Monday, March 09, 2009

The Right's biggest nightmare: What if Obama fixes the economy?





-- by Dave

The wingnuts have been exploring nonstop all kinds of gloom-and-doom scenarios that apparently are certain to envelop the American economy under President Obama's guidance. Some of them -- particularly Glenn Beck's -- are wildly over the top, but every one of them believes we truly are headed for the great national crapper.

So if you want to see wingnut heads explode like so much Scanners Popcorn, watch what happens when someone proposes the possibility that Obama's programs might actually work.

Take, for instance, Wayne "Trapper John" Rogers this weekend on Fox's Cashin' In segment with Terry Keenan. When one of the guests wondered if Rogers would subsequently approve of a government bailout of GM should it turn out to actually help the economy improve, he went ballistic:

Rogers: No, but you don't know that, and they don't know that. Wait, wait, wait, wait. Hold on! We've got proof that this doesn't work! All you've got to do is, everybody invokes the Depression. Go back and look at the lessons of the Depression! This does not work! And everybody knows that! So this is a stupid plan, and it's something that you're speculating about, that, 'Oh, this may work.'


Sure. 'Everybody knows that' FDR failed. Uh-huh.

Well, as Stephen Colbert put it the other night:

Colbert: Last scenario. Mr. Moore -- scariest one yet. The year is 2012. President Obama's policies have worked. Pulling out of the Iraq War was the right thing to do. The stimulus plan has the Dow rebounding to somewhere in the 12,000 area. People's faith in the government is restored. Stephen Moore, if this happens, what are you doing? It's gun-in-the-mouth time for you, isn't it?

Moore: Wait. You mean, socialism actually works?

Colbert: Socialism worked. Obama was right. The government can actually solve some problems. Is that gonna happen?

Moore: I'd have to rethink everything I believe in.


My prediction: Even if this scenario becomes reality -- and conservative dogma is proven finally for the dog-something it actually is -- these people will never rethink what they believe in. They won't credit Barack Obama. And they'll try to claim somehow that it proves they were right after all.

It's what they do.

[Cross-posted at Crooks and Liars.]

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