Republican Bill Kristol comes out of the 'political closet' and declares he's now a Democrat

[mac56]

https://va.news-republic.com/a/6788667558854656518?app_id=1239&gid=6788667558854656518&impr_id=6788867538329487622&language=en

When Bill Kristol swore he would never vote for President Donald Trump, he meant it. The longtime conservative commentator took to Facebook today to admit that he is a Democrat—for now.

In a tweet, the former editor-at-large of the now-defunct Weekly Standard, declared: "Not presumably forever; not perhaps for a day after Nov. 3, 2020; not on every issue or in every way until then. But for the time being one has to say: We are all Democrats now."

In his tweet, Kristol appeared to be reacting to the Senate's 51-49 vote to not call additional witnesses in Trump’s impeachment trial. As the Daily Caller noted, two Republicans, Sen. Susan Collins (Maine) and Sen. Mitt Romney (Utah), crossed party lines and voted with Democrats who were attempting to have former national security advisor John Bolton testify against the president.

[SunSeeker]

1. Wow.

[Roland99]

16. Double wow

Does mean he's disavowing all things neocon/PNAC??

[BumRushDaShow]

21. The "newspeak" GOP has thrown the neocons like Bolton under the bus

and have the hoards attacking him...

[DeminPennswoods]

22. No

nt

[Roland99]

26. yeah...i ain't holding my breath....

[Rebl2]

70. Me either

Once a Republican comes along he likes he will switch back.

[rpannier]

65. He started his career as a Democrat, so it's not entirely surprising I guess

He was an aid to Senator Henry 'Scoop' Jackson (D-WA) in the 70's
Along with Paul Wolfowitz, Richard Perle, Douglas Feith and Charles Horner

[llmart]

2. Every little chip in the GOP is welcome as far as I'm concerned.

Even if it is Kristol.

[elleng]

61. yes

[grantcart]

68. +1

[SuprstitionAintthWay]

84. Yep.

Welcome, ex-scoundrels. November's gonna require every set of hands we can muster.

[lagomorph777]

88. A chip in the Kristol

It's a good thing.

[Mike 03]

3. I'll welcome him "for the time being", "not perhaps for a day after November 3."

[Maraya1969]

4. It would be nice if Romney turned Democrat. He probably won't because

of that fake, "pro-life" shit they spew though.

[SuprstitionAintthWay]

85. Romney was pro-choice until he felt politically compelled to flip in the 1990s.

He had had a beautiful, older female cousin, much beloved by his whole family, who died in the 1960s from a botched illegal abortion. Her death really rocked them all.

Mitt's dad George as most everyone knows was an honorable man and a quite moderate Republican. Way back when those existed.

But like a sheep Mitt eventually followed where the Republican Party migrated to. Out of sheer, calculated political expediency. As if one day what his long-gone cousin suffered just suddenly didn't matter anymore.

[NewJeffCT]

87. Mitt is a career etch-a-sketcher

he ran way to the right during the 2012 primaries in order to stave off each RW challenge of the month, then when the first debate with Obama came around, he threw that all out the window and tacked to the center, which caught Obama flat footed and made him look unprepared. It made the race closer than it should have been.

[Hestia]

90. Besides, who wants to vote for a Corporate Pirate? The very epitome of the hollowing out of the

middle class. All roads start with Baine Capital.

The pukes can keep him, definitely would not Democratic Party material.

[czarjak]

91. Making 200 hundred million dollars sending jobs overseas was...

“A good thing” according to Paul Ryan. No wonder he picked The Prick to be his VP running mate.

[Jose Garcia]

114. He wouldn't be able to get reelected in Utah if he did

[Mike Nelson]

5. I totally get this...

... "We are all Democrats now," statement. The threat transcends traditional Democratic/Republican political parties.

[Thekaspervote]

57. This

[iscooterliberally]

93. Yep. I would rather be an American than be a republican.

The two terms just went off in different directions thanks to Moscow Mitch McGunmassacre.

