E. J. Dionne wrote a column The GOP's Lesson on Abortion in the Washington Post, and stated: Why are George W. Bush and his party so skillful in dealing with the abortion issue, and why are Democrats so clumsy? It turns out that Democrats willing to grapple seriously with these questions risk getting seriously trashed. It makes you wonder whether Democrats enjoy losing elections.
Predictably the extreme left did not like the article. Avedon Carol: says E.J. has had a Kool-Aid day
Atros unwittingly proves EJ's point: Some evil liberals (Hollywood liberals, even!) are daring to raise money to mount primary challenges against pro-life Democrats, despite the fact that these Democrats have the overwhelming support of their party. Langevin and Casey have the support of their party, and a very tiny piece of the liberal establishment could possibly challenge them.
Max seems to understand: ventilates a pet peeve of mine in re: liberal women's organizations and the Democratic Party. Those who are soft on choice are threatened with the nuclear option, while those who betray working people and minorities in 57 other ways get over if they pass all the pro-choice litmus test questions. Meanwhile the Repubs can showcase that great pro-choice exemplar of women's rights, Gov. Schnatzengrabber. although the ad hominum attack on the California Governor is just so he does not get attacked too much by the rabid left.
EJ recognizes that the Republican party is not a single-issue party, and has no litmus test: More than that, the Republican Party has been utterly realistic, indeed ruthless, in engineering the nomination of pro-choice candidates if they had the better chance of winning. The amazing thing is that some of the staunchest opponents of abortion went right along and sidetracked allies if that was what victory required.
Sunday, March 13, 2005
The GOP's Lesson on Abortion
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2 comments:
I think you missed Atrios' point that there is nothing the left is doing to Casey and Langevin that the right hasn't done to Specter or other less right-wing members of their party.
You might not remember who Lowell Weicker was....
Actually there is a difference. Langevin and Casey are being targeted by their own party because they have committed the Liberal Sin of holding a prolife opinion.
Specter was targeted by conservatives because of many things he had DONE and NOT DONE, not because of what he thought.
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