Apparently DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz thought it would be a great idea to come to Wisconsin and say something exceptionally stupid, causing Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mary Burke to then distance herself from Wasserman Schultz’s remarks.
Democratic National Committee chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz ripped into Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s record Wednesday during a round-table discussion on women’s issues at the Milwaukee Athletic Club.
The Florida congresswoman said: “Scott Walker has given women the back of his hand. I know that is stark. I know that is direct. But that is reality.”
Wasserman Schultz added: “What Republican tea party extremists like Scott Walker are doing is they are grabbing us by the hair and pulling us back. It is not going to happen on our watch.”
[…]
Stephanie Wilson, Burke’s press secretary, suggested in a statement that Wasserman Schultz’s comments went too far.
“That’s not the type of language that Mary Burke would use, or has used, to point out the clear differences in this contest,” Wilson said.
Wilson added, “There is plenty that she and Governor Walker disagree on — but those disagreements can and should be pointed out respectfully.”
For the record, while I agree with the idea that Gov. Walker and Republicans in Wisconsin are terrible when it comes to supporting women’s issues, I think Debbie Wasserman Schultz could have made her point without giving the opposition fodder to use against Mary Burke. For the person serving as the head of the national Democratic Party to come into Wisconsin and say something so inflammatory is boneheaded (to put it mildly), and it underscores why Democrats are so terrible at actually winning elections – because they haven’t mastered the ability to message.
I understand the anger but I wouldn’t evoke victim imagery. Women are strong, resilient, defiant and the Tea Party is fighting a losing rear-guard action. Still this is one of many blips in the news cycle and around we go again.
Schultz is another “media savant” who thinks grabbing headlines and attention is more important than convincing people of the right way to move: Impulse donations sought after first and formost; Good governing not that important. But She also probably realizes that Walker’s latest “Moving Wisconin Forward” ad is getting traction and wants to do something to immediately counter. Mary’s school ad helps counter, but doesn’t really address the old right wing addage that “Anyone who wants a job can get a job.” That’s a mantra that exculpates all the squeeze-the-poor and kill-grandma legislation that right wingers and tea partier’s promote.
I have no problem with this, even though I don’t like DWS at all (she’s corporate DC all the way). Because the fauxtrage from the GOPs has left them open to people examining their record on women, and it’s a disaster.
It’s especially funny to see Oconomowoc Barbie shoot her mouth off in response, because as Cog Dis pointed out, she did a fund-raiser for a convicted wife beater in 2012. Combine that with (mo)Ron Johnson’s bullying attempt to make Kristen Gillibrand reveal which Senator sexually harrassed her, and the way they covered up Bill Kramer’s abusive behavior toward women, and maybe DWS isn’t wrong.
The GOP’s whiny victim act is beyond tired. It’s time we stop caring about what those weaklings think about how we phrase things.
And B Kramer is still on the state payroll, Becky (last I heard). DWS is a nice foil for the good cop Mary to have a spokesperson remind us that civility is an important virtue, which of course it is. I have a tough time believing these little public skirmishes are not planned in advance. Didn’t take much to get Kleefisch to bite, here.
In addition, I’m really tired of Dem politicians constantly being asked to apologize for the words of others that support them. When do you EVER hear Walker distance himself from the crazy words of a Grothmann or Kleefisch or any right-wing radio host?
Maybe it’s time we ask those questions. The next time Sykes t?or Belling or Icki or whoever says some race-baiting item, we should just assume that they represent what Walker says. Fair’s fair, right?
It is the election season; brief or short rallying cries are in vogue currently. As far as women issues go, even the Republican establishment acknowledges they have to do better to gain the women’s vote. There is no doubt that aged, white men constitutes a majority of their base who are “experts” and who focus on women’s health issues.
Perhaps Debbie should have prefaced her conclusion on Walker citing his specific policies, laws, actions which are to the disadvantage or discrimination of women. But she may have assumed that Walker’s failings were well known to the largely Dem audience and thus unnecessary.
So, Debbie may have missed the larger audience not in attendance. I’ll give her a pass on this one.
P.S. Check out the almost 800 comments in response to the JS article.
How much longer do we have to wait before we get rid of DWS?
We could do a lot worse…like RP playing the GOP race card:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/27/chris-matthews-reince-priebus-birth-certificate_n_1832872.html
Yes, Good for Chris! We haven’t seen nearly enought of that. Republicans have been getting away with outlandish comments most of the time on the airways, and continue to do so because nobody calls them down. there would be a lot more embarrassed faces if Dem leaning talking heads would get as riled up as Matthews did…and I do.
Chris Matthews. To coin an old and overused phrase, “Even a broken clock is correct twice a day”. Every once in a while, Chris takes his meds and makes a cogent argument about the hypocrisy of the right. And then the next day he is describing the shiver that is running down his legs at the sight of GW Bush in a flight suit. But I digress…
Okay, Chris has his faults, but his Hardball has more hits than the Fox fabricators.