Conservative, Non-Partisans Unite!

I write often here about the rhetorical strategies and tautologies conservatives use and the general tenor of conservative discourse. Today, I was looking up Mike Huckabee corruption charges as the New Yorker has a piece on him this week and many polls are now showing him as the early Republican favorite (http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/105747-huckabee-says-hes-best-republican-to-take-on-obama-in-2012). Arkansas News' John Brummett's reading of the New Yorker piece is that it "was mostly flattering and favorable, devoting far more words to the good side -- the independent thought and interest-generating unpredictability, the communication and quipster skills -- than to the bad, meaning the huffiness, ethical shortcomings, bad judgment on commutations and paroles, and the occasional meanness or poor taste or hyperbole of those quips," So I thought I would check out some of these corruption charges.

This led me to a site, http://www.judicialwatch.org/, that had a list of their "Ten Most Wanted Corrupt Politicans." Ironically, during a period when one Republican after another is being charged with corruption charges of one kind or another, their lists always contain 8 to 10 democrats, including President Obama, Barney Frank, Nancy Pelosi and, of course, Hillary Clinton for two of the past three years. In 2007, the list included Mike Huckabee, Rudy Giuliani and Larry Craig, as well as I. Lewis Libby. Funny that two were potential Republican candidates that conservatives don't like. After reading the list, I moved on to other articles, recognizing that this was a far right group that sent out press releases and had an official looking site that tried to give it the imprimatur of authenticity.

I finished by going to the "About Us" page, to learn more. And here, in the first paragraph, was an interesting distinction: "Judicial Watch, Inc., a conservative, non-partisan educational foundation, promotes transparency, accountability and integrity in government, politics and the law." They go on to talk about educating the American people and conservatives about corruption and how to use the law and Freedom of Information Act (which the Bush administration abhored), to serve their cause. But I'd like to focus for a moment on the "conservative, non-partisan" nature of the organization. Is this an oxymoron? Actually it isn't, as one can be a conservative (like many Tea Party members, who they seem to support), without aligning themselves with one party of the other. However, I do think it is disingenuous with these groups, that might want to push the Republican party further to the right, but relentlessly attack anything and everything liberals do. What does non-partisan really mean in a country where most conservatives reject everything liberal and most liberals everything conservative?

On a final note, Huckabee did take the opportunity of his interview (for the station he works for, one might add) to laud Jeb Bush as one of the smartest Republicans in politics today. Could we have a third round of Bushies in the White House? I hope the American people are smart enough to remember the wars, the economic decline, the increased deficits and the verbal gymnastics that those 12 years brought us. Please, remember . . .