In defense of Obamacare, the Democrats have lately moved from
debating Republicans and talking heads to debating everyday
Americans; indeed, from debating to snitching and smearing.
Following hot on the heels of their “report
your friends and family” program, the DNC has released a new
ad characterizing the Republican base, and those who oppose
Obamacare, as
a dangerous mob. Fearmongering is the new careful analysis,
as any student of global warming warfare knows.
As the
legitimacy of protest is under fire from the White House and
folks like “Call me Senator” Barbara Boxer, with President Obama
activating his activist army that answers only to him, with
the DNC telling America that dissent is the highest form of
rampage, it’s useful to take a look at how the
Republicans have dealt with protest these last eight years. As
any honest observer will recall, the anti-war protests have been
beyond compare for inflammatory and destructive rhetoric (check
out Zombietime.com if you
have a strong stomach.)
So over at RedState, Brian Faughnan does just that: explores and
contrasts the responses.
Given the debate over the legitimacy of protests against the
Democratic agenda on health care, cap-and-trade, and the
economy generally, I thought it might be instructive to look at
how the last administration addressed protests against its
policies. The contrast is quite stark: Faced with protesters
camped outside Bush’s residence in Crawford, White House
officials
chose to meet with Cindy Sheehan and others:
About 70 anti-war protesters shouted “bring the troops home”
from Iraq near President Bush’s ranch on Saturday, prompting
two White House officials to come out to meet with mothers who
lost children in combat in Iraq.
National Security Adviser Steven Hadley and Deputy White House
chief of staff Joe Hagin listened to the concerns of Cindy
Sheehan and five or six other mothers in a meeting that lasted
about 45 minutes, White House spokesman Trent Duffy said. Duffy
said Sheehan told the two officials she appreciated the
meeting.
White House
Press Secretary Ari Fleischer didn’t question the
legitimacy of anti-war protesters:
I think the president welcomes the fact that we are a
democracy and people in the United States, unlike Iraq, are free
to protest and to make their case known,”
White House Press Secretary Trent Duffy echoed these
sentiments:
The American people have a right to protest, and the right of
free speech is something that we’re fighting for in this war on
terror, to preserve that right of free speech. So the President
welcomes opinions from all Americans.
Click here to read the entire, devastating
analysis.