[radical noodle]

6. I get it

He knows what a danger trump is and shows it in this way. It doesn't mean he's not still a conservative. At this point, I'm happy about anyone, anywhere who speaks out against trump.

[Evolve Dammit]

24. And it shows how far right Republicans have gone. The ideological ones remaining are astounded. Good

[Ztolkins]

28. Or how right the Dems have gotten?

At least on a few issues

[MyOwnPeace]

105. I'll welcome his vote............

but I worry about the "fox in the hen house."
And I certainly don't want him having any voice in the direction of the party - you know he'd love to transform it into the last party he used to like.

[radical noodle]

108. He's just making a choice to try to

dig his own party out of trumpism. He'll go back once trumpism is gone.

[0rganism]

7. well this is weird

seen some weird things happen over the last few years, this is another one of them
i suppose such re-alignments will be increasingly frequent as this experiment in democracy comes to its chaotic finish

too bad Mr. Bill isn't making this temporary switch from a principled re-evaluation of important issues, but at this point every voice matters, especially those with mass media exposure.

[Bleacher Creature]

8. This is seismic. His father helped to create the modern conservative movement. NT

[JCMach1]

9. That's a pretty big ass tent!

[Alpeduez21]

10. NO CPAC FOR YOU!

[DFW]

11. If you had asked me two years ago, "What will Bill Kristol and Bernie Sanders ever have in common?"

I would have answered, "beyond bipedalism and breathing oxygen, nothing."

Now, one can add "temporary Democrat" to the list.

[LuvNewcastle]

14. LOL!

[cate94]

40. Ha!

[reACTIONary]

60. +10 nt

[rpannier]

66. Kristol began his career as a Democrat. He was an aid to Sen Henry Jackson D-WA

[DFW]

81. I actually knew Scoop Jackson slightly

Used to run into him while I was a Senate page, and saw him at parties where I was one of the hired musicians.

He was as close to being a Republican as you could be in those days without crossing the line. Even played for the wedding of his aide, Richard Perle, who was no Democrat even in disguise.

[rpannier]

83. AFAIK the two things that made him a Democrat were

1. His support for civil rights
2. His support of unions

For me, his close ties to the MIC were disturbing

[colorado_ufo]

67. Fantastic!

[moonscape]

96. Post of the day! LOL! n/t

[Duppers]

101. 😂

[JHB]

12. Thanks Bill. Now get the f*** off camera and phone bank

Last edited Mon Feb 3, 2020, 10:38 PM - Edit history (1)

Stay off camera. Collect no money for TV appearances. Write no books. Do nothing self-serving beyond defeating him.

Go on the rubber chicken circuit. Phone bank. Do nothing but GOTV for Democrats, Bill.


(but he won't.)

[DEbluedude]

13. Fuck him n/t

[spotthebird]

15. Who wants to stink from that shit?

He gave the world Sarah Palin, who set the stage for Trump.

Democrats should not endorse this, but they will

[CaptYossarian]

86. He was also single-handedly responsible for destroying First Lady Hillary's efforts for

universal health care in the 90s. How many Americans has he killed? Probably many more than the Viet Cong did.

[BumRushDaShow]

17. He and Limbaugh and Krauthammer were best buds

And I know it has been jarring seeing him on MSBC.

We truly have fallen down the rabbit hole.

[JohnnyRingo]

31. I miss Krauthammer.

Every time I saw him on the otherwise depressing news shows I'd have a good Count Chocula Chuckle at least.

[BumRushDaShow]

32. ..........

[Cryptoad]

18. I bet Ole Buckley would be right along with him,,,,,

[JenniferJuniper]

19. There's nothing conservative

about Trump and his Republican enablers. Nothing.

[JHB]

107. Nope. Mitch is doing what that old Yallie prick would want done

Conservative judges, lower taxes on the "right" people, crippling social programs in order to declare them failures, calling everything he doesn't like "socialism", kneecapping potential backsliders who can't get with the program...


This is everything William F. Buckley worked for, except for how the public face of it acts. But hey, a clown is a small price to return the social order back to what it was in the Gilded Age.

