After reading a recent New York Times op-ed, entitled, "Have Democrats Pulled Too Far Left?," I don't think it will be long before the thesaurus will showcase the terms "denial" and "Wehner" as being synonymous with one other. Conservative writer and former George W. Bush deputy assistant, Peter Wehner, authored this very article, to which I'd like to offer a rebuttal.
Wehner starts his piece by writing this:
"AMONG liberals, it's almost universally assumed that of the two major parties, it's the Republicans who have become more extreme over the years. That's a self-flattering but false narrative."
I love it when writers feel the need to place the first word of an article in all caps, especially when that word is among. Among is such a powerful term, and like most everyone else I'm sure, I'm grateful Mr. Wehner has brought attention to it.
Moving on, Wehner followed that riveting first paragraph up with this:
"This is not to say the Republican Party hasn't become a more conservative party. It has. But in the last two decades the Democratic Party has moved substantially further to the left than the Republican Party has shifted to the right. on most major issues the Republican Party hasn't moved very much from where it was during the Gingrich era in the mid-1990s."
I love how Mr. Wehner doesn't provide any evidence to his theory. Who needs studies and numbers when we have the omniscient Peter Wehner lending us his insights?
Wehner then discusses how President Obama is more liberal than former President Bill Clinton was when it comes to issues such as: Gay rights, abortion rights, drug legalization, climate change, religious liberties, taxes, police brutality, the prison population, and immigration reform. The former Bush deputy assistant also had the nerve to mention that, unlike then President Clinton, whose policies resulted in a surplus, President Obama's policies have resulted in record deficit levels. Apparently the eight years George W. Bush was in office between the two Democratic presidents had absolutely nothing to do with those record-setting deficits (and debt). The Bush tax cuts added $1.6 trillion to the national debt. The cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan has added another $1.3 trillion to our debt. Then, due to the failures of the Bush presidency, leading us to what has been called the Great Recession, President Obama was forced to sign a pricey economic stimulus bill in order to prevent us from having to suffer through another Great Depression. But, yeah, once again, it's all Obama's fault.
Peter Wehner then, while admitting the country has gotten more liberal with regard to gay rights, believes the country has gotten more conservative overall, citing one poll which he believes showcases that Americans are now more conservative when it comes to issues like terrorism, taxes, and foreign policy. He believes conservatives have also gained some traction when it comes to the issues of immigration and health care. Then, of course, he cites the fact that in such polls, more people identify themselves as conservative than as liberal.
Wehner then closes his "piece" with this:
"For demographic reasons, many Democrats believe that they are riding a tide of presidential inevitability. They may want to rethink that. They are placing a very risky bet that there are virtually no limits to how far left they can go."
I'd like to be the first to offer Peter Wehner a standing ovation in the slow-clap form. Sure, Anthony Weiner may have embarrassed himself by showing his junk on Twitter, but Peter Wehner embarrassed himself even more by writing this drivel.
First off, studies show that Republicans have moved much further to the right than Democrats have moved to the left, and yes, I'm going to be a rebel and believe these scientific studies over the words of one Peter Wehner.
In 2006, Yale political scientist Jacob Hacker released the book, Off Center, where he released this bit of information unto the world:
- Since 1975, Senate Republicans have moved twice as far to the right as Senate Democrats have moved to the left.
- Also, since this time, House Republicans have moved six times further to the right than Democrats have moved to the left.
- Between the 100th Congress (1987-1989) and the 108th Congress (2003-2005), far-right Republicans increased from just 4% to almost 25%, while far-left Democrats increased from slightly less than 6% to a little over 9%.
In 2012, Keith Poole of the University of Georgia and Howard Rosenthal of New York University conducted another study on ideological shifts and political polarization, and discovered that the Republican Party today is the most conservative it's been in a century.
Poole then elaborated on the study's findings:
"The short version would be since the late 1970s starting with the 1976 election in the House the Republican caucus has steadily moved to the right ever since. it's been a little more uneven in the Senate. The Senate caucuses have also moved to the right. Republicans are now furtherest to the right that they've been in 100 years."
Poole added, "It is true that the Republicans have moved further to the right than the Democrats have moved to the left. That's absolutely true."
