Democrats weren’t long in trying to blame Mitt Romney for the over-the-top denunciation of President Obama by singer Ted Nugent. Nugent told an audience at the national convention of the National Rifle Association that Obama was “vile,” “evil,” and “America-hating” and vowed that “if Barack Obama becomes the president in November again, I will either be dead or in jail by this time next year.” Subsequently, Democratic National Committee Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz sought to rally her partisans to pressure Romney to condemn Nugent because he has publicly endorsed the likely GOP nominee.
But rather than allow the kerfuffle to fester, the Romney campaign has quickly responded to the charge. Romney spokesperson Andrea Saul issued a statement today that made it clear the candidate wouldn’t allow himself to be associated with Nugent’s rhetoric.“Divisive language is offensive no matter what side of the political aisle it comes from. Mitt Romney believes everyone needs to be civil,” Saul said.
While lacking the drama that Bill Clinton achieved when he rebuked rapper Sister Souljah for suggesting African-Americans would be justified in killing whites, it still provides Romney with an opportunity to put a little air between intemperate right-wingers and him. In 1992, Clinton seized on Souljah’s comments specifically to prove to the American public that he was moderate and to distance himself from Jesse Jackson who criticized him for his attack on the singer. While Romney doesn’t have quite the same need, he has nothing to lose by establishing an elevated tone in the campaign.
It should also be noted that Wasserman-Schultz should be careful about making too much about the nasty things said by right-wing artists. For every one Nugent on the right, there are a score of left-wing comics, singers and actors who routinely say hateful things about Republicans. If the DNC chair is going to start keeping tabs on the likes of Nugent, she may find herself spending much of the next few months apologizing for comments by liberals.
It's Bush's fault. By existing, he encouraged denunciations from the Left that made Nugent's seem quite tame in comparison.
Looks like you found someone to proceed with plan 3.
It may not be good politics (but who really knows?), but Ted Nugent is right
…Ted Nugent is right… n nAre you nuts?
I believe Obama probably hates America. In my book, anyone who hates America is vile and evil. What about that is nuts?
Obama hates America. How can you shape your mouth to say those words? He may have a different conception of America than you, but "hates it"? You"re smarter than such loony tunes.
Thank you for the compliment, but I have to resist: Any human being who sits in a church for 20 years and hears the Reverend Say "God Damn America" and not only does not walk out, but APPOINTS THE REVEREND TO BE HIS SPIRITUAL ADVISOR ON HIS PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN hates America. You may call that a simplistic definition, but I think it is pretty compelling: "God Damn America" = Hatred of America. He should have immediately repudiated that, but he never did and still hasn't. There is other evidence as well, but this should be sufficient. n n
This is a good sign. The left, like the proverbial broken clock, does tell the time correctly twice a day; and when it does, it appeals to those crucial swing voters to acknowledge this publicly, as Clinton did in reverse with his Sister Souljah moment. I don't think, however, you are going to see any such moment with our president. Just as access to the White House seems to be limited to bundlers, access to his sympathies when a person is unjustly attacked is limited to those favoring Hope and Change.
Wasserman Schultz won't have to defend the loonies on the left because the media will a) cover them up by not reporting them anymore than they report on The View, which is hate-speech every single day or b) explain what the leftist looney means and why they would say such a "truth" in the language they use. That is, there is no one in the Democratic Party who finds any over-the-top criticism of Republicans in any way offensive. Wasn't it Pelosi who used the term Nazi on Republicans? Did even Clinton suggest there was anything wrong in that?
…While lacking the drama that Bill Clinton achieved when he rebuked rapper Sister Souljah for suggesting African-Americans would be justified in killing whites, it still provides Romney with an opportunity to put a little air between intemperate right-wingers and him…
Ya’ think? If this was a Sister Soujah moment, I’m Judah Maccabee. And I’m not.