Chris Kofinis is wrong saying he wants the GOP to follow its extreme right wing!


Hello Everyone:

Chris Kofinis is a "Democratic Strategist" who Keith Olbermann regularly has on Countdown. Kofinis in my opinion made a very risky and dangerous assumption about the future last Tuesday night!

On Tuesday, August 11, Chris Kofinis told Keith Olbermann on his Countdown program that the goal of the Republican Party throwing out its moderates "is apparently to lose. Everything he just mentioned is not a recipe for electoral success... So there's a reason why Republicans keep losing elections. And if they keep this path up or this strategy up, it's only going to get worse and worse and worse:"

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32386278/ns/msnbc_tv-countdown_with_keith_olbermann/

'Countdown with Keith Olbermann' for Tuesday, August 11
Read the transcript to the Tuesday show

Guests: Lawrence O'Donnell, Shannyn Moore, Chris Kofinis, Melissa Harris-Lacewell

KEITH OLBERMANN, HOST: "Joining us from Washington, Democratic strategist Chris Kofinis. Chris, good evening.

CHRIS KOFINIS, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Good evening, Keith.

OLBERMANN: Let me start, as we always do whenever we bring up a subject like this, with the big Republican marketing plan, which I don't really see. Throw out the moderates. Alienate the minorities. Asked for ID Before letting anybody in the big tent. Get rid of the young people. Eliminate anybody merely as nuanced as Meghan McCain, or more nuanced than Meghan McCain. The goal of this is what?

KOFINIS: Well, it is apparently to lose. Everything he just mentioned is not a recipe for electoral success. The Republican party is in an ideological track. The moderates, as you pointed out, have been pushed out. The ones who are left are the screamers, whether they're at town halls, or whether it's people like Michelle Malkin and Ann Coulter and others.

And what ends up happening is that the louder they scream, the more they alienate moderates, and I would say independents. So overall, you have a serious problem in terms of being able to reach out to the critical new demographics that any party needs to be able to reach out to and attract, if you're going to be competitive in elections.

So there's a reason why Republicans keep losing elections. And if they keep this path up or this strategy up, it's only going to get worse and worse and worse..."

Chris Kofinis in my opinion is ONLY right about what he is saying IF most of the moderates and independents who he mentioned view Obama and the Democrats as having been successful by 2010 and/or 2012!

While I want Obama to succeed and while every sane person should want Obama to succeed for the good of the country, it is definitely possible that Obama's policies could either not work or could not work fast enough to the satisfaction of most moderates and independents by the 2010 and/or 2012 elections as I have very thoroughly and credibly documented:

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/17644

Why so much talk about "Republican irrelevance" now is premature and dangerous!

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on May 31, 2009 - 8:08am.

What I think Chris Kofinis is missing is that IF Obama's policies either do not work or do not work fast enough to the satisfaction of most moderates and independents by the 2010 and/or 2012 elections, then the Republicans can get free votes pretty much by default in those elections regardless of what they are doing internally and regardless of whether or not they have ideas of their own!

Many Democratic candidates running in 2006 and 2008 did the same thing to basically get free votes when they mainly ran against Bush saying "I will stand up to Bush while my opponent will rubber-stamp him!"

I think that David Frum and Gloria Borger explained the "big risk" that Chris Kofinis is wanting to take very well in this CNN panel dialogue:

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0907/28/sitroom.03.html

THE SITUATION ROOM

Jackson Doctor's Home Searched; Sotomayor One Step Closer to Supreme Court

Aired July 28, 2009 - 18:00 ET

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: "There are mid-term elections next year and then re- election, potentially, in 2012.

If he turns -- if the economy turns around within the next year, what happens in the mid-term elections?

DAVID FRUM, FORMER BUSH SPEECHWRITER: Well, you have to remember this -- as I've been saying on the show, this stimulus package is a 2010 Democratic election package. I mean it is -- it did not deliver much in 2009, but there will be a steady stream of ribbon cutting events all through 2010.

So if there is economic progress, if we don't have a double dip, if we don't -- if unemployment does come down despite the households out there paying back debt, then they'll have something of a case.

GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: On the other hand, if -- if unemployment is in the -- in the double digits, then they're going to lose Congressional seats. And -- and they know that.

