Think Progress

David Brooks on conservative moment: ‘World of pain,’ ‘no leaders,’ ‘no coherent belief system.’

On CBS’ Face the Nation, New York Times conservative columnist David Brooks said the Republican Party is in a “world of pain.” “Now it’s just a circular firing squad with everybody attacking each other and no coherent belief system, no leaders,” he added. “You got half the party waiting for Sarah Palin to come rescue them. The other half waiting for Bobby Jindal, the Louisiana governor, to come rescue them. But no set of beliefs, really a decayed conservative infrastructure. It’s just a world of pain.” Watch it:

Brooks argued that, fundamentally, “the conservative movement failed…because it hasn’t addressed the problems of today.”



74 Responses to “David Brooks on conservative moment: ‘World of pain,’ ‘no leaders,’ ‘no coherent belief system.’”

  1. Jim Wolf359 says:

    The Republicans have the party that they deserve. As you reap, so shall you sow.


  2. RayFerd says:

    Tthe conservative movement failed…because it has caused the problems of today.


  3. Gregor Samsa says:

    The conservative movement is in pain for a lack of coherent belief system?

    Since when is having a coherent, consistent anything a prerequisite for being a conservative?

    Unless you consider lavishing on your cronies, hoodwinking the gullible, and scapegoating minorities, a coherent belief system…


  4. ralph the wonder llama says:

    The Republican Party has no core ideals because for the last fifteen years, their core ideal has been To Win Elections By Any Means Necessary.

    Power was the goal, for its own sake, as it turned out. Their “limited government” mantra was simply a masquerade for letting corporate interests run amok.


  5. Another Joe says:

    Good points here, but let’s be clear. The “conservative movement” has served the wealthy elite very well. THEY ARE LAUGHING ALL THE WAY TO THE BANK.

    Their “success” has been an ability to convince primarily white and middle class voters that the economic challenges they face are the fault of the relatively powerless (economically and politically) masses below them on the socio-economic ladder.

    This, and the mainstream media echo chamber, has enabled them to proclaim to represent America, even when they have had to resort to hook and crook to “win” elections.


  6. gummitch says:

    As a conservative columnist, hasn’t it been David Brooks’ responsibility to provide a coherent belief system and to criticize the Republicans for their failure to adhere to one — while they’re actually in power?


  7. Zooey says:

    David Brooks still has wingnut cooties, no matter how fast he runs from them.


  8. Badmoodman says:

    “David Brooks on conservative moment: ‘World of pain,’ ‘no leaders,’ ‘no coherent belief system.’”

    – - Yeah, nature abhors a vacuum. That’s how the Right’s favorite analogy, Adolf Hitler came to power.


  9. Shin Gallon says:

    They have failed because they let the insane Christian right take over and turn it into the party of bigotry against gay people, keeping women barefoot and pregnant and making sure the rich keep getting richer while the poor get poorer.
    Jim Wolf359 is right…the Republicans have the party they deserve.


  10. Bilbo Hussein Baggins says:

    Wow, a conservative pundit who is willing to tell the truth. The problem is that he left out the part of the Republican party who can save them and that is the “Goldwater Republicans” many of whom defected to Obama. If they ever want to get them back, they need to seriously change their ways.


  11. rastaman says:

    UH OH….THE AUTOMATONS ARE IN DISARRAY NOW THAT THE CENTRAL COMPUTER HAS CRASHED.

    DANGER WILL ROBINSON…DANGER!


  12. Another Joe says:

    Bilbo – he isn’t telling the truth – he is providing cover for the real reason the repug “brand” is in trouble.

    They only represent the interests of the wealthy elite. They do nothing for the vast majority of Americans. This is not because of “no leaders” or “no coherent belief system”.

    The facts are that the neocon/repug agenda does not serve anyone except the military-industrial complex and the various interest groups that have stakes in it.


