Stupid Coulter

Late last night, I was flipping through the TV and, being the nerd that I am, I checked CSPAN and CSPAN-2. You never know what's going to be on in the middle of the night, and sometimes they have interesting interviews or conferences from recent weeks. I had the great misfortune, however, of coming across an Ann Coulter Q&A with some crazies, and I'm ashamed to admit that I was sucked in before I could change the channel.

I know she's an idiot, and I know she's been thoroughly discredited, but she said something that struck me. As I tried to gather the mental fortitude to tear my eyes away from the oratory equivalent of a ten car pileup, she said that while some of her conservative friends think that Democrats oppose the war on terror because they hate Bush, and therefore oppose everything he does, she thinks Dems oppose the war on terror and oppose Bush because they think he's doing a great job with it.

Beyond the tired slur and twisted logic, it seems to me that this is a particularly crazy idea. Democrats are, unfortunately, still viewed by many as less credible than Republicans on national security. So... um... wouldn't there be no greater political advantage for Democrats than a "total victory" in the war on terror? By anybody, I mean; by either party. If we could just get this darn terrorism stuff completely taken care of, wouldn't that be a huge political boon for Democrats? After all, the American people pretty much recognize that Democrats are better on education, health care, the economy, and virtually every other major domestic issue. Wouldn't Democrats, therefore, have the most to gain by a total victory over terrorism? If we could get back to the issues that affect people on a daily basis, Democrats would win all the time, right?

In reality, Democrats have better ideas for fighting terrorism, both its practitioners and its root causes, and we're slowly but surely demonstrating this fact to the public. But for as long as many Americans still believe the myth that Republicans can keep us safe, it's Republicans that need terrorism to be at the forefront of national consciousness, not Democrats. That's not to say we're trying to avoid the issue -- Democrats can and should beat Republicans on national security -- but we're not the party that needs it, that seems to relish THE SCARY.