Fighting the Politics of Spite

From today's New York Times:

The Politics of Spite by Paul Krugman

There was what President Obama likes to call a teachable moment last week, when the International Olympic Committee rejected Chicago’s bid to be host of the 2016 Summer Games.

“Cheers erupted” at the headquarters of the conservative Weekly Standard, according to a blog post by a member of the magazine’s staff, with the headline “Obama loses! Obama loses!” Rush Limbaugh declared himself “gleeful.” “World Rejects Obama,” gloated the Drudge Report. And so on....

To be sure, while celebrating America’s rebuff by the Olympic Committee was puerile, it didn’t do any real harm. But the same principle of spite has determined Republican positions on more serious matters, with potentially serious consequences — in particular, in the debate over health care reform.

The main G.O.P. line of attack is the claim — based mainly on lies about death panels and so on — that reform will undermine Medicare. And this line of attack is utterly at odds both with the party’s traditions and with what conservatives claim to believe.

Think about just how bizarre it is for Republicans to position themselves as the defenders of unrestricted Medicare spending. First of all, the modern G.O.P. considers itself the party of Ronald Reagan — and Reagan was a fierce opponent of Medicare’s creation, warning that it would destroy American freedom. (Honest.) In the 1990s, Newt Gingrich tried to force drastic cuts in Medicare financing. And in recent years, Republicans have repeatedly decried the growth in entitlement spending — growth that is largely driven by rising health care costs.

...The result has been a cynical, ends-justify-the-means approach with the G.O.P. opposing anything that might be good for Obama. Hastening the day when the rightful governing party returns to power is all that matters, so the G.O.P. will seize any club at hand with which to beat the current administration.

*****

Mr. Krugman, I heartily agree. The GOP is filled with spiteful bullies. Perhaps Democrats need to learn from how well it seems to work for them. Instead of whining about how "mean people suck," the Dems need to learn the skill of bare knuckle fighting that the GOP excels at.

Perhaps then, the Democratic Party will rally behind President Obama and vote together for a health care plan that will help our citizens while keeping up the all-important appearance of party unity. How is it that when Democrats finally have the power that they have been fighting for since the Reagan era, they insist on squabbling amongst themselves?

Learn how to handle the tea partiers and nutball town meeting disrupters. Deal with them from a position of strength, more like Barney Frank and less like a skinny kid hanging from his underwear in the locker room. The nerds are in charge. Act like it!

Maybe then the Democrats will stop snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. President Obama is saddled with a thankless, Herculean task. He is trying to educate and involve the American people in his efforts. His party needs to work with him and elevate the national discourse. Otherwise, he will be drowned out by the lowest common denominator. Didn't he get elected because we've had enough of that?