They're not invincible
posted by Liberal Beagle at 11:13 AM
Six years of paranoia and worry have produced this image of the Invincible Right. We worry endlessly that whatever gains the progressive movement can be made in the field of good governance will be sabotaged by the scions of big business and religious extremism. But our fears don't match the reality of our foes being just as human as we are. Consider this anecdote about Jim Talent's campaign in Missouri:
You have to imagine this conjures up an image of a nervous politician with lots of money, hoping that his cash flow edge and the still right-leaning trend of a semi-purple local electorate will get him through, suddenly faced with insulting a Big Cheese that's been left to ripen in the cupboard too long. "Sir, would you mind going to Backwoods Bend instead of St. Louis? I mean, that's where the real voters are and you'd be so helpful..."
The Republican Party was in disarray in 2006. Elizabeth Dole made bad financing decisions. George Bush didn't care about anything but himself and made bull-in-a-china-shop whistle stop appearances. And Conrad Burns and George Allen made devastating campaign mistakes that even the media couldn't cover for. There were blunders cascading from their campaigns, displaying plain evidence of a lack of organization. And yet, still we feared. Still we cowered. And still we wanted to blame the progressive leaders for a defeat which didn't happen.
Liberal Eagle talked about Saturday morning mentalities. We have to dispense with a few of our own. There is no one out there with a magic hand creating an infinite neocon tyranny. The ruling classes are made of human beings, and prone to the same failings as the rest of us. Only when they blow it, they're more likely to blow it big time. And the results can either be catastrophic or a blessing, but they're not forgotten.
At one point, officials said, White House aides wanted Bush to make a late-campaign trip to Missouri. NRSC strategists were opposed, fearing the impact of his low approval ratings. Ultimately, Sen. Jim Talent's campaign aides decided the president should go to strongly Republican areas, but not Kansas City or St. Louis, where surveys showed the president was particularly unpopular.
You have to imagine this conjures up an image of a nervous politician with lots of money, hoping that his cash flow edge and the still right-leaning trend of a semi-purple local electorate will get him through, suddenly faced with insulting a Big Cheese that's been left to ripen in the cupboard too long. "Sir, would you mind going to Backwoods Bend instead of St. Louis? I mean, that's where the real voters are and you'd be so helpful..."
The Republican Party was in disarray in 2006. Elizabeth Dole made bad financing decisions. George Bush didn't care about anything but himself and made bull-in-a-china-shop whistle stop appearances. And Conrad Burns and George Allen made devastating campaign mistakes that even the media couldn't cover for. There were blunders cascading from their campaigns, displaying plain evidence of a lack of organization. And yet, still we feared. Still we cowered. And still we wanted to blame the progressive leaders for a defeat which didn't happen.
Liberal Eagle talked about Saturday morning mentalities. We have to dispense with a few of our own. There is no one out there with a magic hand creating an infinite neocon tyranny. The ruling classes are made of human beings, and prone to the same failings as the rest of us. Only when they blow it, they're more likely to blow it big time. And the results can either be catastrophic or a blessing, but they're not forgotten.
<< Home