Karl Rove To GOP: Cut The Stuff About “Hussein” Obama

How far has American political culture and talk radio veered out of control? So much that Karl Rove — yes THE Karl Rove who has demonized more than all the installments of “The Exorcist” put together — has told GOPers to cut it out. Marc Ambinder has this:

No less an authority figure than Karl Rove has warned Republican operatives from demagoguing Barack Obama’s middle name.

At a closed door meeting of GOP state executive directors in late January, Rove said the safest way to refer to Obama would be to use his honorific, “Sen. Obama.”

“The context was, you’re not going to stigmatize this guy. You shouldn’t underestimate him,” one of the executive directors said. Rove said that the use of “Barack Hussein Obama” would perpetuate the notion that Republicans were bigoted and would hurt the party.

Rove also said that Republicans should refer to Hillary Clinton as “Sen. Clinton,” rather than “Hillary.”

It’s hard to break from not just an ingrained political culture, but demonization and casting aspersions seem to provide psychological release to some folks (across the political spectrum, by the way). The attack/demonization mode releases frustrations, slaps “high concept” definitions on those with whom you disagree, puts opponents on the defensive, and is considered by some to be enjoyable and intelligent political debate.

But in realistic, political terms, in 2008 it’s not smart since there is indeed a new generation that may not like the Baby Boomer-influenced style of confrontational, innuendo-peppered, name-calling politics. And just who is Obama attracting to the polls? Younger voters. McCain, too, has traditionally appealed to younger voters. And what segment of the electorate must a party wants to win need to at least partially capture? Independent voters who aren’t into demonization.

It could be argued Rove was talking strictly as a political realist, and wasn’t expressing some newly dominant gene that suddenly made him a nicer guy. But the bottom line is that he’s saying “tread lightly and in fact don’t tread on that area.”

Will they listen? If you believe that, I can sell you THIS for $200.