GOP Chairman: Hillary Shows Lot of Anger
Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, a potential presidential contender in 2008, “seems to have a lot of anger” and voters usually do not send angry candidates to the White House, the Republican Party chairman said Sunday. “When you think of the level of anger, I’m not sure it’s what Americans want,” said Ken Mehlman, head of the Republican National Committee.
Get ready, because you can bet we’re going to be hearing this theme being pounded for the next 2+ years. Republicans will be (in not these exact words, of course) devoting an inordinate amount of time and energy trying to paint Sen. Clinton as a castrating bitch. Remember, men are passionate and possess strong convictions. Women are angry, vindictive bitches. It’s not fair, and it’s not even particularly accurate, but this is indicative of the way that the GOP leadership does business. All is fair in love, war, and politics, and if character assassination works, then so be it.
Personally, I think Ken Mehlman should be ashamed of himself, but if there is one thing that Mehlman has demonstrated himself to be constitutionally incapable of, it’s contrition. Mehlman’s value to the GOP is that he is willing to do the dirty work of advancing his party’s interests by whatever means necessary. Playing by the rules doesn’t win elections, and Mehlman has never been one to play by the rules. Smug, arrogant, and willing to do whatever it takes to trample his adversaries, Mehlman represents everything that is wrong with politics in this country today.
Mehlman cited the New York senator’s remarks on Martin Luther King Day in which she called the Bush administration “one of the worst” in history and compared the Republican-controlled House to a plantation where opposing voices are silenced.
“I don’t think the American people, if you look historically, elect angry candidates. And whether it’s the comments about the plantation or the worst administration in history, Hillary Clinton seems to have a lot of anger,” Mehlman told ABC’s “This Week.”
When contacted for a response, Clinton spokesman Howard Wolfson said, “If the president and the White House spent half as much time worrying about the runaway deficit and the broken Medicare system as they do about Hillary Clinton, the country would be in much better shape.”
Agreed. Of course, engaging in some major league character assassination certainly beats the hell out of debating the issues, no? Yes, it’s certainly much more effective when you can paint your female adversary as a angry, vindictive, bitter, castrating bitch. It’s lousy politics, and it’s a hell of a way to debate the best way to chart the future of this nation, but if you’re expecting enlightened, uplifting political debate from Ken Mehlman, I wouldn’t recommend holding your breath.
