Glenn Beck's conservatism

Glenn Beck is the last thing conservatives need, said Peter Wehner in Commentary. Yes, the Fox News host is "a red-hot commodity," but Beck's "erratic behavior"—such as saying that President Obama hates white people—makes conservatives look bad. What conservatives should be embracing now is "intellectual depth, for tough-minded and reasoned arguments, for good cheer and calm purpose" (watch Beck call Obama a racist).

You know what's really harmful to the conservative movement? said Robert Stacy McCain in The American Spectator. It's listening to a "boring elitist" like Peter Wehner—who co-authored a book called The Path to Republican Revival, which once critic called "a surefire formula for Republican suicide." Sorry, but I'd rather listen to "an exciting populist" like Glenn Beck any day.

Wehner may be right that Beck is hurting conservatism, said Michael J.W. Stickings in The Reaction, "although one wonders what can actually harm conservatism, given how low it has fallen." But Wehner's Burkean conservatism is a bit old-fashioned. To many, the screaming of Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh "IS conservatism." So even if Beck "flames out, there will be many more to take his place."

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