One has to wonder how and when this fever is going to break.
It really is cultist behavior. Back with either Bush, or even Reagan, nobody cared if you criticized him about this or that as long as your voting record was pretty solid.
Republican politicians could criticize Reagan, and still be generally supportive. It wasn’t sacrilege. They certainly criticized both Bushes, sometimes quite vigorously.
Reagan generated great devotion. But Reagan was regarded by conservatives more as a prophet, worthy of respect for his commitment to certain ideas, than a messiah, to be worshipped and obeyed for his own sake. This is a key distinction often missed by non-conservatives.