And so they're worried about that. They're not very sanguine, saying oh, it's over, it's over, it's over. They're very worried about what's going to happen in 2010. As I said, they put a big risk...

BLITZER: And there's a big worry down the road -- not now -- of inflation. That could be a huge problem..."

Paul Begala understands this concept and the big risk that Democrats are taking when he said on July 30 that Democrats in Congress who are running in 2010 feel as "nervous as a hooker in church:"

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0907/30/sitroom.02.html

THE SITUATION ROOM

Custody Deal on Jackson's Kids; White House Beer Chat; Neda's Grave Is Scene of New Clash; Taliban Code of Conduct

Aired July 30, 2009 - 17:00 ET

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: "Because, Paul, with every month that goes by it's going to be increasingly more difficult for him to blame Bush.

PAUL BEGALA, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Absolutely. And I -- but he has, as the poets have said, world enough in time. He (Obama) doesn't have to run until 2012. He has his party up in 2010.

BLITZER: And they're nervous.

BEGALA: I was on Capitol Hill this morning. Believe me, they're nervous as a hooker in church. They want to make sure that things are doing better by the time they run. And here's the thing. They have to pass a health care bill. They have to. Something that the president can sign..."

A big question that I have for Chris Kofinis is if he is right that Republicans will keep on losing elections if they "Throw out the moderates" regardless of the economic and foreign policy circumstances in 2010 and/or 2012, then why are so many Democrats who are running in 2010 as "nervous as a hooker in church?" What do Democrats who are running in 2010 have to be nervous about IF Kofinis is right?

Chris Kofinis in my opinion was dead wrong when he jokingly ended this interview laughing on Countdown saying that he wants the Republican Party "to follow the Ann Coulter, Michelle Malkin, Laura Ingraham. I think that is a brilliant strategy for the long term. I mean, that is a recipe for electoral success. Keep following it, please, please. As a Democrat, please follow it." Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow in my opinion were just as wrong to very quickly agree with Chris Kofinis right after he said this:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32386278/ns/msnbc_tv-countdown_with_keith_olbermann/

'Countdown with Keith Olbermann' for Tuesday, August 11
Read the transcript to the Tuesday show

Guests: Lawrence O'Donnell, Shannyn Moore, Chris Kofinis, Melissa Harris-Lacewell

KEITH OLBERMANN, HOST: "And in 15 seconds, as a Democratic strategist, who do you want the Republican party to follow of these two groups?

CHRIS KOFINIS, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: I want them to follow the Ann Coulter, Michelle Malkin, Laura Ingraham. I think that is a brilliant strategy for the long term. I mean, that is a recipe for electoral success. Keep following it, please, please. As a Democrat, please follow it.

OLBERMANN: This message has been brought to you by Chris Kofinis, Democratic strategist. Thanks, Chris.

KOFINIS: Thanks.

OLBERMANN: That's COUNTDOWN for this the 2,294th day since the previous president declared mission accomplished in Iraq. I'm Keith Olbermann, good night and good luck...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32386235/ns/msnbc_tv-rachel_maddow_show/

'The Rachel Maddow Show' for Tuesday, August 11
Read the transcript to the Tuesday show

Guests: Kent Jones, John Rother,Sherrod Brown, David Goldsmith

RACHEL MADDOW, HOST: Good evening. I would take advice from Chris Kofinis on anything.

KEITH OLBERMANN, "COUNTDOWN" HOST: Yes.

MADDOW: So, I don't know why the Republicans wouldn't.

OLBERMANN: Well, because it would probably-it might make some sense.

(LAUGHTER)

OLBERMANN: OK. Never mind. Back to work.

MADDOW: Thank you at home for tuning in tonight for the next hour..."

This Countdown video is much better than the transcript in my opinion to watch all of the laughing that Kofinis and Olbermann were doing (this part of the interview with all of the laughing that took place starts at about 04:56 into the video):

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/vp/32380585#32380585 (05:28)

Meghan McCain vs. right wing’s ‘trifecta’
Aug. 11: Democratic strategist Chris Kofinis weighs in with Countdown’s Keith Olbermann on whether Meghan McCain should continue her verbal battle against Michelle Malkin, Ann Coulter and Laura Ingraham.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/vp/32380585#32380585 (05:28)

In summary, Chris Kofinis in my opinion is wrong in both the short term and in the long term. If the Republicans follow their moderates right now, then Obama will have a much easier time trying to pass his major legislation in the short term and Republicans will be much easier to work with overall in the long term even though they may be more difficult to beat in elections even if Obama's policies work out!