  13. freeman says:

    Yes the conservatives have lost big time in this election , which is what lying about your opponents and lying about your actual motivations in seeking power result in when the charade collapses ! They have managed to peel a large percentage of the popular vote away by bundling together fiscal conservative friedmanites mixing them with the so called religious right who are afraid of any cultural change though lies and subterfuge. There base votes against it’s own self interests .
    Lying is what they do best because you can not very well say please cast your vote for us so that we can steal your money , and give the powerful 2% elite dictatorial powers inorder to pursue entirely self interested policies while polluting , destroying your democracy and killing to achieve our ends .
    The only question now is whether the democrats are not also under the control of the same people .If they are different they have 100 days to show how different they are or the next election , they will be running against a very formidable 3rd party challenge .


  14. DaTruth says:

    Shame is a painful feeling. Not physical but emotional. Like the type of pain you feel when a loved one dies. It may take months or years to overcome. Then they take out all the anger and hatred on the humble people. Humility ceases to be a virtue. It’s going to take years for all this damage to be undone. It took 8 years to get to this shameful mess, so we’ll have to be very patient.


  15. katy says:

    here’s your conservative “moment” (see typo? above):

    Secret Service blamed Palin for sudden spike in Obama death threats

    http://crooksandliars.com/david-neiwert/secret-service-blamed-palin-sudden-s


  16. freeman says:

    I heard earlier on another post that Obama is contemplating an executive order to reverse 200 separate bush laws , does anyone have a link for that ?


  17. Badmoodman says:

    David Brooks on conservative moment: ‘World of pain’…

    – - Or, ‘World of Palin.’


  18. freeman says:

    Keep the democrats honest , put them under a microscope !There are plenty of cheerleaders at fox news , their team’s lost !



  19. freeman says:

    COUNTRY BEFORE PARTY ….. remember ?


  20. konchster says:

    I am ever amazed at the numbers of right wing adherents that make 45K a year and are afraid somebody is going to take their s*it. They are too stupid to realize they don’t have anything anybody wants


  21. freeman says:

    Thanx zooey , your the best .


  22. Zooey says:

    konchster Says:

    I am ever amazed at the numbers of right wing adherents that make 45K a year and are afraid somebody is going to take their s*it. They are too stupid to realize they don’t have anything anybody wants
    November 9th, 2008 at 2:18 pm

    I’d take the $45K. ;)


  23. Zooey says:

    Anytime, freeman. :-)


  24. Another Joe says:

    Spot on, freeman – eventually, real change is going to demand a dialog about what has really happened over the past 8 years.

    It will also require that we take action if we want change – peacefully withholding economic support from the corpocracy (and their MSM assets) that make the neocon/repug agenda possible.

    I know many of us personally refuse to support some of these organizations, but until this is done as a national, cooridinated boycott, our personal choices mean little or nothing.

    The walmarts, applebees, staples, mcdonalds, home depots, disneys , and others don’t care if we, as individuals, choose not to shop there.


  25. dbadass says:

    Can I nominate Rapture Ready, Bam Bam, and Tracy _5? I figure they have the nonleadership lack of coherent views thing down and I was thinking with luck they might have the chance to give bitblt a place on the SCOTUS… Guns for all! Abortions for None!!!!…


  26. galmud says:

    “You got half the party waiting for Sarah Palin to come rescue them. The other half waiting for Bobby Jindal, the Louisiana governor, to come rescue them.”

    Oh yes please let Sarah Palin and the Exorcist come rescue the Republican party


  27. mdeemer says:

    For once I agree with Brooks on every point. But why is half the R Party waiting for Sarah Palin to “come rescue them” if they’re ideologically bankrupt? The woman hasn’t an original idea in her entire fluffy head.
    If Republicans can’t figure out what’s wrong, they have no hope of any kind of rescue from any direction. It’s not rocket science; Brooks has identified the problem in a nutshell.


  28. Another Joe says:

    Guido the Loving OBGYN

    The fear and terrorism is used to manipulate the public. It has great propaganda value. It enables them to lie that “security moms” have swung elections.

