Daschle eats his words, and then some

Nathan Newman nathanne at nathannewman.org
Mon Mar 31 18:46:59 PST 2003


----- Original Message ----- From: "RE" <earnest at tallynet.com>

-So until that macro-level event what can we say about their tepid, drifting -behavior? A reason we are drawn to talk about their rhetoric is that it -seems to hold no promise of building the political forces necessary to get -them elected. Isn't it possible that they will appear to seem like the -non-inhaling Clinton, afraid to take a controversial position?

Odd to compare their rhetoric to Clinton, the most successful Democratic politician in decades. Clinton was quite willing to denounce his opponents as needed-- his showdown in 1995 with Newt Gingrich was quite dramatic and successful. Although it also showed a good lesson in keeping the rhetoric quieter at first, letting the opposition overstretch themselves and their rhetoric, then jump in with a "more in sorrow than in anger" opposition position.

One mistake of the left sometimes is that they assume unitary all-out opposition is always the best. But monotone cadences get boring and people tune out. A bit of rhetorical strategy, laying low and waiting for the whites of the opponents eyes, is not always a bad thing.

-- Nathan Newman


: My view is that the real answer is to elect more Democrats, since periods
: of large numbers of Democrats in office coincide with better legislation
: passed.
:
: But you don't like that answer and prefer to analyze rhetoric, as if
that's
: far more important than anything as piciyune as actual voting power.
:
: -- Nathan Newman
:
:
:
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