Reply #27: NOT SO FAST! Repugs are politically savvy .....

[cloudythescribbler]

People here have cited the Schiavo affaire. But that is a good example. The political costs to the Repugs were minimal, but a hard core of so-called pro-lifers were palliated. If it turns out that EITHER of the two new Justices to the SCOTUS don't vote against Roe, the Repug leadership are going to need that goodwill.

Now as for an independent commission. Imagine you are in Karl Rove's shoes with his goals. This is a 'Hobson's choice' -- if you don't have an Independent Commission, people will be against you, but it is no big whoop as far as elections are concerned. On the other hand, if you DO go along with such a commission, the political bloodletting will go on, with full press coverage of how Bush has stacked FEMA from top to bottom with unqualified personnel who are only loyal to him, etc etc AND THAT THEY ARE STILL THERE, OTHER THAN BROWN.

ROVE MAY BE EVIL BUT HE IS POLITICALLY SAVVY. It's the old triage principle of taking your losses as painlessly as possible. And the Repugs are very effective at that.

IT WILL TAKE ACTIVE AND INTELLIGENT mobilization of the discontent by Democrats, the kind they OBEDIENTLY avoided in the 2004 election, like the media keeping their lips zipped about the bogusness of the flipflop spin as the Democrats and 527s did also, in a deafening chorus of silence, when belatedly Jonathan Chait was able to easily explode it (in terms of content, not political effect) in his cover story on the OCTOBER 18 New Republic, when it was too late. Then they all shifted to the distorting justifying-the-lying article by Matt Bai in the Sun NY Times Magazine on Kerry and terrorism.

Democracy begins when people are willing to refuse to obey illegitimate commands from illegitimate authority, instead of toeing the line and getting on the gravy train. So far, all I see is the latter where it matters. I understand that that is the way to get the goodies and avoid the baddies, so the fact of suffering for it isn't just a matter of 'the joke being on me'. The point is that either you believe in fighting for freedom and justice or you go for the cushy job and the well-preened image of the rebel with millions.
Is it surprising that, given the choice, everyone gravitates to the latter?

And the wind cries Mary