Friday, February 22, 2013

McCarthyite Demagogue Ted Cruz - Updated


EDIT: So frustrating.  Posting from phone email with a picture is unreliable.  There once was a post here!  I'll replicate as best I can below, with an update.

Ted Cruz is a dangerous demagogue, but there may be a short-term advantage to his ugly behavior becoming the public face of the GOP. 

Cruz combines a spot-on impersonation of Joe McCarthy with the worst traits of Lyndon B. Johnson (mendacity and ruthless ambition).  The rumor is that he wants to hold statewide office in Texas and the Senate win was a fluke.  His abrasive and belligerent demeanor may serve him well in the TX electorate, but don't have broad appeal on the national level. 

Short-term advantage aside, by all accounts Cruz is as intelligent as he is ambitious, and if he can morph his McCarthy impression into a Reagan shtick (after a detour into TX state politics) we will be in for some trouble down the road.

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