Coming out of the election we kept hearing that the GOP was going to take a few moments, think about where it was, what it believed (and what century it thought it was in) and come back revitalized and renewed.

None of that has happened. Serious, grown-up Republicans came up with nothing. Zero. They've left a vacuum in the GOP and the conservative movement. Into that vacuum flow the loons.

Conservatives/Republicans don't have the balls to stand up to the nuts, (Yep, that's some writing right there: balls and nuts) don't have the energy or imagination to come up with a program or a relevant world view, so the space they could have occupied is occupied instead by idiots and haters and mental cases.

The GOP isn't a political party anymore so much as a psychological syndrome.

Without watching more of this guy's drivel, I'm not sure what exactly he wants our government to do more to protect us. The last time I was in an airport, they made me take my infant's shoes off. He can't even walk yet, so surely those shoes must have been BOMBS, right? Christ, we've got a bunch of pansies in this country.

Mike, you paint with a wide brush.

I think I might take out mine and see what bullshit graffiti I can slap on a wall.

I think you're misreading him, guys.

I don't think Scheuer's suggesting that would be a good thing, or that he's calling for it. Rather, he reminds me of a broadcast tech I once knew who often in frustration would mention a desire for 'sledgehammer maintenance' on a given bit of recalcitrant technology. Of course he dind't own a sledge, at least not at the shop. One of the best techs I ever knew, God rest him.

I get Scheuer's venting a bit of frustration on the state of the Republicans, today. The Grassroots movement he mentions is something I've been calling for myself, for quite some time, now.

Oe wonders if Scheuer knows, or cares, that real people would die in such an attack and that widows and orphans would result. Are such life and blood realities automatically excluded from all this political and strategy talk?

Given that Scheuer has castigated Clinton, then Bush, and now, seemingly, Obama, is there something in an ex-CIA guy's psych makeup that turns him into a professional gadfly?

P.S. Dems, this guy's not a GOP stalwart -- go back a few years and see how many liberal blogs cited him approvingly. How soon you all forgot ;-)

P.P.S. On the other hand, Glenn Beck is a GOPer and is batshit insane, so have at 'im, boys!

Into that vacuum flow the loons.

Not sure you can fairly qualify it as a vacuum. This kind of thing seems like a mainstream view among Republicans these days. I mean, there's not much difference between Rush Limbaugh's "rooting for failure" and this clown's rooting for another Al Qaeda attack so he can give us the old "Told ya so."

I think you're misreading him, guys.

they did..... and most of them would have no matter what he said....

Not the kind of hope and change we were looking for.

James, why don't you post a simple white box so Michael and Herb can explain to us it means that all Republicans are racists.

Words fail me.

Good morning Rip Van Winkle.

Charles:

I must have missed the part where I said all Republicans are racists. Can you point it out to me?

Charles, you are imputing to me a view that I do not hold.

So a former spook on the Beck show talking loony means we're all crazy as coconut conservatives? That's as much hyperbole as his was.

But, if we are going to mix in Jon Stewart, Bill Maher, Colbert, and other comedian/pundits why not throw in a few right wing nuts and not hold them responsible for their words. Perhaps we could get a word from former member of congress Cynthia McKinney? Maxine?

Nuts are plentiful in this country so unless we're all stu-stu-stupid enough not to know the media will continue to trot them out I guess we will continue to be shocked by nonsense such as this.

Boing boing is reporting him as not just a former spook, but as the former head of the Bin Laden unit at the CIA under Clinton and Bush.

That would make his partisan lunacy even more inappropriate.

Hey, Charles, neither myself nor Herb Ely or Michael mentioned anything -nada, zip, zilch- about Republicans' alleged racism. Are you trying to make a joke that I'm just not understanding or are you flailing around at straw men again?

So a former spook on the Beck show talking loony means we're all crazy as coconut conservatives? That's as much hyperbole as his was.

There's a rather large difference: Limbaugh et al are the semi-official spokesmodels for the GOP and the con movement. The party chairman of the GOP is required to toady Limbaugh. I haven't seen Obama forced to grovel for Jon Stewart, let alone McKinney who was openly derided as a loon.

lol, like no one exaggerates around here, but my favorite part is how the gimprads talk like Rush is a Little kook like they are, lol, man you need to call the show and let him know how you feel, His likes when the liberally retarded call in, it gives him a chance to help them....

Mr. Ely, my apologies for any collateral damage that you may have taken, as that was not my intent. I would have used your full post name had I meant to include you amonsgst those who cannot seemingly comment upon any topic in the world without reaching into their cacaphonous echo chamber grab bag of meaningless cliches, talking points, elitist biases, and truly bizarre micharacterizations of their political opponents.

Michael and Herb, if you have to explain it ...

It's a -ush haters thang......what they make me say to them...but then again whats it worth to be civil to a liberal?

These days?

As with all jokes, Charles:

if you have to explain it ...

It ain't funny.

No real comment on the substance of your remarks, but if I may act as a bit of an editor...

The phrase "may have taken" is a weak verb. You want to acknowledge the collateral damage, fine. But there's no question he "may have taken" some "collateral damage" because he said something about it, so it's just "have taken." And taken? Why not use a strong verb, like "suffered" or even better, throw in a personal responsibility angle and say, "My apologies for the collateral damage I inflicted." Suffered, inflicted. Much stronger verbs than "may have taken."

