

[Eric Dondero]

I used to be a supporter of Ron Paul. That was until Ron Paul smacked my ass one too many times and ruffled my cocktail dress. The worst part is, I know it's because I'm a JOOOO! I just felt so ... so dirty.

Therefore, you must vote for 9iu1ian1.

Q.E.D.

[Taktix?]

Rimfax,

It appears Donderoooooooooooooo! has deleted his entry as well...

[Eric Dondero]

Taktix?: It appears Donderoooooooooooooo! has deleted his entry as well...

I can't imagine what you're referring to. Giuiliani.

[VM]

joe -

i think i see where you're going with the paleoconservative type. cool.

how would Pat Buchanan and some of those nativists fit in the spectrum?

And what did DUNDEROOOOO's page say?

Did it say that he's now second in the TUFF GAIZ OF THE INTERNETS contest, behind that pencil-necked "man", Pilly Peck(er)?

oh hay hai, Dunderooo. I didn't see you there. Howzit hangin', man. oh yeah. right on. lookin good. yeah. um. look. i gotta go. i'm late and gotta... yeah - late for meeting someone... um.. somewhere. but was good to see you. hay - let's do lunch sometime after the holidays. man, it's crazy now. okay. yeah. bye.

[dpotts]

Off topic, but Tancredo might be dropping out tomorrow

[henry]

Proud TAC (and Reason) subscriber checking in here.

Awesome cover!

Can't wait for the Huckleberry one.

[Orange Irish Yob]

Rudy Giuliani seems more genuine than all the other Republicans with the exception of Ron Paul. Huckabee reminds me of a sleezy late night tellevision preacher.

[dbcooper]

Don't mean to be a bitch, but can you guys please resize images instead of simply fitting them in a smaller size in the html.

[Brian Courts]

Given the choice between President Giuliani and President Huckabee, I'd take Giuliani.

Given the choice between President Giuliani and President Huckabee, I'd take poison.

[ed]

I Spy?

[Col DuBois]

Given the choice between President Giuliani and President Huckabee, I'd take a horse cock up the ass and die from intestinal perforation.

[Jason]

I think they named it "I Giuliani" because "My Thoughts" would have been both too obvious and too ironic.

*Ironic because it implies he has any.

[J sub D]

I, Tina?

[Ska]

This "Given the choice between President Giuliani and President Huckabee, I'd take...." could be a new drinking game. Whatever way you go, people sure get creative with it.

[e]

Don't mean to be a bitch, but can you guys please resize images instead of simply fitting them in a smaller size in the html.

What browswer are you using? Looks fine to me.

/Firefox for teh win

[Grand Chalupa]

I think I could support Rudy.

This "I will kill Islamists" bit is his only hope for the nomination. If elected he may settle in with a sane foreign policy and be ok from a libertarian perspective on economics and social policy.

Or he may just nuke Iran.

Anyway, only issue that matters to me is illegal immigrantsion, and all the Republicans the same position on that. For it, then against it.

[Grand Chalupa]

Actually, after reading the piece, seems Rudy's a true neo-con to the core. Forget what I said.

[thoreau]

Given the choice between President Giuliani and President Huckabee, I'd take poison.

Ah, we have a hair metal fan!

[First Little Pig]

As a resident of NYC under Ghouliani .....

If given a choice btwn Ghouliani and Huckleberry ...... I would take a train to Canada.

Honestly. Ghouliani is a seriously disturbed, paranoid, delusional, self-righteous, asshat of an asshat.

[NoStar]

The question shouldn't be why "I, Rudy", but why isn't it "Il Duchebag"?

[thoreau]

The question shouldn't be why "I, Rudy", but why isn't it "Il Duchebag"?

NoStar wins the thread.

[Warren]

iMac?
iPod?
iPhone?

[NoStar]

Thank you Dr. Thoreau. I haven't won a thread in a while. I was beginning to doubt my own snarkiness.

It's probably due to all that optimism that Dr. Ron Paul keeps injecting me with.

