"They failed themselves."
March 15, 2016 7:12 PM   Subscribe

This past weekend, National Review's Kevin Williamson described white working-class Americans, the core of Trump's base, as "dysfunctional, downscale communities" that "deserve to die".

This break from conservative populism comes just over a month after the prominent conservative publication dedicated an entire issue to declaring war on Donald Trump, with writing from 21 famous conservatives featured in "Against Trump".

Over at the New Republic, Jeet Heer describes how this shift to conservative aristocracy is actually a return to form for National Review:
However, Williamson’s argument that the white working class “failed themselves” makes more sense if we place it in National Review’s intellectual lineage. The magazine was founded as the organ of a distinctively aristocratic conservatism, one that in the early days never concealed its scorn for ordinary people. In recent decades, that aristocratic conservatism has sometimes been obscured by a populist mask, but under the pressure of Trumpism, National Review is showing its true face.
On the other end of the conservative media spectrum, Breitbart is currently imploding in a very public way after one of its reporters, Michelle Fields, was violently grabbed by Donald Trump's campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski:
The episode forced Breitbart, a Trump-friendly site, to choose between its reporter and its favorite candidate. (Breitbart's Washington political editor, Matthew Boyle, reportedly boasted in January that he would be named White House press secretary in a Trump administration.) Breitbart's leadership essentially chose Trump, issuing only a hesitantly worded request for an apology from Trump's campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, even after the Trump campaign began to smear Fields.
In internal Slack chats published by Buzzfeed, Breitbart senior editor-at-large Joel Pollak orders staff to stop publicly supporting Fields or openly discussing the story, and reminds the staff "you were given explicit instructions.”

Six staffers, including Michelle Fields and editor-at-large Ben Shapiro, have resigned since Friday.
posted by Ouverture (12 comments total)

This post was deleted for the following reason: Sorry, in a non-election year this would be fine, but we've had *so much* election-adjacent stuff that it would make more sense to put it in one of the ongoing election threads. -- restless_nomad



 
As an aside, this is one of those times where the post title describes literally everyone involved in this story (National Review and Breitbart).
posted by Ouverture at 7:14 PM on March 15, 2016


Brief reminder: Kevin Williamson is awful.
posted by Halloween Jack at 7:14 PM on March 15, 2016


NR has always hated working people.
posted by wuwei at 7:16 PM on March 15, 2016 [1 favorite]


That "deserve to die" sentiment is actually about the people, of course.
posted by clockzero at 7:22 PM on March 15, 2016 [1 favorite]


"If getting a job means renting a U-Haul, rent the U-Haul. You have nothing to lose but your government check"

What about the security deposit?
posted by clavdivs at 7:24 PM on March 15, 2016 [2 favorites]


Gee, wonder why The Donald's inchoate, reactionary anger resonates with working-class voters?
posted by klangklangston at 7:27 PM on March 15, 2016 [1 favorite]


It would be awesome if that were the worst that Kevin Williamson ever got, Halloween Jack. This is a dude who once called transgender people "subhuman" and who delights in misgendering them pointedly in headlines as a fun way of trolling liberals.
posted by koeselitz at 7:28 PM on March 15, 2016 [1 favorite]


So where's the votes for Williamson's candidate of choice to come from, if the masses his party relies on are dead?
posted by Pope Guilty at 7:30 PM on March 15, 2016


The arm grab story is so bizarre. It's just so clearly something that should have been solved with an apology but instead Lewandowski denies it despite the fact that he is surrounded by cameras. The Trump total denial of reality manifesting in a totally pointless way. You hurt a woman dude, you bruised her, I don't think you intended to but how you can you live with yourself not owning up to it and apologizing?
posted by Drinky Die at 7:31 PM on March 15, 2016


"It's not me, it's totally you and your lazy, selfish self."

That's an amazing statement of blind privilege. Not that surprising, but definitely amazing.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 7:31 PM on March 15, 2016


"If getting a job means renting a U-Haul, rent the U-Haul. You have nothing to lose but your government check"

What about the security deposit?

What about everyone you've ever known?
posted by DigDoug at 7:34 PM on March 15, 2016 [1 favorite]


I feel sick.
posted by -t at 7:35 PM on March 15, 2016


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