Blowing Smoke - Michael Wolraich [131]
With all due respect to the White House political strategists, it will require more than a few snide comments from the White House communications director to change public opinion of Fox News. Moreover, Fox News’s journalistic pretenses are not the most pressing issue, and the problem of persecution politics is bigger than Fox in any case. It extends to talk radio, the Tea Parties, religious leaders, conservative political organizations, and many Republican leaders. Obama can avoid the perception of a grudge match with any particular individuals or organizations by tackling the broader national problem. He and his representatives should communicate to the nation as a whole to deliver his vision of a better America and to challenge those who seek to divide it through fear and hate. They should do so forcefully and repeatedly,dg using the authority of the president to spur a public discussion about America’s values and political problems. (I also recommend that they leave the snarky barbs to the bloggers and comedy shows with no presidential gravitas to lose.)
A Few Good Men
Nonetheless, while Obama and other liberal leaders do have some influence, the only individuals who truly have the power to wean the right from its regular diet of persecution politics are conservatives. For liberals, criticizing right-wing paranoia is painless and pragmatic, but for those on the right, challenging the demagogues bears a heavy cost. We’ve seen incumbent Republican congressmen go down for offenses ranging from voting for TARP to telling constituents to shut off Glenn Beck.
A few other conservative leaders who have dared to challenge the hegemony of the right-wing media have wilted almost immediately after furious blowback. In March 2009, Michael Steele tried to marginalize Rush Limbaugh by dismissing him as an “entertainer” and calling his rhetoric “incendiary” and “ugly.” Forty-eight hours later, Steele apologized and wrote, “I respect Rush Limbaugh, he is a national conservative leader, and in no way do I want to diminish his voice.”30
Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-GA) didn’t even last twenty-four hours after belittling right-wing media stars. He too apologized and wrote, “Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Newt Gingrich, and other conservative giants are the voices of the conservative movement’s conscience. Every day, millions and millions of Americans—myself included—turn on their radios and televisions to listen to what they have to say, and we are inspired by their words and by their determination.”31
Even John McCain, the courageous war hero and proud maverick of the Republican Party, is running scared. You won’t find him battling the “agents of intolerance” these days. Instead, he has endorsed Arizona’s harsh anti-immigration law in order to fend off a primary challenge from the right. “I never considered myself a maverick,” he told Newsweek in 2010. “I consider myself a person who serves the people of Arizona to the best of his abilities.”32
Rep. Bob Inglis (R-SC), who lost his seat in the 2010 primary, explained, “We’re being driven as herd by these hot microphones—which are like flame throwers—that are causing people to run with fear and panic, and Republican members of Congress are afraid of being run over by that stampeding crowd.”33
But there are a few conservatives who have shown more guts, though perhaps not people with whom many are familiar. Writer David Frum, for example, has sterling conservative credentials. He has been an editor of conservative publications like the National Review and the Wall Street Journal’s editorial page, and he has worked for conservative think tanks like the American Enterprise Institute. He was also a speechwriter for George W. Bush and has been credited with coining the term Axis of Evil.34