Doctor Zero on the two Republican Parties

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From Hot Air's Green Room, the good Doctor sees two Republican parties. The old one is dying, long live the new:

There are two Republican parties, and both had a candidate on the 2008 presidential ticket. John McCain was the candidate of the thin-blooded aristocracy, tired men who dislike certain elements of their nominal constituency far more intensely than their political opposition. They have no strenuous objection to the premises of the Left, as could be seen from McCain’s swift acceptance of the freedom-has-failed spin pushed by the Democrats during the 2008 financial crisis. Many of them believe opposition to the Left’s emotional narrative is electoral suicide. This also makes them reluctant to criticize Democrat candidates in harsh terms… which they have no reluctance to deploy against conservative primary opponents. They might speak up against its worst excesses, but they have no serious argument with the basic concept of Big Government – remember “National Greatness Conservatism?” They offer themselves as wiser, perhaps slightly more frugal drivers of the vast federal sandworm. They invest great effort in cultivating relationships with the dinosaur media, which they perceive as an irresistible force dominating American politics. They always look honestly surprised when these relationships disintegrate at crucial moments during national campaigns.

The other Republican party is young and vital. On the 2008 ticket, its banner was carried by Sarah Palin. It’s the yeoman wing of the party, composed of people with middle-class backgrounds and real-world business experience. These people are appalled at the bloated mess in Washington, and the smaller but equally fatal tumors infecting many state capitols. They see a government speeding toward systemic collapse, its doom spelled out in the simple math of unsustainable entitlements and economy-crushing taxation. They’re in love with the American people, a sincere passion that rings from every speech Palin delivers. Their idealism and energy leads them to stumble occasionally, and some veteran political operatives of the old Republican gentry are eager to give them a firm shove from behind. They correctly view the dinosaur media as an implacable opponent, and sometimes waste energy complaining about it… but the evolution of Palin’s media presence demonstrates they are learning to control the media, instead of fighting it.

The yeoman wing of the Republican Party had a very good night on Tuesday...

Read the rest of Doctor Zero's latest op-ed here.

- JP