Needs to be said how conservatives are all for "law and order" until they are on the wrong end of it

[ck4829]

Dinesh D'Souza
Michael Flynn
Roger Stone
Donald Trump
And more

They all love to preach about how we need "law and order", how they run on it... until they are on the business end of it.

Then law and order suddenly made a mistake or it was part of a conspiracy against them.

Honestly, this phrase, unless it's criticizing it or discussing this fact, it *should* be a dead horse trope.

Why isn't it?

[DemoTex]

1. They bray about "Rule of Law" until they are on the business end of it ..

Then it suddenly becomes the "Deep State."

[DFW]

2. Only see Republicans on that list

Not one of them is in any way shape or form conservative. Just nasty right wing radicals.

[ck4829]

4. I don't want to hear that from you, I want to hear conservatives say that

No offense. If they don't want them in their midst, then they would declare it.

[DFW]

5. It's the old definition game

Remember the old saying? Going into a church no mores you a Christian than going into a garage makes you car?

Just because Fox Noise says they're "conservative" doesn't mean they are any such thing either.

I am your classic conservative, at least as defined in a dictionary of the English language (as opposed to Republicanese).

I still work for the same outfit that recruited me out of college in 1975. I have been with the same wonderful woman since 1974. We have raised two solid, intelligent children who have grown up, think independently, did well in their respective colleges, and have jobs in which they earn their own living, have stable, long-term relationships, and are well-respected in their chosen fields.

I am risk-averse, and do not like to make rash, un-thought-out decisions. I have no debts. I have no addictions, not even to alcohol, religion, gambling, or nicotine. My favorite American philosopher is the 18th century Thomas Jefferson.

I am the epitome of “conservative.” Just because Sean Insanity or Richard Viguerie feel like deciding it means something else doesn't make it so.

[JHB]

9. That may be the case, but they redrew the borders of "Scotland" to include themselves...

...and those boundaries have been heavily fortified and accepted over the years.

You can counter with "no true Scotsman", but if you use the word in this context, it'll be their definition people will recognize. Without an accompanying disclaimer, your definition won't be their first thought.

[DFW]

11. Perhaps not. I still don't let them off the hook. Same way I used to in the Cheney days.

I used to rant on about how awful it was about an incompetent, juvenile, useless head of state playing at dangerous military games just because his dad was a leader before him.

Republicans used to get all in a huff about me criticizing their sacred W. I would explain that I was talking about Kim Jong Il of North Korea, but then admitted they were quite right, the parallels were unmistakable. Then I would thank them for pointing it out. They didn't appreciate it.

[JHB]

6. They're nasty conservative right wing radicals who are where they are now...

...because Movement Conservatives have always been nasty right-wing radicals under the surface. They've finally reached a point where they can let the veneer peel away. After all, why is Trump still in office? Why was only one senator willing to break with the pack, and even then only on one charge?

Because Trump delivers for them: flooding the courts with conservative judges vetted by the Federalist Society and Heritage Foundation. Wrecking the government from within so it will be "small enough to drown in a bathtub". And above all, tax breaks for the wealthy.

Movement Conservatives turned the Republican party into one which mashes hard on a few hot-button issues, which fosters extremist rhetoric and bitterly abhors compromise. They spent the 70s and 80s isolating and ousting the Rockefeller Republican wing of their party, and then made bomb-throwers like Rush Limbaugh and Newt Gingrich the effective leaders of the party. Their success put the party on the precise trajectory to where it is today.

Movement Conservatives made Trump, or at least a Republican Party that was ripe for a man like Trump. They Built That.

[DFW]

7. Buckley was a master of semantics

Reagan and Nixon just adopted the label of convenience.

"Conservative" probably sounded better than "right wing asshole," but as far as I'm concerned, they were all just standing in a garage, hoping people would see a car.

[JHB]

8. Perhaps, but in public discourse they successfully shifted the definition their way...

...so that in political contexts it is the default: it's what people think of when they hear or read the word.

That puts you in the same boat as people who talk about "socialism": Whether you like it or not, if you choose to use that word, people will take it to mean something other than what you're trying to convey.

[czarjak]

12. Imagine the giant sucking sound.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

3. It's because

They're narcissists who think they are exempt from the business end of law and order,they abuse the justice system to get others as a type of vengeance.

[czarjak]

10. Congratulations on being last to be lynched, Dinish, heck of a job.

[lonely bird]

13. Dinesh D'Souza...

One of my least favorite pieces of excrement.

[live love laugh]

14. "Conservatives" my ass. Lying thieves is more accurate.nt