However if Obama's policies either do not work or do not work fast enough to the satisfaction of most moderates and independents by the 2010 and/or 2012 elections, then the Republicans will pretty much get free votes by default regardless of their internal disputes and regardless of whether or not they have ideas of their own. All they basically have to say is that "I will stand up to Obama and stop his massive spending while my opponent will support Obama's spending."

If Chris Kofinis gets his way and if the Republicans follow people like Ann Coulter, Michelle Malkin, and Laura Ingraham, then Obama will have MANY more difficulties trying to pass his major agenda in the short term and these ideologues following their godfather Rush Limbaugh will be running the Republican Party IF Obama should lose in 2012 which is a real possibility!

My big question to Chris Kofinis is do you really want the Republican Party to follow its extreme right wing instead of its moderates when you are taking a very big risk that ideologues like Jim DeMint and Michele Bachmann will be taking over the leadership of the Republican Party if Obama loses in 2012?

Taking that big of a risk is very dangerous, it is unnecessary, and it is insane in my opinion. I am sure that Obama would much rather work with moderate Republicans so that he can pass his agenda easier in the short term and so that there will not be as big of a chance of ideologues like Jim DeMint and Michele Bachmann running the GOP if Obama loses in 2012 or when Democrats eventually lose power.

Hostory shows that no party has ever had a permanent majority and heaven help this country if ideologues like Jim DeMint and Michele Bachmann are in control of the Republican Party when it eventually wins their next election. That will put us right back into the extreme Neocon ideology of the Bush-Cheney years!

I really hope that there are not too many Democrats who think like Chris Kofinis and want the Republican Party to follow its ideologues because that is a very risky and dangerous position to hold in my opinion!

Mitch Dworkin

http://mitchdworkin.com/
Check out my new political website!

http://www.securingamerica.com/

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/16039
RESOURCES: Speeches, Articles, and Career Highlights to help define Gen. Clark!
Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on July 7, 2008 - 2:51pm.

http://www.securingamerica.com/ccn/node/7191
Listen to Gen. Wes Clark fight for Dems on Sean Hannity's radio program: An excellent example for all of us to follow and what we all need to be doing to help fight back against extreme right wing Neocon smear propaganda!

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on August 13, 2009 - 4:57pm.

Is this what Chris Kofinis (or anyone else) really wants to seriously risk happening IF the Republican Party follows its extreme right wing now and IF the Republicans should get back power in 2012, 2016, or at some other time in the future?  The moderate wing of the Republican Party can probably stop this potential nightmare from happening IF they get back control of the GOP as soon as possible: 

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/today.guest.html

Our Time Will Come, Liberals


We'll get our country back. And payback will be hell.

Here is the full article from Rush Limbaugh about his dangerous threat:

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_021109/content/01125107.guest.html

Our Time Will Come, Liberals

February 11, 2009

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: I got an e-mail.  This is from Susan in Virginia Beach.  "Dear Rush:  You are my professor.  I am indebted to you for the knowledge that you have given me.  You've always told us that you would tell us when it was time to panic.  I'm starting to wonder how we are going to get our country back from these revolutionaries.  Is it time to panic?"  No.  'Cause panic doesn't accomplish anything.  But when we come back from the break, I'm going to tell you how to get the country back.  I'm going to tell you how it will happen, and I'm going to suggest what we might do when we get it back, because we will, 'cause these people are going to overreach.  They are not going to win every election from here on out unless they end elections, which I wouldn't rule out they're dreaming about doing.  

So when we come back from the break I'll tell you how we're going to get our country back, and I'll tell you what we're going to do when we get our country back.  I'll give you a little hint.  We're going to treat them the same way they have been treating us for years.  We are going to subject them to the same things they have subjected us to, and we are going to have a big and strong and powerful government to wield against them because they're in the process of building it.  And we're going to win it back one day, and when we win this country back, and this government back, we are going to deploy government against them the way they have been deploying it against us, and let them find out what it's like, and they're not going to be able to stop it, because they will not have a power base anywhere that will let them stop it.

