Trump Supporters – It’s not Time to Panic
My social media feed is erupting with Trump supporters already panicking that Donald Trump is selling us out. The appointment of Republican National Committee head Reince Priebus as Chief of Staff seems to be of particular concern to many. My advice to my fellow Trump supporters is to take a couple of deep breaths and relax. Remember that the MSM is deliberately trying to sow discord among us and harm the Trump Administration before it even begins. Don't take the bait. At least give this all some time to work itself out before you hit the panic button.
I know we supported Trump because he was the anti-Establishment candidate, and it would be emotionally satisfying if he came in and just started cleaning house and installing our guys, but you have to remember that you also ultimately have to get things done. The problem with electing a novice, and I'm not criticizing us for doing so, is that he can't surround himself only with other novices and expect to be effective. There is a fine line to walk between allowing yourself to be co-opted and surrounding yourself with enough people who understand the system to get things done. Let's wait and see how well Trump walks this line. Right now, it's way too early to tell.
I'm not a fan of Reince Priebus, and I don't entirely trust him. He is the consummate insider as almost all RNC heads, by their very nature, are, but his selection as Chief of Staff is not necessarily a disaster. Priebus, and most of the rest of the GOP Establishment (GOPe), clearly did not want Trump to be the nominee, but he indicated fairly early on that the Republican Party would abide by the wishes of its primary voters, and he did not mount an all-out effort to deny Trump the nomination. Once Trump was clearly the nominee, you could argue that he has actually been a good soldier. I thought he did a good job with the Republican Convention, which due to the nature of the nominee was somewhat irregular and had to be assembled on the fly.
As I have pointed out before, in general, it has not been GOPe functionaries who have resisted Trump tooth and nail. While they were in almost all cases not happy with his successful campaign and ultimate nomination, they by and large accepted it as a fait accompli and worked with it. The primary elements opposing Trump to the bitter end were movement conservative ideologues and, for some reason, GOPe politicians - Kasich, the Bushes, Ryan, Romney, Graham, etc. Recall that some movement con ideologues even accused the GOPe of deliberately joining forces with Trump to crush "conservatism," and Priebus specifically was criticized by them for not doing enough to stop Trump.
There is potentially something to be said for rewarding someone for being a good soldier even when he would have preferred another nominee. Who knows what deals have already been made? Perhaps Priebus was promised a role in the Trump Administration in exchange for shepherding the post Trump nomination GOP in a non-antagonistic manner. Also, the Priebus appointment will allow Trump to name a Trump friendly person to head the RNC. That the RNC nominee is good on the trio of issues that set Trumpism apart - immigration restriction, rejection of free trade ideology and a more restrained America first foreign policy - will be a better tell of the direction this thing is going to go than is the appointment of Priebus as Chief of Staff.
Remember that we already have Steve Bannon as a key policy advisor, Kris Kobach on the transition team, Stephen Miller reportedly as National Policy Director and maybe Laura Ingraham as Press Secretary. Once again, let's give this some time to work itself out before we start panicking. We owe Trump that much.
Also published at Intellectual Conservative and The Paleo-Populist.
Well said, Mr. Phillips.
Mr. Phillips, that is a good point about the head of the RNC. Hopefully this new leader will be directed to purge the neocons, globalists, nevertrumpers, etc. from positions of power in the party structure. Let them all go back to their former and rightful home in the Left. Also, special focus should be given to turning Minnesota and Maine red. Those two states have enough working class whites that they could be turned the way that Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ohio were in this election.
Would Tom Fleming as Department of Education be too much to ask? Of course after shutting it down, he’d be out of a job. It will be telling if Trump puts hawks in State and Defense.
I wonder if before shutting down DOE he could provide the Fleming Foundation with a 20 year grant to provide an optimum curriculum for autodidactic learning and the encouragement of Americans to get in touch with their European roots in places like Perugia, Sicily, Delphi, Montenegro, Alsace-Lorraine, and various points of interest in parts of the the old (but returning soon) Dual Monarchy.
