If there's any doubt in your mind on which side of the aisle David Brooks is on, check out this:
http://www.politico.com/blogs/on-congress/2011/07/david-brooks-is-democrats-man-of-the-hour-037258 http://www.nytimes.com/column/david-brooks http://www.forbes.com/sites/henrymiller/2013/12/23/david-brooks-a-pseudo-conservative-exposes-himself-again/ http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/david-brooks-new-york-times-convert-christianity/2015/04/17/id/639149/ On Tue, Jan 12, 2016 at 3:09 PM, Keith In Tampa <[email protected]> wrote: > It's also abundantly clear now, when I see where the article originated > and who wrote it, what side of the aisle they are on, and what their > intention was: > > > http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/12/opinion/the-brutalism-of-ted-cruz.html?_r=0 > > On Tue, Jan 12, 2016 at 3:05 PM, Keith In Tampa <[email protected]> > wrote: > >> You know, the writer was begining to sway me. I can understand Cruz's >> frustration, in that talking to liberals is like talking to a wall, they >> hear nothing and consider nothing other than their usual misguided >> perception, and as usual; their perception is usually uninformed or >> misinformed. >> >> Then, the writer wrote this: >> >> >> *"The fact is this apocalyptic diagnosis is ridiculous. The Obama >> administration has done things people like me strongly disagree with. But >> America is in better economic shape than any other major nation on earth. >> Crime is down. Abortion rates are down. Fourteen million new jobs have been >> created in five years."* >> >> >> The writer lost all credibility; and clearly doesn't know what he or she >> is talking about. >> >> America has an 18 trillion dollar debt, the largest ever in our history, >> and a governmental debt created that is larger than all previous 43 >> Presidents. >> >> Crime is not down, it is now growing (within the last two years) >> exponentially. >> >> Abortion is at record levels. >> >> The myth that 14 million new jobs have been created, or that our >> unemployment rate is something like 5 percent is also Democratic/Moonbat >> prevaricate lies. There are more Americans out of work than ever before, >> including the Great Depression. >> >> It's clear who this writer will be voting for..... >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> On Tue, Jan 12, 2016 at 2:04 PM, plainolamerican < >> [email protected]> wrote: >> >>> In 1997, Michael Wayne Haley was arrested after stealing a calculator >>> from Walmart. This was a crime that merited a maximum two-year prison term. >>> But prosecutors incorrectly applied a habitual offender law. Neither the >>> judge nor the defense lawyer caught the error and Haley was sentenced to 16 >>> years. >>> >>> Eventually, the mistake came to light and Haley tried to fix it. Ted >>> Cruz was solicitor general of Texas at the time. Instead of just letting >>> Haley go for time served, Cruz took the case to the Supreme Court >>> <http://www.cnn.com/2004/LAW/06/11/lazarus.dretke/> to keep Haley in >>> prison for the full 16 years. >>> >>> Some justices were skeptical. “Is there some rule that you can’t confess >>> error in your state?” Justice Anthony Kennedy asked >>> <http://www.texastribune.org/2012/07/23/cruz-supreme-court-work-heart-campaign/>. >>> The court system did finally let Haley out of prison, after six years. >>> Continue reading the main story >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/12/opinion/the-brutalism-of-ted-cruz.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-left-region®ion=opinion-c-col-left-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region&_r=2#story-continues-3>RELATED >>> IN OPINION <http://www.nytimes.com/section/opinion/campaign-stops> >>> >>> - >>> Contributing Op-Ed Writer: Willie Horton’s Heirs >>> >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/12/opinion/campaign-stops/ads-from-donald-trump-and-ted-cruz-play-to-racist-fears.html> >>> >>> The case reveals something interesting about Cruz’s character. Ted Cruz >>> is now running strongly among evangelical voters, especially in Iowa. But >>> in his career and public presentation Cruz is a stranger to most of what >>> would generally be considered the Christian virtues: humility, mercy, >>> compassion and grace. Cruz’s behavior in the Haley case is almost the >>> dictionary definition of pharisaism: an overzealous application of the >>> letter of the law in a way that violates the spirit of the law, as well as >>> fairness and mercy. >>> >>> Traditionally, candidates who have attracted strong evangelical support >>> have in part emphasized the need to lend a helping hand to the economically >>> stressed and the least fortunate among us. Such candidates include George >>> W. Bush, Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum. >>> Continue reading the main story >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/12/opinion/the-brutalism-of-ted-cruz.