RUSH:  Is it time to panic?  No, my friends, it's not time to panic, because nothing gets done in a panic. What we have to realize is this: the left, the Democrat Party, will not control the government forever.  It just will not happen.  They are going to overreach. They're going to overreach pretty quickly.  Polling data already shows that, in a generic race for Congress, it's tied Republican and Democrat.  Only when you put the names in...  Nobody can believe this.  Fifty-six percent of the American people now are in opposition to the stimulus in total or in part.  By the way, about the negotiations: They're trying to ram this through just like amnesty. They're trying to ram this through, and they're using the same tactics that they used with global warming.  It's a fear of crisis.  We can't wait; we gotta do it now.  The conference negotiations are going on with not one Republican being permitted to participate.

Did you know that?  Not one Republican from the House, not one Republican Senator is involved in the conference between the House and the Senate to come up with a bill that both support.  Not one Republican in this new era of responsibility, not one Republican in this new era of bipartisanship.  Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid have shut the Republicans out.  This is from Mike Pence, congressman from Indiana.  So, let 'em go ahead with these tactics.  We can't stop them anyway.  We lost the election.  But they're going to lose down the road.  They will not control government forever, and when our turn comes, we are going to turn the power of government against the left.  We are going to investigate them. We are going to hold public hearings. We are going to humiliate them. We're going to nationalize their unions. We're going to fund our groups for a change.

If they can give ACORN $4.1 billion then we can start paying our groups with federal money.  We're going to do exactly to them what they have done to us.  We're going to build and use the big government that they have built and turn it right against them.  We are gonna turn the power of government against the left, and against Democrats in ways they cannot imagine.  They will not know what hit them.  They are using the law. They are using government to advance a cause that is un-American.  Yes! They are using law. They are using government to advance a cause that is un-American.  We are going to use the power of that left is centralizing in the federal government to punish them, to break 'em up, and to make them pay for this.  It's time for tit-for-tat.  Nice guy playing by the rules when they don't, is over.  It's time they got a taste of their own medicine, and it's going to happen, folks, because they're not going to hold power forever.  

The left -- you people, you Democrats -- you are creating a monster that you will not be able to control forever.  You will ultimately regret what you are doing just like the media will ultimately regret its sacrifice of reason, its abandonment of its primary purpose.  The day is coming when the media will actually investigate a Democrat and find some problems and nobody's going to believe them because they've lost all credibility.  Nobody believes what the mainstream media says now anyway.  Except the uneducated, the illiterate, and the uninformed -- which, sadly, is a fairly large number.  Well, we'll deal with that.  We are taking names.  We are taking names now.  We are monitoring who on the left is going to deserve payback, and it's going to be hell.  This much I promise you.  This is just getting out of hand.  

We're gonna come after the left's favorite corporations.  We're going to come after your favorite political constituents.  We're going to come after your favorite media outlets.  You want to try the Fairness Doctrine?  Fine.  We'll impose it on network television.  We'll impose it on newspapers.  You want to try censorship? Fine! We will censor you when we get the control of the government back.  We will reapportion districts using the Census to help conservatives.  We're going to turn the power of government against the Democrats and the left and weaken and you break you into little pieces. Because, my friends, the day has passed when we can become passive and be passive about what they are doing.  We will use the political and the legal system as they have and are, and we will use it to promote our party and to diminish theirs.  We will use the power of government and legal system to promote our movement and our agenda, just as they are.  

If they are going to bastardize the American system, if they are going to make this government large and powerful and intrusive, someday they're going to lose it. But they're going to lose it after having amassed all this power.  We will control it, and we're going to turn it right back against them.  We will build a massive army of patriots to counter ACORN.  We will defund ACORN.  We'll defund the labor unions, and we will fund our own people to go out and zap ACORN.  And we will do everything we can to enhance anti-union employment. We will make sure that when companies lose money, that the people that get canned are union people.  We're going to use the power of government just like the left is using the power of government.  We're going to use the justice department. 