[not_the_one]

20. PNAC

Use him and cast him aside. That is all he is good for.

[Martin Eden]

27. Yep

Neocon cheerleader for invading Iraq.

[KG]

23. piss on Bill Kristol

[live love laugh]

82. 💯

[wysi]

25. That's not quite what he said (n/t)

[JohnnyRingo]

29. Saw that coming

He feels the party has gone through a metamorphosis into a group that no longer shares his values, and he has a point in the Trump era.

I'm sure he doesn't much identify as a democrat either, but will use his change as a political statement. Knowing his disdain for the ignorance in the Tea Party, he probably hasn't voted for a republican in years anyway. He'll now spend his days railing against the GOP but offering little support for any dems, just like before.

[bucolic_frolic]

30. Bill Kristol built the fire truck and

Rush Limbaugh was the fire hose.

[Fla Dem]

55. Got that right. They created the monster and now they can't control it.

[SMC22307]

69. Yep. Kinda sad that it's pushing nearly 100 recs. (n/t)

[Iliyah]

33. Is this real . . .

[democratisphere]

34. Must be hell has frozen over!

[ToxMarz]

35. Then by definition, that make me a Republican?!

[MontanaMama]

36. Isn't Bill Kristol wrong

all of the damn time? What’s happening???

[CanonRay]

37. I've met the guy and I find this hard to believe

[Kurt V.]

38. fuck him. lol. the same friendship bracelet he tosses over now will be used as

a hangman's noose on democrats later.

[scarletwoman]

39. That's okay. I can hold off despising him until after Nov. 3, 2020. (nt)

[UTUSN]

41. Bwah for whatever!1

[Midnight Writer]

42. Gee, maybe he can do for us what he did for the Republican Party.

If Newt Gingrich or Ted Cruz were President, Kristol would be an enthusiastic supporter. As would Rick Wilson, Steve Schmidt, Nicole Wallace and the rest of the conservatives who are currently the cool kids on "liberal' media.

Remember, these same people thought it was great when W Bush and Dick Cheney invaded Iraq for the oil companies.

[NCLefty]

43. He just comes across as very insincere to me. They way he smirks or smiles, IDK.

[tritsofme]

44. There is almost nothing good to write about Bill Kristol.

But at least he can say he did not bend the knee for Trump.

[Gore1FL]

45. That concerns me.

Bill Krystol is wrong so much of the time.

[Ghost of Tom Joad]

46. Holy cats

wonders never cease

[localroger]

47. The enemy of my enemy, etc.

I welcome BillK's help to take down the fetid backwash that has taken over his party. Our alliance may last only about as long as Truman and Stalin did after Hitler was defeated, but hey at least Hitler was defeated and the rest was another problem.

[Hulk]

48. Not really a "Democrat" in any sense of the word..

Last edited Mon Feb 3, 2020, 11:01 PM - Edit history (1)

He is just a humiliated repuKKKe that can't stoop so low as to support the idiot fuck-off that sleeps in the White House. Let's not get excited by this.

There are probably MILLIONS of staunch repuKKKes who don't want to be identified with this pathetic con artist...but please don't kid yourself. They are STILL repuKKKes who believe all the birther shit, the trickle down economics and tax breaks are good, cut social programs and take a bite out of Medicare and Social Security "if you must...to balance this terrible deficit; and on and on and on.

I don't trust ANY of them any farther than I can throw them. Good, they won't vote for the turd currently reigning fear over their coward politicians - but that's it! That's who they are. Still repuKKKes once this is over. They can say "I didn't elect him; I'm not responsible;" and their numbers will swell ten fold who claim they aren't responsible. But they will ALWAYS be repuKKKes, and eager to kill the ACA and every other program the Democrats have bled for.

[ancianita]

64. +1

[keithbvadu2]

49. Yeah! Right! - "for now"

Yeah! Right! - "for now"

[live love laugh]

95. Yep I don't trust any RepubLIEcon. nt

[MasonDreams]

50. DINO he's just a spy/saboteur, monkey wrencher

[Xolodno]

51. In a way...this is proof...

...that IMPOTUS is neither Republican or Democratic. At best, self serving asshole...at worst, an agent of a foreign government.

