The September 21, 2008 edition of Doonesbury: Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! by G. B. Trudeau Welcome to the new age of politics, circa 1990: Indeed, you will note that the GOPAC memo has been so successful that even Democrats have adopted its methods: But wait ... surely you didn't think Newt was entirely warm and fuzzy. While words like "candid", "children", "mobilize", "passionate", "prosperity", and "strength", among others, are meant to build confidence among voters, GOPAC also has some now-familiar stand-bys standing by for when you want to sling mud at your opponents: Words and phrases like "abuse of power", "cynicism", "failure", "hypocrisy", "impose", "intolerant", "red tape", "sensationalists", "status quo", "taxes", "unionized", "waste", and "welfare" should be deployed at every opportunity in hopes of denigrating your opponent and attempting to avoid the issues. Eighteen years on, and all I can think of is, "Gee, thanks, Newt." So remember, folks, while politics has always been a nasty game, those who were surprised that it could sink even lower than Reagan's standards of spite and disrespect need only remember that his fellow conservatives took up the banner and ran with it. And quite obviously it worked. While retrospect reminds people that the Contract On For America was a disaster, and demanding PBS pony up its federal funds to pay for fifteen stealth bombers the Pentagon hadn't asked for is absurd, there is a reason why the people thought that sort of shit was a good enough idea in 1994 to give the GOP sleaze machine a chance. Economically, politically, ethically, psychologically and spiritually, we're still paying for it today. Thanks, GOPAC! Thanks, Republican sleaze merchants! We couldn't have sunk this low without you. ____________________ Notes: Trudeau, Garry B. "GOPAC Memo". Doonesbury. September 21, 2008. Gingrich, Newt. "Language: A Key Mechanism of Control". GOPAC. 1990. http://web.utk.edu/~glenn/GopacMemo.html