    Most of all, it is what allows the military-industrial complex to loot the Federal treasury.


  29. freeman says:

    Zooey any chance you can cut and paste the article from the Times I really would rather not give them my personal info or register with them !
    How many of these 200 laws deal with the constitutional issues we have been cursed with under Bush ?


  30. Badger says:

    Grover Norquist was on c-span this morning warning that the Democrats were going to raise your taxes.

    He Said he is not optimistic about the economy because(exact quote)…”What Reid , Pelosi , and Obama want to do have all been tried by Bill…(OOOPS)(Priceless look on his face)…by Mr. Carter …and have all failed.”

    Obviously, Mr. Norquist was flummoxed, because Bill Clinton’s tax increase lead to 8 years of record prosperity.


  31. Snowball says:

    So the Republican party is caught in the middle of deciding between two nutcases to lead them, Palin or Jindal? The only question is: Which faction of reactionary religious fundamentalists wins out, the racist Palin supporters, or the more corporate leaning Jindal supporters? Either way, they tear themselves in half, it couldn’t happen to a nicer party.


  32. dumbstruck says:

    The people who were defeated in the recent elections couldn’t be a pimple on a real conservative’s butt.

    Call them Republicans. That’s all they are. They have no ideology except “party first”.

    I’ll welcome a comeback of true conservatives.


  33. mdeemer says:

    To answer those above who are wondering what the Democrats are going to do now: the Obama campaign hasn’t packed up their marbles and left Main Street now that the election is over. I attended a post-election meeting of Obama volunteers where our Field Organizers pressed us on how to maintain the momentum and keep organizing in our communities. We had easily 75 volunteers in attendance, and many more ideas for what we wanted to do than time to discuss them all. The General Election may be over, but it’s not the end of this thing.


  34. Jackie says:

    David Brooks has worked hard for 8 years pushing the White House and Republican agenda and spinning the lies. His love for Bush was sick and his loyality was strong. Yes it’s all over now and David is on the out side looking in. The New York Times will lower his work and might fire him soon. He showed he is a racist and more. Alot of reporters who helped the Bush Propaganda Dept. will be let go ask Chris Matthews and Andrea Mitchell.


  35. Zooey says:

    Does this link work for you, freeman?

    I really shouldn’t copy the whole thing.


  36. judyinnm says:

    The conservatives have simply realized their wildest dreams coming true – unregulated, untaxed mega-business; outsourcing of governmental functions (up to, and including, private security forces protecting our MILITARY); total neglect of the main purpose of government to benefit the citizens (human beings), and destruction of civil liberties in favor consolidated power in the hands of a select few. The conservative belief system only succeeds in countries where the concept of government of, by, and for the PEOPLE is non-existant.


  37. Zooey says:

    If the link doesn’t work, freeman, do what I do. Give them a bogus email address, and lie on the info they ask for. ;)


  38. Snowball says:

    “No coherent belief system”

    So tell us something new Mr. Brooks. Their has been nothing coherent about Republican ideology aside from a dogmatic adherence to cognitive dissonance. How else can you explain the fusion of rabid authoritarianism with calls for smaller government? It never made a lick of sense.


  39. freeman says:

    Thanks zooey the second link did work .


  40. EugeneDebs says:

    Snowball Says:

    So the Republican party is caught in the middle of deciding between two nutcases to lead them, Palin or Jindal? The only question is: Which faction of reactionary religious fundamentalists wins out, the racist Palin supporters, or the more corporate leaning Jindal supporters? Either way, they tear themselves in half, it couldn’t happen to a nicer party.
    >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

    Caribou Bimbostien is a complete loss but dont underestimate Jindal. He is smart, he is competent, and he IS pretty rightwing. He is far more dangerous than the Arctic Bimbo from Hell


  41. Snowball says:

    David Brooks role has always been to muddy the waters enough to make Conservatism appear non-threatening to moderates and leaning Liberals. Now, he’s left holding an empty bag since the cat got out.


