I never supposed that I might be defending RNC Chairman Michael Steele. The man is a boob, and like other sorts of boobs, he's sometimes thrust forward to attract attention though close inspection reveals little significance.
Nevertheless, fair is fair, and to accuse him of purposely triggering violent attacks on lawmakers by his remark about putting Democrats who voted for health care reform "on the firing line," is excessive. That's pretty standard political rhetoric. While we're at it, even frontierwoman Sarah Palin might be forgiven her remarks about "reloading" -- she lives in a gun culture, right? Not that her remark couldn't incite some other wacko.
On the other hand, what about my fellow Virginian, Rep. Eric Cantor, who's busily trying to convince people that it's the Democrats who have touched off violence against themselves, and are just exaggerating the attacks from the raving right? This is the argument of a wild-eyed zealot who loses credibility by his inability to be honest. Yes, all elected officials probably receive a few threats, but the recent violence against Democratic Congressmen/women is different.
It's not that any one individual has sparked these recent incidents, but that the entire thrust of Republican tactics on the health care bill has been to use lies and fear to stir people up. In these circumstances, it's not surprising that we've seen a few incidents. If we don't see any more, we'll be lucky. But Cantor and others should be seeking to calm the waters. Clearly they are desperate to avoid getting caught in the negative backwash of what they created. As I have said earlier, I don't think they can...
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