VOICES OF MODERATION DEPT:
As Jonah Goldberg shows well today, liberals claim to be voices of calm and they claim the extremism is on the Right. And yet it's the left fanning the flames of hysteria:
"Columnist Paul Krugman, who encouraged liberals to hang Sen. Joe Lieberman (I., Conn.) in effigy, is concerned about right-wing “eliminationist rhetoric.” The Washington Post’s Courtland Milloy can’t stand the incivility of the tea partiers, which is why he wants to “knock every racist and homophobic tooth out of their Cro-Magnon heads.” Frank Rich says the mantra “take our country back” is now code for a white racist backlash — though it was an apparently fine Democratic applause line when George W. Bush was president. So what’s the evidence for this new reign of terror? Those broken windows, some nasty voice and e-mail messages (not counting those aimed at Republicans, naturally), a coffin “left” at a Missouri congressman’s home, a few repugnant signs at rallies, and allegations from Reps. Emanuel Cleaver II (D., Mo.) and John Lewis (D., Ga.) that they were spit on and insulted with the “N-word,” respectively. But wait. The coffin was part of a protest over the death of “our freedoms” and was toted by the protesters, not left anywhere. And videos make it clear that what Cleaver called spitting was a protester spraying too much saliva while talking, the racist pig. As for the epithet aimed at Lewis, if it happened, it’s disgusting. But going by the video, there’s nothing to back it up, and the claim by Rep. Andre Carson (D., Ind.) that the N-word was chanted 15 times is pure dishonesty. Let’s assume it is true. I thought liberals rejected guilt by association as McCarthyism. Or are we to believe that every opponent of Obamacare is a racist?"
POLITICS/LEGISLATION UPDATE DEPT:
Even Gallup today has Republicans leading in the 2010 generic congressional ballot (by 3, 47-44).
Boy---some bump Democrats got from the passage of that health insurance bill, huh???