  42. Another Joe says:

    snowball, bag isn’t empty – it is actually full of sh!t


  43. misshusseinmolly says:

    This is because the party has apparently been taken over by Cheeto-eating trolls. They will be on the path to recovery once they quit pointing fingers and take a long hard look at where they derailed and what caused it.

    As long as they steadfastly maintain that there is nothing wrong and continue to attack the other party, they will be losers.


  44. Snowball says:

    Another Joe

    That’s what’s left after the cat got out.


  45. Another Joe says:

    So that is why the cat jumped out?

    They are clean animals, after all, and often will not use a litter box once it is full…


  46. Wayne A. Schneider says:

    The Republicans lost because they do not value the truth. (Or the troops, for that matter, but let’s not get into that fight again.)


  47. nellre says:

    Wasn’t accountability a cornerstone of conservatism?
    If so, then there aren’t any conservative Republicans.


  48. pete says:

    Brooks has actually become an interesting case. He’s always been, a bit, schizophrenic. While he tries to appear level headed during his appearances with Lehrer and Shields, his work for the Times rivals Kristol in it’s wingnuttiness.

    He was among the first to express his dismay over the Palin choice and he soured on her from there. I would not be the least bit surprised if he announces his “defection” to the “left” for his own protection as the radicals seek to purge anyone who has ever shown any hint of conciliation to reality.


  49. wiley says:

    Tbey are a world of pain to a world long ready to see them gone. They are a pox on humanity. They are a pathological nightmare. They are also tasteless and crass beyond all belief.

    Bask in the worldwide sigh of relief that this regime is on its way out and LET’S PUT IMPEACHMENT BACK ON THE TABLE.

    WAR CRIMINALS!!! CORPORATE CRIMINALS!!! CRIMINALS!!!

    Get the rope.


  50. flex says:

    Gotta love it!

    the conservative movement failed because their mascots and heroes are the hateful and bigoted Ann Coulter, Rush Limbbourg, Bill O’Lielly, KKKarl Rove, Darth Cheney, etc.

    the conservative movement failed because their agenda is extreme self centeredness, based on lies, corruption, greed, power, and intimidation.


  51. Fred says:

    freeman Says:
    If they are different they have 100 days to show how different they are or the next election , they will be running against a very formidable 3rd party challenge .

    Excuse me, you haven’t even let him get inaugurated yet and you are already calling him a failure. Now you have decided he has 100 days to meet your needs. How old are you?

    3rd party…..ha. I laugh at you.


  52. Perry logan says:

    Conservatives should be proud. By their own logic, they have turned America into a socialist country.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aypMFARJW84


  53. tokin librul says:

    Btween Jindal and Palin, what would be the difference, other than latitude?


  54. Fred says:

    freeman, the only 3rd party you might see will be something to replace the defunkt gop.

    Democrats have now established a track record despite not being perfect of being able to manage our economy better. No one denies that at this point.

    No 3rd party will be challenging the dems for some time now, they weren’t even competitive when the dems were out of power and being shunned, what makes you think there could be a challenge now?


  55. ralph the wonder llama says:

    mdeemer Says:
    For once I agree with Brooks on every point. But why is half the R Party waiting for Sarah Palin to “come rescue them” if they’re ideologically bankrupt? The woman hasn’t an original idea in her entire fluffy head.

    They’re waiting for Palin to rescue them because that’s what authoritarians look for; someone to save them, protect them, make it all better.

    That’s why they blindly followed Bush for so long, even when it became painfully clear to all but them most hard-core wingnuts that Bush was a failure at presidentin’, too, just like he’d been a failure at everything else he’d ever attempted.


  56. tokin librul says:

    Success? Failure?
    Victory? Retreat?

    What’s the bar set at? It can’t be very high.

