Hendrik Hertzberg, who writes for the New Yorker, is one of the sharpest political analysts we have in the narrow space assigned to the opinions of the center-to-left. He respects his friends on the right; he is always civilized and willing to listen attentively to the other side. But that other side, lately, has been throwing around fiery phrases like "fascism American-style" meaning Obama's plans for a coup. A lot of us have been noticing the hysteria and some (probably also Hertzberg) take it seriously. I don't not take it seriously -- believe me! -- but it's also very familiar.
The right has used the yo-mutha approach to battling opposition. They store up things we've said about them, write them down in little black books, and then screech them back at us. You can't accuse them of the sin of originality. After all, we started it. Of course, there really were strong authoritarian leanings in the Bush administration.
Did any on the left call Bush/Cheney "fascists"? Sure! The "fascism" charge was added when someone factored in the long alliance, nurtured by the right, between that administration and big industry.
Perhaps the "fundamental restructuring" economists and social scientists believe is happening in America is what's really putting biggies like GM and GE at risk. Maybe we're seeing a sign that America is turning on its greedy corporate leadership with no less determination than it turned on the incompetence and mendacity of the previous administration. In our hearts we don't want the corporate bastards bailed out. We don't want more greed, privilege and secrecy running our country. We caught the right red-handed as it embraced secretive, authoritarian rule. So now, resentful and childish and on the outs even with many in their own party, they want to convince their followers that Obama is a fascist without (one suspects) really understanding the meaning of the word. The irony doubles when you realize the new president is trying to save corporate cookies as well as everyone else's.
What I do take very seriously is how Obama handles the flak at a time when we need him to rise above it. We don't know exactly how he's handling obstruction from the right except that he seems more able than any of us to get a great deal done in the same time most of us allow ourselves dawdle, putting off changing the oil in the car. "I really must finish doing my taxes," I sigh over a period of several weeks, during which time the new president gets a bunch of bills passed, deals with a crushing recession, greets foreign leaders, attends critical meetings, deals with Republican obstructions, addresses a joint session of Congress, appoints deputies, works out, has dinner with the kids, and flies to Cleveland. If that's how well a crypto-fascist operates even as grenades are exploding all around him, I may reconsider my political affiliation.
But how effectively is Obama handling the dire situation in which most American individuals find themselves? We've got grenades exploding all around us, too, and not just the stink-bombs thrown by the right. Things are getting bad out here, they really are. A lot of America is walking around shell-shocked and scared even as well-paid talk show hosts on the right do what they can to create chasms in our path.
Remember the speech on race Obama gave in Philadelphia? It showed all of us he knew how to blow away the flak in one outing. We need another Philadelphia speech. This time, instead of setting the record straight on Reverend Wright, he needs to set the record straight with The Right. He needs to call them out, show them how destructive their rhetoric is to a country that's already badly wounded, then turn his attention to what direct measures he's taking to relieve real anxiety and suffering. What Americans thrive on is hope based on fact, not rhetoric from either side. As for what remains of the GOP's "base," even many Republicans agree that last thing we need as we try to crawl out of the hole we're in is the contant tugging of narrow-minded hysterics trying to drag us back. Enough already.