[keithbvadu2]

100. Oh, Trump is a republican alright.

Oh, Trump is a republican alright.

Selected/nominated as a republican at the republican convention.
Ran as a republican.
Elected as a republican by the EC.
Acknowledged as the republican leader.

Certainly not an old style republican with morals, honor, ethics and integrity.
Those folks are gone.

Soon to be 'acquitted' by his fellow republicans.

But he's a republican.

"an agent of a foreign government"? - Republican

[spooky3]

52. Every vote helps. Nt

[Thekaspervote]

58. This!! Besides he has a big voice and a bigger following. He may bring voters along

He’s useful right now

[SMC22307]

71. Do you know anyone who still listens to Bill Kristol? (n/t)

[dflprincess]

53. I really wish people like Kristol would stay in the Republican party and try to fix it.

Rather than moving into the Democratic party where they will probably try to pull it even further to the right than it has drifted in the last 40 years.

[Kurt V.]

72. +1

[Raine]

54. So his plan, use the Democrats

till he gets what he wants then he throws them away like a used snot rag... fuck him!

[Indykatie]

56. Those Who Leave the GOP and Actually Become Democrats S/B Hailed

I have not time for those that make a big damn deal about leaving the GOP just to become Independents. There are only 2 viable political parties. People need to pick one or the other and get on with life. It's why I think ALL primaries should be closed. Independents shouldn't get to pick who is nominated by the 2 parties.

[cheesehed]

62. welcome!

Yes. Welcome aboard, Bill Kristol!

[Ford_Prefect]

59. Bill Kristol paved the way for DeVos to demolish public schools and praised privatization.

I don't care if he is Newt's illegitimate son who came to Jesus. He's nothing to measure reality by. He's an opportunist and a thief. He's among the other Neo-cons who feel hurt that the Trumpian deluge dumped them too. He is not now nor ever will be a democrat. He still believes he's right and that the Government serves business 1st, and that "hand-outs" are a sin and abomination against holy mother wall street.

The significance of the headline is that Kristol can now pontificate again because the cameras will face his way for a few minutes. The skunk cannot change his stripes nor his stink.

[dflprincess]

74. This

[ancianita]

63. I don't trust possible spies. But I think he felt comfortable with intellectual equals, and

I kinda think Ari's Fall Back Friday finally did it for him.

For me, he's got a long time to act like a Democrat for me to trust him. Depends on what he says and writes this year.

[Under The Radar]

73. I am suspicious when a neo-con joins us socialist

[yonder]

75. Add a few more RPM's

to the spinning of William F. Buckley Jr.

[lapfog_1]

76. I hope he votes for Democrats.

but I don't want him identified as a Democrat or interviewed as a Democrat... there is just too much baggage there.

[Joinfortmill]

77. Don't really care, do you?

[fleabiscuit]

78. Well, at least HE is calling himself a democrat. nt

[Ford_Prefect]

79. I'll believe it when he posts his registration card. Until then he's still a Neo-Con mouthpiece.

[PatrickforO]

80. Well, it is a big tent with a lot of different opinions.

I can remember getting in a bit of trouble with readers here when I remarked that ideologically, the people in our party seem to run the gamut between just a bit right of center (think Eisenhower Republican) and downright progressive (think New Deal Democrats).

It is a big tent, I think, made so by the GOPs 'southern strategy.' Face it, the Republicans have so catered to their crazy, racist base that they are off in fascist land ideologically.

And, in a system where there are only two real political parties that offer candidates access to the ballot, to national, state and local party organizations and to donors, if one party has become downright crazy, sane people only have one real choice.

Our founders created the republic they did to force us to engage in a lot of debate, and to compromise to make any forward progress. We see Democrats engaging in this debate on this very site every day. And that's good. That's what we need. I don't know everything, nor does anyone else. If we argue and end up compromising, then we can maintain continuity, civility and sanity. That, folks, is the rule of law.

