Bookends

Why the base--and some outside it--are standing by President Bush.

Peggy Noonan writes about why she thinks that President Bush continues to have the support of most of the American people in this essay from The Wall Street Journal. Her argument consists of two parts; the first is uncontroversial. 9-11 was a critical event which defined a previously undefined presidency. The American people were deeply affected by the events of 9-11 and they understand that bad people are out there trying to get to us to kill us if they can. And there is little doubt that George Bush's presidency was fundamentally changed after that day. But her second argument, that Bush's popularity is a function of the fact that we have not been further attacked, I think is somewhat off the mark.

I think if you were to ask most people, they would probably say that some kind of additional attack is not only possible, but probable as well. The jihadists don't give up and they are trying like mad to get at us. At some point some of them are going to get lucky. And I don't think that will be a reflection of our abilities or diligence. The simple fact is that we can't guard everything and everyone all the time. It just isn't possible. But perception is important here. I think most Americans understand that the President is working hard to prevent any attacks. He means what he says and he does what he says he is going to do. We know he is not perfect, but he doesn't have to be in order for people to respect him. They know he is working hard to protect them. And making a real effort to fight the bad guys counts for a lot.

The Democrats, by contrast, look small and petty most of the time. Their contributions consist mostly of complaining, sniping and insulting those who are not part of the lunatic fringe. And this is plain to many Americans. The Democrats are just not very serious about defending the country. Indeed, they seem more determined to attack our defenders and to defend our attackers. Dick Durbin calls our troops "Nazis" while his fellow liberals in the ACLU are trying to get terrorists released from Gitmo. They applaud Lyn Stewart while attacking Donald Rumsfeld. Their sorrow and grief seem to be exclusively reserved for the jihadists in captivity and those like them who are still free to cause misery and mayhem. But they have no respect for those who, in uniform or out, are trying to stop the bad guys from attacking us.

The moonbat fringe at Air America calls the President a "thug" and a "criminal" on a regular basis. Just today I heard host Mike Malloy say he is full of hate for all Republicans. He is not at all shy about calling us evil and demented. One wonders at the level of insanity required of a leftist to think, simultaneously, that most of the country is filled with knuckle dragging bigots and that telling these same people that you hate them and everything they stand for will somehow get you their vote. Even if anyone was actually listening to them, which most are not, no sane person could be persuaded by the Angry Leftists at Air America to change their minds because the die-hards over there don't really offer any kind of rational arguments or ideas. Mr. Malloy didn't offer any kind of in-depth analysis or intellectual argument today that I noticed. What he did have was a bad cliche imitation of a supposedly ignorant good old boy southern accent combined with an overbearing disdain for anyone from a red state. He is very good at letting you know how filled with hate he is, and the people over there are constantly letting us know how much they hate all of the rest of us in Fly-Over-Country. Hate and rage seem to be all they have. But while that might get you some pity, it won't get you respect.

To tell the truth, my reaction to the Angry Left is now mostly one of boredom. I mean, do the moonbats at Air America and all their Angry Leftist cousins think they are going to win the intellectual debate by coming up with new ways to call Republicans "fascists?" How many ways can Janeane Garofalo and Mike Malloy call Republicans "thugs" and "criminals" before people fall asleep from repetition? As a blogger I will continue to follow the antics of these people because I am fascinated with political debate and the importance of ideas. But really; do they think they are making any impact on the American public? Or is it more the case that they can't really help themselves and venting is the only response of which they are now capable? I tend to think the latter, because if they were going to offer some real alternative ideas they would have done so by now. And every time we hear from Democratic party leaders they tell us how they have to "define their message." This of course is an admission that they don't have one.

The fact is that Bush gets support from the American people because he earns it. And there is nothing the lunatic fringe can do to change that.