The more polarized American politics have become the more pundits are hyping every congressional contest as if control of Congress were in the balance. This has led to the spectacle of national reporters covering even totally irrelevant state primaries as if they were the actual election itself. This was the case yesterday – with the most overhyped primary contests being held in California, Nevada, Arkansas and South Carolina.
Indeed, to see the winners celebrating their victories last night, you’d think they had won first-class tickets on direct flights to Washington. Whereas, in fact, winning their own party’s primary only gave them a ticket to fight against an invariably more formidable opponent from the other party, in their own state, in November.
It follows, therefore, that I think it is utter nonsense to be proclaiming this the year of the woman, again, before all of the ones being heralded have actually been elected.
Frankly, with all due respect to former eBay CEO and Republican candidate Meg Whitman – who won the dubious distinction of having to take on former governor and current state Attorney General Jerry Brown for governor of California, former Hewlett Packard CEO and Republican candidate Carly Fiorina – won the right to take on three-term Senator Barbara Boxer of California, dead politician walking Democratic Senator Blanche Lincoln – who won a reprieve to take on Congressman John Boozman in Arkansas, and Republican Sharron Angle – who won the right to be the sacrificial lamb against Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, last night’s primary victories might be the highlight of their political careers.
But no victory yesterday was more pyrrhic than that of Republican Nikki Haley – who didn’t even win a ticket to compete again in November. Instead, she will have to face a runoff in South Carolina’s gubernatorial primary against Congressman Gresham Barrett in a couple of weeks. Not to mention the prurient mess she will have to wade through with two men coming forward in recent days to confess that they had sexual affairs with her during her 13-year marriage.
Of course, if there were any substance to the family-values blather Republican conservatives and Tea Party zealots are always touting, Haley would never have made it to the runoff. Instead, these hypocrites are proselytizing her candidacy like an eleventh commandment.
But their hypocrisy is such that, because Haley is a clone, in looks and tone, of their standard bearer Sarah Palin, her supporters would not believe these men even if 12 nuns were vouching for their stories. Actually, all one needs to know about the nature of family values in South Carolina politics is that the Jenny Sanford has endorsed Haley. No doubt you recall that Sanford is the now ex-wife of the current family-values Republican governor, Mark Sanford, who humiliated her by telling the world last year how madly he’d fallen in love with his Latina mistress.
Meanwhile, it’s hardly insightful to claim that Democrats will lose congressional seats in November. After all, the ruling party almost always loses seats in midterm elections. The only question is whether Democrats will lose so many that they end up losing control of the House and Senate. And, despite the prattling of hyperventilating pundits and crusading tea baggers in this respect, that will not happen.
Enough said? Except that if you’re wondering whether I believe Haley really cheated on her husband, I have my doubts. Not least because men don’t confess to having affairs, we, um, er, they get caught. On the other hand, given the record of hypocrisy among moralizing Republicans, I would not put any vice past them….
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