Clintonistas and the Far Right Extremism of Sarah Palin

Previously I noted a pro-Clinton forum which has become enthusiastic about supporting the McCain/Palin ticket. This goes along very well with the realignment of the parties which has been going on for the past several years, with the views (and political tactics) of many Clintonistas being far closer to those of George Bush, Karl Rove, and John McCain than to liberals such as Barack Obama.

The trend in recent years has been for the Republicans to increasingly oppose traditional conservatives views such as freedom, a market economy, and a more isolationist foreign policy as they have embraced the authoritarian social policies of the religious right, corporate welfarism, and the neoconservatives’s foreign policy. The combination of the hyper-nationalist John McCain with the reactionary Sarah Palin is the culmination of this trend.

In contrast many Democrats have become increasingly libertarian, more supportive of free market economics, and opposed to the Iraq war. Left-libertarian influences have increased and replaced big government liberalism, contributing to the nomination of Barak Obama and defeat of Hillary Clinton–a supporter of the nanny-state, social conservativism, and frequent defender of the neoconservative line on Iraq. While they might not agree on all issues, Clintonistas are much closer to the Republicans in supporting more government control over people’s lives and a neoconservative foreign policy.

There is a wide variety of people backing Hillary Clinton. Some will listen to her advice to back Barack Obama, for reasons ranging from party unity to an opposition to the return of shirt hanger abortions. Many others are ideologically much closer to the Republicans than to the more libertarian direction the Democratic Party has been moving and very likley will vote for McCain/Palin.

The pro-McCain/Palin forum of Clinton backers is far from the only example available. Yet another example of how the Clintonistas are far closer to McCain/Palin than to Democratic liberalism can be seen in the support given Palin by another outspoken Clinton supporter, Larry Johnson. i bet that many other Clintonistas will demonstrate their fundamental conservativism and  back the Republican ticket.

Many Democrats have assumed that the Clinton supporters will wind up backing Obama. Many actually are closer to the views of George Bush and John McCain than to the views of the Democratic Party and many will vote for McCain/Palin. While from a purely electoral point of view we would hope for every vote possible, this trend is not entirely bad. This could further strengthen pro-freedom liberalism in the Democratic Party as Hillary Clinton’s brand of nanny-state conservatism merges with the GOP. The addition to Palin to the ticket will also further demonstrate that John McCain is a conservative and not a moderate or a maverick as voters get a closer look at McCain and Palin’s views. Obama can potentially pick up far more voters who oppose such views than Clinton voters who vote for McCain/Palin.

2 Comments

  1. 1
    Jorge says:

    I think we need a third party of normalcy. Exteme left doesnt work, extreme right is horrifying. We need a party for normal people.

  2. 2
    Ron Chusid says:

    Jorge,

    That is what we have been striving for in stopping Hillary Clinton and putting in a candidate with rational policies such as Obama.

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