Talking Points Memo:
On a conference call hosted by Americans For Prosperity, featuring Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) and Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), the two of them frequently thanked conservatives for coming together and making their voices heard at town hall meetings. But at one point, the two of them also bemoaned that it's so much harder to organize conservatives than it is to keep liberals together.
DeMint explained that conservative people are, by their nature, an independent-minded lot who value their personal freedom. "The Democrats have a different constituency," said DeMint. "The groups supporting them all want more centralized control at the federal level, whether it's energy or health care. So they have united, binding their grievances."
A few minutes later, Bachmann also chimed in on this theme. "The level of organization on the left is far superior to that on the right," she said. "But I would think that just as we saw a historic shift in the electorate last fall, we are seeing another historic shift, at Mach speeds, occurring in United States."
I think this is funny, because just this morning I wrote:
Yesterday, I noted that approvals for the Democratic party in congress are nosediving and that this was probably because the party looks "scatterbrained" right now. Dems are all over the map on healthcare reform and party unity is pretty much non-existent. As a result, dem numbers have dropped from 62% in January to 49% now, according a new Pew poll. Democrats don't look much like a party right now, with infighting and disagreements over major points of reform splitting it down the middle.
But the Republican "hive mind" approach to governance is even less popular. During that same period, GOP numbers haven't budged -- up or down -- from 40%. And, to be absolutely honest here, if Democrats started doing the patented GOP lockstep, it'd freak me out a little. Let's face it, that "one party, one mind" thing is a bit creepy and cultish.
Someone say Democrats want to "cut and run?" Well then, we all say Democrats want to "cut and run." Someone say "death panels?" Hell, we're all talking about death panels! The right is just one big booming echo chamber where one person's opinion is everyone's opinion.
Yeah, Republicans are the most "independent-minded lot" of robot/clones there are. Notice that even DeMint's Democratic strawmen are familiar -- he's obviously not the guy who thought that "centralized government" one up. He's echoing the party line, while bragging about what an independent thinker he is.
