Let us not be prey

2008 

From an editorial in the Sunday New York Times:

Ever since Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry started criticizing Mitt Romney’s actions at Bain Capital — and talking about the thousands of people laid off as a result of Bain’s investments — party leaders have essentially told them to shut up. That response is a pretty good indication of how deeply party elders fear the issue of economic inequality in the campaign to come.

 

The Dems are watching. And what they're noticing is not so much the Gingrich-Perry mud-slinging at Romney as the dramatic - and completely uninhibited - response of the Republican Ruling Class. Granted, our candidates need to choose their words thoughtfully and carefully... but they're not the only ones. This is a teachable moment for the Republican establishment (including its pundits), but I doubt they'll make the effort to see it that way.

If we're going to vaunt the concept of individual responsibility and sell the public on self-discipline as its inherent characteristic, then maybe we need to start practicing what we preach instead of doing exactly what we criticize Obama for -- blaming everyone but himself.

Just a thought.

Comments

[yeshiva son]

I think the reaction to Gingrich and Perry has been extremely strange and bewildering.

[Mannie Sherberg]

I doubt the party establishment fears the issue of income inequality. More than likely, they fear that a "dangerous" candidate may emerge from the primaries -- someone who really believes in the need to balance the budget -- and quickly, really believes in cutting spending and radically restructurung -- or even eliminating -- entitlements, who really believes Iran must not get a nuclear weapon, who really believes the worldwide jihad must be fought for as long as it takes to assure America's safety -- in other words, a candidate who will take seriously his vow to protect and defend the Constitution. Such a candidate would rock the boat and dump a lot of cargo -- and maybe even some passengers -- overboard. That's something no establishment can tolerate. Imagine -- just imagine -- a candidate who really, truly, honestly believed in and pursued the notion of a "part-time congress." Unthinkable!.