Monthly Archives: March 2013

Demonized and Lionized, March 4-15, 2013

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Demonized                 Thought Crime

Rand Paul Kristol: “fear-mongering kookiness” in drone filibuster
Detroit first major US city brought down by welfare queens and union bosses; an “incorrigible, deadbeat” government
Eric Holder Race-baiting demagogue masquerading as a “pseudo constitutionalist”
Big banks the ultimate recipients of crony capitalism
Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) stalking horse for feminazis
Paul Krugman Consistently arguing for deficits & stimulus bills, not austerity
 Gina McCarthy (EPA nominee) WSJ: Over the last four years running the EPA’s air office, Ms. McCarthy has been a notably willful regulator, even for this Administration. Her promotion is another way of saying that Mr. Obama has given up getting Congress to agree to his anticarbon agenda, especially given the number of Senate Democrats from coal or oil states. The real climate fight now is over the shape of forthcoming rules that could be released as early as this summer, and a brutal under-the-table lobbying campaign is now underway.….Ms. McCarthy has been integral in abusing laws that were written decades ago in order to achieve climate goals that Congress has rejected, all with little or no political debate. Someone should ask her about her antidemocratic politics at her confirmation hearings.
 R.I Senator Paul Whitehouse  Carbon tax
Paul Ryan Proposing a budget that envisions any tax increases, even in the form of clsing loopholes

Lionized                                                      Heroic Word or Deed

Rand Paul His anti-drone filibuster is a) The greatest blow for liberty since Paul Revere’s ride, a veritable “political earthquake” b) the resurgence of the Tea Party, c) the day someone finally stood up to Obama and exposed his two-faced foreign policy. Elevated to status as one of Three Horsemen of the GOP’s new branding, along with Senators Lee and Cruz.
John Mattis (US Marine General) publicly dismissing US sanctions against Iran as ineffectual
Jeff Sessions Coming out strongly against food stamps and other nutritional programs
 Natural law  the anti-Sheryl Sandberg meme: the liberal elite’s war on “the natural law of the maternal instinct”
Paul Ryan Proposing a plan that would balance the budget within ten years

Glossary, March 4-15, 2013

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an anatomy of key memes, phrases and obsessions in Wall Street Journal editorials and other precincts of the GOP blogosphere, March 4-15, 2013

anti-carbon agenda Obama administration’s energy policy. aka, “Walden Pond”. See also: “manufactured hysteria”
balanced budget, budget gimmicks “balanced budget” is what the GOP uses as a smokescreen to avoid talking about the details of the latest Ryan budget; every Dem budget proposal is a “gimmick”.
campaign mode Whenever the administration asserts itself. Always contrasted to “governing,” which is what the GOP House does when it asserts itself
comprehensive cost-sharing in Medicare Means-testing
confidence What the business sector lacks; can only be supplied by trickle-down economics and tax cuts
crony government Dems’ web of Wall Street/Green Sector/Hollywood connections
faith in the people The heart of the new GOP with a human face; always contrasted to the Dems’ “faith in government”
inflexible Obama on the budget: no matter what spending cuts he proposes, GOP claims he is “inflexible” and offers no cuts
manufactured hysteria Climate change; The Church of Global Warming
overreach All-purpose word for gun control, carbon tax, affirmative action, Obamacare
risk premium Cart blanche for insurers to charge whatever they want due to Obamacare’s mandate of universal coverage
The One Continuing meme of Obama The Supreme; aka, the Obamaborg, Caesaropapism; The Prince of Pennsylvania Avenue, a “distilled Alynskyite”, a “utilitarianism that would make Machiavelli shudder”

Parallel Republican Universes: Hyperbolic and Counter-Intuitive Claims, Myths and Canards 3/1/13—3/13/13

