Nixon-Like Quagmires
I am rather enjoying reading accounts of the unravelling of the Bush Felonious Wiretapping Scandal, and find myself wondering, of the following, which is the more invidious comparison to become current for the administration:
- Calling the elective war in Iraq "another Vietnam quagmire"; or
- Callig Bush's escapades "Nixon-like"?
Either would seem to me to be a political kiss-of-death, although it's true that Republicans these days seem nearly as impervious to destruction as cockroaches.
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on Tuesday, 10 January 2006 at 03.30
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I trust you're talking about political destruction.
Yes, that's the hell of it. The hard core right-wing base — voters, campaign contributors and officeholders alike — delights in perversity, in Bush, Rove, DeLay et al being a sharp stick in the eye of all the many others they see as hateful obstacles and unworthy opponents.
At the same time, and just like Bush, Rove, DeLay et al, they want above all else to win and to keep on winning. They believe quite literally that winning isn't just the best thing, it's the only thing.
So, DeLay was their hero, a leader they'd follow anywhere — right up to the moment he was perceived as someone who might stand in the way of other Republicans winning, of the Republican Caucus keeping control of the House.
They keep winning in part because they keep attracting big money. But a big part of it, I believe, is that they're not bothered by standards, scruples or what anyone thinks about how they win. Are the Swiftboat Vets paid slimers? No problem, as long people are swayed by their slime. Is DeLay a black hole for ethics? No problem, as long as he keeps the money rolling in and keeps coming up with dirty deals like getting Texas redistricted halfway between censuses. And so on, ad nauseam.