Mr. Rosenberger,
I don’t quite know what you mean by dual monarchy but America is a Protestant culture and remains somewhat baffled by even the Brit’s modicum of respect for a remnant of monarchy. Our best literature is Protestant except perhaps for Shakespeare. Our heroes are of the same variety only divided by those who admire winners like Achilles, or noble losers like Hector. Altar and throne, if that is what you meant, is no solution to what ails American culture. Catholics at their best have been a leaven and at their worst a damned nuisance for American culture — either running for the Tall Grass when a little humiliation would help the common good or joining the crowd shouting slogans that have nothing whatsoever to do with our heritage. My neighbors and friends are for the most part Southern Baptists or fallen away Presbyterians and Methodists. If I had my choice of conversing over iced tea on a porch swing in August with Clyde Wilson and Mr. Peters or else apostates like Chris Mathews, Joe Biden and professional catholics like George Wiegel, I would take the protestant southerner every time. Our heroes and Christian leaders have always been men like Lee, Jackson, Forrest, our preachers and teachers, Rev. Billy Graham, Fulton Sheen, or even the homely one eyed piratees, Mother Angelica, our best musicians and poets never have survived in front of powerful, lustful, political, condescending Yankee types. The Southern citizens not only tolerate them but welcomes them. And notNot because they are white but because they are people of good will. Our cultural capital has been depleted by mean libertines, hog fat bottom feeders and professional agitators who create crises so as to impose their own new order. If what you meant is Altar and Throne as the old but dual monarchy for Americans, I would vote no. Agrarian, independent, gun toting, God fearing, touchy about honor, not prying into things which are none of their business and leaving well enough alone, etc.. ? Yes! Consumed with Political intrigue, starting wars, promoting strongman solutions to congested, desperate destitute people prone to mob violence, revolt and the dissolution of culture ? That is for the destroyers .
What about Romney as Secretary of State? Would that be a call to start being concerned? Although, given who the immediate predecessors were for that office, as much as I dislike Romney, he’s still an improvement. A sharp stick in the eye is, technically, better than being disemboweled by rabid badgers.
I have heard an interesting and hopeful rumor: Jim Webb for Secretary of Defense. If that is true, I think I could live with Romney at State. He would be a weak Colin Powell (whose supposed brilliance always escaped me), kept in check by a strong executive and a strong, independent SecDef. Powell never had a chance with Cheney and Rummy creating their own reality. Let’s hope this particular rumor is true.
Jim Webb would be excellent. He has bled for his country. Two bronze stars ( one with combat V for Valor) and the silver star for heroism but surely we have better diplomats available than Mitt Romney? I understand hypocrisy, double speak, lying, holding friends close and enemies closer but if “winners” are the only folks who need apply in a Trump presidency, why Romney?
Yes, no doubt Romney leaves a lot to be desired. As I say, he (or Bolton, God forbid!) would only be bearable with someone like Webb in the Pentagon.
I wonder if Dr Trifkovic (my first choice for National security adviser) could be prevailed upon to give us some suitable candidates for State. I really don’t know of any prominent Kennanesque public figures out there who could steer a wise course at Foggy Bottom.
More good news (I think): Jeff Sessions has been offered Attorney General. Probably be a tough confirmation, as they’ve already found someone who claims Sessions called him “boy” years ago, and you can expect a lot of this stuff, but Trump should stand by him. Imagine going from Reno to Bush’s two turkeys to Holder to Lynch to Sessions? By the way, I certainly didn’t mean to imply anything harsh about turkeys, not at this time of the year.
Ken,
Buchanan is 78 yrs old I wish all these guys talking tough about politics and how belligerent the real statesmen have always been would at least come out from the crowd and mention Pat Buchanan’s name in passing. Afterall, he was a tough guy when tough guy wasn’t cool.
Robert,
I think the world of PJB, and if he wants to serve, and Trump is agreeable, he could be considered for any number of jobs. At the very least, he should be consulted and asked for recommendations (probably Dr Fleming’s best hope to get Education). Trump should understand that he won running largely on a Buchanan platform, owing not just a little to the man from MARS, Sam Francis.
Incidentally, I hope he’ll call in Ron Paul for a good talk as well, definitely on monetary policy, but he should be sounded out on foreign policy too. He’s a spry 82, but if he wants to run the treasury, let him have it. Or perhaps he could be the last chairman of the Fed, at the same time Dr Fleming is shutting down the department of education.
Alas, though it’s fun to speculate about who would be best for these jobs, I feel it’s like Dante’s De Monarchia, politics as wish.
As Dr Fleming said earlier, evoking Don Fanucci in Godfather II, you’ve got to let a few of these corrupt old establishment hacks wet their beaks. Otherwise you’ll get nothing done.