Joe Wilson: A Perfect Example of Left AND Right Wing Hyper Partisanship

[Psychoclown]

The whole Joe Wilson saga has managed to bring out some of the best examples of partisan hackery I've seen on both sides of the aisle.

Let's start with the right. Many on the right have embraced Wilson as some kind of national hero. He's been flooded with new donations. And for what? The guy made an ass of himself on the national TV on the floor of Congress. Whether you agree with Wilson's claims or not, heckling the President of the United States while addresses a joint session of Congress is unbelievably disrespectful to the office of the President. A member of Congress should certainly know better.

There were plenty of valid avenues for Wilson to express his views. There is no shortage of cable news shows that would've gladly had Wilson on to speak on the issue. He could've wrote an editorial and ran it in a major newspaper. Trying to shout down the President while he's giving a speech in the Capitol building is an inexcuseable breach in decorum. And where Republicans show their true hackery is that they were the ones only a few years ago complaining about the disrespect Democratic congressmen showed Bush when they would boo or murmur negatively during his addresses.

Of course the left is no better. We rarely heard a peep from them when their guys were breaking decorum, but now Wilson is absolutely deplorable to them. And they can't even stop there, at a valid if somewhat hypocritical stance. No, many left wingers feel the need to smear Wilson with the racist tag with only the flimsiest of "evidence".

I've heard the man's facial expression, the mere fact that he's from the south, and of course the infamous unspoken "boy" that only Maureen Dowd seems to be able to hear used as proof of Wilson's racism. Some others have tried to present "facts" like his membership of Sons of the Confederacy, a organization dedicated to civil war re-enactmants and the preservation of Confederate graves. Or that he rushed to judge a claim that Strom Thurmond had an illegitimate daughter who happened to be half black a smear on Thurmond (the claim was verified as true later). No one to my knowledge has come forward with any remarks by Wilson, public or private, that indicate he has a racist bone his body. Until they do, this is all ugly unfounded speculation at best or my cynical side says a deliberate attempt to smear Wilson and by proxy the right wing that has adopted Wilson as a folk hero.

Is it too much to ask from both sides that they stop and think before they rush to judge? Or that they at least avoid blatant hypocrisy. Sadly, I'm convinced it is.

 

[dragondad]

"We rarely heard a peep from them when their guys were breaking decorum"

What would be that time when Dems were breaking the decorum of Congress?


Surely, you are not referring to the loud murmurs and hisses during an applause break in a President's speech?

1) This was an actual interruption of the President's speech.

2) Combined by the member actually yelling "You lie!"

 

[Wessexman]

Let's start with the right. Many on the right have embraced Wilson as some kind of national hero. He's been flooded with new donations. And for what? The guy made an ass of himself on the national TV on the floor of Congress. Whether you agree with Wilson's claims or not, heckling the President of the United States while addresses a joint session of Congress is unbelievably disrespectful to the office of the President. A member of Congress should certainly know better.
.

As I've said before this seems very strange to a Brit. The president was clearly in his political mode and heckling the British or Australian PM in parliament is part of everyday life here.

Perhaps he should be criticised but this sort of faux outrage that you are getting from some on the liberal side seems absurd to me. It just seems like a nothing incident blown into something absurd.

 

[RightinNYC]

"We rarely heard a peep from them when their guys were breaking decorum"

What would be that time when Dems were breaking the decorum of Congress?


Surely, you are not referring to the loud murmurs and hisses during an applause break in a President's speech?

1) This was an actual interruption of the President's speech.

2) Combined by the member actually yelling "You lie!"

I can guarantee you that if a group of 50 Republicans booed during Obama's healthcare speech, there would have been a thread started about it within 15 minutes.

Accept the fact that it's not just Republicans who are capable of being classless douchebags.

 

[jackalope]

As I've said before this seems very strange to a Brit. The president was clearly in his political mode and heckling the British or Australian PM in parliament is part of everyday life here.

You keep saying this, even though you know that what Wilson did would be specifically against the rules in the British House of Commons.


Since the OP is about avoiding hypocrisy, perhaps you could avoid pretending that this would be permitted in the British House of Commons.

 

[jackalope]

Of course the left is no better. We rarely heard a peep from them when their guys were breaking decorum, but now Wilson is absolutely deplorable to them. And they can't even stop there, at a valid if somewhat hypocritical stance. No, many left wingers feel the need to smear Wilson with the racist tag with only the flimsiest of "evidence".

