Being an exile in the land of the lefty Blogosphere, I've been cruising around trying to find sites that do not worship at the church of Hillary Hatred. I've added two to my blogroll:
The Confluence (for Kossacks in exile); and
No Quarter (the blog of National Security expert Larry Johnson).
Both these sites are unabashedly pro-Hillary, which is a nice antidote to all the vitriol I've had to listen to for the past several months. But one thing really threw me: They (and other Clintonite blogs) often quote right-wing pundits like Pat Buchanan and Frank Luntz. They point to stories on Fox News and other right-wing media outlets. (Visit them and see what I'm talking about - I just can't bring myself to link to the enemy...) Today, the indefatigable Taylor Marsh, another Hillary partisan, praised Republic talking head Joe Scarborough (although he is on MSNBC, not Fox News, and has been less conservative lately).
And of course, there's Hillary herself, who recently sat down with the editorial board of Richard Mellon Scaife's Philadelphia newspaper to give an extensive interview. You know Scaife - the architect of the Arkansas Project (that's the "vast right-wing conspiracy" to those who are unfamiliar with the Clinton era)?! And look - there's my candidate on Greta Van Susteren's show on Fox News!
What the hell is going on with my world, when the only place I can see or hear somewhat non-partisan opinions on the Democratic race for the nomination is... Bushbotonia? Am I stuck in the Bizarro episode of Seinfeld here?
Well, my little brain was all tangled up with this question for quite some time, and then I finally got it. No, it's not that traditional media is virulently anti-All Things Clinton and (for the moment) All About Obama. That's a reason for Hillary to go to the Dark Side, but not for the inhabitants of Mordor to be complimentary - or at least, even-handed - towards her.
Based on the commentary of these righties, I've come to believe that the reason has to do with the fundamental nature of conservatives and conservatism, brilliantly detailed in John Dean's "Conservatives Without Conscience." In sum: Conservatives are bullies. They only respect you when you stand up to them. And guess who's stood up to them - and won - for the past 16 years? Why, that would be Bill and Hillary Clinton.
Conservatives have warmed to the Clintons because they wouldn't back down in the face of an unrelenting attack. That's really all there is to it. Even KKKarl Rove admitted that he would rather run against Obama than Hillary. (No, I won't link, but it's out there.) And frankly, this somewhat revoltin' development is yet another reason to want Hillary to be our Democratic nominee. She's shown she knows how to win over the other side - and as I've been saying for a long time, it's not by holding hands and singing "kumbaya." And if she has won the respect of Republics, who by and large are disenchanted with Bush and also don't like McCaca, then who is REALLY the more electable candidate in November?
Food for thought, no?
The Confluence (for Kossacks in exile); and
No Quarter (the blog of National Security expert Larry Johnson).
Both these sites are unabashedly pro-Hillary, which is a nice antidote to all the vitriol I've had to listen to for the past several months. But one thing really threw me: They (and other Clintonite blogs) often quote right-wing pundits like Pat Buchanan and Frank Luntz. They point to stories on Fox News and other right-wing media outlets. (Visit them and see what I'm talking about - I just can't bring myself to link to the enemy...) Today, the indefatigable Taylor Marsh, another Hillary partisan, praised Republic talking head Joe Scarborough (although he is on MSNBC, not Fox News, and has been less conservative lately).
And of course, there's Hillary herself, who recently sat down with the editorial board of Richard Mellon Scaife's Philadelphia newspaper to give an extensive interview. You know Scaife - the architect of the Arkansas Project (that's the "vast right-wing conspiracy" to those who are unfamiliar with the Clinton era)?! And look - there's my candidate on Greta Van Susteren's show on Fox News!
What the hell is going on with my world, when the only place I can see or hear somewhat non-partisan opinions on the Democratic race for the nomination is... Bushbotonia? Am I stuck in the Bizarro episode of Seinfeld here?
Well, my little brain was all tangled up with this question for quite some time, and then I finally got it. No, it's not that traditional media is virulently anti-All Things Clinton and (for the moment) All About Obama. That's a reason for Hillary to go to the Dark Side, but not for the inhabitants of Mordor to be complimentary - or at least, even-handed - towards her.
Based on the commentary of these righties, I've come to believe that the reason has to do with the fundamental nature of conservatives and conservatism, brilliantly detailed in John Dean's "Conservatives Without Conscience." In sum: Conservatives are bullies. They only respect you when you stand up to them. And guess who's stood up to them - and won - for the past 16 years? Why, that would be Bill and Hillary Clinton.
Conservatives have warmed to the Clintons because they wouldn't back down in the face of an unrelenting attack. That's really all there is to it. Even KKKarl Rove admitted that he would rather run against Obama than Hillary. (No, I won't link, but it's out there.) And frankly, this somewhat revoltin' development is yet another reason to want Hillary to be our Democratic nominee. She's shown she knows how to win over the other side - and as I've been saying for a long time, it's not by holding hands and singing "kumbaya." And if she has won the respect of Republics, who by and large are disenchanted with Bush and also don't like McCaca, then who is REALLY the more electable candidate in November?
Food for thought, no?
2 comments:
Too much coffee! I left an interesting link in your Spitzer post.
I agree, it's getting nasty. Kos and Americablog in particular. I wander over to your mosh pit "Atrios" now and again. Some witty people, but it seems to be imploding with anger over Clinton vs Obama.
Mcsame is really not very popular here. Even the newpapers & TV news really don't seem to show much enthusiasm.
Yes, I'm a bit overcaffeinated today!!! :-)
That link was interesting, although it makes it seem like the capture of Spitzer was unintentional. My tinfoil hat makes me believe otherwise. ;-)
I agree that Atrios' blog is getting unbearable, despite all the great people there whom I love. The Hillary Hatred is strong there, although it is not actively encouraged by Atrios himself.
Like I said, I hope we can all kiss and make up in November. SIGH.
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