Catching up on what has transpired so far: Mr. Limbaugh expressed a wish that President Obama fail. Mr. Shakir said that Mr. Limbaugh is a hypocrite. Mr. van der Galien rebuked Mr. Shakir and defended Mr. Limbaugh on the grounds that it is good to speak from an ideologically pure basis, even if such speech is not politically correct.

In turn, I was going to respond to this back-and-forth, but then one of PoliGazette’s assistant editors, who goes only by Claudia, said what I would have said, so I’ll simply quote her:

Saying that it’s merely defying PC to wish the president failure ignores the glaring, obvious fact that the success of a nation and the success of a president are very closely tied. By saying that you want a president to fail, you are in essence wishing the nation ill, because a failed presidency hurts a country rather badly. That means that you’d rather see the country suffer than see the advancement of policies you disagree with. It’s heartless and selfish, not merely “defying the PC elite.”

I can understand conservatives not wanting to see policy implemented that they are contrary to, but hoping that that policy fails to the detriment of the nation in order to prove your point that it’s bad policy is astounding in its cynicism. But then, it is Limbaugh we are talking about, after all. I’m a lefty for most things, but I’d rather see a conservative policy work than be proved right.

To borrow Rev. Lowery’s common refrain: Amen.