This
diary tells us a good deal of what the Republicans are planning to TRY to do with the Gitmo issue:
You see, Brit needs you to feel his outrage at these irresponsible historical allusions. That is, until it's Brit's time to spin. Because the first words out of his mouth are, "This is big!" and what's that on his face if not a barely suppressed smirk of glee?* Brit admittedly thinks this is great for the Republican party! After the obligatory talking points:
* Stalin killed 6 million people!
* Hitler?!!
* These comments will get American men and women killed!
* Pol Pot didn't even like rap music!**
Brit goes on to explain that the propensity to care more about the enemy than American soldiers is basically a core Democratic value that will ensure a Republican rout come Nov. 2006.
Memo to Brit: If Team GOPUSA really believed Durbin's comments would get Americans killed and actually cared about that notion, perhaps they wouldn't be pulling out all the stops to make this story as loud and long-lived as possible. I mean, employing the Republican logic for a moment, if someone yells fire in a crowded theater, does one hand the person a megaphone and ask them to repeat themselves? Ad nauseum? But of course, Durbin's remarks are not the real story, which should read "Republicans See Excellent Framing Opportunity to Reverse Horrendous Poll Numbers"
After Mara Liasson spends ten seconds earning her Fox paycheck, Wallace kicks it over to Kristol, who proceeds to confirm my worst suspicions with this gem: "This story is not going away." Because you would never let it, would you Billy Boy?!
The new McCarthyism back in full force. Because I believed that this would be the Republican plan, I have devoted the past few days to talking about what is important here:
Why Are We Not Different Enough from the Nazis?:
A quote by Avi Schlaim, an Israeli historian, on the issue of comparisons to Nazi Germany (in this instance referring to Israeli government and military leaders, but the parallel works here as well):
The issue isn't whether or not we are the same as the Nazis, the issue is that we aren't different enough.
The Republicans have chosen to embrace prisoner abuse:
Powerline Loves the Gitmo Abuses;
Frist Lies About Durbin;
Chris Wallace To Shit On Himself;
What Happens in Gitmo Stays in Gitmo;
Gingrich's Extreme Chutzpah.
What this story should be about for Dems is Gitmo and Prisoner Abuse. What this story should be about for all Dems is my question:
The issue isn't whether or not we are the same as the Nazis, the issue is that we aren't different enough.