Two in a row from Andrew Sullivan

"Far Left"

03 Jun 2008 03:28 pm

That's the exhausted meme that Bill Bennett tries to aim at Obama. It is the meme the old right need to force this election back into the red-blue post-Vietnam boomer rubric which is all Bennett understands. But let's be clear. "Far left" means to the right of Clinton in healthcare, right? "Far left" means tax rates broadly within the post-Reagan parameters and certainly far to the right of, say, Richard Nixon.
"Far left" means a policy of withdrawal from Iraq that, as Bill Kristol observes, is increasingly close to McCain's. "Far left" means a man that Joe Lieberman was thrilled to get to support his last Senate campaign. "Far left" means a "cap-and-trade" position on climate change very close to John McCain's. "Far left" means well to the racial right of Jesse Jackson. "Far left" means opposition to same-sex marriage and to a federal constitutional amendment (very close to John McCain). "Far left" means a policy on torture embraced by the Republican nominee and endorsed by every American president apart from George W. Bush.

This "far left" meme is meaningless. It says everything about the intellectual bankruptcy of the talk radio right and nothing about the substantive polices and challenges of a president Obama.

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I parse.

"Far left" means to the right of Clinton in healthcare, right?

There is plenty of room to the right of Clinton on health care, which said room could still be considered far left.

"Far left" means tax rates broadly within the post-Reagan parameters and certainly far to the right of, say, Richard Nixon.

. . . and far to the right of, say, Richard Nixon. Stop it, you're killing me here. Richard Nixon of wage and price controls? Richard Nixon of "Sock it to me" and "Bye-bye Bretton Woods" fame? Richard Nixon of "Hey let's untether the dollar entirely from any kind of commodity base" fame? Richard Nixon of EPA and OSHA? Let's face it, if Richard Milhous Nixon had shaved in 1960, the Democrats would be running around with a trifecta of triple named terrors: JFK, LBJ, RMN, baby!

"Far left" means retaining the right to bomb Pakistan if al Qaeda is deemed a threat there.

Umm, what's conservative about bombing other countries until they love us?

"Far left" means a policy of withdrawal from Iraq that, as Bill Kristol observes, is increasingly close to McCain's.

Having not observed Bill Kristol lately, I'm not sure what he's saying about Obama and Iraq---but does anyone remember "McCain" and "a hundred years"? I thought you did. That's pretty far left for me. If you're unclear on the concept, go read some founding fathers on entangling alliances and going abroad in search of monsters.

"Far left" means a man that Joe Lieberman was thrilled to get to support his last Senate campaign.

Umm, in terms of sheer maniacal Wilsonian Zionist fervor, yeah, Joe Lieberman (from the Lieberman Party, or the Party of Lieberman) is pretty far left.

"Far left" means a "cap-and-trade" position on climate change very close to John McCain's.

"Cap and trade" within the United States means "cap and watch your industries flee overseas even faster."

"Far left" means well to the racial right of Jesse Jackson.

See comments above about health care, Clinton, and far left.

And,

"Far left" means a policy on torture embraced by the Republican nominee and endorsed by every American president apart from George W. Bush.

Well, gee. You have me there. If there is any reason to vote for the Man from Hope (I'm sorry, the Man for Change), it's his opposition to torture. Otherwise you've pretty much got a liberal academic (wait--he's not a liberal? and he's not an academic?) with family issues and not much record.

But he's pretty.

And he's tan.

And he's far left.

Gramsci won, I guess.