Rovian Reality Bites Make My Blood Boil
When I read the New York Times front page story today, showing the extent of Karl Rove’s involvement in the iregular firings in 2006 of a number of U.S. attorneys who weren’t toeing the Rove-Bush line, my blood boiled. Not that this was big news–it was merely a reminder of the many Bush administration abuses of power. I asked my friend, BILL ISRAEL, a former University if Massachusetts Amherst faculty member now at St. Mary’s University, San Antonio, Texas, and the author of the forthcoming book Stealing Reality: the Rise of the Right, the Fracture of News, the Lessons of Karl Rove, to share his thoughts on the matter with me and Heartfeldt readers.
The extent of Karl’s involvement in the purge of U.S. attorneys in the Justice Department is no surprise to anyone who’s known him well. During Watergate, he worked as understudy to Donald Segretti, convicted for performing campaign dirty tricks for Richard Nixon. So I learned a great deal from Karl in the course of teaching “Politics and the Press” with him at the University of Texas at Austin, while he revved up the campaign of George W. Bush to become president.
Unlike Segretti, Karl, to date, has never been convicted. Yet he remains a specialist in wreaking havoc with his opponents, putting deniable distance between himself and responsibility, then arguing that, like Valerie Plame, all opponents are “fair game.” The “hit parade” of his experience in hitting political and other opponents is Chapter 7 of my forthcoming book.
What’s different about the era of Karl, as opposed to the era of Segretti, is that while Karl remains a central coordinator for the political Right, he is also one of its chief beneficiaries. He is among a legion of young conservatives who since the 1960s have been schooled in literally hundreds of right-wing institutions founded since 1935 in a calculated and carefully-coordinated plan to change the ideology of the United States — to push it to the right. The success of that effort accounts for the incredible success of the Right in dominating American politics since the 1970s — and in its efforts to stop health care and health insurance reform now.
Karl, and the Right, have perfected the art and science of “stealing reality.” It’s the details of how they do it, and the devastating effects it’s had on the United States, that I outline in Stealing Reality: the Rise of the Right, the Fracture of News, the Lessons of Karl Rove (Spokane, WA: Demers Books, forthcoming 2009).
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Update on Tuesday, August 18, 2009 at 10:17PM by 
Gloria Feldt
The latest news: Rove Summoned Back to Hell.
Bet he loves that cute outfit.
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What I find so infuriating is how when this all went down, everyone knew Rove’s grubby little finger prints were all over this US attorney firing. How many outrages did we endure over the past eight years? The outing of Valerie Plame, torture, warrantless wiretapping, “extraordinary rendition”, lying to start a war and yet NONE of it has been investigated in any meaningful way (ie. in a way that would have real consequences, civil and/or criminal).
What is the point of the Dems having control of the WH and Congress if they are going to huddle in the corner like a bunch of scared sheep?
“What is the point of the Dems having control of the WH and Congress if they are going to huddle in the corner like a bunch of scared sheep?”
This question, Stacy, plagues many of us who hoped things would really change once the Democrats were back in the leadership. One reason for the Democrats’ timidity, I suggest, is that the sold their souls by recruiting and supporting so many Blue Dogs. So now the core Democratic values are compromised because they are simply not shared by so many of their own party.
Of course, it has always taken two progressives to equal one conservative in moral certitude and thus in backbone. Obama should know this and exert greater leadership with his own party. In addition, advocacy groups need to bear this in mind and crank up their grassroots work accordingly. It’s really up to them largely to counteract the “scared sheep” mentality by giving progressive politicians the courage to stay strong on issues.
Laura Leonard via FAcebook
Sent this to all I know, put it on my wall, do me a favor befriend Margaret Yanco Haines…I will find her if you can’t Gloria…
Siobhan Reynolds via Facebook
Gloria,
Please take a look at Three Felonies a Day By Harvey Silverglate. I am afraid that the culture at DOJ is more Rovian in general than most of us would imagine..
Michael Druckman via Facebook
You lefty’s are hypocrites. Where was the outrage when Bill Clinton fired all of these attorneys, Where was the outrage with Hillary fired the travel office folks and then tried to ruin them. Your selective outrage is entertaining and shallow.19 minutes ago
More comments via Facebook.
Julie LaBomascus
There’s a reason he’s better known as “Turdblossom”.
Karen Bryant Duncan
Who is this Michael Druckman? Does he pay any attention to the hate mongering and lies that we’ve been subjected to by the Republicans? I mean give me a *&$#ing break. That is the kettle calling the pot black.
And more….
Michael Druckman
julie i don’t think we know each other. if you can’t win on facts, go ahead and make a personal attach. your pathetic.
Julie LaBomascus
Why would I want to know you Michael? Rove was an exquisite master of fear and smear campaigns who ruined god only knows how many poltiical careers to get Republicans into office at any cost. You are a smart guy, but rather ignorant of of Rove’s low ethical standards when it came to his “scorched earth” policy of political warfare. Before you claim this is just “sour grapes”, you should know Rove did this to other Republicans who stood in the way too.
Michael Druckman
Julie: Even though we don’t know each other you’ve call me a name. How to you explain Paul Begala and James Carville
Sorry, Michael, I missed one of yours and it was a question directed at me:
Michael Druckman
Gloria: is your blood boiling when the protesters against nationalization of healthcare are exercising their constructional rights of dissent and being demagogue by the democrats. I think not. Why is it only when a conservative does something it’s wrong?
My answer is that I have no problem at all when people organize to express their opinions, vote, write letters etc., and even walk around with protest signs. I do object to the uncivil behavior, to disrupting town halls, to the many outright lies (such as Obama death panels), and to creating an environment of fear that chills the democratic process and keeps civil debate and discussion from ever happening.
If you want to compare and contrast the behavior on the right with the behavior on the left, you might check out the video I’ve placed on a post in my Courageous Leadership blog. here’s the link. And by the way, I don’t spare Obama–well, you’ll see:
https://gloriafeldt.comleadership/2009/8/3/what-can-we-learn-from-health-reforms-leadership-laboratory.html
The facebook spitting match continues here..bordering on the kind of posts that I delete, but for some reason this particular exchange makes me laugh…One thing about Rove, he brings out the worst in people.
Harry Jackim
KARL ROVE is on my STINK LIST , just a notch below RUSH LIMBAUGH . others are DICK CHENEY , his daughter LIZ CHENEY , TOM PAWLENTY , SHAWN HANNITY , GLEN BECK , DICK ARMY , SARAH PALIN . There are others , I’m sure , but I can’t remember their names ! HELP ME !
Yesterday at 10:17am ·
Michael Druckman
Harry: Let me help. Nancy Pelosi, Dick Durban, Harry reid,Hillary Clinton,Chris Dodd, Barack Obama, Paul Begala, James Carvalle, Kieth Oberman, Rachal Madal,Nancy Pelosi( she deserves to be names twice) Oh how could I forget John Kerry and Chuck Shumer and last but not least the open minded clear thinking Harry Jackson
Yesterday at 11:45am · Delete
Michael Druckman
How could I forget barney Frank