Quote of the Day – Conservative Whore Edition

June 30, 2010

Comments

We live in a world in which conservative radio hosts actually tape commercials for everything from gold coins to adjustable mattresses. Rush Limbaugh frankly acknowledged to an admiring Zev Chafets: “First and foremost I’m a businessman. My first goal is to attract the largest possible audience so I can charge confiscatory ad rates. I happen to have great entertainment skills, but that enables me to sell airtime.” Sarah Palin deserted her elected office before her term to cash in her economic opportunities. And yet it is I who am supposed to be prostituting my principles for money? – David Frum

4 responses to “Quote of the Day – Conservative Whore Edition”

sam

June 30, 2010 at 8:36 am

Yeah, but the context is more interesting, I think. Hawkins’s reasons for denying Frum’s blog space are hilarious and reveal a lot about modern “conservativism”. I’m telling you JJ, you and Frum and Larison and ED Kain, et all to few al, occupy a rapidly diminishing ice floe in the great Arctic sea of modern conservatism. I sincerely hope you guys don’t drown, but I have my doubts.
James Joyner

June 30, 2010 at 9:02 am

The Right of the Reagan and Bush 41 era is now the center, with the exception of a handful of social issues where the old Hard Left is now the center. But I don’t know what to do about it: I disagree with the Democrats on too many issues to move there.
Michael Reynolds

June 30, 2010 at 11:17 am

James:

You disagree with us on some issues. You agree with us in your preference for sanity.

I would submit that you’d rather sit down and have a beer with the average, randomly chosen Democrat than his counterpart in the current GOP.
John P. (Tupelo)

June 30, 2010 at 11:32 am

I believe this speaks very acutely to a problem in modern American policy discourse. Talking heads (commentators) like Limbaugh, Beck, Olberman, and Maddow aren’t honestly attempting to move a discussion forward, they are selling ad time. Their viewers/listeners don’t generally understand this principle and feel as if they should also become wrapped up in whatever issue these folks are pushing that day.

This is why I largely ignore them in favor of honest forums such as OTB. The problem becomes when you interact with those that do not have the same powers of observation or will to follow that same path (hello extended family/in-laws).