One of the strangest things to watch in the mainstream media has been how hard they’ve strained to make anti-government protesters into a major national story.
What’s even stranger is how this will continue to affect the political landscape. Because the Tea Party, Birther & anti-government sector of today’s far right are only going to strengthen the Democratic Party. Much like their ugliness and racism helped push Health Care Reform through Congress.
There is a great truth about the fringe – they only connect with each other. So while the mainstream media may try and make the Tea Party and anti-government groups look like a monolithic grassroots uprising, the simple fact is this – it’s a relatively small bunch of political extremists yelling at each other. They convert no one that wouldn’t have voted Republican anyway
The Tea Party crowed about the election of Scott Brown to Ted Kennedy’s Senate seat, until blunt reality hit home. Brown is a moderate Republican from a liberal state. And he has not received the credit deserved for his victory – he won because he ran an excellent campaign, while his opponent ran a miserable one. His was not a right-wing counter-culture victory whatsoever.
In the end, elections and political momentum come down to one thing – the massive middle that takes only a cursory look at political issues. And when they see the Tea Party/Birther/Anti-Government types – Republicans all – on the news spewing ugliness and violence, they will continue to be turned off as hell.
Barack Obama and the Democratic Party are terrified of coming off as leftist extremists. Say what you will, but they passed Health Care Reform, not the outlawing of private property. Call health care reform extremist at your own peril. And remember that Single-Payer was never even an option, and the public option didn’t even make it to the final bill.
If the Democrats can pass the Reconciliation package to make this bill what they want, it will be a huge blow to Republicans. Because, along with the loss, their extremists will just get more extreme, until they all blur together as one.
–WKW
Crossposted at William K. Wolfrum Chronicles