Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Rove Legacy: Defining Deviancy Down

Trying to find meaning in Karl Rove’s political career, as so many observers are now doing, is like, to borrow Gen. David Petraeus’ expression about Iraq, “putting lipstick on a pig.”

Today the Washington Post asks: “(A)s Karl Rove resigns from the administration, a question lingers over his legacy: What, exactly, did the architect build?”

The answer is nothing. There is no Rove philosophy, doctrine, strategy. The man is the sum of his ugly tactics, a college dropout who spent a working lifetime winning, buying or stealing votes by all possible means--a porcine rooter in the garbage of American politics. His sole accomplishment has been, in Daniel Patrick Moynihan’s phrase, to “define deviancy down” in the White House.

Ask John Kerry, John McCain and Max Cleland about his legacy.

Rove’s departure, along with that of his creature, George W. Bush, has meaning only in the question of how much of their fake piety and total disdain for political morality will persist in American life.

The answer to that won’t be long in coming. On the Democrats’ part, the jury is still out. Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards are still staying within the bounds of civilized contention and serious discourse.

The Republicans, who have to climb out of the Bush wreckage, seem confused. Rudy Giuliani is showing symptoms of Rove Disease, but the others are still in doubt. Much will depend of what Thompson and Romney do when push comes to bare knuckles. How far Mike Huckabee gets will be a clue.

For the moment, it would help if the MSM and blogosphere stopped arguing about the biggest bottom feeder of our time and looked ahead to putting back some semblance of decency into American politics.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

....now that was a very refreshing post....since the announcement of the resignation i was a bit confused about all of the praising and accolades for rove....hmmmm... was i the only one that thought he is a bottom feeder?....after all the lectures from this administration (via rovian speak) that they are the moralists and any tactic is not too devious or disgusting as long as it works and they win....since when do we reward and praise that kind of behavior?....kerry, mccain and cleland are the best examples... he should at least be in court, if not in jail for too many reasons to mention in a comments section....and since when is governing ALL the people based on a 1 vote win? (both pez elections based on voter fraud...fl and ohio)....these people have no concern about the majority of this country...it's all been about a twisted ideology, religious beliefs (they think we should all follow...they are exactly as the radical followers of osama)...and the money....oh...did i mention hypocrisy?...do as we say....not as we do.......anyway....i could go on, but why?....good riddance and only 17 or so months left of this insanity....