Hillary buys into Beltway consensus that next terror attack will be good for Republicans
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As if any further proof were needed that Hillary is the Democratic candidate only the Beltway could love. Nice catch by Big Media Matt:
This is, I think, a disaster:
"It's a horrible prospect to ask yourself, 'What if? What if?' But if [when] certain things happen between now and the election, particularly with respect to terrorism, that will automatically give the Republicans an advantage again, no matter how badly they have mishandled it, no matter how much more dangerous they have made the world," Clinton told supporters in Concord.
"So [Huh?]I think I'm the best of the Democrats to deal with that," she added.
What do you mean, "so," Hillary? Where's the logic in this? If your putative experience [read: nostalgia] is the basis for your being the "best," then why keep widdling yourself when the Republicans play the fear card?
And since you know the Republicans are going to do whatever it takes to hold onto power--my foil sense says that if we need a terror attack to get the Dems to roll over again on retroactive immunity when FISA expires, then LIHOP times are here again--why not show some leadership and innoculate us against the possibility, instead of mouthing empty platitudes?
Matt answers more politely:
Two points in response. The first is that I think the Democrat best positioned to deal with GOP political mobilization in a post-attack environment is going to be the one who isn't reflexively inclined to see failed Republican policies resulting in the deaths of hundreds of Americans as a political advantage for the Republicans.
The other is that I think there's a pretty clear sense in which the further one is from Bush's Iraq policy, the easier it is politically to say that the failures of Bush's national security policy should be blamed on Bush's failed policies.
Bingo.
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Comments
the next attack
when it comes, will be blamed on libruls and lefties, and any Dem, who opposed:
torture
rendition
gitmo
the icorp of iraq
the forthcoming attack on iran
the surge
domestic spying
gutting the 4th amendment
tsa/dhs
etc.
I don't really disagree with the first part of Hillary's comment
... for the reasons noted by A.C. above.
The second part is a head-scratcher. Is she saying she'd be the best because she's the most Republican-like? Or what?
Stay in court, Tell the Truth
I agree that we (as a country) should not have "rolled over" on major issues like Iraq, Torture, etc. But its about time that someone dared tell the truth about Republicans gaining an advantage from fear and terrorism.
Take a look at Rudy Giulani, After 7 Years into his tenure as Mayor of New York, he had a 36% approval rating (Same as President Bush's NOW) after September 11, his ratings jumped to 79%. President bush's approval rating before September 11th was 50% but shot up to near 90% after 9/11. Anyone can clearly see a trend towards republicans in times of fear and war, and the republicans constantly use this to their advantage when they say things like "if you want to be safe, vote republican". The idea of being safe only in republican hands is foolhardy especially since Americans are now in exponentially more danger worldwide with a republican at the helm.
The problem some Americans will believe anything they hear and don't bother to do the research themselves. For instance Republicans labeled Al Gore a liar on 10 different lies. Turns out 9 out of 10 were actually misquoted or the truth. They labeled John Kerry a "flip-flopper" and did so well that its now part of the American language. They also challenged his accounts of Vietnam even though The New York Times, ABC News, ABC NightLine, The Washington Post, and Los Angeles Times all reported these allegations were either inconsistent or false. ABC News even made a trip to Vietnam to speak to actual Vietnamese soldiers who were there. But a lot of people won't do the research they will just believe what they hear. So when someone has the courage to actually speak openly and franly about these lies and deception, we should listen. And these kinds of people who are not afraid to say what IS RIGHT are the ones who should be parking at Pennsylvania Avenue.