Wednesday, January 11, 2012

The Myth of Bad Republican Candidates

Repeat a big Democrat talking point often enough, and it becomes the truth. - Selwyn Duke/American Thinker

There is a certain liberal narrative that has recently filtered down to many independents and even some conservatives: the idea that the current crop of Republican candidates is weak, wanting, and worrisome....

Many repeat the statist talking point about the GOP contenders' alleged ineptitude simply because of media spin and the branding iron of repetition. Yet others do, in fact, have unrealistic expectations. They have in mind an ideal, a utopia of a politician -- a person who agrees with them on every major issue, possesses eloquence and decent looks, and has never strayed from ideological purity. And when this imaginary figure doesn't appear, they ask, "Is this the best our political class has to offer?!"
Yet to what are we comparing these candidates? And are we being mindful of Bismarck's sage observation that "[p]olitics is the art of the possible"? For even insofar as a true traditionalist's ideal candidate does exist -- and this is important to understand -- he could not win election given the current state of our culture....

The current GOP hopefuls are the best group of presidential contenders we've had in a very long time.

Yes, you read that right.

One reason why the media want to portray the GOP hopefuls as inept and insane is obvious: the myth of Obama as Superman long ago was shattered. Thus, there's only so much they can build the president up -- they also must tear his opposition down. Read the rest.