Right-wingers, conspiracies and racists, oh my!

The more things change, the more they stay the same. 

When political times get tough for liberal Democrats in Washington, conservative conspiracies are the bogeymen of choice.

Back in 1998 when things got tough for Bill Clinton, Hillary declared that there was a “vast right-wing conspiracy” looking to bring her husband down.  Other Democrats where quick to pick up the mantra and do anything they could to discredit those who criticized Clinton.

Now here we are eleven years later and, (although there are no chubby interns involved), we have another liberal President facing hard times.  So out pop the conspiracy theories like some worn out jack-in-the-box.

Except now we have two former Democrat Presidents cranking the handle.

In response to a question by NBC’s David Gregory on whether or not “the vast right-wing conspiracy” still exists, Bill Clinton responded, “Oh, you bet.  Sure it is.  It’s not as strong as it was, because America’s changed demographically, but it’s as virulent as it was.”

He lamented that the current focus of the conspiracy “seems to be wanting (Obama) to fail.”  I suppose when Democrats oppose Republicans it’s just wholesome bi-partisanship?

This comes after another failed, former Democrat President, Jimmy Carter, accused Obama’s critics of being racists.

One could easily be excused for thinking that liberals are under the impression that it’s impossible to disagree with or oppose them in any way without having some sort of evil motivations.

In a recent column for the LA Times, former Congressman J.C. Watts, (who just so happens to be a black Republican), addressed Carter’s silly suggestion by stating that “There are people of all colors who believe it is wrong for the government to take over our health care system…  There are people of every color who believe it is bad economic policy to raise taxes, especially in a weak economy.”

So much for the racist conspiracies.

The truth is that the opposition to Obama is “vast” and it is “right wing”, at least from where Clinton and Obama are standing.  But given recent opinion polls, there’s nothing conspiratorial about it.

On issues like a government takeover of health care, raising taxes, amnesty for illegal immigrants, gay marriage, tax-payer dollars for abortion, opposing bailouts, etc., the people being derided as “right wing” look a whole lot like the majority of the American public.

If anything, the opposition is a response to the decades long conspiracies of those on the left that want to “transform” America in their own image.  The increase in intensity is simply a reaction to the increase in intensity and speed of action by Obama and the Democrats in Congress.

People have a much clearer vision now of what’s at stake when it comes to the government and its policies.  If they opposed Obama before, they’re revolting now.  If they were ambivalent before, they’re opposed now.  And some who even supported him previously have now decided that this isn’t what they signed up for.  And calling them names won’t make them go away.

If Clinton and company want to look for conspiracies, perhaps they should start looking closer to home.

What does he call generations of Democrat opposition to the basic tenets of capitalism?  To say nothing of their more recent efforts to restructure one-sixth of the American economy without so much as a trial program – let alone enough time for everyone to actually read the language of the legislation they’re about to pass.

Then there’s the news media.

A recent News Consumer study found that eighty-nine percent of the American public believes that “the national media played a very or somewhat strong role in helping elect President Obama.  Further, sixty-nine percent believe that the media is “intent on promoting the Obama presidency”.

It should come as no surprise then that only twenty-two percent of the people surveyed thought that their tax dollars should be used to help bailout failing newspapers – which is exactly what some on the left see as the “next” bailout they’d like to push.  All of which should tell you something about how important liberals feel the media is in pushing their agenda.

How’s that for a conspiracy?

***

cross-posted at DrewMcKissick.com

Imagecolumn: