Is it Over for Ted Cruz After Praising Jesse Helms?

I'm sorry, but with that full-body frown, he just looks constipated.
Image from Huffington Post.

When Trent Lott helped the extremely elderly Strom Thurmond celebrate a birthday by butt-kissing him, it effectively ended Lott's career. You just can't get that cozy with a public person that well known as a rabid racist. Oddly though, ol' Strom had been a bit rehabilitated by then, and was even known to have a (surprise!) black daughter! Oh, my. But it was still curtains for Lott.

Whither Ted Cruz? The freshman Senator from Texas, a tea party darling, has cozied up to the memory of Senator Jesse Helms. Now Helms was never rehabilitated in any sense. He was an unapologetic segregationist. He was a nasty homophobe. He tried to block Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a holiday. He did have a lot of arch-conservative bona fides, but they were all presented in a vicious, combative, pinched, unpleasant, confrontational way. And Cruz is apparently a fan of Helms' methods.

But what about Helms' beliefs? Is Ted on board with all of that crap? I assume there is a portion of the tea baggin' base that would have voted for Helms in a heartbeat. But can the GOP actually let Cruz ride on that kind of reputation? Can they take the id of the tea party, and fly that philosophy front-and-center?

Full disclosure: I loathed Jesse Helms with every fiber of my being, while he was in office. And I wasn't even attuned to politics much at the time. Also, since the first time I saw Ted Cruz, I thought he looked like a sanctimonious ass, and I didn't even know his name or party yet. My first impression was pretty well on the money though. And I still can't believe he's younger than me.

[Excerpt]
Ted Cruz: 'We Need 100 More Like Jesse Helms' In The Senate

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said Wednesday that the country would be better off if the Senate was full of people like Jesse Helms, the late senator who was ardently opposed to all kinds of civil rights measures and even tried to block the Senate from approving a federal holiday in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. . .

Read more at: Huffington Post

And if you're wanting a rightward view of this little happening, how about a little Jennifer Rubin, who doesn't have much nice to say about Cruz either.

Former Press Secretary Tony Snow Dies

Image cribbed from Free Republic, where Tony Snow was revered and idolized

When Sen. Jesse Helms died last week, I publicly pondered, "What do you do when a person you totally revile passes away?" In the case of Tony Snow, you might think I'd feel the same way, but I don't. While I take issue with his career choices, he seemed like a man of great intellect and humor. As a non-political talk show host, he probably would have really made a splash (without ticking anybody off).

53 is just way too young to go. And it somehow seems unfair that both Tim Russert and Tony Snow--very political animals--would be deprived of seeing the outcome of this fall's election. There is a noteworthy difference between the deaths of Russert and Snow. Russert's death provoked an outpouring of fond rememberances from colleagues, to the point of over-saturation on the news channels. I read several mentions in the blogosphere, but never got the feeling that bloggers and commenters were actually grieving.

By contrast, conservative bloggers and commenters are very, very upset by this. Their reaction seems deeply personal in a way I don't quite understand. As you can tell by the graphic above, conservatives--at least those who consider their political ideology to be a core identity--loved Tony Snow. And they really seem to be feeling grief today. Ordinarily I might say something snarky about that, but right now that doesn't feel right. RIP, Tony Snow.

[Excerpt]

Tony Snow, Former Bush Press Secretary, Dies at 53

Tony Snow, a former press secretary to President George W. Bush who brought his outspoken style as a Fox News commentator to the White House, died in Washington early today of cancer. He was 53.

"It was a joy to watch Tony at the podium each day,'' Bush said in a statement. "He brought wit, grace, and a great love of country to his work. . ."

Read more at: Bloomberg

Obituary: Senator Jesse Helms

Photo from source, Guardian UK

I wrote an announcement earlier of the death of Senator Jesse Helms. At the time, I was unable to think of anything good to say about him, and so declined to comment. It would seem that I was not the only one having a difficult time. This obituary, from the Guardian UK (by way of AmericaBlog) sums it up best (emphasis mine):

[Excerpt]

Obituary: Jesse Helms

Senator Jesse Helms, member of the US Senate's foreign relations committee for two decades and its chairman from 1995 to 2001, has died at the age of 86. To echo this newspaper's memorable comment on the death of William Randolph Hearst, it is hard even now to think of him with charity. . .

Read more at: Guardian UK

Jesse Helms is Dead

Photo from source, CNN

Oh, my goodness. What do you do when a person you totally revile passes away? As the saying goes, mother always said, if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. So, I have this to say: " ."

That is all.

[Excerpt]

Ex-Sen. Jesse Helms dies at 86

Former U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms, a North Carolina Republican who became an icon to conservatives, died Friday at age 86, the Jesse Helms Center said.

Helms once said his job was to derail the freight train of liberalism. . .

Read more at: CNN