    The incredible array off uckups left behind by the departing Bushevils, along with the hundreds of poisonous nests of pious collaborators and frothing loyalists hired by the Monica Goodlings of the regime, in every Department, Bureau, Office, and Station in the Govt, coupled with the inevitable crash of “good faith” in any negotiations with the GOPukes in Congress, added to the frailty of his coalition in the House (with its bluedawgs) and the Senate, with its Nelsons, Lincolns, Landrieus, and the rest, all militates against Obama’s being able to actually accomplish much of scale or consequence in a first term.

    And absent accomplishments, I doubt there can be a second term…

    just sayin…


  57. pete says:

    I think what many from both sides of the spectrum forget is that a President is supposed to make rational decisions based on current events. And that’s about it. A President isn’t supposed to dictate a policy of blatant promotion of ANY particular agenda.

    Since Barack Obama displays a higher than average understanding of the proper duties of a President, I would be very disappointed if he rattled off a list of things he want’s to do in February. It could be a very different world when he’s sworn in.

    Everyone seems to expect him to declare what he expects to do in 3, or 6, months when he doesn’t know which fires will demand the highest priority. And you can damn well bet that Bushco will leave some nasty little surprises we can’t even guess at.

    As for choosing members of his administration, I have seen nothing to suggest that he will choose devotion to an ideal over capabilities. That’s how it’s supposed to work. I think Rham is a jackass but, the realities of modern politics call for a knife-fighter in the CoS position.


  58. Fred says:

    tokin librul Says:

    God I’m sick of the negativity. You can’t write it tokin. You have to wait and see just like the rest of us.

    By the way, what that is within the realm of possibility would make you happy?


  59. gummitch says:

    tokin librul Says:

    Btween Jindal and Palin, what would be the difference, other than latitude?

    From what I’ve read, Jindal is about 500 times smarter than Palin and appears to be a highly competent administrator. Some of the religious crackpottery, however . . . at least I’ve never read that he was pallin’ around with witch hunters.


  60. pluege says:

    this is surely the most coherent Brooks has ever been.

    RayFerd above (#2) is absolutely correct:

    The conservative movement failed…because it has caused the problems of today.


  61. shoeless says:

    David Brooks on conservative moment: ‘World of pain,’

    Yes, we know you wingnuts have caused a world of pain. That’s why we finally put you out of our misery.


  62. the Lone Voice of Reason says:

    The walmarts, applebees, staples, mcdonalds, home depots, disneys , and others don’t care if we, as individuals, choose not to shop there.

    Why you dissin’ Applebee’s? They have insurance for same sex couples. Heck, they have INSURANCE, can’t say that about a lot of restaurants. And they make potential employees test for hire. More than the RNP does for their VP candidates.


  63. the Lone Voice of Reason says:

    “Now it’s just a circular firing squad with everybody attacking each other and no coherent belief system, no leaders,” he added. “You got half the party waiting for Sarah Palin to come rescue them. The other half waiting for Bobby Jindal, the Louisiana governor, to come rescue them. But no set of beliefs, really a decayed conservative infrastructure. It’s just a world of pain.”

    ***********************************
    Good! I hope they have a migraine for the next eight years, those that are left after the circular firing squad, that is. And they can wait til h#ll freezes over for those two messianic wannabes to save them.


  64. wizard2000 says:

    Hooray, our country is saved from anymore insane Republican influence, that has done so much devilish damage to our democracy in pursuit of absolute power and a “permanent Republican majority,” if David Brooks thinks Sarah Palin and Bobby Jindal are to be his party’s saviors.

    Sarah Palin will get her witch-doctor pastor to protect our nation from any “witches” and cast out any “witches” in the Republican Party…which will mean her political future is toast.

    Bobby Jindal will conduct an exorcism to cast out any “demons” besetting our nation and the Republican Party, which hopefully will mean the political demise of “demonic” Republicans like Newt Gingrich, Tom Delay, Karl Rove, David Addington, Grover Norquist and a cast of thousands of other like-minded Republicans, including Jindal, who’ve done such severe harm to our country through their power-hungry, anti-Christ madness.

