The latest political attack ad by Democratic Florida Congressman Alan Grayson is so over the top that even his most ardent supporters are calling him out on it. No matter how out of step with mainstream America your opponent might be, comparing him to the Taliban is not only inappropriate, it’s factually inaccurate. Daniel Webster is certainly not an enemy of the United States, and Grayson knows it. Worse, the ad seems to have boomeranged on him and has made Webster look good. If Grayson wants to run an ad that hits home and can actually win him some votes, he should run on his record, which is impressive. In deed, despite his many politically incorrect moments – the Republicans want you to die quick remark tops the list – Grayson has been one of the few fearless warriors of the Democratic Party, unabashedly proud of his progressivism. If only the President and the bulk of the Party could be this proud and unashamed they might not be on the verge of getting their asses handed to them this fall.
But what I find somewhat amusing and ironic in all this is how bent out of shape many conservatives are getting over the ad. Again, just so we’re clear, Grayson was wrong to run it, but for conservatives to squawk over Grayson’s inflammatory and juvenile brain fart is akin to (you’ll pardon the pun) the teapot calling the kettle black.
It was the Republicans, you will recall, who all last summer had absolutely no problem consistently using the completely inaccurate and inflammatory term “death panel” every chance they could when “discussing” healthcare reform. And the Tea Party – that would be the more unabridged version of the GOP that is looking to take back America – has virtually moved into the bunkers (er, studios) at Fox News and gone on an all out, endless rant against every Democrat and moderate Republican out there, calling them every name in the book from socialist to fascist and some far worse. For the better part of two years, the entire GOP, it seems, threw everything (including the proverbial kitchen sink) at the President – complete with Hitler moustaches and birther loonies for good measure – virtually all of it wrong and racist. It seems to me to be the height of hypocrisy for anyone on the Right to suddenly become indignant over the same tactics being employed on one of their own, no matter how egregious the malfeasance.
Put up or shut up, I say. If you don’t want mud thrown at you, then don’t stoop to pick it up yourself in the first place. But then, who am I kidding? In this day and age, if there’s one thing we can be sure of, it’s that gutter politics, more often than not, works, and taking the high road has become as fashionable as an Edsel in 1961.
But what I find somewhat amusing and ironic in all this is how bent out of shape many conservatives are getting over the ad. Again, just so we’re clear, Grayson was wrong to run it, but for conservatives to squawk over Grayson’s inflammatory and juvenile brain fart is akin to (you’ll pardon the pun) the teapot calling the kettle black.
It was the Republicans, you will recall, who all last summer had absolutely no problem consistently using the completely inaccurate and inflammatory term “death panel” every chance they could when “discussing” healthcare reform. And the Tea Party – that would be the more unabridged version of the GOP that is looking to take back America – has virtually moved into the bunkers (er, studios) at Fox News and gone on an all out, endless rant against every Democrat and moderate Republican out there, calling them every name in the book from socialist to fascist and some far worse. For the better part of two years, the entire GOP, it seems, threw everything (including the proverbial kitchen sink) at the President – complete with Hitler moustaches and birther loonies for good measure – virtually all of it wrong and racist. It seems to me to be the height of hypocrisy for anyone on the Right to suddenly become indignant over the same tactics being employed on one of their own, no matter how egregious the malfeasance.
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and besides, more hits, right?