The War on Women: Dick Morris may not be right about much, but clearly…
…he was right about this. Remember the Republican debates in early 2012, and George Stephanopoulos’ seemingly out-of-the-blue and off-the-wall question?
Conservative commentator Dick Morris believes that the Democrat party is covertly trying to convince voters that Republicans want to “ban contraception.”
Seem a little far-fetched?
Remember when George Stephanopoulos, former senior political adviser to President Bill Clinton, moderated that ABC News Republican debate last month? Immediately following the debate, he was accused of asking “unfair” and biased questions and of running the debate in a manner that was anything but objective.
And while these charges are debatable, most everyone agrees that the moment where Stephanopoulos suddenly shifted the topic from job creation to hypothetical questions involving whether the states have a right to ban contraception was”¦odd (to say the least).
“Governor Romney, do you believe that states have the right to ban contraception? Or is that trumped by a constitutional right to privacy?” Stephanopoulos asked the slightly bewildered-looking former Massachusetts governor…
Though this be madness, yet there is method in ‘t:
Democrats are elated at finding the perfect Republican War on Women campaign issue for 2014 and beyond. And it’s a twofer, because it also manages to be anti-religion at the same time. It shouldn’t work, because the details of the case argue against it if anyone is familiar with them. But Democrats are counting on the fact that few people will familiarize themselves with the actual ruling, and/or wouldn’t be able to reason their way through it if they did.
That’s not to say there isn’t a legal case against the ruling that could be argued without lies and hyperbole and rabble-rousing. That case would be about whether a closely-held corporation should be considered a person for the purposes of the 1993 Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which is the statute involved here—one that, ironically enough, was introduced by Ted Kennedy and Chuck Schumer and passed unanimously by the House and almost unanimously by the Senate. Those were the days, my friend.
But what difference do facts and logic make, anyway? Demagoguery rules, and it is being swallowed by Democrats around the country and regurgitated on Twitter and other social media in order to stir up fear against Republicans in 2014. The country has sunk so low that it just might work; it worked in 2012 to help give us another term of Obama.
Why is it successful? Birth control is an issue that affects people in their immediate lives in an intimate way. If women become falsely convinced by political manipulators that the right has a plan to ultimately take their birth control away, that can come to dominate an entire election as other issues fade. The IRS, the release of five Taliban for Bergdahl, the VA, the degeneration of Iraq under Obama’s watch, even the economy—all of those things happen to other people and/or very far away and/or are vague in terms of what caused them or even what Obama’s offenses might have been. They recede in importance compared to a perceived threat that’s very close up and personal.
The left knows this, and uses that knowledge to get what it wants. This strategy of telling women the right is out to take away their access to birth control and their sexual freedom itself was hatched several years ago, and the tactics have probably been mapped out well in advance. The Hobby Lobby case looks like a defeat for the left, but don’t misunderstand them. They actually see it as a wonderful opportunity dropped in their laps, and they will be sure to not let this manufactured crisis go to waste.
[NOTE: Megan McArdle’s article on Hobby Lobby and the reaction to it is one of the best I’ve seen on the subject. One criticism I have, though, is that she, like many others who have written about the case, ignores the fact that Hobby Lobby is in fact helping to cover most forms of contraception, including birth control pills, and that it’s only certain methods considered possible abortifacients for which the company is refusing to pay.]
Once again Instapundit links to the perfect solution to obliterate the Dem birth-control war:
House Republicans should pass bill allowing over-the-counter birth control sales
The link:
http://washingtonexaminer.com/article/2550347/
Ya think they’d be smart enough to do the simple thing?
No way.
How do they think they have sexual freedom when their Democrat sugar daddy pays the rent and their food, as well as their anti rape police protection?
People have a very warped definition of “freedom” in the 21st century. Freedom=slavery is more accurate.
“Abortifacient”
This is an incredibly stupid way of stating a larger truth:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/dorsey/fox-news-hosts-insane-definition-of-beyonce-voters
Name:
Thanks, will fix.
The only way the leftist argument makes sense (that free access to birth control drugs and devices is a health issue) is if pregnancy is considered a disease—and a contagious one at that. Why else would there be a government interest in it? It seems to assume no human agency. This from the group that doesn’t believe in Immaculate Conception.
That our President believes in this construction is shown by his statement that he would wish that his daughters not be ‘…tied down by an unwanted pregnancy…”
My leftist friends are saying, “This is good. This is how we are going to keep the Senate.”
It’s as if the left, in the form of Anita Dunn, sent Sandra Fluke out to start this fight knowing that they couldn’t lose either way.
“This is good. This is how we are going to keep the Senate.” Screw values, it’s all about power retention on the left — by any means possible.
It certainly makes a Mississippi vote for the Republican — even if he is Thad Cochran — all the more important.
The Republican National Committee should not wait until the Democrats have got this idea that the Republicans are working to outlaw contraceptives firmly fixed in voters’ minds. They need to immediately begin doing TV and social media pushback that states very clearly just what the Court’s ruling says with regard to contraceptives.
Megan McArdle voted for Barack Obama both times. Never ever forget this.
Golly gee whiz, how did women obtain contraceptives before obamacare???
Once the GOP leadership’s consistent support for wealth and power at the expense of small government, constitutional principles was pointed out to the low info voter (and the left never ceases that mantra) nothing the GOP can say or do will persuade the LIV that voting for the GOP is in their interest.
