The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

‘Self-Appointed Republican Elites’

Posted on | August 29, 2011 | 17 Comments

Nothing says “grassroots populism” quite like a column in Politico:

A wave of fear has come over Washington — and it’s not the earthquake or the hurricane. Self-appointed Republican elites, fretting Hill Republicans and left-wing carnival barkers all have one thing in common: Perryphobia.
It’s an acute condition, with different manifestations. But it has the same root cause – arrogance toward Texas Gov. Rick Perry. . . .

A list of “Perryphobia” sufferers ensues and then . . .

Finally, and this is my personal favorite, we have those self-appointed Republican elites. You know the type: they wear the Adam Smith tie; yammer at us on FOX News all day; read the Journal with devotional religious fervor; skip church to watch “Meet the Press,” and make their living off the generosity of people they secretly look down on with benevolent disdain.

OK, so let’s skip down to the Politico columnist’s bio blurb:

Curt Anderson is a Republican strategist and a partner at OnMessage Inc., a GOP media and polling firm.

Anderson’s polling/PR/strategy firm is based inside the Beltway, in Alexandria, Virginia, and lists among its clients the Republican National Committee, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Republican Governors Association. Anderson is former political director of the RNC, worked on the Bush-Cheney campaigns in 2000 and 2004, and also worked on Mitt Romney’s 2008 campaign.  

So if you’re looking for a grassroots anti-elitist who courageously stands up to the GOP Establishment, then obviously Curt Anderson’s your man.

Professional Republican consultants: Vox populi, vox dei.


Comments

17 Responses to “‘Self-Appointed Republican Elites’”

  1. Shawn Gillogly
    August 29th, 2011 @ 1:19 pm

    My “favorite” is the Karl Rove wannabes in the beltway, kowtowing to their mentor, who helped destroy the GOP, prancing around and claiming ‘they’ know best for the Party. And God help us if we dare support that ‘ignorant’ Tea Party or any ‘outsider’ candidate.

    The sooner we send Establishment clowns like this to the outer wastes, the better.

  2. Bob Belvedere
    August 29th, 2011 @ 2:02 pm

    This Anderson fellow has obviously not taken to heart the wise and tested admonition to keep your resume to one page or less.  Oh…and don’t beg for the gig.

  3. Anonymous
    August 29th, 2011 @ 2:24 pm

    Did Erick Erickson apologize to Jamie Radtke yet for the big fat lie he told about her?  Why is Ace of Spades attacking Pamela Geller for pointing out Perry’s connection with Islam?  

  4. NVA Patriot
    August 29th, 2011 @ 2:43 pm

    Hello All –

    Seems odd to me that EVERYONE in unison is ‘scared’ ot Tea Party Rick.  Tea Party Rick the ‘Washington Outsider.’

    Why so?  Rick likes a lot of Establishment in his Politics.  Let’s see –  Illegal immigration – OK with Rick; Corporate Cronyism; OK with Rick; Karl Rove connection? – Helped put Dem Rick in the Repub Party…All signs present are leading a cynic to believe the Repub Establishment needs a Plan B in case Romney Fails

    Hmmmm; Hmmmm, Me thinks we’re being played…

    Wonder who the establishment fears?  As Rush says, they’ll let you know who they fear most…I’m thinking either Big Foot or Grizzly Bears scare them most…right behind any one who’s fearlessly honest…like Allen West.

  5. Anonymous
    August 29th, 2011 @ 2:48 pm

    Well, Shawn, it’s not that I don’t appreciate the work done by full-time GOP operatives — some of my best friends are political operatives, and the work they do is vitally important to the process. What got on my nerves in this particular instance was that a Beltway operative — who almost certainly hopes to have the Perry 2012 campaign as a client in the future — would strike the populist pose in bashing the “elite,” in the defense of a very powerful Republican candidate, and would do so in such a Beltway media venue as Politico.