[Cesar]

That is one of the most awesome political magazine covers ever. I'm considering subscribing to TAC, if for no other reason than because their foreign policy views are spot-on.

[Spiral]

One thing I've noticed about neocons is that they don't believe in negotiating with any other country, ever. The US is always right and good, and any sort of compromise would ultimately hurt both sides. I think Rudy would subscribe to this viewpoint.

[Robert]

I don't care how bad Huckabee is on policy, I'd take him over Giuliani any time because the latter is too dangerous with executive power.

[Plant Immigration RIghts Suppo]

Robert, why do you think that Giuliani would be worse than Huckabee in terms of executive power? Both are bad but why do you think Guuliani would be worse?

[Eric Dondero]

Last week Clint Bolick formerly of the Institute for Justice joined the Giuliani Campaign as Education Policy Advisor.

That adds to the List of Libertarians for Rudy:

Sally Pipes, Steve Forbes, Martin Anderson, Dennis Miller, Gerald Reynolds, and at least two Cato Institute scholars. Also leaning heavily Rudy: Grover Norquist and Club for Growth.

I guess the "American Conservative" now considers people like Clint Bolick and Grover to be "Nazis."

[Eric Dondero]

Oh, and forgot to mention, latest polls have Paul down at 3% nationwide.

Romney is rising. Giuliani is steady at 20%.

Thompson is showing growth.

Add up the 3 Fiscal Cons scores - Mitt, Rudy & Fred - and it's nearing 60%.

[Vote Quimby]

I subscribe to only 2 mags and they are Reason and AmCon. AmCon is fantastic on foreign policy, but their immigration/trade stances may not mesh well with this crowd. Still worth reading regardless because of the outstanding writing and the fact that they are not beholden to the GOP.

Someone asked where Buchanan fit in the spectrum and you should know that AmCon is his baby. I believe he and Taki started it when Bush finally pissed them off enough beating the Iraq war drum.

[Elemenope]

PIRS --

I don't know about him, but I have the same sense. I think it comes from not being able to trust [prosecutors/former prosecutors] with any amount of power. It's like trusting cops with guns.

In the local senate race in '06, I voted for one guy for, among other reasons, his opponent was a former AG of the state; he was, shall we say, mealy-mouthed about the importance of civil liberties. In my experience one often has a great deal to do with the other.

[Louis Nardozi]

I haven't shared my secret hope before, but I will now. There is a famous and VERY popular writer, F. Paul Wilson. Mr. Wilson wrote a novel in 1984 (how prophetic) called "An Enemy of the State" in which he visualized the current state of affairs in America. In his book, there was a utterly pricipled person called Peter LaNague who took on the corrupt establishment and went on to forge an alliance which was the foundation of freedom for humanity for the next thousand years. After I read the book I was heartbroken there was no Peter LaNague for me and mine. I set out to make money using the existing system to keep my family safe. Now some years later I am financially "safe" I guess - I have a million or so in property and a really good job so I won't starve tomorrow. I feel that Dr. Paul is a REAL Peter LaNague. I think for a living - I write software and critical thinking skills are essential. When I first heard of Dr. Paul I was so MAD!!! I thought he was just a shill for the government - until I started looking through the Federal Register online. He has NEVER (that I can tell) voted against his principles. A rational person does not believe things he has been given evidence do not exist - but Dr. Paul has NEVER given reason to believe he will not do as he says. Please- do yourself a favor - read "An Enemy of the State" and acquaint yourself with the general priciples of sound money. I'm willing to give up my million of real estate to know my children will be secure - why else earn it?

[Four Toast and Twenty Dead Guy]

(they are not the party of Lincoln), they are authoritarians

HAH HAH HAH!

What browswer [sic] are you using? Looks fine to me.

Firefox does pixel resizing just like the rest of them, so it looks blocky and bad.

[Malto Dextrin]

Orange Irish Yob:
Sometimes when I go into a bar, I'll order a black and tan, and follow it with an orange juice chaser.

[ISLAMOFASCISM!!!]

islamofascism!

ISLAMOFASCISM!!

ISLAMOFASCISM!!!!!!!!!