And this sentence: "I would have used your full post name had I meant to include you amonsgst those who cannot seemingly comment upon any topic in the world without reaching into their cacaphonous echo chamber grab bag of meaningless cliches, talking points, elitist biases, and truly bizarre micharacterizations of their political opponents." That's just a mess. Split it up with the creative use of punctuation. "I would have used your full post name had I meant to include you in my target set: those who cannot...etc"

And I don't mean to be the adjective police, but come on. We're not playing Ad Libs here. "Cacaphonous echo chamber grab bag of meaningless cliches?" Take out any one of those adjectives and the sentence is instantly better, almost poetic. "Cacophonous echo chamber of meaningless cliches." "Echo chamber grab bag of meaningless cliches." Cacophonous echo chamber grab bag of cliches." And besides, if you're going to slam "meaningless cliches" in a sentence, it's best not to use any. (Echo chamber's out, so's grab bag.)

Content-wise, though, I'd just eliminate this whole section: "talking points, elitist biases, and truly bizarre micharacterizations of their political opponents." Talking points is a Bill O'Reilly segment, elitist biases are no worse than anti-elitist biases, and it's "truly bizarre" to think you can describe a person's motives or methods from a blog comment.

but then again whats it worth to be civil to a liberal?

Nothing to a sniveling coward I guess.

BOO!

Limbaugh is not the de facto leader of the party. I know liberals and Democrats so want it to be like that but it is not. Limbaugh is a radio personality who does what he does to attract listeners. He does not make serious policy decisions. A convenient straw man incarnate for liberals to punch around.

Didn't President Obama go on the Stewart show? No, that doesn't mean he had to toady but did Steele go on Limbaugh's show and apologize for something? I don't recall that happening.

So my point stands, you can find nutty cases willing to talk on TV or radio all day long on both sides of the political spectrum. It doesn't mean anything since most of this is entertainment rather than news or serious discussion. It should be ignored not promoted.

Its pretty clear that the Limbaugh/Cheney wing of the GOP, which is basically the whole GOP now, would not mind seeing a successful terrorist attack. After all, it would hurt Obama, and that is far more important to them than a few thousand American lives.

Don't tell me Limbaugh isn't the boss of the GOP. Name a single other living GOP figure that no one in the party can diss.

The guy you can't get caught dissing? That's the boss.

My apologies.

Someday I'll find something I can do well.

Limbaugh is not the de facto leader of the party

Really? Because he has a remarkable collection of lip prints on his ass placed there by the called "leaders" of the GOP.

Nothing to a sniveling coward I guess.

BOO!

so I'm scared of liberals and gay people now, lol........

thanks for learning me sumtin Davebo....

Don't tell me Limbaugh isn't the boss of the GOP. Name a single other living GOP figure that no one in the party can diss.

The guy you can't get caught dissing? That's the boss.

Well........some still try....

Its pretty clear that the Limbaugh/Cheney wing of the GOP, which is basically the whole GOP now, would not mind seeing a successful terrorist attack. After all, it would hurt Obama, and that is far more important to them than a few thousand American lives.

come on.......

Making a statement on how both parties are to happy with the power they have and the lack of common sense they show regarding the threats we face here and exaggerating a point to show what it will take wake them up to this fact has nothing to do with what you have wildly stated....

After all, it would hurt Obama, and that is far more important to them than a few thousand American lives

I could easily Change one name in this apply it to the Iraq war and it would be so true in multiple cases and by actual American leaders.....but we have already been over that and you refuse to see it.....

Wow, this comment thread went downhill much more quickly than the median.

There's a rather large difference: Limbaugh et al are the semi-official spokesmodels for the GOP and the con movement.

You mean like Ed Shultz and Keith Olberman are spokesmen for the Democrats?

OTB's always had a substantial commenter population with the same contempt for America that Beck and Scheuer feel.

Otherwise, it would be easy for *everyone* to simply remark, "wow, what jerks, every Republican should refuse to have anything to do with them."

But apparently, too many people agree with Beck and Scheuer to say that. Are y'all even waiting for Osama, or do you have your own little plans to awaken America?

Anderson,
It seems to me that you've stepped over the line here the genius talked about in the "traitor" peace. On what basis do you figure that either one of the two in that video hold contempt for America? Perhaps, it's just your vision of America they hold contempt for?

Are y'all even waiting for Osama, or do you have your own little plans to awaken America?

Well, I look at the tea parties, and some of the other grassroots efforts that have been going on over the last six months , and consider that we are now more awake than we have been in quite awhile. At least, at the grassroots level. The question of how awake the leadership is, it remains an open question, of course. As to what will come up, it's as I've been saying for years. The best stump argument the Republicans have is Democrats with power. It's what happened with Carter, for example. What we see now with Obama makes Carter look competent. That takes some doing.

Nixon, too. Did you see Helen Thomas' comment, this morning?

Following a testy exchange during Wednesday’s briefing with White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, veteran White House correspondent Helen Thomas told CNSNews.com that not even Richard Nixon tried to control the press the way President Obama is trying to control the press.

“Nixon didn’t try to do that,” Thomas said. “They couldn’t control (the media). They didn’t try.

“What the hell do they think we are, puppets?” Thomas said. “They’re supposed to stay out of our business. They are our public servants. We pay them.”

Amazing. Helen Thomas woke up to the democrat corruption and arrogance. That's something I thought impossible until now. It took this administration to do that.

Yes, I'd say they're waking up. All by their lonesome. It may take a couple of years, but we appear to have that kind of time. Assuming, of course, that we don't end up with a dirty nuke someplace in the states. At which point, it will happen faster.