Friday, May 1, 2009

Peggy Noonan Takes Leave of her Senses

In an article written for the WSJ, Peggy Noonan pens an apology piece for Barack Obama and his administration, the same outfit that thinks flying Air Force One low over Manhattan and buzzing the Statue of Liberty is a really great idea.

In a time when Americans by the million have lost their jobs and their homes, individuals within this administration don't have a problem with spending $328,000 of the taxpayer's money on a stupid stunt that could have been photo shopped.

Under these circumstances, one of the hardest jobs in the world must be the task of the White House Press Secretary, who is charged with putting a happy face on whatever the embarrassmnet du jour happens to be.

Now, seeming determined to come to the rescue of the "Gang Who Can't Shoot Straight" is someone whose work I used to admire greatly, Peggy Noonan.

I have quoted just a few sentences of her piece, which reads like it might have been written by an Obama speechwriter.

With the news of the Republican In Name Only, Arlen Specter, making offical what we have long known, namely that he is an opportunist and a lifelong Democrat at heart, it is especially disappointing to hear Ms. Noonan mouthing the liberal party line, to wit, a great party needs to welcome into the fold everyone who wants to join it, regardless of what their philosophy of government is. No, Peggy, that is not what makes a party great. What defines greatness in a politcal party is building a platform that will keep America safe and prosperous, protect life from cradle to eternity, expand democracy and keep this country what it has always been, the hope of humanity.

~~John Cronin~~



Republicans are trying to find themselves during a time of dramatic, rolling change, demographic change, younger voters who seem embarrassed to be associated with them, an aging and contracting base and, perhaps most ominously, what appears to be a new national openness to a redefinition of the relationship between the government and the governed.

The ground is shifting. It's hard to get your footing in an earthquake. As Republicans on the Hill try, they must also try to steady their party. It needs a greater sense of realism about its predicament. It needs less enforcement and more encouragement. It needs to inspire the young and the politically unformed not with bloodlust but with ideas.

A great party allows everyone in, and allows prospective members to self-define. If they say they're Republicans, they should be welcomed and helped to find a place where they fit. [ Editor's Note: We have just seen this. Arlen Spector has just found a place where he fits: the Democrat Party ] A great party has a lot of such places. A great party is expansive. A great party has give.

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