Here is what Larry Johnson posted on
No Quarter yesterday:
Karl [Rove] is a shameless bastard. This could explain why his mother killed herself. Once she discovered what a despicable soul she had spawned she apparently saw no other way out.
My God, he's actually taunting a man because his mother killed herself. I understand Johnson's anger, but this kind of talk is way beneath us, and it even includes Coulteresque dishonesty, since it is based on pure speculation. Are relatives of suicide victims now fair game? If someone has a parent or child or spouse who commits suicide, is it now acceptable to accuse them of being an accessory?
Johnson is always strident, but this snippet is not typical of his writing. And I really respect his service to our country - he was a CIA training classmate of Valerie Plame. So he's certainly not our Coulter. But I'm wondering if this kind of attack could as effective for liberals as it has been for conservatives.
I have no doubt that Coulter has been effective for the right. Not only does she gain converts with her appearances in front of millions on the Today and Tonight Shows, but she energizes the true believers. I'm sure the right considers Coulter's fifteen minutes with Jay to more than balance out all four days of Yearly Kos.
And even more significant, the traditional media will always try to equate the well known flame-throwers on the right with those on the left. So according to the media, Ann Coulter's equivalent is...Michael Moore. Following this metric, Bill O'Reilly's equivalent could be Russ Feingold as far as the MSM is concerned. Is it any wonder the word "centrist" is now applied to McCain and Lieberman?
So now we just need some lefty to make outrageous statements, write a book, become famous, and that will help us redefine the center back where it belongs, right? I don't think so. The conservatives have a huge advantage over us, because they have been able to define left-wing as being unpatriotic, whereas being very right-wing is considered uber-patriotic. And if you're considered a little bit un-American, you don't get network airtime - just ask Bill Maher. So Coulter gets to talk with Matt and Jay, but our version on the left never would.
When I realized that our own version of Coulter wouldn't help our cause, I was relieved. Now I can freely advocate taking the high road, condemn Johnson's rant, and not worry that we are missing out on an effective tactic. But there's something that still bothers me. When I came upon Johnson's post, part of me really enjoyed reading it. A bigger part of me than I'd like to admit.