So I happened to be briefly watching CNN late this afternoon, catching up on some political news.
And one of the "Democratic strategists" brought in as a talking head made what must be the umpteenth mention of the "Republican attack machine" sure to swing into motion this fall against Barack Obama and the Democrats.
How often do we hear this phrase? A lot. Indeed, seems to me that it's taken for granted that this big, bad GOP attack machine exists; and that it operates in a vacuum, unopposed. Democrats and others sure talk about it enough--a google search on "Republican attack machine" brings up over 52,000 hits.
But there's a Democratic attack machine out there as well. Don't forget that. Look around. Today, the very liberal website DailyKos is running its usual barrage of anti-Republican, anti-President Bush screeds. A sample:
"In 2000, Bush had no experience whatever in national security or foreign policy, nor indeed any experience in Washington. Bush was both naive and ignorant in the extreme about world affairs."
The site DemocraticUnderground devotes entire threads to slamming the GOP.
I hear Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton attacking John McCain and the Republicans every single day.
In short: what "Republican attack machine"? The fact is, political parties in America have always attacked the other; both parties have what one could call "attack machines" today. Suggesting one party has a monopoly on attacks is ridiculous.