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“Indeed, the Obama modus operandi is based on a familiar constant over his time in the public eye: His “nontraditional,” post-racial persona, his youth, his teleprompted eloquence, and his spell over the media have convinced him that he can talk, pout, and tantrum his way to out-pointing others in lieu of concrete achievement. The thrill is found not so much in successful compromise as in perpetual acrimony and division. Think up a fantasy us/them wedge issue — millions of assault weapons slaughtering the nation’s youth, Latinos being deported while buying ice cream, the seas soon to lap over our cities, gay couples hounded by homophobic reactionaries, a nation of African-American victims like Trayvon Martin and Professor Gates in need of editorial support, the parents of tens of millions of children without sufficient food stamps or unemployment and disability insurance, planes falling out of the sky for want of federal air-traffic controllers — and then demonize the opposition, hit the campaign trail, and finally, exhausted, end up relaxing and golfing with the nation’s plutocrats and celebrities — until the next round of us/them theatrics..” Victor David Hanson, National Review, 3/13/13
Obama picked the weakest possible candidates—Hegel, Brennan, Lew—“in order to force Republicans to oppose them and thus earn the wages of ‘obstructionism’”. National Review, 3/13/13
A carbon tax would actually increase emissions by exporting jobs to China Red State, 3/13/13
“The tax increases are everywhere on the Democrat agenda. Never you mind that they have no intention of even trying to balance revenues against expenditures. They intend to grab the revenues. They intend to grab the power over your life that the revenues will give them. The Democrats are after your wallet by any methodology they can use to horn in on its contents… [you will lose] your ability to make volitional decisions that will impact your own life”. Red State, 3/13/13
“the dangers of the homosexual movement and why some of its members seem prone to violence, terror and “treason” Proposed Accuracy In Media panel at CPAC
If Obama succeeds in maneuvering the Republicans into positions that cause them to lose control of the House of Representatives in the 2014 elections, then as a president who never has to face the voters again, he would be in an ideal position to create a big spending liberals’ heaven.But it will be far from heaven for the economy, with Obama-appointed bureaucrats burying businesses in red tape and job-killing costs, while expanding the size and arbitrary powers of government. We could become the world’s largest banana republic. Thomas Sowell, Real Clear Politics, 3/5/13
The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) increases the death rates from domestic abuse by making women less reluctant to call the police. “The best way to protect women..from domestic violence would be to encourage more women to marry” Mona Charen, Real Clear Politics, 3/5/13
VAWA, free contraceptives, suspended deportation, agitation against Voter ID laws—all part of Obama’s “permanent campaign” Mona Charen, Real Clear Politics, 3/5/13
“taxes are a drag on everything, a killer of the spirit of guts and endeavor..muscle, efficiency…confidence…Obamacare is why people are being laid off…Obama plans “little spring shots of doom” Peggy Noonan, WSJ, 3/8/13

Frank Rich’s “Dictionary of New Republican Usage”

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Hat’s off to Frank Rich’s seminal unmasking of GOP revival rhetoric, “Lipstick on an Elephant,” in the March 3 issue of  New York magazine. Rich’s accompanying “Dictionary of New Republican Usage” is worth citing in its entirety:

American path. The right way for America to proceed. Antonym: Government path.

1. “We can either go down the government path or the American path. The left is trying to turn the government path into the American path.”
—Bobby Jindal, 1/24/13

Axis of enlightenment. Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush, George P. Bush.

1. “[They] create what I call that axis of enlightenment when it comes to immigration. I mean, [Rubio]’s got the policy. He’s in touch with, I think, the lives of ordinary people. And he’s a very accessible guy. He talks about being a working dad and juggling his own priorities.”
—Nicolle Wallace, 2/10/13

Children, the. The way to talk about immigration.

1. “I think that a good place to start is with children … We’ve got families who are here that have become part of the fabric of our country, right? And we want to make sure that we’re compassionate and sensitive to their plight. I mean, these kids know no ­other place as home.”
—Eric Cantor, 2/10/13

Controlling spending. Replaces “capping spending.”

1. “What angers Americans more than how much politicians spend today is how much more they know Washington will waste tomorrow. A ‘cap’ can be lifted, but ‘controls’ are constant.”
—Frank Luntz, 1/11/13

Fantastic four, the. Marco Rubio, Paul Ryan, Bobby Jindal, and Eric Cantor.

1. “While calling them the ‘fantastic four’ might seem hyperbolic—and unfair to a few other politicians left out of the mix—[they] are a pretty good counter-argument to those who think the Republican Party is doomed. Excellent politicians all, three out of four are minorities: a Hispanic, an Indian-American, and a Jew—which sounds like they should be walking into a bar for a joke.”
—Jonah Goldberg, 2/11/13

Great Opportunity Party. Replaces “Grand Old Party.”