We're going to go after big unions with the justice department. We're going to find all of the criminal activity. We are going to find all the lack of ethics. We are going to find every bit of corruption we can, and we're gonna sic the attorney general and the justice department and the US attorneys on you people just as you have been doing to the people of the right and the Republican Party for 50 years.  And then we're going to find George Soros and other concentrations of left-wing power and wealth.  And we're going to focus our attention on him, so that the American people will finally learn just who the hell paid for the bastardization of the United States, just who the hell paid for the destruction of the American way of life.  

We have learned from you leftists.  We have sat by, we have watched, and we've been too passive.  We have sat on the sidelines as impotent observers, and we have trusted in the goodness and the decency of the American people.  But you have even perverted them.  It was a disgrace what was on display in Fort Myers, Florida, yesterday.  It was an absolute saddening, shocking, depressing disgrace.  And you have created that segment of America that has no faith in and of itself, no faith in this country, and thinks the only reason to talk to a president is to ask him for a kitchen, to ask him for a car. By the way, asking a president for a new car who hasn't even given his brother who lives in a hut a welcome home mat!  I don't think he's given his brother a pot, much less a pan.  

His brother lives in a nine-square-foot hut in Nairobi.  You're asking the president of the United States...? God bless these people. What has this government done to them?  What has the media in this country done to these people, depriving them of the very essence of humanity?  So sense of self, no pride.  This is what Democrats and the left do to people.  They rob people of their humanity, of their goodness and their decency. They rob them of confidence.  We are going to restore this.  We are going to use the power of the government to tell people how good they can be, how important they are, and how much happier they will be if they're not looking to our president for the next kitchen or the car or a job.  We're going to become activists.  We'll take back our government.  

It's going to be a bigger, more powerful, stronger government -- and we're going to turn it against the left in ways they could have never imagined.  So, Sue in Virginia Beach, we can't do any of this if we panic.  I know some of you saying, "Rush, it all sounds great, but who's going to do this?"  Well, folks, I admit that you look out on the horizon right now and you don't see a single person in the political class willing to do this.  But before these people on the left get through, there is going to be so much anger and outrage among the people who made this country work, who are now being targeted as the enemies.  You who have jobs, you who have played by the rules, you who are not asking anybody for your next kitchen, you're the enemy -- and it isn't going to be long before the people of this country get fed up enough that they're going to want to turn the tables on the people who are trying to destroy America as we have always known it.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Carol has been waiting awhile.  I appreciate that, Carol. It's nice to have you here on the EIB Network.  Hello.

CALLER:  Hi, Rush.  Thank you for having me on.  I appreciate it.

RUSH:  You bet.

CALLER:  Rush, I wanted to tell you, this morning when you started off, you were just inspiring. I was getting so inspired. You were talking about how, when the Republicans come back, you know, they're going to take this strong government that the Democrats have built and they're going to turn it on them.  And I was thinking, yeah, yeah, yeah.  And then I was thinking -- you know, it came to me -- "Wait a minute," you know? "What Republicans is he talking about?"  The Republicans that I remember were always so careful to make sure they included the Democrats in everything they did.  What makes you think they won't do that again?

RUSH:  Well, it's a crapshoot. I agree.  You have a very important observation.  This is something, however, that I think we're going to try to inspire.  I think, you know, if the Democrats go as far as I think they're going to go, it is going to cause anger and outrage like you can't believe.  But the point of that whole monologue was these people are using the power and the finances of the federal government to defeat political opposition, to build up this grand old socialist system that destroys capitalism in the process, or tries to.  To me, I'm just getting fed up. You know, we play by the rules all the time, and we aim for the hearts and minds of the American people, the American voter -- and these people are trying to dumb everybody down.  