Yes, it is true, unless one is denial like Peter Wehner. What Peter Wehner and his ilk fail to realize is that the Democratic Party is continually evolving with scientific findings, technological advancements, and moral epiphanies, the public is as well, and the Republican Party is largely remaining stubborn when it comes to these trends. President Obama may indeed be classified as more liberal when it comes to gay rights than former President Bill Clinton, but a lot has changed in the world when it comes to the LGBT community over the past 20 years. Science has shown that homosexuals are born differently than heterosexuals. Through social media, gay rights activism has expanded to levels never before seen. More people have come out of the closet as a result of all this, which has made millions of people rethink their moral standing when it comes to the LGBT community. While it may be easy to criticize a demographic when a person doesn't personally know anyone from that group, it's far more difficult to continue doing that when someone close to that person steps forward and says they're part of that very demographic. When it comes to climate change, studies continue to further show that man has contributed mightily to it, and changes need to be made to reverse its course. So, yes, President Obama may be more liberal when it comes to such issues than President Clinton, but once again, a lot has changed in the past 20 years, so why is it wrong for one's attitudes and opinions about an issue to evolve with these very findings? Why is it liberal to believe in consistent scientific findings? Why is it considered liberal to believe in reality?
Regarding another weak point Mr. Wehner attempted to make, yes, more people identify as conservative than as liberal, but as I've said time and time again, this is largely due to conservatives' bastardization of the word liberal, and even then, the gap is closing. Wehner can believe whatever he'd like, but the country is getting more liberal. A recent Gallup poll showed this very thing when it comes to a number of different issues. More specifically, 55% now believe gay marriage should be legal in this country (net +13%), which is a 15% jump from just six years ago. Over 90% of Americans support expanding background checks on gun purchases. Approximately 68% of the people believe the richest among us don't pay enough in taxes, with only 11% saying they pay too much. Over 50% of the public supports marijuana legalization. Around 55% of this country believe in global warming (net +22%). Three in five people want to see an increase in the minimum wage, as well as paid-sick leave, not to mention that roughly two-thirds feel employers should pay their employees when taking time off after having a child. The public is also more pro-choice (50%) than pro-life (44%), and trending in that direction. A poll conducted by right-leaning Rasmussen stated that 71% of Americans believe young illegal immigrants (DREAMers) should be provided work permits in certain circumstances. Even after conservatives spent seemingly countless hours and dollars trying to discredit the Affordable Care Act (AKA Obamacare), a Kaiser poll shows that more people now approve of the bill (43%) than disapprove of it (42%). Not only that, but while the death penalty remains fairly popular in this country, its popularity has waned in recent years, and when given the choice between executing an inmate and putting him in prison for life without parole, 42% would prefer the former and 52% would prefer the latter. So, once again, it appears as if the former Bush adviser is very much in denial.
Lastly, Peter Wehner is also in denial about the future of the two parties. Yes, overall, Republicans have fared well in recent elections, but that's largely been due to the Citizens United ruling, gerrymandering, and voter suppression tactics. The facts are that this country is becoming increasingly diverse and less religious. Democrats consistently win on election day with women, minorities, and young people. Unless the Republican Party decides to evolve with scientific findings and move toward the left (AKA reality) as a result, not only will their ideas be a thing of the distant past, but their party will be too.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/27/opinion/have-democrats-pulled-too-far-left.html
http://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2012/04/10/150349438/gops-rightward-shift-higher-polarization-fills-political-scientist-with-dread
http://billmoyers.com/2013/10/10/the-radicalization-of-the-gop-is-the-most-important-political-story-today/
http://theweek.com/articles/483063/what-caused-national-debt-6-culprits
http://www.gallup.com/poll/117328/marriage.aspx
http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/majority-americans-support-background-checks-poll-says
http://www.mercurynews.com/nation-world/ci_27577646/poll-tax-rich-more-most-say
http://www.gallup.com/poll/179195/majority-continues-support-pot-legalization.aspx
http://www.gallup.com/poll/182150/views-climate-change-stable-extreme-winter.aspx
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/233183-poll-finds-support-for-minimum-wage-increase-paid-leave
http://reason.com/blog/2015/06/01/american-views-shifting-on-abortion
http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/current_events/immigration/june_2012/71_favor_work_permits_for_young_illegal_immigrants_in_certain_circumstances
http://www.cnbc.com/id/102602525
http://deathpenaltyinfo.org/national-polls-and-studies#614
Wehner starts his piece by writing this:
"AMONG liberals, it's almost universally assumed that of the two major parties, it's the Republicans who have become more extreme over the years. That's a self-flattering but false narrative."
