Commentary

When I received my latest edition of Washington Examiner magazine, with the main headline, “Time for Trump to Go,” along with an unflattering cartoon characteristic of the former president, I immediately recalled a magazine cover that shocked the conservative community shortly after his decision to run in 2016.

National Review

It was the February 15, 2016, edition of National Review, with its bright blue cover with the words, “Against Trump” in gold that shocked many conservatives.  National Review, founded in 1955 by William F. Buckley, played a major role in the development of conservatism.  He also hosted the longest-running public affairs show on television, Firing Line.

But Buckley was no longer associated with the magazine, having relinquished his role as editor-in-chief in 1990.  He passed away in 2008.

At the helm in 2016, when “Against Trump” was published, was Rich Lowry, as editor-in-chief.  The February 15, 2016 edition contained a collection of brief comments in opposition to Donald Trump. 

Included were a number of individuals who came around to support Trump after he won election in 2016, including Ben Domenech, Dana Loesch, Andrew McCarthy, Katie Pavlich and Thomas Sowell.   Neocon Bill Kristol became anti-Trumper and still is.

Washington Examiner

After reviewing the losses of midterm candidates Trump supported, the Washington Examiner’s editorial in support of the cover stance, “Republicans must say no to Trump,” said, “The plain fact is that he is a drag on his party, clear liability, and a danger to conservative governance. If he is picked again as the champion of the conservative party, he is nearly a sure loser.

“Republican voters want someone they can trust, who shares their values, and who can win.  There are plenty of leading Republicans who are well capable of filling that role.  Trump is not one of them.”

A few pages into the magazine, Editor Hugo Gurdon doesn’t mince words. “Are Americans done with Donald Trump?” he begins. “Are voters over him? Is he past his sell-by date?  Has he, to use a phrase as shopworn as the man himself, jumped the shark?  The answers are yes, yes, yes, and yes.  All of the above.

“Trump is running.  But the country he wants to lead is running away from him.  The party of which was the leader is no longer following him. And there are still two years before the next election.”

In the cover story, “Ditch Trump or Loose,” Timothy P. Carney, the Examiner’s senior political columnist, writes of Trumps activities since his 2020 loss, but he looked to the future with this:

“A candidate stuck in the past will drag Republicans lower, and a candidate obsessed with petty grievances will corrupt conservatism.  Although Trump is still nationally the leader of the party, his grip has weakened, which has shown that post-Trump Republicans can be normal and that voters will reward them for being so.

“Republicans, to escape the Trump shadow, don’t need to ‘moderate,’ abandon populism, or even adopt Reagan-era priorities.

“They just need to ditch Trump.”

Kramerontheright will continue to attempt to provide objective commentary on the political scene without getting too serious about any candidate this early.

May God continue to bless the United States of America.