Grover Norquist, for those who aren’t familiar with his work, is not just another right-wing player in Washington. He is the player.
He helped write the Contract with America, he’s helped write the Republican Party platform in every election since 1988, he created the infamous K Street Project, he hosts the notorioous “Wednesday Meetings” with all the key conservative activists and lobbyists, and he’s a close ally of Karl Rove who has been asked to advice the Bush campaign on political strategy. If there’s a vast right-wing conspiracy, Norquist is its ringleader.
And it’s time for Bush to start denouncing the guy. Indeed, it’s past time.
As Kos discovered, Norquist lashed out at the World War II generation this week — a.k.a. “the Greatest Generation” — calling them “anti-American.”
“Yes, because in addition their demographic base is shrinking. Each year, 2 million people who fought in the Second World War and lived through the Great Depression die. This generation has been an exception in American history, because it has defended anti-American policies. They voted for the creation of the welfare state and obligatory military service. They are the base of the Democratic Party. And they are dying. And, at the same time, all the time more Americans have stocks. That makes them defend the interests of business, because it is their own interest. Because of that, it’s impossible to bring to the fore policies of social hate, of class warfare.”
So the GOP’s most influential activist, and a key Bush advisor, is applauding the death of the America’s Greatest Generation because they’ve voted Dem and endorsed “anti-American policies.”
When, exactly, will some enterprising political reporter call the White House and ask if the president stands by the comments of one of his closest allies?
Rep. Robert Matsui, this year’s chairman of the DCCC, is absolutely right about what’s needed.
“This smear of America’s greatest generation simply can’t stand. Republicans, including President Bush, have a responsibility to denounce these outrageous comments from one of their party’s top operatives. And the hundreds of Republican candidates who have signed Norquist’s tax pledge should remove their name from anything associated with this right-wing zealot.”
I realize that Bush isn’t responsible for everything every conservative loon says, but Norquist is a key BC04 campaign advisor who has advised Ken Mehlman (Bush’s campaign manager) and Karl Rove (Bush’s svengali). It’s not unreasonable to ask the campaign and/or the White House to comment on whether the president finds Norquist’s attacks appropriate — and whether the president agrees with his advisor’s comments.
And let’s not forget, castigating the WWII generation is just the latest outrageous, hate-filled remark to come from Norquist. Last fall, he compared the Estate Tax to the Nazi Holocaust, suggesting in an interview with NPR that the two were morally equivalent. The White House wasn’t asked to respond. Earlier this year, Norquist compared the Democratic Party to cancer. The White House wasn’t asked to respond. In 2001, Norquist said his goal is to cut size of government “down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub.” The White House wasn’t asked to respond. In 2003, Norquist said, “Bipartisanship is another name for date rape.” The White House wasn’t asked to respond.
If a Kerry advisor had made similar remarks, do you suppose someone might ask him about it?