1. “From this day forward, the GOP will be known as the Great Opportunity Party.”
—Marsha Blackburn, 8/28/12

Variants: Growth and Opportunity Party; Government of the People Party.

2. “We’re the growth-and-opportunity party. We are the government-of-the-people party. And that needs to be the point of view and the perspective that we come from and that we carry our message forth.”
—Blackburn, 1/27/13

Judeo-Christian approach. The other way to talk about “illegal immigration.”

1. “I think the word ‘illegal immigration’ is a false name. You are talking about two separate issues. One is sovereignty … The media trying to make America feel guilty because we want borders—that, to me, is complete bullshit. Immigration is a separate issue … We should all defend sovereignty, then take a Judeo-Christian approach to immigration.”
—Roger Ailes, 2/11/13

More efficient and effective. Replaces “smaller” in discussions of government.

1. “Instead of smaller government, [Republicans] should talk about more efficient and effective government. The former is ideological language of the eighties; the latter is practical language of today.”
—Luntz, 1/11/13

Prudence. What is required for a Republican rebirth.

1. “Prudence is good judgment in the art of governing. Abraham Lincoln called it ‘one of the cardinal virtues’ … The prudent man is like a captain at sea. He doesn’t curse the wind. He uses it—to reach his destination … If we take the prudent course, we’ll be in good company. Our founders were men of prudence … Our country is worth the fight. With your help—and with a touch of prudence—we will win it.”
—Paul Ryan, 1/26/13

Simpler, flatter, and fairer tax code. Replaces “tax reform.”

1. “ ‘Tax reform’ is about the process, what they’re looking for is the result.”
—Luntz, 1/14/13

Variants: Lower, flatter, simpler tax code; Fairer, simpler tax code.

2. “When it comes to the tax code, we as the Republican Party have to make it very clear: We are for a lower, flatter, simpler tax code.”
—Jindal, 11/18/12

3. “Everyone agrees a fairer, simpler tax code would give all of us more time.”
—Cantor, 2/5/13

Welcoming in. A new kind of Republican tent-building. Replaces “reaching out.”

1. “Republicans want to be a party for every American in every neighborhood in every state … That’s why we must stop talking about ‘reaching out’ and start working on ‘welcoming in.’ ”
—Reince Priebus and Ashley Bell, 2/6/13

Inside the GOP’s Parallel Universes, Feb. 28-March 3

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“The only thing the federal government can do to protect women is to pass a universal right-to-carry law. Everything else is just big government demagoguery.” Red State, 2/28/13, on the renewal of the Violence Against Women Act Annie Oakley’s America?
Obamacare is forcing insurance companies to charge more. These rate increases are coming about “the same reason Ghengis Kahn impregnated women all over Asia. Thanks to Obamacare, the insurance companies now can.”  Red State, 2/28 and 3/1 “Risk premiums” are the latest excuse for hospitals and insurance companies to charge as much as they want to. Is this what happens when the “free market” is really unfettered?
Let’s keep the federal campgrounds open by leasing shale gas acreage in the Rockies Karl Rove, WSJ, 2/28 Let’s whitewater raft the fracking runoff!
“Mr. Obama and his circle divide the economy into separate parts. In the Obamaian universe, the units of the private economy—companies large and small—are satellites orbiting the great fixed planet of public spending. All material and economic life in the Obamaian model radiates out from a central source of public spending.” Daniel Henninger, WSJ, 2/27 Is this a call for the “maximum elimination of the public sphere, as prophesied by George Lakoff this week?
“For each F-22 Raptor not built, about another 20,000 families could receive food stamps for a month.” Victor Davis Hanson, National Review, 2/28 Politiscript irony alert: this sentence can be used by both the Left and the Right. Hanson of course is acidly riffing on Obama’s “redistributionism” and his reckless dismantling of the US defense system.
“A shortage of solar panels and windmills, not impending cuts in the US military….is Kerry’s idea of existential dangers on the global horizon.” Victor Davis Hanson, National Review, 2/28 They get another four years to belittle Kerry—here turning him into a Kerry/Gore amalgam
In 1982, Section 2 of the act was amended to say that the measure is violated whenever nomination and election processes “are not equally open to participation” by minority voters. And equality of participation is said to be denied whenever minority voters “have less opportunity than other members of the electorate to . . . elect representatives of their choice.” And representatives “of their choice” has been construed to mean representatives who are members of the same minority. This expresses two tenets of progressivism’s racialism. One is identity politics: Your race is your political identity. The other is categorical representation: Members of a race can be understood and represented only by members of this race. By this reasoning the Voting Rights Act has become an instrument for what Roberts has hitherto called “a sordid business, this divvying us up by race.”  George Will, Washington Post, 3/1/13 “progressivism’s racialism”: a new wedge argument for perpetuating racial discrimination. It’s twisted logic seems to be that  the mere act of  trying to mitigate disparate racial outcomes is itself a form of racism. It’s like when Stephen Colbert  archly says that he “doesn’t see race”, and thus is free to use any racial stereotype he wishes.