“Once you forfeit the confidence of your fellow citizens, you can never regain their respect and esteem.’ Abraham Lincoln
If someone likes you they’ll forgive you almost anything but if they don’t like you, nothing you say or do will ever be quite good enough. So too with the GOP and the LIV.
First off, I’ve always liked Dick Morris. I find him thoughtful, and willing to “think outside the box.” Whether he was wrong about the results of the last election doesn’t bother me, since so were many other people.
Secondly, I read a piece on HotAir (not my favorite site…a bit too “squishy”) stating that this was the Dem’s favored tactic to blunt the upcoming elections: small ball.
It seems quite the contrast from Obama’s sweeping rhetoric and party positions of the recent past, but it may work. Especially if you agree that “all politics is local,” as Tip O’Neill said.
So the strategy is to turn out the votes by whipping the proles into a frenzy about a host of issues that hit them on a personal level.
Of course, the Dems can’t be all things to all people, but they don’t need to be. Who are their constituents?
Single women, minorities, greens, youth.
Minorities are locked in, mostly. Their percentages cannot be increased much (though I would watch to see if the new illegals are bused into swing states). Black turnout is already as high as it will be, so Dems will likely try to turn out the Hispanic vote.
The number of greens can’t be increased rapidly before the election, but they are locked in with the scuttling of the Keystone XL (Canada announced they are pulling out of the project, I heard a couple of days ago).
Single women. The War on Women meme, contraception, as stated above. This may offer the greatest chance to provide new votes.
Youth. Probably not, since they are being hit daily by the poor economy, and I doubt will turn out in great numbers for Dems.
Coupled with this will be a concerted effort to split the Republican vote. I’m not sure what Dems could do to peel off Independents directly. More likely, they will help stoke the dissention caused by the MS debacle.
BTW, I heard today that True the Vote has sued the MS Secretary of State and GOP to injunct them from certifying the ballots before they can be inspected.
If the Republicans were smart, they would support the validation efforts. Otherwise, many, many R voters will stay away on election day.
I fear that if R’s don’t support the validation efforts, only two possibilities exist:
Either McDaniel gets his recount without their support, and win-or-lose, the results are validated, or the establishment stonewalls and turns off so many R’s that the seat goes to the Democrats.
I don’t see what Obama can do to help the GOP shoot themselves in the foot, so this one is totally on the establishment.
The biggest problem may be that they know they’re guilty, and the national party may not be willing to cut the deadwood at the state level.
So far, it seems to be going that way.
Not surprising, really. If we thought they were unprincipled cowards to begin with, what were the chances that they would do the honest thing?
The doggedness with which George S. pursued his contraceptive question raise my suspicion that the debates were rigged from the start to serve the Democrats; Candy Crowley’s collusion with Obama on the “terrorist” transcript conclusively validated that suspicion.
The Left plays a very long game, and sticks to their plan with unabashed zeal and a total willingness to lie about anything, anytime.
Hard to compete on that playing field.
Ann said,
“[The RNC] need to immediately begin doing TV and social media pushback that states very clearly just what the Court’s ruling says with regard to contraceptives.”
I’m not opposed to that, exactly. The main problem is that it’s very awkward to try and insert that message into dead space…it’s just as likely to be taken as proof of the opposite.
Coupled with that is the problem of rationally explaining a legal issue to voters motivated by emotion (single women). What they want is security, not a bunch of legal jargon.
It could work, but it would have to be done in a very delicate way.
I would like to see the RNC issue in it’s platform something about “making sure contraception is safe, while respecting citizens’ religious views” maybe including references to Gosnell. Then, get the candidates onboard with a unified message.
Fight fire with fire.
I’m not sure going into a defensive crouch is going to do it.
The last time I saw someone in a defensive crouch, he got stomped into the curb and then they threw his body in a trash box.
So, we are surrounded by Nitwits.
Well, we knew that (remember “Jaywalking” segments on the Tonight Show?)
Georgie Staphlococcus was Definitely primed and prepped to keep ramming that question into Romney’s mouth. Romney should have called him on it, and pointed out the tactic to the tv viewers. [sigh]
BTW, I got an email from a friend that is claiming that information is emerging that the Miss. Repubs paid black voters, via preachers and others, $15 each to vote for Cochran. See here: http://preview.tinyurl.com/qxovdso
“According to Johnson and Gilbert, black pastor Stevie Fielder of the First Union Missionary Baptist Church was hired by the Cochran campaign to pay blacks $15 a pop to vote for Cochran in the run-off. Fielder admits he was deceived and manipulated and brainwashed by the Cochran camp into thinking that Chris McDaniel was a racist. It was as if he had been convinced that vote-buying was necessary to keep McDaniel from wearing his white hood on the floor of the United States Senate and burning crosses on the White House lawn.”
Hmmm. More will be revealed?
In the Daily Caller: Cochran Campaign Denies Buying Votes Of Black Democrats, Threatens Lawsuit
The deal in the black community is that Democrat operatives pay them a set of money so that organizers can bus in voters. In reality, if they were small time and lacked the ability or foresight to hire a bus, all they would do is cut the money up and distribute it to the blacks, who would vote as part of their job. Of course it’s more organized if the Leftist PACs bus them in, so that way they can focus the votes in a specific time frame and check that their money is working. But the normal assumption is that when operatives are paid, say 300, for busing in voters… the split is made by dividing the money up, with the organizer taking his cut. If Cochrane GOP PAC was too stupid to realize this or whether they realized it and were lying, is hard to say.
Dissociation of risk is the opiate of the masses.