[joshua corning]

Rimfax,

It appears Donderoooooooooooooo! has deleted his entry as well...

What the fuck?!?! How do you delete....i made an entry for myself but forgot to capitalize Corning

[Jozef]

Given the choice between President Giuliani and President Huckabee, I'd take poison.

Adapting an old joke to the new situation: If Giuliani and Huckabee were both drowning and you could save only one, would you read a book or take a nap?

[dbcooper]

>Firefox does pixel resizing just like the rest of them, so it looks blocky and bad.

Fortunately the new beta of firefox 3, b2, scales the image so it looks fine in that, and won't be a minor annoyance in future.

[Rick Gozinia]

Tim Russert was on the am yack-fest this morning, showing Giuliani sinking like a rock in most recent polling.

I hope Clint Bolick is associating with Giuliani for cynical reasons, like boatloads of cash. It can't be for ideology.

[Ken Shultz]

Kudos to The American Spectator for the headline "Mitt's LDS Trip".

[Ken Shultz]

...um "American Conservative" I mean.

Gee, I really shouldn't comment so early in the morning.

[Gene Trosper]

islamofascism!

ISLAMOFASCISM!!

ISLAMOFASCISM!!!!!!!!!
************************8

You wanna beat "Islamofascism?" Stop dropping bombs on Islamic civilians and start corrupting them with Pepsi, Reason magazine and Levi's jeans.

[Pig Mannix]

Huckabee is now in the upper teens-low 20s, and will not get the nomination.

Huckabee appears to be losing ground. The beneficiary appears to be Thompson.

[Jozef]

You wanna beat "Islamofascism?" Stop dropping bombs on Islamic civilians and start corrupting them with Pepsi, Reason magazine and Levi's jeans.

No! Not Reason Magazine; the last thing we want is for those people to learn how to think for themselves.

(Now do I get my free Reason subscription? 😛 )

[stubby]

I'm disappointed at the comments here lately - I would not expect the Reason commenters, and especially the regulars, to get so carried away by minute to minute polls and minute to minute "analysis" by the major media - whose track record on this stuff is not impressive - and start making sweeping statements about who's toast, who's a shoe in, who can't lose and who can't win. It's December 2007, people. Iowa and New Hampshire haven't even happened yet. Anyone remember caucus and primary surprises in 2004? Major media miscalls? Badly skewed polls? What, are ya'll now as easily distracted as the mythical average American who gets his news off broadcast television? Everybody calm down and stop smelling your own heady gases. And joe, just because you apparently - and I stress apparently, because I still don't trust the fat bastard and I don't think he's finished singing yet - correctly predicted that Chavez would abide by the results of one election does not mean that you're an oracle now. You don't know what will happen to Huckabee or Romney or Giuliani - or Clinton or Obama - in the next few weeks or months.*

Full disclosure: I like Rudy, Fred, McCain, and probably in that order. Cannot stand Huckabee, Romney or Clinton.

*Okay, I think we can safely say that Richardson, Edwards, and the Republican whose last name starts with a D have no hope.

[pdog]

Hmmm...
http://www.britannica.com/eb/art/print?id=13145

[joe]

VM,

I would put Buchanan even further back than the paleo-cons, back to the America Firsters.

So what's older than a paleo-con?

An archaeo-con?

[joe]

National polls don't matter. Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina polls matter.

[Pig Mannix]

So what's older than a paleo-con?

Pretty much everything. The paleo-con movement started as a reaction against the neocons post cold war. Despite the name, they're probably the newest movement on the right.

[joe]

Well, the name is new, but they are a conscious throwback to an earlier political movement.

[Eric Dondero]

Two photos all over internet news sites of Ron Paul meeting with Nazi StormTrooper Front leader Don Black and his son at a South Florida event in September.

This is bad. This is really, really bad.

[NoStar]

So Eric,
Who ya gunna support after your man Rudy the G. drops out for "health reasons?"

[stubby]

Well, if only IA, NH and SC matter, McCain must be happy because a poll ties him with Romney in New Hampshire today.