Recoil

Zombie Obama. 

Whether a mean-spirited attack on our president or a light-hearted attempt at Halloween humor (the former being the more likely), the whole situation is a train wreck. 

But there is something to be pulled out: that is the overwhelming response of condemnation and disgust from all political parties.  Looking through the comments, it’s possible to see that even self-identified republicans are indignant.  This is not what the Republican Party stands for.  This is not what any party should stand for.  This is way across the line.

And there are repercussions.  Governor McDonnell has announced that he will not attend a Get Out The Vote rally for the Loudoun County republicans scheduled for this Thursday.  The communications chair of the LCRC responsible for this e-mail blast has left his position.  There is a general movement throughout the party to distance itself from this radical position that so many Republicans resent as taking a whole spectrum of sociopolitical identities and lumping them into a single extremist position.  And until now, there has been no intra-party pushback.  I’ve said it before that we are not aware of social boundaries until we bump blithely into them.   And it looks like we’ve finally reached that limit and are recoiling.

Let’s hope the LCRC leadership is doing the same, and that this is not a façade or attempt at damage control.  Let’s hope we can see some real leadership. 

And Mr. Sell: sometimes this means stepping down to do what’s best for your party.