Friday, May 12, 2006
Rove's Summer Offensive
Things are getting so bad for President Bush that even conservatives are abandoning him now.
His old allies, the folks who put him in office, are "demoralized and defecting in worrisome numbers," according to the Washington Post.
Political scandals, runaway government spending, the mess in Iraq, and immigration are all factors in the defections from the conservative coalition.
So, what can we expect as we move closer to the primary elections in August?
None of the elements in Rove's summer offensive are designed to solve any of the real problems the country faces but, in the heat of a good battle for a constitutional amendment outlawing same-sex marriage, how many conservatives will notice that more tax cuts will not do anything to restrain government spending and, in fact, will only make matters worse? How many will notice there's no plan for Iraq?
We think Rove, having gone down this road in the last election, will have a harder sell this time. But this is the environment that moderates will face this summer as we fight to Take Back Kansas from the extremists who currently own it.
Here in Kansas, right-wingers will not want to talk about Bob Corkins, science standards, or sex education. They will cynically mobilize what is left of their base with a phony "defense of marriage" campaign and more anti-abortion rhetoric.
The only question left is how many times they can get away with it before the people wake up.
His old allies, the folks who put him in office, are "demoralized and defecting in worrisome numbers," according to the Washington Post.
Political scandals, runaway government spending, the mess in Iraq, and immigration are all factors in the defections from the conservative coalition.
So, what can we expect as we move closer to the primary elections in August?
Karl Rove, Bush's top political adviser, and GOP leaders are well aware of the problem and are planning a summer offensive to win back conservatives with a mix of policy fights and warnings of how a Democratic Congress would govern. The plan includes votes on tax cuts, a constitutional amendment outlawing same-sex
marriage, new abortion restrictions, and measures to restrain government spending.
None of the elements in Rove's summer offensive are designed to solve any of the real problems the country faces but, in the heat of a good battle for a constitutional amendment outlawing same-sex marriage, how many conservatives will notice that more tax cuts will not do anything to restrain government spending and, in fact, will only make matters worse? How many will notice there's no plan for Iraq?
We think Rove, having gone down this road in the last election, will have a harder sell this time. But this is the environment that moderates will face this summer as we fight to Take Back Kansas from the extremists who currently own it.
Here in Kansas, right-wingers will not want to talk about Bob Corkins, science standards, or sex education. They will cynically mobilize what is left of their base with a phony "defense of marriage" campaign and more anti-abortion rhetoric.
The only question left is how many times they can get away with it before the people wake up.
