Bully at the Pulpit
2014-01-11 - by
Republicans can toss their Christie for President buttons, but they can learn a lesson from Governor Soprano.
Pat McCrory can learn to take responsibility. He, Phil Berger and Thom Tillis (“whining…losers”) can learn that voters don’t like bullies.
A TAPster (who once thought well of McCrory) noted the contrast between Christie and McCrory: “Gov. Christie took responsibility for a mess, apologized to his citizens, fired a staffer, and used words you rarely hear from a politician (‘heartbroken, stunned, saddened’). In North Carolina, meanwhile, Gov. McCrory blames his predecessors and others for his various messes, never apologizes or takes ownership, supports those who should be fired, and cracks jokes about grave issues. And, the words ‘heartbroken, stunned and saddened’ are never used by him but are, instead, used by his friends to describe his performance so far.”
Christie shows that, while voters like a measure of tough talk, there’s a limit. When it slides over into punishing an entire city – even jeopardizing people’s lives, as Christie’s capos did – voters have no tolerance.
McCrory might think about that before punishing 600,000-plus people by depriving them of representation in Congress for a year. He, Berger and Tillis might think twice before punishing teachers, or passing a voter-suppression law, or denying health care to people who are struggling or waging a war on women.
Ask Christie: It catches up with you.
Bully at the Pulpit
2014-01-11/
Republicans can toss their Christie for President buttons, but they can learn a lesson from Governor Soprano.
Pat McCrory can learn to take responsibility. He, Phil Berger and Thom Tillis (“whining…losers”) can learn that voters don’t like bullies.
A TAPster (who once thought well of McCrory) noted the contrast between Christie and McCrory: “Gov. Christie took responsibility for a mess, apologized to his citizens, fired a staffer, and used words you rarely hear from a politician (‘heartbroken, stunned, saddened’). In North Carolina, meanwhile, Gov. McCrory blames his predecessors and others for his various messes, never apologizes or takes ownership, supports those who should be fired, and cracks jokes about grave issues. And, the words ‘heartbroken, stunned and saddened’ are never used by him but are, instead, used by his friends to describe his performance so far.”
Christie shows that, while voters like a measure of tough talk, there’s a limit. When it slides over into punishing an entire city – even jeopardizing people’s lives, as Christie’s capos did – voters have no tolerance.
McCrory might think about that before punishing 600,000-plus people by depriving them of representation in Congress for a year. He, Berger and Tillis might think twice before punishing teachers, or passing a voter-suppression law, or denying health care to people who are struggling or waging a war on women.
Ask Christie: It catches up with you.