Recent times seem to have me posting quite often on the blended topics of our Soft Center Right and the big-tent-ism that grew out of the embarrassing “compassionate conservative” marketing gimmick of the equally embarrassing GWB campaign. (Yes, I was a supporter back then…but then (yada, yada,) and finally TARP. But I digress.) To bring you up to speed, there is this:

[The Soft Center Right] has been an unavoidable hallmark of the Republican party that resulted from the big-tent-ism of the first decade or so of this century. It was that period that gave us an ever-expanding “tent” – annex after annex – to incorporate any and all who couldn’t really explain “conservatism” but knew they were not as bat-$&!# crazy as the Pelosi-wing of the Democrat Party so, by default, they must be Republicans. (For the record, I believe Peak Big-Tent-ism occurred during the 2012 campaign when Mittens clearly appeared to be mindlessly mouthing concepts from classic conservative texts that he had been spoon-fed after frenzied focus group sessions. But I digress.) Unfortunately, a large portion from the feel-good-ism of this big tent fell hook-line-and-sinker for the (then less refined but anti-Bush) narrative journalism pushing undefined “Hope and Change”.

And then this:

For the record, a big tent is fine. However, the big-tent-ism of the GWB years and the resulting hangover is nothing short of an embarrassment of conspicuous political whoredom but was also ultimately as destructive in the medium to long term of the party as it was touted to be a boon in the short term.

For far too long anyone who could almost spell “Reagan” correctly – at least getting the first letter right – was happily ushered into yet another annex to the Big Tent. Many were used to showcase the diversity of the party with prominent positions at the RNC or the GWB White House while others were given makeovers to the FOX News style and thrown on the air…how many of them can you now find on the airwaves as overt lefties or have faded into irrelevance after opening their mouth just enough to expose the fact that they hadn’t a clue what “conservatism” meant…not even of the “compassionate” variety.

Such an overstuffed “big tent” slowly pushes those actually true to the cause out the back in favor of the watered-down show pieces being welcomed on the red carpet in the front. At some point the effect of diluting the cause is maximized when the exchange ratio reaches one-to-one or greater.

[Emphasis added]

Lest you think I used the word “embarrassing” lightly or inappropriately in the opening paragraph, I now direct your attention to the face clearly associated with the first half of the emphasized sentence above as it appeared in headlines earlier this week (via Instapundit):

Former RNC Chair Who Now Works for MSNBC Has Total On-Air Meltdown About Elon Musk and DOGE

Michael Steele was the chairman of the Republican National Committee from 2009 to 2011…he has shown himself to be a complete RINO, an anti-Trump wingnut who feels more at home on the set of MSNBC where he currently serves as a regular contributor.

Over the weekend, Steele had an on-air meltdown over Elon Musk and the work he is doing with DOGE.

It’s a real mystery why Republicans did so much losing on this guy’s watch. It’s amazing that he was once paid to run the RNC.

For the record, I did not bother to watch the video at the link. This brand of anti-intellectualism has long ago filtered down to all common sufferers of TDS. Having dealt with it on a more direct level for many years – from comment section heroes and trolls alike – it is as predictable as the sunrise.

A more recent symptom of TDS to emerge among both the irrational, mentally ill Left and the intellectually challenged Soft Center Right since (at least) the Republican National Convention last summer is this: They just make $&!# up. I touched on this phenomenon in a recent post about the Never Trump Ouija Board that “instills so much cocksurety into all of the mind-reading proclamations that are so generously provided to us in that familiar condescending tone.” (The “mind reading” practice is especially insidious…once it is perfected on Trump it is often turned on others in local comment sections…further driving a wedge between the Soft Center Right and the more robust “big tent” being forged under a winning banner. But I digress.) I bring this up to divert the end of this post towards this weeks example of “just making $&!# up”…follow the link for the details, I just like extended…and oh-so-appropriate…take-down of the AP (via Instapundit):

Associated Press Now Making S**t Up Because They Are Big Mad at Trump

…the Associated Press is having a temper tantrum and actively spreading what amounts to misinformation … and frankly the AP deserves to get its snout slapped with a newspaper for all the crap they pull. …

The latest example crosses the line from spin to complete bulls**t. …

The AP, as you might imagine, is big mad. So they are using the one tool they have to get back at Trump: they are spinning stories even harder.

The Associated Press claims to be the gold standard of journalism, but their reporters are about what you would expect: entitled midwits who are emotionally incontinent and who weaponize their hatred for their own ends.

In other words, the AP story is BS from start to finish. 

Donald Trump has magical powers. One of the most powerful of them is forcing our elite institutions to unmask themselves as totally fake. 

[Emphasis added]

Entitled midwit and total BS. Hey, I know that guy, his name is [ REDACTED BY SITE MODERATION ].

Have a wonderful Friday in the exciting, new Era of Trump 2.0.