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-left-region®ion=opinion-c-col-left-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region&_r=2#story-continues-4>RELATED >>> COVERAGE >>> >>> - [image: Senator Ted Cruz of Texas spoke in Storm Lake, Iowa, on >>> Wednesday.] >>> One Town at a Time in Iowa, With Ted Cruz >>> >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/01/09/us/politics/ted-cruz-iowa-bus-tour.html> >>> - [image: Senator Ted Cruz of Texas with Bob Vander Plaats, one of >>> the most influential leaders of Iowa’s politically activist >>> evangelicals, in Rock Rapids last week.] >>> Ted Cruz’s Diligent Courting of Evangelicals Pays Off in Iowa >>> >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/11/us/politics/ted-cruz-rises-in-iowa-on-tide-of-evangelical-support.html> >>> - [image: Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, far right, highlighted his >>> background — the son of a bartender and a maid — during the Kemp Forum in >>> Columbia, S.C., on Saturday. Mr. Rubio also noted that Gov. John Kasich >>> of >>> Ohio, sitting next to him, understood the challenges of struggling >>> Americans, with a father who delivered mail.] >>> Republican Candidates, Minus Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, Play Nice at >>> Poverty Forum >>> >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/10/us/politics/republican-candidates-minus-donald-trump-and-ted-cruz-play-nice-at-poverty-forum.html> >>> >>> But Cruz’s speeches are marked by what you might call pagan brutalism. >>> There is not a hint of compassion, gentleness and mercy. Instead, his >>> speeches are marked by a long list of enemies, and vows to crush, shred, >>> destroy, bomb them. When he is speaking in a church the contrast between >>> the setting and the emotional tone he sets is jarring. >>> >>> Cruz lays down an atmosphere of apocalyptic fear. America is heading off >>> “the cliff to oblivion >>> <https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2013/10/11/ted-cruz-faces-hecklers/>.” >>> After one Democratic debate he said >>> <https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/editorials/2015/10/15/cruz-hits-lowpoint-republican-rhetoric/tKHqXCpiWg65Yf64LmHohP/story.html>, >>> “We’re seeing our freedoms taken away every day, and last night was an >>> audition for who would wear the jackboot most vigorously.” >>> David Brooks <http://www.nytimes.com/column/david-brooks>Politics, >>> culture and the social sciences. >>> >>> - The Self-Reliant Generation >>> >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/08/opinion/the-self-reliant-generation.html?rref=collection%2Fcolumn%2FDavid%20Brooks> >>> - The Age of Small Terror >>> >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/05/opinion/the-age-of-small-terror.html?rref=collection%2Fcolumn%2FDavid%20Brooks> >>> - The 2015 Sidney Awards, Part 2 >>> >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/22/opinion/the-2015-sidney-awards-part-2.html?rref=collection%2Fcolumn%2FDavid%20Brooks> >>> - The 2015 Sidney Awards >>> >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/18/opinion/the-2015-sidney-awards.html?rref=collection%2Fcolumn%2FDavid%20Brooks> >>> - The Year of Unearthed Memories >>> >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/15/opinion/the-year-of-unearthed-memories.html?rref=collection%2Fcolumn%2FDavid%20Brooks> >>> >>> See More » <http://www.nytimes.com/column/david-brooks> >>> >>> As the Republican strategist Curt Anderson observed >>> <http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/12/ted-cruz-2016-ego-213460> in >>> Politico, there’s no variation in Cruz’s rhetorical tone. As is the wont of >>> inauthentic speakers, everything is described as a maximum existential >>> threat. >>> >>> The fact is this apocalyptic diagnosis is ridiculous. The Obama >>> administration has done things people like me strongly disagree with. But >>> America is in better economic shape than any other major nation on earth. >>> Crime is down. Abortion rates are down. Fourteen million new jobs have been >>> created in five years. >>> >>> Obama has championed a liberal agenda, but he hasn’t made the country >>> unrecognizable. In 2008, federal spending accounted for about 20.3 percent >>> of gross domestic product. In 2015, it accounted for about 20.9 percent. >>> >>> But Cruz manufactures an atmosphere of menace in which there is no room >>> for compassion, for moderation, for anything but dismantling and >>> counterattack. And that is what he offers. Cruz’s programmatic agenda, to >>> the extent that it exists in his speeches, is to destroy things: destroy >>> the I.R.S., crush the “jackals” of the E.P.A., end funding for Planned >>> Parenthood, reverse Obama’s executive orders, make the desert glow in >>> Syria, destroy the Iran nuclear accord. >>> >>> Advertisement >>> Continue reading the main story >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/12/opinion/the-brutalism-of-ted-cruz.