I came across a fascinating
comment over at Ben Tribbett's site, made in the context of Ben's call for nominations for his patented "Weenie of the Week" and the (in my opinion) misnomered "Warner of the Week." Notwithstanding the fact that its author is a coward,
i.e., anonymous, it really deserves a response at length, a response which doesn't lend itself well to a mere comment. Here's what this bozo said:
This is really funny. Well thought-out criticisms of the policies pursued by a politician --- one can only presume that the author refers to criticisms of Connaughton's tax-and-spend policies, as well as his craven efforts to seize control of the Prince William GOP --- are "tearing the man down." And recognition that, as an admiralty lawyer --- an extremely specialized area of practice --- and as a veteran, he is well-qualified for the post to which he now has been confirmed, makes us "the sweetest singers of his praise." That's not the hypocrisy intimated by the author of the post, but rather, fair assessments of the man's qualifications.
As a wise movie cop once said, "A man's got to know his limitations." Those who have suffered under the tax-and-spend policies of Connaughton are well-positioned to criticize those policies. They are not personal criticisms (Connaughton has so isolated himself from Conservatives that few of us know him personally); they are policy criticisms.
As for the assertion that Prince William Democrats have been "quietly laying in wait ready to pounce on a weakened and divided opponent," well, perhaps. Far more likely that the long, slow, lingering death of the Prince William Democrat party is reflected in the fact that the only vigorous intellectual debate over policy is occurring not between the two parties, but within the GOP.
