Damned if you do…

There have been two completely opposite reactions to Harry Reid’s complaints about the RNC’s coordinated, 13-page “Reid all about it” smear. Some believe it’s great to see Reid stick up for himself against unfair attacks, while others suggest Reid sounds like he’s whining about a pretty typical GOP assault. Oddly enough, the latter seems to be the more common belief.

ABC’s The Note, among others, has been leading the way in criticizing Reid and the Senate Dems for standing up to the RNC’s goal of “Daschle-izing” Reid, characterizing the Dems’ response as “whining and moaning.”

One party never apologizes and never shows weakness; one party is on its fourth day of cry-babyish “defense” of its Senate Leader, after a run-of-the-mill GOP “attack.”

This seems like one of those helpful reminders that Dems are in a tough strategic spot. In a situation like this one, they’re damned if they do and damned if they don’t.

If you’re in the Senate Dems’ leadership office, ask yourself what you’d do. The RNC has crafted a “hit piece” on Reid, filled with distortions and half-truths. They’ve announced they’ll even be headed to Reid’s home state repeatedly in the coming years to put the pressure on him more directly. You can:

(a) ignore the attack, focus on our policy priorities, and hope people will see through the nonsense; or

(b) mount an aggressive defense, pointing out the attack’s inaccuracies, and arguing that the Republicans’ smear tactics are a recipe for further division.

For years, Dems went with choice (a), which led to complaints that the Dems are weak, they won’t fight back, and they’ll tolerate getting stepped on by the GOP smear machine. So now Dems are going with choice (b), which is prompting complains that the Dems are “whining,” they’re cry-babies, and they’re naïve.

Though it’s probably obvious, I don’t quite see this the way The Note does.

Reid and his colleagues’ response strikes me as fair warning that the Dems have adopted a more aggressive, no-nonsense stance when it comes to Republican smears. Daschle got hammered for years with attacks that were ultimately successful in driving him from office. Indeed, Senate Republicans essentially told Daschle that this was the new norm — we’re going to compare you to Saddam Hussein on Monday, pretend to work with you on a common agenda on Tuesday, then blast you as an “obstructionist” on Wednesday. Don’t worry, they said, this is just politics.

Reid has let it be known that he’s sick of it and is fighting back. We’re barely into the new Congress, Reid says, and the smear machine is already in full gear. If you want to work together on an agenda, save the attacks for the campaign season.

What’s more, Reid has been surprisingly successful in generating media attention for his outrage. By fighting back, the Dems are getting the word out that the Republican majority would rather smear their rivals than work together.

Does this mean the Dems are being “cry-babies”? That’s a matter open to some interpretation — one man’s whining is another man’s aggressive defense.