Bubble-Enclosed Western Conservative Summit Shuns Christie

8 Comments

by: Jason Salzman

(Promoted by Colorado Pols)

After the Republican election disaster of 2012, there was a lot of talk about how GOP leaders had constructed a giant bubble around themselves, protecting them from facts that could have saved them from the November collapse.

The bubble remains unbroken in many quarters on talk radio, as you’d have known if you tuned to KNUS’ “Backbone Radio,” Sunday, featuring a conversation between former state Senate President John Andrews and host Matt Dunn.

Things got interesting when the two began discussing who’s sufficiently conservative to speak at Andrews’ upcoming Western Conservative Summit, sponsored by the Centennial Institute and Colorado Christian University.

Mike Huckabee, Scott Walker, Alan West, and Jonas Goldberg got big thumbs up. (They will be there.)

But NJ governor Chris Christie got the big thumbs down, and Andrews said Marco Rubio could get booed, if he were a speaker:

Andrews: I, honestly, haven’t really worked hard to get [Christie] this year. I don’t regard him as a conservative. This is a conservative summit. We took a good run at getting Senator Marco Rubio–

Dunn: Yeah, I was going to ask.

Andrews: a gifted young conservative –

Dunn: How would Rubio be received. We’re down to about 20 seconds, but how would he be received at the Summit right now?

Andrews: I think with a lot of skepticism. There might be some boos from the audience because of what he’s trying to do on amnesty, to be honest with you. A very gifted guy, but he has taken – he has set his foot wrong on this one.

Dunn: It’s interesting to me that it seems that Ted Cruz is the ascendant. And Marco Rubio is the opposite right now. Who would have thought?

I like to picture these two guys sitting in a bubble-enclosed radio studio floating away from the city of Denver and planet Earth.

Why are they shielding themselves from their own allies, like Christie, who isn't an exact replica of them?

Is it time for Andrews let some fresh air into his definition of “conservative?”

Those are the kind of questions that Dunn should address on his show, but his radio studio is probably too far into outer space by now for him to read this blog post and accept my reasonable advice.

8 thoughts on “Bubble-Enclosed Western Conservative Summit Shuns Christie”

Davie says:

June 13, 2013 at 12:40 pm

They're just playing to their wackadoodle base, as usual.

"Conservative" used to mean something real — William Buckley, George Will, George H.W. Bush. Not any more.

Log in to Reply
1. ElliotFladen says:
  
  June 13, 2013 at 12:43 pm
  
  I went last year. I recall one speaker advocating banning future Mosque construction. I'm not planning on going back this year.
  
  Log in to Reply
  1. MADCO says:
    
    June 14, 2013 at 9:09 am
    
    Hm..who knew crossing the annoyance line was so easy.
    
    Log in to Reply
  2. ClubTwitty says:
    
    June 14, 2013 at 9:24 am
    
    Rand Paul–the self-avowed Libertarian–was just at a Bible-Thumper convention where he equated buring the AMerican flag with an attack on Christianity. As a fellow 'Libertarian' Mr. Fladen, can you help me find the Constitutional basis for that conflation? If not, are you willing to state that Sen. Rand Paul is a charlatan?
    
    Log in to Reply
    1. Urban Snowshoer says:
      
      June 15, 2013 at 7:28 pm
      
      There is a constitutional basis, however, for being allowed to burn the American flag–the Supreme Court has said it s free speech.
      
      The problem with people like Rand Paul is that an idea or behavior (in a general sense) is only constitutional when it something they agree with.
      
      Log in to Reply
BlueCat says:

June 13, 2013 at 1:12 pm

Maybe next year they can hold their far right, more Christian than thou, anti-choice anti-gay, anti-government, anti-minority, anti-woman, anti-worker, anti-immigrant (and not just undocumented ones) club meeting in a 1950s tree house. It'll be about the right size and they can add all those unwelcome categories to the old " Girls Keep Out" sign.

Log in to Reply
GalapagoLarry says:

June 13, 2013 at 10:47 pm

I've grown to appreciate Andrews and his semi-influential stature. He used to irritate the hell out of me: He's never been able to write. He's never been able to think. He's never been the intellect he sees in his mirror. But he's convinced Colorado "conservatives" to continue to revere him, so he is in the local forefront of helping them destroy the Republican Party. Keep booking him, all you rightie hosts.

Log in to Reply
1. MADCO says:
  
  June 14, 2013 at 9:12 am
  
  Keep booking him, all you rightie hosts
  
  Book him, don't book him – but keep telling everyone that there is aplace in America,with Backbone and stuff, and every once in awhile, you can catch a glimpse of John Galt and maybe an orc or two. Andrews has created a mythical America, that immature or mean spirited neighbors want to believe in. They just know it's possible, if only the wrong people would get outta the way and stop screwing it up.
  
  Log in to Reply