I love it when writers feel the need to place the first word of an article in all caps, especially when that word is among. Among is such a powerful term, and like most everyone else I'm sure, I'm grateful Mr. Wehner has brought attention to it.
Moving on, Wehner followed that riveting first paragraph up with this:
"This is not to say the Republican Party hasn't become a more conservative party. It has. But in the last two decades the Democratic Party has moved substantially further to the left than the Republican Party has shifted to the right. on most major issues the Republican Party hasn't moved very much from where it was during the Gingrich era in the mid-1990s."
I love how Mr. Wehner doesn't provide any evidence to his theory. Who needs studies and numbers when we have the omniscient Peter Wehner lending us his insights?
Wehner then discusses how President Obama is more liberal than former President Bill Clinton was when it comes to issues such as: Gay rights, abortion rights, drug legalization, climate change, religious liberties, taxes, police brutality, the prison population, and immigration reform. The former Bush deputy assistant also had the nerve to mention that, unlike then President Clinton, whose policies resulted in a surplus, President Obama's policies have resulted in record deficit levels. Apparently the eight years George W. Bush was in office between the two Democratic presidents had absolutely nothing to do with those record-setting deficits (and debt). The Bush tax cuts added $1.6 trillion to the national debt. The cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan has added another $1.3 trillion to our debt. Then, due to the failures of the Bush presidency, leading us to what has been called the Great Recession, President Obama was forced to sign a pricey economic stimulus bill in order to prevent us from having to suffer through another Great Depression. But, yeah, once again, it's all Obama's fault.
Peter Wehner then, while admitting the country has gotten more liberal with regard to gay rights, believes the country has gotten more conservative overall, citing one poll which he believes showcases that Americans are now more conservative when it comes to issues like terrorism, taxes, and foreign policy. He believes conservatives have also gained some traction when it comes to the issues of immigration and health care. Then, of course, he cites the fact that in such polls, more people identify themselves as conservative than as liberal.
Wehner then closes his "piece" with this:
"For demographic reasons, many Democrats believe that they are riding a tide of presidential inevitability. They may want to rethink that. They are placing a very risky bet that there are virtually no limits to how far left they can go."
I'd like to be the first to offer Peter Wehner a standing ovation in the slow-clap form. Sure, Anthony Weiner may have embarrassed himself by showing his junk on Twitter, but Peter Wehner embarrassed himself even more by writing this drivel.
First off, studies show that Republicans have moved much further to the right than Democrats have moved to the left, and yes, I'm going to be a rebel and believe these scientific studies over the words of one Peter Wehner.
In 2006, Yale political scientist Jacob Hacker released the book, Off Center, where he released this bit of information unto the world:
- Since 1975, Senate Republicans have moved twice as far to the right as Senate Democrats have moved to the left.
- Also, since this time, House Republicans have moved six times further to the right than Democrats have moved to the left.
- Between the 100th Congress (1987-1989) and the 108th Congress (2003-2005), far-right Republicans increased from just 4% to almost 25%, while far-left Democrats increased from slightly less than 6% to a little over 9%.
In 2012, Keith Poole of the University of Georgia and Howard Rosenthal of New York University conducted another study on ideological shifts and political polarization, and discovered that the Republican Party today is the most conservative it's been in a century.
Poole then elaborated on the study's findings:
"The short version would be since the late 1970s starting with the 1976 election in the House the Republican caucus has steadily moved to the right ever since. it's been a little more uneven in the Senate. The Senate caucuses have also moved to the right. Republicans are now furtherest to the right that they've been in 100 years."
Poole added, "It is true that the Republicans have moved further to the right than the Democrats have moved to the left. That's absolutely true."