    All those thousands of grassroots Iowa conservatives who voted in the Ames Straw Poll for Bachmann, Ron Paul, Rick Santorum or Herman Cain — Anderson says they’re all “elitists” suffering “Perryphobia,” you see, while he demands that everybody get on the Perry bandwagon.

    Because real conservatives do what former RNC political directors tell them to do!

  6. AngelaTC
    August 29th, 2011 @ 3:14 pm

    Rick Perry beat a TEA Party candidate in a 3 way primary, so it’s hard for me to believe he’s really considered the TEA Party candidate.

  7. Anonymous
    August 29th, 2011 @ 5:10 pm

    Karl Rove connection – severed when Rick ran against Kay Bailey, the Rove candidate….

    Illegal immigration: SWAT teams on the borders and billing the Feds on the theory that if Feds own immigration, they pay the bills…

    Corporate cronyism – only if you count keeping the regulators out of the way…

  8. DaveO
    August 29th, 2011 @ 5:17 pm

    North
    Vietnamese
    Army

    ???

  9. Shawn Gillogly
    August 29th, 2011 @ 5:36 pm

    SDN, exactly, Rove’s been behind a number of Perry attacks so far. He’s been locked out of Austin since KBH lost, and Perry doesn’t let go of grudges.

    Rove fears nothing so much as being locked out of the Executive Branch during a Republican Admin.

  10. Steve in TN
    August 29th, 2011 @ 6:23 pm

    1) Do we now know they are lies?
    2) Geller failed to connect Perry to Islam (whatever you may think that may be).

  11. Adjoran
    August 29th, 2011 @ 6:59 pm

    Erick’s been trying to call her, but the phone at the bar keeps giving the busy signal.

    Ace was attacking Geller’s misquotes, misrepresentations, and misdirections, as well as Robert Spencer’s self-contradictions.

  12. Adjoran
    August 29th, 2011 @ 7:02 pm

    I’m guessing he’s really from NOrthern VirigniA and just can’t afford to buy the other vowel yet.

  13. Anonymous
    August 29th, 2011 @ 7:25 pm

    Not THAT damn tough. Especially in Northern Virginia, where if you plan on flying the Vietnamese flag, it better be just red and yellow with no star in the middle. Lots of folks around here haven’t forgotten the fall of Saigon.

  14. Ladd Ehlinger Jr.
    August 29th, 2011 @ 7:52 pm

    1) The drunk part, yes – Erickson’s bloggers who were actually AT the speech attest to that on Redstate itself.

    2) The “connections’ are kinda… limp.

  15. Perryphobia ‘Wave of Fear:’ Republican Elitists Wonking for Romney? | Maggie's Notebook
    August 29th, 2011 @ 9:21 pm

    […] The Other McCain discovered the connections to Politico columnist Curt Anderson, and oh yes, they re… Anderson’s polling/PR/strategy firm is based inside the Beltway, in Alexandria, Virginia, and lists among its clients the Republican National Committee, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Republican Governors Association. Anderson is former political director of the RNC, worked on the Bush-Cheney campaigns in 2000 and 2004, and also worked on Mitt Romney’s 2008 campaign. […]

  16. RightKlik
    August 30th, 2011 @ 3:02 am

    Some elitists hate Perry, others seem to like him. Maybe we should hold some elections to see what the people think.

  17. Perryphobia ‘Wave of Fear:’ Republican Elitists Wonking for Romney? | FavStocks
    August 31st, 2011 @ 10:31 am

    […] The Other McCain discovered the connections to Politico columnist Curt Anderson, and oh yes, they re… Anderson’s polling/PR/strategy firm is based inside the Beltway, in Alexandria, Virginia, and lists among its clients the Republican National Committee, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Republican Governors Association. Anderson is former political director of the RNC, worked on the Bush-Cheney campaigns in 2000 and 2004, and also worked on Mitt Romney’s 2008 campaign. […]