Roger Simon is “chief political columnist” at Politico, which means that the “chief” opinion there truly and deeply resides in the land of Democratic hackdom. This is the gentle soul who landed in our Best of Notable Quotables 2013 for writing “Question: If Ted Cruz and John Boehner were both on a sinking ship, who would be saved? Answer: America.”
In the latest installment of sour Simon, Ben Carson is an utterly clueless wolf who’s lost chunks of his brain. He began:
A wolf in sheep’s clothing is still a wolf. And no matter how “amiable” and “personable” and “affable” Ben Carson is supposed to be, he is still a wolf.
Some find his utter cluelessness on the major issues of the day charming and refreshing. It would be far less so if he were to become president of the United States.
A brain-damaged wolf probably wouldn’t seem very scary in the woods. (Simon likes the animal analogies for Republicans. In 2009, he said Sarah Palin was the "skunk" at the garden party of Republican elites.) Simon then moved on to how the good surgeon has lost chunks of his brain:
If the GOP gold standard this presidential cycle is finding outsiders who have no experience in government, Carson looks like he is 24 carat.
He is not some pol who has wasted his time learning about domestic policy, foreign policy, economic policy or pretty much any policy. He was a successful brain surgeon, which has led some to speculate that for every brain he operated on, he gave up a small piece of his own.
He is the master of the irresponsible, sometimes bigoted, statement. He “would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation.” And should a Muslim try to become president, Carson has this warning: “You have to reject the tenets of Islam. Yes, you have to.”
So Simon, the guy that thinks the idea of drowning Ted Cruz and John Boehner is a knee-slapper, is going to talk about someone else making irresponsible statements? As it is, he’s aggressively misinterpreted what Carson meant, that a president who would put the tenets of Islam and Sharia law ahead of the Constitution would be a terrible idea.
But Simon really pleased the Democratic hardliners with the fierce ending. Simon concluded by noting Chris Wallace declared he now thinks Trump might win this thing:
So they are breaking out the Kool-Aid at Fox. And they want us to drink it. But I think I will take a pass.
There is a reason Trump and Carson command nearly half of the Republican vote, and it has nothing to do with quiet charm or force of personality.
The Republican Party has peddled xenophobia, misogyny and willful ignorance year after year. So it is not surprising that it has come up with xenophobic, misogynistic and willfully ignorant candidates. Nor is it surprising that these candidates have risen to the top.
But I don’t think the rest of America is going to follow them. I don’t think we are that kind of country.
The Republicans have lost the popular vote in five of the past six presidential elections.
They now appear determined to make it six out of seven.