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-left-region®ion=opinion-c-col-left-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region&_r=2#story-continues-7> >>> >>> Advertisement >>> Continue reading the main story >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/12/opinion/the-brutalism-of-ted-cruz.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-left-region®ion=opinion-c-col-left-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region&_r=2#story-continues-7> >>> >>> Some of these positions I agree with, but the lack of any positive >>> emphasis, any hint of reform conservatism, any aid for the working class, >>> or even any humane gesture toward cooperation is striking. >>> >>> Ted Cruz didn’t come up with this hard, combative and gladiatorial >>> campaign approach in isolation. He’s always demonstrated a tendency to bend >>> his position — whether immigration or trade — to what suits him >>> politically. This approach works because in the wake of the Obergefell v. >>> Hodges court decision on same-sex marriage, many evangelicals feel they are >>> being turned into pariahs in their own nation. >>> Continue reading the main story >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/12/opinion/the-brutalism-of-ted-cruz.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-left-region®ion=opinion-c-col-left-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region&_r=2#story-continues-9> >>> Sign Up for the Opinion Today Newsletter >>> >>> Every weekday, get thought-provoking commentary from Op-Ed columnists, >>> The Times editorial board and contributing writers from around the world. >>> >>> Cruz exploits and exaggerates that fear. But he reacts to Obergefell in >>> exactly the alienating and combative manner that is destined to further >>> marginalize evangelicals, that is guaranteed to bring out fear-driven >>> reactions and not the movement’s highest ideals. >>> >>> The best conservatism balances support for free markets with a >>> Judeo-Christian spirit of charity, compassion and solidarity. Cruz replaces >>> this spirit with Spartan belligerence. He sows bitterness, influences his >>> followers to lose all sense of proportion and teaches them to answer hate >>> with hate. This Trump-Cruz conservatism looks more like tribal, blood and >>> soil European conservatism than the pluralistic American kind. >>> >>> Evangelicals and other conservatives have had their best influence on >>> American politics when they have proceeded in a spirit of personalism — >>> when they have answered hostility with service and emphasized the infinite >>> dignity of each person. They have won elections as happy and hopeful >>> warriors. Ted Cruz’s brutal, fear-driven, apocalypse-based approach is the >>> antithesis of that. >>> >>> >>> *Follow The New York Times Opinion section onFacebook >>> <https://www.facebook.com/nytopinion> and Twitter >>> <http://twitter.com/NYTOpinion>, and sign up for the Opinion Today >>> newsletter <http://www.nytimes.com/newsletters/opiniontoday/>. * >>> >>> A version of this op-ed appears in print on January 12, 2016, on page >>> A27 of the New York edition with the headline: The Brutalism of Ted >>> Cruz. Today's Paper >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/pages/todayspaper/index.html>|Subscribe >>> <http://www.nytimes.com/subscriptions/Multiproduct/lp839RF.html?campaignId=48JQY> >>> >>> -- >>> -- >>> Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. >>> For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum >>> >>> * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ >>> * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. >>> * Read the latest breaking news, and more. >>> >>> --- >>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google >>> Groups "PoliticalForum" group. >>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send >>> an email to [email protected]. >>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. >>> >> >> > -- -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more. --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "PoliticalForum" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
