February 25, 2015 6:19 AM

Scott Walker: Not the face of evil...but maybe the other end?

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) said on Saturday he isn’t sure if President Barack Obama is a Christian…. “I don’t know,” Walker said when asked about it by The Washington Post at a DC hotel where the National Governors Association was holding a meeting. Walker’s comment came a day after he gave a similar answer to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about whether he believes Obama loves America. Both questions stem from a reception for the governor that was held on Wednesday night in Manhattan, an event in which former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) told the crowd he doubts Obama loves America. The Post reminded Walker that Obama has frequently discussed his Christian faith in light of fringe claims that he’s a secret Muslim…. “I’ve never actually talked about it or I haven’t read about that,” Walker said,according to the paper. “I’ve never asked him that.”

I agree with Gov. Walker’s contention that the “Do you think Obama is a Christian?” question is patently absurd…but that’s where I part ways with him. Yes, the question is ridiculous, but Walker portrayed himself as even more ridiculous with his answer. He knows full well that Obama has frequently discussed his Christian faith and made it abundantly clearly which side of the theological divide he comes down on. That Walker feels it appropriate to insult the President with his variation on the “I don’t know that he isn’t a Communist” canard displays a disturbing degree of disrespect- for the office AND the man occupying it. It’s all about convincing the Rabid Christian Right that he’s their man, that he’ll be the President who will drag American back to the 1950s.

I have no problem with Republicans differing with the President Obama on virtually everything except whether water is wet. That’s what Republicans do, but as they’ve amply and frequently demonstrated, they can’t compete with him on substance. The only weapon they have at their disposal is stooping to their Old Reliable- innuendo, ad hominem attacks, and cheap personal insults.

There’s a role for the Loyal Opposition in a democratic system, but that presuppose said opposition is willing to live in the land of the real and the demonstrable. It seems the Republicans either didn’t get the memo, or simply decided that it would be WAY less work to engage in the politics of personal destruction. Whatever the reason, the party that sees itself as presenting a legitimate alternative to what they view as a “failed” presidency has become a long-running, anti-intellectual joke.

“Failed” presidency? Yeah, we should all fail so spectacularly….

Walker said questions like this were why Americans despise the news media.

“To me this is a classic example of why people hate Washington and increasingly they dislike the press,” Walker said. “The things they care about don’t even remotely come close to what you’re asking about.”

That may be true in the Koch-financed fantasy world Walker inhabits, but his response is as self-serving as it is ridiculous. Politicians who presume to speak for the American People are invariably conflating their own opinion with that of the American Sheeple in order to inflate their perceived importance and support their position on an issue.

If Walker could be bothered with a modicum of honesty, he’d understand that people hate Washington because politicians are caught up in political “gotcha” games. Republicans are primarily concerned with thwarting President Obama’s every thought, word, and deed. Democrats lack the cojones and common sense necessary to portray Republicans as the Do-Nothing Caucus they are. The press? They’re so concerned about getting and keeping access to politicians that they play softball when they should be asking tough, legitimate questions and hold politicians- from both parties- accountable. The “Liberal Media” is beholden to their corporate overlords who are almost uniformly wealthy, White, male…and Conservative.

What Walker’s doing is right out of the Republican playbook- pander to the Fox News Channel addicts who get their information from the Right-wing echo chamber. To his credit, Walker’s smart enough to understand that it’s not about the truth- it’s about what you can convince the American Sheeple to accept as the truth…and he’s continuously adjusting and fine-tuning his message to accentuate that modern political reality.

In a world where skill and competence mattered, Scott Walker couldn’t get hired to manage a Dairy Queen…yet he’s one of the leading Republican Presidential candidates. If that doesn’t prove how much the public discourse has been dumbed down, you’re probably not paying attention. Walker’s like the junior high school bully who never grew out of pushing people around. Now he’s looking to do it to the entire country…and the American Sheeple is just stupid and inattentive enough to allow him the opportunity to do it.

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on February 25, 2015 6:19 AM.

Oh, and while you're at it, stop Presidenting While Black, willya? was the previous entry in this blog.

It's not paranoia if they really are coming for your guns...eventually is the next entry in this blog.

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