The Republican Divide

In an amazing example of how far astray the Republican party and its pundits have veered from"Conservatism", this article is written as a response to a recent TNR post. "Aren’t you embarrassed by the absence of these weapons?” Buckley snaps at Podhoretz. He has just explained that he supported the war reluctantly, because Dick Cheney convinced him Saddam Hussein had WMD primed to be fired. “No,” Podhoretz replies. “As I say, they were shipped to Syria. During Gulf war one, the entire Iraqi air force was hidden in the deserts in Iran.” He says he is “heartbroken” by this “rise of defeatism on the right.” He adds, apropos of nothing, “There was nobody better than Don Rumsfeld. This defeatist talk only contributes to the impression we are losing, when I think we’re winning.” As a point of clarification, Buckley is William F. Buckley, founder of National Review; Podhoretz is John Podhoretz, current NRO pundit. So, the current NRO staff is still toeing the Republican line, while even the original creator of the publication has seen what is obvious to just about everyone else. This would be funny if it didn't highlight such a sad state of affairs.