He Did It To Himself

A lovely manifestation of the practical results of "tacking to the center" is when you - perhaps unknowingly - set yourself up for these kinds of attacks.

Trade policy and FISA were just the most notable firsts. Supporting a Blue Dog over a Progressive is easily chalked up to not paying attention. The faith-based bullshit and praise for the Heller decision is pandering at it's worst (and likely will produce an effect opposite to what was intended). Appearing to be equivocating on Iraq is merely the latest in a long series of examples. I'm sure there will be others if something isn't changed soon.

In the meantime, welcome to the next meme the establishment is about dump on your doorstep (complete with flaming bag) - and the future ad campaign from our good and patriotic friends at the RNC:

As Obama assiduously obliterates all differences with McCain on national security and social issues, he remains rightly confident that Bush fatigue, the lousy economy and his own charisma -- he is easily the most dazzling political personality since John Kennedy -- will carry him to the White House.

Of course, once he gets there he will have to figure out what he really believes. The conventional liberal/populist stuff he campaigned on during the primaries? Or the reversals he is so artfully offering up now?

I have no idea. Do you? Does he?

Now, one could blame the liberal activist wing of the Democratic Party for this. One could also remember that Senator Obama gave his famous Iraq speech in 2002 - well before he entertained any ideas about running for a national office such as the Presidency.

(I don't consider the Senate a national position, more like a glorified local position with great benefits, such as the ability to be on television for doing nothing more than generating hot air and not much else.)

You could also find good cause to suggest his previous position on the FISA updates was designed to mollify the base of the Democratic Party. But once you do so, you come to the inescapable conclusion that your nominee is a flaming liar, and I for one am not prepared to go that far (he is still becoming untrustworthy).

Granted, he would have to run to the left of Senator Clinton to win the nomination, but it's quite clear that he did not. None of his positions during the primaries differed dramatically from his clearly stated positions in the Senate or in the Illinois Statehouse. He was already to the left of Hillary, no need to tack anywhere but forwards to victory.

Yet, here we go again. Now he's talking shit about late-term abortions. Honestly, I have some difficulties with third-trimester terminations - not least of which being I'm a man and can not get pregnant, so I have no cause nor right to offer an opinion on the matter - but this is the worst dissemination of conservative logic I have ever heard from anyone:

"Now, I don't think that 'mental distress' qualifies as the health of the mother. I think it has to be a serious physical issue that arises in pregnancy, where there are real, significant problems to the mother carrying that child to term."

This is - in my mind - equivalent to saying PTSD is nowhere near as serious - or as "real" - as a physical injury. Ask your local veteran of either the Vietnam or latest Iraq war if he or she finds that to be the case.

Sure, there should be clear standards to the definition of "mental distress" (I'm confident there's quite a bit of room for abuse of the term), but that statement closes the door to any possibilities beyond purely "physical issues" in a political landscape.

Whoever is feeding Senator Obama this never-ending line of shit - assuming he's not coming up with this on his own - needs to be found and quartered. Before it's too late.

We're not there yet. But the signpost up ahead shows we're getting much too close for comfort to the Loser Democrat Zone.