Yes, it is true, unless one is denial like Peter Wehner. What Peter Wehner and his ilk fail to realize is that the Democratic Party is continually evolving with scientific findings, technological advancements, and moral epiphanies, the public is as well, and the Republican Party is largely remaining stubborn when it comes to these trends. President Obama may indeed be classified as more liberal when it comes to gay rights than former President Bill Clinton, but a lot has changed in the world when it comes to the LGBT community over the past 20 years. Science has shown that homosexuals are born differently than heterosexuals. Through social media, gay rights activism has expanded to levels never before seen. More people have come out of the closet as a result of all this, which has made millions of people rethink their moral standing when it comes to the LGBT community. While it may be easy to criticize a demographic when a person doesn't personally know anyone from that group, it's far more difficult to continue doing that when someone close to that person steps forward and says they're part of that very demographic. When it comes to climate change, studies continue to further show that man has contributed mightily to it, and changes need to be made to reverse its course. So, yes, President Obama may be more liberal when it comes to such issues than President Clinton, but once again, a lot has changed in the past 20 years, so why is it wrong for one's attitudes and opinions about an issue to evolve with these very findings? Why is it liberal to believe in consistent scientific findings? Why is it considered liberal to believe in reality?
Regarding another weak point Mr. Wehner attempted to make, yes, more people identify as conservative than as liberal, but as I've said time and time again, this is largely due to conservatives' bastardization of the word liberal, and even then, the gap is closing. Wehner can believe whatever he'd like, but the country is getting more liberal. A recent Gallup poll showed this very thing when it comes to a number of different issues. More specifically, 55% now believe gay marriage should be legal in this country (net +13%), which is a 15% jump from just six years ago. Over 90% of Americans support expanding background checks on gun purchases. Approximately 68% of the people believe the richest among us don't pay enough in taxes, with only 11% saying they pay too much. Over 50% of the public supports marijuana legalization. Around 55% of this country believe in global warming (net +22%). Three in five people want to see an increase in the minimum wage, as well as paid-sick leave, not to mention that roughly two-thirds feel employers should pay their employees when taking time off after having a child. The public is also more pro-choice (50%) than pro-life (44%), and trending in that direction. A poll conducted by right-leaning Rasmussen stated that 71% of Americans believe young illegal immigrants (DREAMers) should be provided work permits in certain circumstances. Even after conservatives spent seemingly countless hours and dollars trying to discredit the Affordable Care Act (AKA Obamacare), a Kaiser poll shows that more people now approve of the bill (43%) than disapprove of it (42%). Not only that, but while the death penalty remains fairly popular in this country, its popularity has waned in recent years, and when given the choice between executing an inmate and putting him in prison for life without parole, 42% would prefer the former and 52% would prefer the latter. So, once again, it appears as if the former Bush adviser is very much in denial.
Lastly, Peter Wehner is also in denial about the future of the two parties. Yes, overall, Republicans have fared well in recent elections, but that's largely been due to the Citizens United ruling, gerrymandering, and voter suppression tactics. The facts are that this country is becoming increasingly diverse and less religious. Democrats consistently win on election day with women, minorities, and young people. Unless the Republican Party decides to evolve with scientific findings and move toward the left (AKA reality) as a result, not only will their ideas be a thing of the distant past, but their party will be too.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/27/opinion/have-democrats-pulled-too-far-left.html
http://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2012/04/10/150349438/gops-rightward-shift-higher-polarization-fills-political-scientist-with-dread
http://billmoyers.com/2013/10/10/the-radicalization-of-the-gop-is-the-most-important-political-story-today/
http://theweek.com/articles/483063/what-caused-national-debt-6-culprits
http://www.gallup.com/poll/117328/marriage.aspx
http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/majority-americans-support-background-checks-poll-says
http://www.mercurynews.com/nation-world/ci_27577646/poll-tax-rich-more-most-say
http://www.gallup.com/poll/179195/majority-continues-support-pot-legalization.aspx
http://www.gallup.com/poll/182150/views-climate-change-stable-extreme-winter.aspx
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/233183-poll-finds-support-for-minimum-wage-increase-paid-leave
http://reason.com/blog/2015/06/01/american-views-shifting-on-abortion
http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/current_events/immigration/june_2012/71_favor_work_permits_for_young_illegal_immigrants_in_certain_circumstances
http://www.cnbc.com/id/102602525
http://deathpenaltyinfo.org/national-polls-and-studies#614
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