Interesting commentary from the right

[KMOD]

If Alexander Hamilton were alive today, I am certain he would be (1) grateful that the nation honors him by retaining his portrait on the $10 bill, (2) bemused by the Broadway rap play based on his life, and (3) planning to vote for Hillary Clinton.

Donald Trump would have reminded Hamilton of Aaron Burr, his political nemesis and the man who would ultimately kill Hamilton in a duel. Like Trump, Burr had an outsized, narcissistic personality. Fidelity to principle never stood in the way of Burr’s self-advancement. His defining moment came in the presidential election of 1800, when he reneged on a promise to serve as Thomas Jefferson’s vice president and tried to seize the presidency for himself.

snip

Burr’s attempt to leapfrog over Jefferson put Hamilton in a bind. Hamilton was not a member of the House of Representatives when it convened to resolve the election, but he was an influential leader of the Federalist Party who could sway votes in the House. Many Federalist representatives were tempted to vote for Burr (and some did) because Jefferson was an ideological anathema to them. To mention only one of a variety of principled differences: The Federalists favored a strong national government, and Jefferson wanted to return power to the states. Asking a Federalist to vote for Jefferson is not that different from asking a conservative Republican to vote for Hillary Clinton today.

Yet that is just what Hamilton did: He supported Jefferson over Burr. Writing to Harrison Otis, leader of the Massachusetts House delegation, Hamilton noted that “Mr. Jefferson, though too revolutionary in his notions, is yet a lover of liberty and will be desirous of something like orderly government—Mr. Burr loves nothing but himself…” Hamilton concluded that any deal the Federalists tried to strike with Burr would never bind Burr, who “thinks of nothing but his own aggrandizement,” and whose controlling passion is “ambition.” With remarkable foresight, Hamilton saw that a Democratic-Republican administration under Jefferson would allow the Federalists to remain a principled party of opposition, ready to return to power when the Democratic Republicans faltered. If the Federalists supported Burr, however, “they adopt him and become answerable for him.”

Republicans who vote for Trump face the same dilemma. If elected, Republicans would be blamed for his failures. To support Trump, we must sacrifice our principles and reconcile our minds to his. Better we should follow Hamilton’s example and support an opposing party whose principles we reject—and remain a principles party of opposition.

http://fortune.com/2016/07/16/hillary-clinton-donald-trump-republicans/?iid=leftrail

Please note that this is published in a right leaning source. I found the commentary interesting, so I wanted to share it.

[Mz Pip]

1. The exodus continues

I can only hope it will keep gathering steam.

[KMOD]

6. Me too. I find it facinating that

the Republican party is blowing up before our very eyes.

[First Speaker]

2. That's a fascinating analogy, isn't it...?

...the old saying is true--history doesn't repeat, but it does rhyme...

[KMOD]

7. It sure is.

Love the Mark Twain quote.

[riversedge]

3. Why Republicans Should Actually Vote for Hillary Clinton

Thanks for the OP--and the title is great also


Why Republicans Should Actually Vote for Hillary Clinton

COMMENTARY by Donald Brand

July 16, 2016, 9:00 AM EDT

[Hortensis]

4. Very interesting essay, KMOD, thanks.

As other conservatives have said just as publicly, though, the Republican Party leadership is controlled and completely corrupted by business interests and energized by the zeal of hard-core religious and social conservatives. The duty today's elected Republicans feel is to keep their cushy, powerful jobs and, with that in mind, to serve those who pay their election costs.

"This is not my party."

George Will announcing he had left the Republican Party

“Every republic,” writes Charles Kesler, professor of government at Claremont McKenna College, “eventually faces what might be called the Weimar problem.” It arrives when a nation’s civic culture has become so debased that the nation no longer has “the virtues necessary to sustain republican government.” Do not dwell on what came after the Weimar Republic. But do consider the sufficiency of virtue that the Constitution’s framers presupposed.

George Will writing about what his party has become.

[KMOD]

8. I've been watching with amusement.

Anna Navarro, who is a republican consultant on CNN has been very vocal about this.

Although she clarifies that Hillary has not yet won her vote, she is adamant about not voting for trump. It's delicious.

[AgadorSparticus]

5. Interesting read. Thanks for sharing it, KMOD.

On a side note, I am dying to see that broadway show. But when I looked up the tickets, I nearly passed out. Holy smokes!

[KMOD]

9. I hear ya!

I'll wait for the second string tour.

[Hekate]

10. Fascinating. Thanks for this.

[Warren DeMontague]

11. Imagining Hamilton trying to wrap his head around a 2016 broadway rap musical is like visualizing

him playing Pokemon Go.

"Hark! Indeed, I must catch em all!"

[KMOD]

12. .