They want to talk about investigating George W. Bush for war crimes.  Well, by God, I want to investigate Barney Frank! I want to investigate Chris Dodd! I want to investigate Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, and all these things.  I want the truth to get out, I want to use federal money to fund our groups and our organizations.  I want to investigate George Soros and find out just exactly what his role has been in precipitating this economic decline we're in for the political purposes of defeating Republicans and electing Democrats.  I think that between now and then, hopefully there's a battle that is raging within the conservative movement over what conservatism is and who is going to lead it, and the same thing is happening in the Republican Party.  I'm hoping all this happens to coalesce.  There will be efforts made to bring all this to bear.  I know it sounds like it's a long shot, but this is what we hope to inspire, because it's payback time.  It's not enough just to beat these people in elections.  It's time to give them a dose (or multiple doses) of their own medicine, and it's something I want to work toward and see to it that it happens. It's not time to panic yet.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH:  Let me answer Carol from Spring, Texas, and her question again.  She said, "You know, I loved that monologue you did, but then I thought, where are the Republicans that are going to engage in this kind of payback?"  Carol, the simple answer is by the time we get to that point, those are the only kind of Republicans that have a chance of getting elected.  That is how bad it is going to get.  The only Republicans that are going to have a chance of getting elected or reelected are those that are outraged over what has been done to their country, and not only want to fix it, but they want to name names, they want people to know exactly who it was that destroyed the capitalist system for their own personal political gain. 

END TRANSCRIPT

Read the Background Material...

National Review: Centrists Are Over the Line

http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MzllNjhlODVjMTE5MjBiNjRhMGM1MTQ0ZDE2MjI4NmQ=

American Spectator: Obama's Failed and Tired Ideas From the Past

http://spectator.org/archives/2009/02/11/obamas-failed-and-tired-ideas

Wall Street Journal: Reaganomics vs. Obamanomics

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123431484726570949.html

*Note: Links to content outside RushLimbaugh.com usually become inactive over time.

Submitted by guitrock on August 18, 2009 - 12:23am.

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on May 31, 2009 - 8:08am.

Here is a great point you made in your well-documented and thought-out post:

"What I think Chris Kofinis is missing is that If Obama's policies either do not work or do not work fast enough to the satisfaction of most moderates and independents by the 2010 and/or 2012 elections, then the Republicans can get free votes pretty much by default in those elections regardless of what they are doing internally and regardless of whether or not they have ideas of their own!"

Right on. And the Democrats need to find a pragmatic way to keep this situation from happening in 2010 and 2012.

From a political standpoint, the minority party being a party of "no" is not a bad strategy at all. President Obama has some ambitious ideas, some of which I like quite a bit. He is the only person I have seen that is able to communicate with the public.

The Congressional Democrats have proven over and over again that they can't handle being the majority party. They are leaderless, disorganized, fractured, and unable to communicate a coherent message. The Republicans need only to sit back and criticize every Democratic proposal. They don't need any new ideas - only opposition to what the Democrats want. If the state of the country has not improved within a year the Democrats could lose big in the 2010 elections.

Someone posted a entry on another blog today, insinuating that the Republicans' use of false and/or misleading statements ("death panels"), etc., would come back to haunt them. I don't think so. As I replied in my post, people generally embrace things and ideas which appeal to their ideology. The truth of what people choose to believe is often irrelevant. There are various idiotic notions floating around in politics, and many citizens cling to them like their own child. Even outright lies by the opposition party don't appear to have a downside. It is naive to be "shocked" by the litany of craziness which is spewed to the public. The idea is not to communicate the truth, but to gain political advantage. And it works.

Mitch, thanks for all the good work you do.

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on August 18, 2009 - 3:57pm.

("death panels"), etc., would come back to haunt them."

I agree with your comment and thank you for your nice compliment!

I do NOT think that this will come back to haunt the Republicans as long as Obama and the Democrats keep on losing the message war to Rush Limbaugh and the GOP attack machine and I do not see any light at the end of the tunnel of that happening:

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/17836

ANALYSIS: Why Obama is losing the health care message war to the other side

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on August 13, 2009 - 6:28am.

I agree with Chris Hayes of The Nation when he made the point that the fringe right is accepted as being in the mainstream more than the fringe left is. This is another reason why I think that the Republicans' use of false and/or misleading statements ("death panels"), etc., will probably NOT come back to haunt them very much as long as they are still winning the message war:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32401486/ns/msnbc_tv-countdown_with_keith_olbermann/

'Countdown with Keith Olbermann' for Wednesday, August 12
Read the transcript to the Wednesday show

Guests: Arianna Huffington, Mark Potok, Chris Hayes, David Iglesias, Christian Finnegan

CHRIS HAYES, THE NATION: "I mean, Michelle Malkin goes on.

KEITH OLBERMANN, HOST: Yes.

