Dawn's Light Smiles

Toxicity
In societies governed by persuasion, politics is mostly talk, so liberals’ impoverishment of their vocabulary matters. Having damaged liberalism’s reputation, they call themselves progressives. Having made the federal government’s pretensions absurd, they have resurrected a supposed synonym for the government, the “federal family.” Having made federal spending suspect, they advocate “investments” — for “job creation,” a euphemism for stimulus, another word they have made toxic. (George Will, Washington Post, 9/14/2011)


To which we would add, unable to explain the cold, Liberals - oops, Progressives! - pivot from "global warming" to "climate change."


Weird and Wild
The party purged the weird Weiner even though at the other end of his tweets were women who wanted to be there and who in no way were victims. One of them even paraded on the “Today” show, a rare appearance by a woman whose daughter had not disappeared.


Now the swift application of Victorian hypocrisy has cost the Democratic Party a sorely needed congressional seat. Even after Weiner’s exposing himself had been exposed, he still led in the polls.  (Richard Cohen, Washington Post, 9/14/2011)


Dems have a typical strategy for dealing with sex scandals.  Accuse the other side of being prudish. Impugn the reputation of the victim.  Defend the perpetrator.


Embracing
Fifty years later, as Mr. Perry, 61 and a three-term Republican governor of Texas, embarks on a run for president, the tight-knit and traditionally Democratic community that first crowned him king no longer wholeheartedly embraces him even as Paint Creek anchors his origin story. (NYT, 9/19/2011)


A pretty classic smear tactic that the Times uses on all Republican candidates (along with the innuendos of drinking and marital infidelity).  This one purports breakage with his or her hometown roots.  


Not Formed
Many polarizing former office holders — Sarah Palin, Eliot L. Spitzer — have been given TV platforms, but Mr. Sharpton is not a former anything. (NYT, 9/19/2011)


So now we are putting Sarah Palin in the same category as prostitute-covorting Client #9 Spitzer and professional race-baiter Sharpton? 


Friend in Need
Part of that has been that liberals aren’t happy that the president has proposed stimulus lite, but mostly because Democrats don’t currently see Obama as a good friend to have these days.


Since Obama began his fall campaign effort, the administration has been beset by scandal (Fast and Furious, Solyndra and LightSquared) and Democrats have lost two special elections in which Obama himself was the central issue. The president has obtained no job-approval bounce from his latest publicity blitz. The administration is pushing back with vigor against a new book by Ron Suskind which shows a dysfunctional White House and a president who compares his own management style with that of Jimmy Carter.  (Foxnews.com, 9/19/2011)


When things go bad, they really go bad!  Hillary in 2012!


Pared
Last month, in a wide-ranging national survey of 1,000 randomly selected, registered voters, and in 10 polls in individual states each with 400 respondents, my polling company found that voters strongly favor measures to pare the compensation of current and future public employees. They strongly oppose higher taxes. (Douglas E. Schoen, WSJ, 9/19/2011)


Schoen is a Democrat pollster.