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The wrong way to court conservatives
One could say Congressman and Senate hopeful Mark Udall, D-Colo., made somewhat of a political misstep this week.
Udall and 26 co-sponsors, including former Cleveland mayor, Congressman Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, introduced a House resolution Oct 1, “Honoring all Americans serving in the Armed Forces of the United States and condemning the attack by broadcaster Rush Limbaugh on the integrity and professionalism of some of those Americans.”
The issue of whether Limbaugh was disparaging U.S. troops aside, Udall’s leadership on this resolution is, well, not the brightest way to court conservatives and right-leaning moderate ahead of the 2008 election.
Though Political Notebook typically is loath to make predictions, we’re guessing Udall will probably do exceptionally well among Limbaugh haters and liberals at the polls. Thus, the people he needs to focus on attracting to his side are conservatives and conservative-leaning independents. Attacking an uber-conservative radio personality is, well, probably not the best way to make friendly with the people you want to get behind your candidacy.
It remains to be seen if former Fort Collins Congressman and Senate hopeful Bob Schaffer, R-Colo., will jump on Udall’s sponsorship as a line of attack, but one thing is clear: If Udall continues to openly attack conservative idols, he likely will lose any chance of winning their admirers’ votes next year.
UPDATE: In response to avid reader correspondence and comments, a suppliment to this posting can be found here.
*Udall photo shot by Political Notebook.
Comments
Commenting is now closed for this entry.
By Bob
October 4, 2007 5:07 PM | Link to this
How is condeming attacks on American troops a “misstep”? This is one the worst write ups of how conservatives DO nor DO NOT think.
By enlightening u
October 5, 2007 12:25 AM | Link to this
I am sure that Rep. Udall is not too concerned about courting far right uber-cons. The people who support an extremist drug addict wingnut like Limpbaugh are not going to vote a Democratic ticket anyway. Independents and people in the center are not fans of comedian Rush. I agree that this is a “made up” controversy and that maybe Saccone has mistakenly sipped out of Gary Harmon’s bottle.
By JLC
October 5, 2007 1:04 AM | Link to this
Besides this being one of the most illogical writings, I have ever read as far as the basic point is concerned, most liberals I have spoken with have are quite frustrated with Udall. They have found that, in a number of areas, he is more conservative than expected. He needs to work for strong liberal support.
By Ben
October 5, 2007 6:40 AM | Link to this
I agree with Bob, and also: why should Udall care what Limbaugh lovers think? Was he really going to get their votes in the first place? The resolution is silly in the same sense the earlier resolution condemning the MoveOn ad was silly - Congress shouldn’t spend its time condemning everything every American says. The thought was clearly, “Well, if the Republicans are gonna act aggrieved when their delicate sensibilities are offended, two can play that game.”
By John B.
October 5, 2007 7:11 AM | Link to this
There is no chance that any Limbaugh-lover would ever vote for Udall no matter what he did or said. On the other hand, Limbaugh is the biggest hypocrite going and Udall should have kept his mouth shut to try to get votes from Limbaugh-lemmings? That would have been even greater hypocrisy.
By Rex Carpenter
October 5, 2007 9:20 AM | Link to this
Somebody better tell Mike that Mr. Limbaugh is a know-nothing icon, not a conservative icon. That pointy-headed, knee-jerk sub-stratum of the polity who prefer certainty over fact and aggression over competence will always find a creature like Limbaugh to invest their resentments and incomprehensions in. These folks are never “courted” or persuaded, because they don’t act on principle or reason, but only on fear and loathing. I know, I know. It’s a pathetic mystery that there are enough of them to make a success out of such a cruel and unfunny comedian.
Which makes Congressman Udall all the more honorable for cutting them loose and raising the tenor of the national debate to an adult level. I doubt he even considered the dittohead constituency, as well he should not. America’s traditional standards are out of their reach, or, at least, more of a reach than they have the courage to attempt. Let them catch up, if they care to. But they have not earned a place at the table of reason. They don’t even know how to use the utensils. Let ‘em cook.
By Inky
October 5, 2007 10:25 AM | Link to this
Mike: the entire premise of your column is bizarre, unless you’re a fan yourself of “El Rushbo” and have been drinking deeply of the know-nothing Koolaid from Rush, Hannity, BillO and Mikey Weinstein “Savage.”
Have you always been like this, or have you suffered a recent brain injury, from binge drinking or falling down a flight of stairs?