I hear ya, and even agree with most of what you said, despite my vocal outrage and disgust with Wilson. However, while the left has ignored instances of bad behavior by their own, when one of their own actually broke the rules of the House and impugned Bush's character by stating from the well of the House that Bush enjoyed soldier's deaths (or some such garbage), Pete Stark was made to go to the well of the house and apologize.

The dude was so shaken by the experience he cried his way thru the apology and went into a 5-minute crying jag when he finished and left the floor. All the while Boehner was insisting on a very strongly worded resolution of censure because the rules of the House had been broken. Clyburn did not even insist on censure, but rather a lesser resolution of disapproval, or a simple apology from the floor of the House to the members of the House.

The Democrats were in fact consistent: apologize from the floor, or resolution.
The Republicans were not.

 

[liblady]

As I've said before this seems very strange to a Brit. The president was clearly in his political mode and heckling the British or Australian PM in parliament is part of everyday life here.

Perhaps he should be criticised but this sort of faux outrage that you are getting from some on the liberal side seems absurd to me. It just seems like a nothing incident blown into something absurd.

it's not a nothing incident here.

 

[Harshaw]

No, it IS a nothing incident that's being paraded as the Crime of the Century.

He was a jerk. But that's it. There's nothing deeper than that.

 

[Psychoclown]

No, it IS a nothing incident that's being paraded as the Crime of the Century.

He was a jerk. But that's it. There's nothing deeper than that.

It's not the crime of the century, but Wilson did act incredibly inappropriately and if he was censured, I would not have a problem with that.

 

[j-mac]

It's not the crime of the century, but Wilson did act incredibly inappropriately and if he was censured, I would not have a problem with that.

Censure would be an even more political move that would do little but strengthen partisan bickering, as if the feigned outrage at the President being called a liar even as he himself was calling others in the chamber liars hasn't done enough to stoke the fight.


j-mac

 

[Wessexman]

You keep saying this, even though you know that what Wilson did would be specifically against the rules in the British House of Commons.


Since the OP is about avoiding hypocrisy, perhaps you could avoid pretending that this would be permitted in the British House of Commons.

I'm not pretending it is permitted, I'm saying no one would care much. This is a distinction you don't seem to grasp.

 

[Wessexman]

it's not a nothing incident here.

Yeah, hyperpartisan liberals seem to be trying to make it some massive insult, but it is basically nothing.

 

[CaptainCourtesy]

The whole Joe Wilson saga has managed to bring out some of the best examples of partisan hackery I've seen on both sides of the aisle.

Let's start with the right. Many on the right have embraced Wilson as some kind of national hero. He's been flooded with new donations. And for what? The guy made an ass of himself on the national TV on the floor of Congress. Whether you agree with Wilson's claims or not, heckling the President of the United States while addresses a joint session of Congress is unbelievably disrespectful to the office of the President. A member of Congress should certainly know better.

There were plenty of valid avenues for Wilson to express his views. There is no shortage of cable news shows that would've gladly had Wilson on to speak on the issue. He could've wrote an editorial and ran it in a major newspaper. Trying to shout down the President while he's giving a speech in the Capitol building is an inexcuseable breach in decorum. And where Republicans show their true hackery is that they were the ones only a few years ago complaining about the disrespect Democratic congressmen showed Bush when they would boo or murmur negatively during his addresses.

Of course the left is no better. We rarely heard a peep from them when their guys were breaking decorum, but now Wilson is absolutely deplorable to them. And they can't even stop there, at a valid if somewhat hypocritical stance. No, many left wingers feel the need to smear Wilson with the racist tag with only the flimsiest of "evidence".

I've heard the man's facial expression, the mere fact that he's from the south, and of course the infamous unspoken "boy" that only Maureen Dowd seems to be able to hear used as proof of Wilson's racism. Some others have tried to present "facts" like his membership of Sons of the Confederacy, a organization dedicated to civil war re-enactmants and the preservation of Confederate graves. Or that he rushed to judge a claim that Strom Thurmond had an illegitimate daughter who happened to be half black a smear on Thurmond (the claim was verified as true later). No one to my knowledge has come forward with any remarks by Wilson, public or private, that indicate he has a racist bone his body. Until they do, this is all ugly unfounded speculation at best or my cynical side says a deliberate attempt to smear Wilson and by proxy the right wing that has adopted Wilson as a folk hero.

