Finding the sharp edge of a wedge

November 10, 2005

Republicans perfected the execution of “wedge” politics. They’d find otherwise united Dems and peel off supporters using cultural wedges — affirmative action, gay rights, flag burning, etc. — to divide and conquer.

Newsweek’s Howard Fineman reported today that Dems are taking a page from the GOP playbook and going with something Fineman calls “Wedge Strategy 2.0.”

I saw it in operation the other day when I happened to drop by Sen. Harry Reid’s press office in the Capitol just as his press secretary, Jim Manley, was spinning his bosses’ latest line of attack: that “all roads” of controversy lead to the office of Vice President Dick Cheney.

“The focus is on Cheney,” Manley said happily, “and you can quote me on that!” Cheney and Halliburton, Cheney and torture policy, Cheney and the CIA leak, Cheney and pre-war intelligence, Cheney and global warming […]

The Democrats’ New Wedge Strategy is an inside one, aimed at Bush-led Republican Washington, where team loyalty is supposed to be the number one virtue, and where the president has ruled with an iron hand. The Democrats want to unhinge that discipline by exposing — or creating — friction between: Bush and Cheney, Bush and his political advisor, Karl Rove; the White House and the Republican-run Congress; and between competing Republican leadership tongs on Capitol Hill.

Given the current landscape — nervous congressional Republicans, damaging White House scandals, rising poll support for Dems — wedge politics sounds like a pretty good idea. As Fineman sees it, the strategy will play out in four different ways.

* Bush v. Cheney — According to the theory, Cheney is even less popular and more vulnerable than Bush is. By marginalizing the VP, Republicans (including Bush) are put in a positioning of rallying to support a guy with a 19% approval rating, or throwing a powerful player overboard.

* Bush v. Rove — Bush did effectively promise to fire Rove and has since broken his word. Unless he’s indicted, Rove probably isn’t going anywhere, but Dems hope to capitalize on his growing infamy and mounting list of enemies.

* White House v. Hill — This is a good one, because congressional Republican are all too aware of the fact that Bush can’t run again and they all have re-election fights to worry about. Gone are the days in which Bush was more of a prime minister than president; watch for Dems to highlight the GOP’s willingness to abandon the Bush agenda.

* Republican v. Republican on the Hill — In 1993 and 1994, Gingrigh & Co. found fissures within the Dem caucus and exploited them. Now, Dems are going to return the favor. It’s already playing out on the budget, and it’s only going to get worse.

In fact, that Gingrich model is particularly apt. Throughout Clinton’s first two years, the GOP used “wedges” to divide the Dems, block Clinton’s legislative agenda, and keep the majority on the defensive. As I recall, it worked out pretty well for them in the midterm cycle.

Oliphant made a good point in this morning’s Boston Globe. Within a broader analysis of the Virginia election, he said:

Virginia also holds an important lesson about governance in this hyperpartisan era. The uncomfortable truth for those who worship ideologies is that common sense is a more useful tool in facing this country’s serious problems than rigid tenets. … It is a lesson still completely lost on President Bush

  • I think Cheney will be sacrificed. Cheney will resign “for reasons of health” (or even better, die of a heart attack), and Bush will be able to appoint a new V-P.

  • Fineman’s analysis is okay, but he really undersells the key point: all of this is already happening. Dems don’t have to manufacture any of this stuff, they just have to grease the skids and put their shoulder into these issues a bit.

    And don’t forget the overarching context, because it means everything. Americans are pissed that this fucked up war is hanging around their necks, and they’re looking for someone to blame. Guess who’s going to take the hit?

  • I hope the Democrats are careful and do not become giddy with success. Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney are very close.

    Much about the Able Danger story was silly but the Pentagon did admit to spying on US citizens. There is no reason to think that the Pentagon stopped spying on US citizens after 9/11.

    The extreme right wing of Republican Party plays hardball. Don’t forget that Richard Mellon Scaife financed an operation to take down a popular president. Bringing a sexual harrassment suit against a sitting president was a national disgrace but the court backed Paula Jones anyway.

    These people expect to stay in power for a long time and are not about to give up that power over a few scandals.

  • Oy actually makes a good point, and I would go one step further and say that Fineman’s article is actually problematic. These fissures among R’s were already starting – saying it is part of a concerted Demo strategy actually dimishes what is happening and sets us up to be blamed for obstructionist game playing when in fact this is the R’s imploding on their own. We’re happy to facilitate where we can, but make no mistake their house was built on cards. Not much of a push required, really.

  • The big wedge play is at the grass-roots, where the real Conservatives are getting fed-up with the neo-Con, fundamentalist power-gaming. They want their party back, and it’s going to come down to hand-to-hand, house-to-house combat.

  • This is sort of OT, but in reference to ZombieOne’s last sentence above. The similarities between the GOP and the Baathist regime/Iraq of Saddam Hussein are striking. Both require strong arm tactics, threats and “bribes” to maintain order and cohesion. Both require ruthless F-ing assholes to keep them from splintering in all directions. Members of each who actually oppose a position of the “party” are mercilessly attacked. Both promote party over country. And once the ruthless leaders of each are kneecapped in some way, all hell breaks loose.

  • I’m glad Democrats are learning to play hardball and go on offense. But as has been said before, they’ve still got to settle on “who they are,” then push a positive message.

    Lest we forget, the Democrats have a history of self-inflicted disarray that goes back for decades.

  • I agree with zeitgeist – this is just harvest time for BushCo. And while Democrats should continue to sing the song loud and long, the fact remains that it was composed by the evil cabal in the White House. We haven’t had to invent anything out of whole cloth – these greedy, self-righteous, power hungry bastards are guilty of all they’re accused of. And I’m sure there’s plenty more we don’t even know about yet.

    A nudge here and there is fine, especially if media fatigue sets in, although lately it seems that as one scandal begins to wind down another pops up immediately to take its place. I say just get out of the way and let them continue their public meltdown without interference. They’ve been brilliant at it these last couple of months. Let’s not give them any ammunition for a counter offensive. Sometimes an animal is at its most dangerous when wounded, and BushBeast is bleeding profusely. (last throes, anyone?)

  • I think there are three things we need to do:

    1) Keep the pressure on! On the Repugs– and on the Democrats to keep the fight going– and on the media to quit being Repug spokesmodels and actually do some reporting. Contest all seats. Keep the grassroots phone calls, letters, emails, and Letters to the Editor coming in an un-ending barrage. Never stop. Keep them sweating. We are not micromanaging all the fissures in the Repug edifice. We don’t have to. All we need to do is keep the pressure on from *every* angle, give them nowhere to hide, and they will keep turning on each other in a desparate attempt to save their own asses.

    2) Keep the *focus* on the Repugs and their epic arrogance and culture of corruption. Now is *not* the time to put forth our agenda, except to hammer home the hopeful message that, “Together, We Can Do Better”. After the Repugs have no ammunition left with which to shoot it down, *then* we run our agenda up the flagpole. But not until!!

    3) Build infrastructure like crazy. Local parties, local activist groups, local networks, think-tanks, media and blog networks, nationwide web-based activist coordination networks. We’ve still got 40 years of catching up to do. Don’t expect we’ll make it by 2006. But by 2008 and 2010 we should be in great shape if we keep up the good work.

    And have fun with it! Jeez, how can you not? This is an exciting time to be alive.

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