HAYES: . the network Sunday shows after writing a book calling for internment of people. I mean, this is-there are a lot that you can be much further on the fringe of the right and be accepted in mainstream discourse than you can be on the left.

OLBERMANN: And if you call them out on this, it is dismissed as some sort of idea of rivalry as opposed to.

HAYES: Right..."

Here is the Countdown video link to watch this dialogue:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/vp/32395539#32395539 (05:37)

Geico pulls ads from Glenn Beck show
Aug. 12: The Nation's Chris Hayes and Countdown's Keith Olbermann talk about the growing list of advertisers fleeing the Glenn Beck show.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/vp/32395539#32395539 (05:37)

With this being true in my opinion, it makes Obama winning the message war on health care even more difficult!

Last Sunday, this CNN panel of fair minded pundits (in my opinion) explained why Sarah Palin and the Republicans are winning the message debate on health care and why Democrats are losing right now. I agree with their evaluation of the situation:

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0908/16/sotu.03.html

STATE OF THE UNION WITH JOHN KING

Sound of Sunday

Aired August 16, 2009 - 11:00 ET

JOHN KING, HOST: "Too hot to handle politically, does Sarah Palin win this debate?

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's the one-sentence story, which is easier to explain? Advance care planning or they want euthanasia? And as much as the Democrats try to explain this one, it gets down into the weeds. It's very difficult for them, probably they just want to move on.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I think the Democrats have lost the debate on this issue, even though when they explain it, it makes sense, and I think Chuck Grassley saying it's not going to be in there means it's not going to be in there.

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: And people don't understand that that's the reason they're so confused about it and scared about it, they keep hearing, pull the plug on grandma, and the president mentions this time and time again. It's not about that, but it's still controversial...

KING: Paying more, ending up with worse care. Have the Republicans, the conservative critics won, at least the first two weeks of August?

JOHNS: Wow.

(CROSSTALK)

KEILAR: I think even some Democrats will admit -- I've heard from many Democratic leadership aides in the Senate that at this point conservatives have the upper hand on this.

Why? Because -- well, first off, I should say seniors are very concerned about Medicare. This was a huge issue in Poplar Bluffs, Missouri. And most of the folks in the audience were seniors concerned about that.

But they were also concerned about this idea of the end of life care, so why do conservatives have the upper hand? It's because these issues about money in there for abortion, is that in there? And you have Democrats saying, absolutely not, it's not in there.

But they're talking about it. They're talking about end-of-life care. And they're not on-message because they have to debunk all of these things that they say are myths, and so, yes, they're completely distracted.

(CROSSTALK)

JOHNS: Go ahead.

LOTHIAN: No, I think if you want to look at who won, just look at what the president has been doing. In Portsmouth, New Hampshire, what we saw the president do is come out and say, listen, I don't want this to be just sort of friendly questions. I want some tough questions.

He did that at the beginning of the town hall. And then at the end he went out of his way to make sure the...

KING: Almost begging for a fight.

LOTHIAN: Begging for a fight. And so clearly that shows that this administration knows that they have some ground to make up. And they want the tough questions because they want to set the record straight. And the only way to win is to get their message out there. And right now the town halls and all of the things that are circulating on the Internet right now are winning.

JOHNS: The message is the thing, you're absolutely right. Democratic strategists I've talked to say the Democrats look like they're back on their heels, they're explaining issues when they should be asserting their positions. And they say it all stems from a lack of a unified message at the outset.

There were a bunch of different bills floating out there. They couldn't just sort of zero in and talk about enough specifics to try to persuade people. Also, there's just a lot of opposition.

KEILAR: And that's what Democrats want, is to focus the message. How do they focus the message? The way they see it, President Obama. Get him out there. People seem to be yelling at him less and he -- and they see that really as their godsend and that is what they want. They want health care.

LOTHIAN: And he's going to be going out there a lot more. Robert Gibbs, spokesman at the White House, saying that he will be going out a lot during September. So we'll see more town halls from the president.

KING: During September. Does he have a town hall at Martha's Vineyard on vacation?

(LAUGHTER)

(CROSSTALK)

KING: All right. A quick break here..."

