Certainly the attacks on Romney's vulture capitalism are having an effect. But responding to the opening of last night's debate, Steve Benen nails the real reason this is happening.
Over the course of just three minutes, we learned exactly why Gingrich is a competitive presidential candidate: he understands the Republican id perfectly.
The right really does believe they’re victims.
But its even more than that. They don't just believe they're victims, they want blood...as Steve M. illustrates.
...it's basically the way Republican voters feel right now (and pretty much all the time), which is why Newt Gingrich is doing so well, and Mitt Romney isn't.
Karl Rove is pulling out all the stops to go after Gingrich in SC, just like he did when he went after McCain in 2000. But this time, after Republicans spent so much energy pandering to their extremists over the last couple of years, I question whether or not he has the juice to take down a surging Republican id.
Popcorn anyone?
Update: Observe the hidden hand of Rove at work.
In what appears to be a last ditch attempt to halt Newt Gingrich's late momentum in South Carolina, a fake CNN Breaking News alert was emailed to state Republican activists early Thursday morning claiming that the former House Speaker pressured his ex-wife to have an abortion.
CNN did not send out the email alert...
The email alert was sent from fake account made to look like a CNN breaking news email address: "BreakingNews@mail.cnn.com."
"A source close to Marianne Gingrich tells CNN that former House Speaker Newt Gingrich forced her to abort a pregnancy conceived during the affair that preceeded her marriage to Gingrich," the fake email reads.
So what we have for Republicans is a sociopath on one side and this kind of sickness on the other.
Is your stomach turning too?
'Afternoon, Ms. Pants
ReplyDeleteWith this post being the fourth, you have accurately diagnosed, enlightened, educated, and, without really saying it, demonstrated why your political analysis really should be ingested by ANYone who believes themselves to be a pragmatic Liberal (I told my wife that, between Newt and Santorum, consider S.C. to just be a warm-up re: black folk bein' whomped on).
As always, THANK YOU!
Carry on
It's no secret that republicans are angry and are out for blood. Violence seems to be their driving force, and Gingrich is more than willing to serve up all of the red meat he can find to them. The problem as I see it is that what works in the GOP primaries doesn't work so well in the General Election. If Gingrich is the nominee, I think he'll have the same problem that McCain had in 2008: he's riling up the far right, and he won't be able to control them when it's time to win over the majority of Americans in November.
ReplyDeleteGood Aftrnoon
ReplyDeleteI continue to wonder if Rove, Koch, et al really have their eyes on the senate. I wonder if, after looking at the clowns v. PBO they have decided that PBO is unbeatable with the team they have on the field..i.e. no quaterback.
I am worried that the senate will not come our way unless they are teid tightly to PBO's coattails and I do not see that happening. Especially said they were working district by district as Nancy said the other day.
To me we have got to have the senate and the house or else PBO's last 4 yrs will be hell.
Smilingl8dy
I'm confused by your advice. How can we eat popcorn while our stomachs are turning?
ReplyDeleteLOL
DeleteWhat is that saying about consistency being the hobgoblin of small minds?
Yeah...that.
Why did Rove go after McCain in '08? In favor of whom?
ReplyDeleteTien Le
DeleteIt was in 2000, not 2008.
Rove - working for Bush - went after McCain mercilessly in South Carolina. At least folks assume he was responsible for things like the stories about McCain fathering a Black child.