    So, with Republicans like David Brooks looking to Palin and Jindal to save their bacon, the Republican Party pig is cooked.


  65. motorfingaz says:

    Conservatism discards Prescription, shrinks from Principle, disavows Progress; having rejected all respect for antiquity, it offers no redress for the present, and makes no preparation for the future.

    —Benjamin Disraeli


  66. DNFP says:

    Why you dissin’ Applebee’s?

    Because their food sucks.

    Really. It is horrible, barely edible, tastes like a TV dinner they cooked in a microwave.


  67. DNFP says:

    I heard earlier on another post that Obama is contemplating an executive order to reverse 200 separate bush laws , does anyone have a link for that ?

    If was me, doofus, and I did post the link.

    Apparently, you just like seeing your blatherings in print, cause you really, really just spew shit constantly, like a whining little child.

    Are you hoping TP will hire you or are you just desperately seeking attention? Maybe your paid per post.

    Either way, I see you as a joke, a fool, a timid tiny person who was unfortunately given a voice to augment your inherit weaknesses. And dealing with old ladies at an art auction really isn’t honing your social skills.

    You looking for answers? Well, you’re obviously online, so go do some research, stooooopid.


  68. Alecto says:

    Reagan? HE was the START of the decline of this most insidious of movements. The lying full of sh|t movement. I Can lower taxes, increase Defense spending AND balance the budget. NO you could not, just as the left told you you could not, you lying piece of filth.
    I want BOTH Palin and Jindal to EACH lead their respective arms out of the wilderness such that it SPLITS this traitorous cabal in two, and we finally get to see who exactly the Conservatives are and who the Religicons are. And BOY will that be an eyeopener.

    Get the rope.


  69. Alecto says:

    the Lone Voice of Reason Says:

    The walmarts, applebees, staples, mcdonalds, home depots, disneys , and others don’t care if we, as individuals, choose not to shop there.

    Why you dissin’ Applebee’s? They have insurance for same sex couples. Heck, they have INSURANCE, can’t say that about a lot of restaurants. And they make potential employees test for hire. More than the RNP does for their VP candidates.

    tlvor,

    Imagine how empowered the workers of the country would be if their INSURANCE (as you say) is NOT provided by their corporate master, but they PAY for the same level of healthcard afforded the Congress, and yes it gets padi for (AT A MUCH LESSER PRICE THAN EMPLOYER PROVIDED HEALTHCARE, AND IS BETTER). Imagine knowing you would leave or loose your job any day of the week, and NOT have one secnd thought of the health of your family.
    NOW IMAGINE how much overhead would be reduced on corporate America (eg car industy) ALLOWING them to compete on an equal footing with Japanese and South Korean companies whose workers get their healthcare from the gov.

    Oh man, we would have whole different dynamic happening all over. And we would actually SPEND LESS person month individually. Do the numbers.


  70. Alecto says:

    Badger Says:

    Grover Norquist was on c-span this morning warning that the Democrats were going to raise your taxes.

    He Said he is not optimistic about the economy because(exact quote)…”What Reid , Pelosi , and Obama want to do have all been tried by Bill…(OOOPS)(Priceless look on his face)…by Mr. Carter …and have all failed.”

    Obviously, Mr. Norquist was flummoxed, because Bill Clinton’s tax increase lead to 8 years of record prosperity.

    Hey Badger,
    Now that the Republican party has been chrunk down to the size it fits in a bathtub, we can DROWN IT NOW?!
    Just ask Grover.
    YEAH!!!!!

    Grover Norquist, HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You FCUKING STOOGE


  71. DallasNE says:

    Bobby Jindal in 2012 would be like a replay of George W. Bush in 2000 and we all know how that turned out. Sarah Palin represents a death wish for the Republican Party so why would they want that. Who knows, maybe no serious Republican even ends up wanting the nomination in 2012. That is a long ways off anyway.



  72. republicanSScareme says:

    I think someone gave David a mickey filled with some truth serum.



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