While I know that what I am saying may not be popular, I definitely believe that this is the main reason why nobody should be surprised that Obama is losing the message war to the Republicans in the health care debate right now:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,184342,00.html

Transcript: Rush Limbaugh on 'Your World'

Thursday, February 09, 2006

RUSH LIMBAUGH, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: "Neil, there is a new media out there today that doesn't let the left get away with defining the news, defining the circumstances, defining personalities and so forth.

And they haven't learned how to deal with it. They haven't learned how to deal with people like me, the problems they think FOX News causes, and everybody else. They are still in their 30-year-old playbook, in which they think they still — all they have to do is, you know, portray somebody they want to portray them, and the American people will see it, swallow it, and like it..."

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_100807/content/01125111.guest.html

Rush Limbaugh for President?

October 8, 2007

RUSH: "I'm not running for anything, and yet they think I'm their biggest obstacle. They have as much as admitted this, because, not only do I influence you, I influence elected officials, they think, and they fear. So I have to be the focal point...

RUSH: See, the point is, I am the Mr. Big, because I am the one who gets to voters. I am the one who gets to voters in their hearts and minds and changes them, persuades them -- with the truth. They can't handle the light of truth, folks. That's why this program is a threat..."

Obama in my opinion has never learned how to deal with this and he does not even like dealing with it:

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/16555#comment-328296

Obama not understanding the GOP attack machine & how to fight it...

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on September 15, 2008 - 11:05am.

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on November 29, 2009 - 10:32pm.

in America right now way ahead of anyone else (the "None of them" choice came in second place):

http://www.vanityfair.com/magazine/2010/01/60-minutes-poll-201001?currentPage=8

January 2010 Issue

The Vanity Fair/60 Minutes Poll

Who among the following do you think is currently the MOST INFLUENTIAL CONSERVATIVE voice in America?


                             TOTAL   MEN    WOMEN  18–44  
45–64   65+

Rush Limbaugh           26%      32%       20%    27%   27%    22%

Glenn Beck                11          10         11        8        15      10

Sarah Palin                10           8          13        12       9        7

Sean Hannity              8            11         5         10       6        7

Dick Cheney               10           11        9          11      8        12

John Boehner              4             5         3           3       6        6

None of them              15           14        17         16     13       16

To answer the questions yourself, visit the 60 Minutes homepage at CBSNews.com.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/11/24/60minutes/main5761182_page7.shtml?tag=contentMain;contentBody

< Page 8 of 11 >

NOTE: This survey is based on a random sample of 855 respondents nationwide. It was conducted by telephone November 6 to 8 by CBS News. Some low-percentage answer choices have been omitted.

Also, prominent Democrats like James Carville should definitely NOT be rooting for Sarah Palin by saying things about her like "run, baby, run" in 2012 because it is very possible that she could win on a default basis IF Obama's policies do not work out as he expected on one or more major issues:

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0911/16/ltm.03.html

AMERICAN MORNING

Obama in China; Illinois Prison May House Gitmo Transfers; Sarah Palin Candidate for Presidency?; Some Consider Obama Dangerous for America

Aired November 16, 2009 - 08:00   ET

KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: "All right, James, I want to switch gears really quickly and ask you -- what is the most important thing...

(CROSSTALK)

JAMES CARVILLE, CNN POLITICAL CONTRIBUTOR: Three words for Sarah Palin.

CHETRY: Go ahead.

CARVILLE: I think the most important thing is, run, baby, run. I just -- I hope her -- and look, this kind of entertainment can't be beat. I'm serious. It's fun talking about this. She's a complete hoot. She's got a charming; she's got an interesting story. You know what I mean.

CHETRY: Did you say hoot?

CARVILLE: Yes, a hoot, fun.

CHETRY: All right..."

It will NOT be "entertainment" IF Sarah Palin wins the 2012 Republican nomination because she is so popular with the hard core GOP activist base and IF she wins in the general election basically on a default basis because one or more of his major policies did not work out as he expected and he is in bad political shape just like how Jimmy Carter was back in 1980!

Sarah Palin is basically a traveling stooge for Rush Limbaugh and she is just as much of an ideologue as Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC), and Ann Coulter are.  If she or someone else like her ever becomes President, then the next sound that you will hear after the 21 gun salute on January 20 will be our bombs falling on Iran, North Korea, and any other countries who they do not like. There will be war, more war, and even more war!

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