Is it too much to ask from both sides that they stop and think before they rush to judge? Or that they at least avoid blatant hypocrisy. Sadly, I'm convinced it is.

One of the best posts I've read in a long time. I wish I had written it.

 

[CaptainCourtesy]

As I've said before this seems very strange to a Brit. The president was clearly in his political mode and heckling the British or Australian PM in parliament is part of everyday life here.

Perhaps he should be criticised but this sort of faux outrage that you are getting from some on the liberal side seems absurd to me. It just seems like a nothing incident blown into something absurd.

From what I understand of British politics, this would be correct, and fairly common in your government. Here, it does not occur.

 

[Wessexman]

From what I understand of British politics, this would be correct, and fairly common in your government. Here, it does not occur.

Yeah and I can see it is something to be criticised. It is this faux outrage and absurd accusations likes racism that seems both hilarious and very sad to me.

 

[CaptainCourtesy]

Yeah and I can see it is something to be criticised. It is this faux outrage and absurd accusations likes racism that seems both hilarious and very sad to me.

I agree. Wilson's behavior was inappropriate. The accusations of racism are idiotic.

 

[The silenced majority]

I for one do not view Wilson as a "national hero". I think what he did was reprehensible, but he has apologized for it.

The right has embraced Wilson because he essentially said what needed to be said, he just didn't choose the right time/forum to say it. Conservatives don't have much tolerance for a lack of civility, so to be clear, the distinction should be made that Wilson's popularity is because of a stance he took, not because of his lack of civility & decorum.

 

[Psychoclown]

Censure would be an even more political move that would do little but strengthen partisan bickering, as if the feigned outrage at the President being called a liar even as he himself was calling others in the chamber liars hasn't done enough to stoke the fight.


j-mac

The only problem I would have with censure is that the Democrats refused to censure one of their own back when Bush was President for the incredible disrespect he showed the President on the floor of Congress. After doing that, censure would've been a very hypocritical act on their part. But that doesn't mean Wilson wouldn't have deserved it.

 

[Psychoclown]

One of the best posts I've read in a long time. I wish I had written it.

You're making me blush, CC. :3oops:

 

[Harshaw]

It's not the crime of the century, but Wilson did act incredibly inappropriately and if he was censured, I would not have a problem with that.

That's fine, too, but it still doesn't mean it goes any deeper than "he was a jerk."

 

[Psychoclown]

That's fine, too, but it still doesn't mean it goes any deeper than "he was a jerk."

Yup. He was a jerk in a highly inappropriate setting. Nothing more, nothing less.

 

[CaptainCourtesy]

You're making me blush, CC. :3oops:

With that facepaint, how could we tell? :2razz:

 

[akyron]

Yup. He was a jerk in a highly inappropriate setting. Nothing more, nothing less.

Its the reasons he was a jerk people refuse to see. Some cannot fathom why one would be against a goverment takeover of the healthcare system. I wonder if he would have been able to have his questions and objections answered if he had just spoken privately or sent a discreet note to someone in a position to make proper changes to the bill.

 

[jackalope]

I'm not pretending it is permitted, I'm saying no one would care much. This is a distinction you don't seem to grasp.

You keep saying noone would care, however the rules outline what would happen. If the member refused to retract the statement, the member risks being named (includes a suspension) and being required to withdraw from the chamber.

What would trigger this happening, if the member was so churlish as to refuse to retract the offending statement, would be a single member standing up and saying, for example, "I name Joe Wilson".

You're quite wrong that noone would care, and there would be consequences.


The consequences in the British House of Commons are more severe than a simple resolution of disapproval. Which would have been avoided had the garbage simply gone to the well of the floor and apologized.

 

[jackalope]

The only problem I would have with censure is that the Democrats refused to censure one of their own back when Bush was President for the incredible disrespect he showed the President on the floor of Congress. After doing that, censure would've been a very hypocritical act on their part. But that doesn't mean Wilson wouldn't have deserved it.

They did not refuse to censure, they required an apology from the floor of the House, or he would be censured. Had the guy who spoke against Bush not apologized, he would have been censured. Same as in this instance. Actually, this instance was a lesser resolution, not a censure. The same conditions were offered: Apologize from the well of the house, or have a resolution against you.