Demonized and Lionized, Feb. 25-March 3, 2013

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Demonized                 Thought Crime

Al Gore believing in green energy; getting millions in illlicit government subsidies; getting rich for the wrong reasons
Obamacare forcing insurance companies to raise rates, “for the same reason Ghengis Kahn impregnated women all over Asia”
big banks getting too big. Noonan: break ’em up!
Recap Erdogan (Turkish President) leading edge of militant Islam’s plan to dominate the entire Middle East
Rachel Maddow “Scalia is a troll. He’s saying this for effect. He knows it’s offensive, and he knows he’s going to get a gasp from the courtroom which he got. And he loves it. He’s like the guy in your blog comment thread who’s using the n-word. … He’s that kind of guy.”
Donald Verrilli (US Solicitor General) defending Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act on the grounds that 1) history matters in terms of lingering racial prejudice in the South, and, 2) that the US Senate reauthorized the bill 98-0

Lionized                                                      Heroic Word or Deed

Copernicus The Obama administration is trying to pull us back into what astronomers would call the pre-Copernican world. Copernicus’ heliocentric system overthrew what was known as geocentrism—the belief that everything in the universe revolved around the earth. Beautiful maps exist depicting geocentrism.Economic thinkers since at least the time of, well Copernicus, have understood that national well-being derived from private individuals going out into the private world to produce goods and trade goods, an activity that for centuries has created wealth for many nations. No longer. Mr. Obama and his circle divide the economy into separate parts.

In the Obamaian universe, the units of the private economy—companies large or small—are satellites orbiting the great fixed planet of public spending. All material and economic life in the Obamaian model radiates outward from a central source of public spending.
Bob Woodward saying he was threatened by White House because of his accusing Obama of playing politics with the sequester
Howard Fineman mildly criticizing the White House for hyperbolic predictions about effects of the sequestration
Clark Havighurst (Duke Law Professor)

 

 

 describing the regulatory, legal and tax subsidies that deprive consumers of both the incentive and opportunity to demand value from medical providers. Americans end up with a “Hobson’s choice: either coverage for ‘Cadillac’ care or no health coverage at all.”
Antonin Scalia “And this last enactment, not a single vote in the Senate against it. And the House is pretty much the same….I think it is attributable, very likely attributable, to a phenomenon that is called perpetuation of racial entitlement. It’s been written about. Whenever a society adopts racial entitlements, it is very difficult to get out of them through the normal political processes.”

Glossary, Feb. 26-March 2, 2013

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an anatomy of key memes, phrases and obsessions in Wall Street Journal editorials and other precincts of the GOP blogosphere, Feb. 26-March 3, 2013

balanced cuts spending cuts replacing any tax hike
campaign mode whenever Obama leaves Washington to make a speech; what Peggy Noonan calls his “soft-voiced pugilism”
flexibility, moving money between accounts allowing the GOP to brandish their own line-item veto on the entire federal budget
government workers Krauthammer: “nepotistic incompetents”
mainstream media “house-broken” by Obama
Medicare premium support means-testing.
muscle and fat ; (aka, “non-essential fluff”) any federal programs for: job-training, nutrition assistance, teacher quality, financial literacy, homelessness alleviation or teen pregnancy
private world (aka, “imperious overreach”) continuing meme of Obama’s weirdness, aloofness,  haughtiness, superiority complex
squander what happens when Democrats spend money on anything; 85% of gvt. spending is “sinfully wasteful and corrupt”
Voting Rights Act, Section V a politicized weapon. Scalia: “a perpetuation of racial entitlement”. Any reference to race is now called “racialism”.