The Republicans would have us cast aside that rule in favor of an ideology based on fear, hatred and pure greed.

If we would not have that, then we need to open the doors of the tent wide, but insist on the basic principles of decency that prevail here. Under those terms, Kristol is welcome, though I'll never agree with him on neoconservative points.

Oh, and PS...I am NOT calling anyone on here a republican or a DINO. Remove that fallacy from your mind. I'm merely saying that since the other party is downright crazy and evil, there really is only one place for the sane people to go. And, those are the people that are generally within the middle two thirds of the Bell curve. So let us go on with the debate, but vote straight blue. The only way to get our republic back is to get rid of the Republican party. And I kid you not.

[krkaufman]

89. article error

"who were attempting to have former national security advisor John Bolton testify against the president."

Just "testify."

[matt819]

92. Okay

But let's not forget that Kristol and so many others like him are partly responsible for this mess.

And there sure were a bunch of caveats in his assertion of being a Democrat.

And, apart from his vote, does what he have to say influence anyone?

[iscooterliberally]

94. Um?

Welcome to the party?

[JaneQPublic]

97. Reminds me of when Joe Lieberman spoke at the RNC to endorse their POTUS candidate.

Few GOPers were big fans of "Joe-mentum," but they certainly welcomed him, if for no other reason than to take an embarrassing jab the opposing party.

Glad to see any notable GOPer not just leave that party to become independent, but to join the Dems.

[denem]

98. "We are all Democrats now"

references the doctors operating on Reagan after he was shot.

[Rider3]

99. Really?

I trust him about 1% more than I do Trump. So, that's not saying much.

[FakeNoose]

102. He's grandstanding, and I doubt that many GOPers take him seriously anymore

I mean, yay - every D vote helps the good guys. Of that we can be sure.

But really the Never Trumpers are always careful to tell us that they're still conservatives. They're still fighting the "good fight" but they just hate what Chump has done to their party.

So this is all very temporary, and needs to be taken with a grain of salt.

[calimary]

103. For NOW. He's a "Democrat" of convenience only.

I don’t trust him - or this - as ANY signal of a political change of heart.

[Vogon_Glory]

104. Is it just me who's thinking that

we should make a show of welcoming Mr. Kristol to our ranks but that the party should take quiet steps to keep him away from any major decision-making for foreign and domestic policy?

[LudwigPastorius]

106. Some of the Never-Trumpers are beginning to understand what that term actually means.

i.e. giving up on the racist/facist, personality death-cult that is the Republican party, instead of reforming it, and voting for Democrats.

Gee, thanks, I guess.

It's like, "I know I poured gasoline all over your house and ignited it, but I'm going to try and help you put out the fire now!"

[Brother Mythos]

109. So, we Democrats now have a Useful Idiot too!

But, we'll only have this one for a little while.

[Botany]

110. Tell it to all the families and friends of the dead ..

..and wounded from the Iraq war Kristol.

[scardycat]

111. This was a one day meaningless quote from Kristol..

His chance of becoming a Democrat is about the same chance as me becoming a Republican..(gagged)

[TrollBuster9090]

112. Fuck him, we don't want him. (And he wasn't funny in 'When Harry Met Sally!")

...Okay, just kidding about 'When Harry Met Sally.' But, seriously, fuck Kristol. If he was serious about stopping Republican fascism, he'd take that toy newspaper (blog site) away from his buck toothed, half witted, liver lipped, four eyed son in law, Matthew Continetti.

This asshole, Continetti, is on Fox News almost every day, and they never mention the fact that, as the founding editor of The Washington Free Beakon, HE was the one who originally payed for Christopher Steele to compile the infamous 'dossier.' INCLUDING when they have Continetti on there to specifically talk about THE STEELE DOSSIER.

Fuck Kristol AND the Continetti he rode in on.

[progressiveradical]

113. No thanks - neocons need not aplly

[trof]

115. Just...WOW!!!!!!!!!!!

Some spine there.

[B Stieg]

116. Who cares - he's always wrong.

Snore.