EXTREME RIGHT-WING CONSERVATIVES REALLY BELIEVE THEY ARE FROM ANOTHER WORLD

More proof that there is a group of far-right zealots out there that is frighteningly for real.

…An anti-Obama sign from the far-right´s so called "Tea Parties"

There is a resurgence today of a brand of conservatism that can now be witnessed in a report recently issued by the progressive Democracy Corps. The report is based on their in-depth interviews with focus-groups of right-wing conservatives in the Cleveland, Ohio area.

This brand of conservatism is one that cannot be negotiated with because its supporters see themselves as the bearers of the "one true faith" and as persecuted victims of "a host of infidels". They also feel that they must never compromise their beliefs.

Here is an intro to the report as stated by Sara Robinson and Neal Gable, from the blog OurFuture.org that published a summary of this report.

Per OurFuture.org:

"These conservative Republican voters believe Obama is deliberately and ruthlessly advancing a ´secret agenda´ to bankrupt our country and dramatically expand government control over all aspects of our daily lives. They view this effort in sweeping terms, and cast a successful Obama presidency as the destruction of the United States as it was conceived by our founders and developed over the past 200 years."

Here are some excerpts from the Democracy Corps. report summary:

>>> "In our conversations, it was striking how these voters constantly characterized themselves as part of a group of individuals who share a set of beliefs, a unique knowledge, and a commitment of opposition to Obama that sets them apart from the majority of the country. They readily identify themselves as a minority in this country – a minority whose values are mocked and attacked by a liberal media and class of elites. They also believe they possess a special level of knowledge and understanding when it comes to politics and current events, one gained from a rejection of the mainstream media and an embrace of conservative media and pundits such as Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh, which sets them apart even more."

>>> "They believe this [unique] position leaves them with a responsibility to spread the word, to educate those who do not share their insights, and to take back the country that they love. Their faith in this country and its ideals leave them confident that their numbers will grow, and that they will ultimately defeat Barack Obama and the shadowy forces driving his hidden agenda."

>>> "These voters can't be viewed in partisan terms. They are as likely to label Republican politicians as political infidels as their Democratic counterparts. Nor do the views of this group appear overtly to be racially motivated hatred toward Barack Obama as the first biracial president. Rather, ´they are actively rooting for Obama to fail as president because they believe he is not acting in good faith as the leader of our country. They explicitly believe he [Obama] is purposely and ruthlessly executing a hidden agenda to weaken and ultimately destroy the foundations of our country.´ "

>>> "Having opted out of political discourse, they are not susceptible to any suasion. Rationality won't work because their arguments are faith-based rather than evidence-based. Better message control won't work. Improved strategies won't work. Grass-roots organizing won't work. Nothing will work because you cannot convince religious fanatics of anything other than what they already believe, even if their religion is political dogma."

>>> At the end of the report summary, it stated: "It sounds to some of us [Democracy Corps.] like the stuff that is babbled by mentally ill homeless people, but it's very real to this segment of the electorate that gets its framing of the political debate from Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh and their ilk."

>>> Per the authors of the report summary: "For the past four decades, conservatives have done everything in their power to dismantle the essential contract [with the people] , and thus destroy our mutual confidence in the fundamental agreements that allow any democratic system to function. (None dare call it treason -- but a solid case could be made.) This isn't news: by now, most of us can recite the litany, chapter and verse, of the all the many ways the conservatives hacked away at America's essential ability to function as the Constitution intended."

>>> Also per the authors of the report: "So is this a problem for Obama? Probably not. The White House can dismiss this group as a right-wing fringe.

The real dilemma is for the Republican Party. How can it speak to (or appease) these voters without appearing extreme and without alienating reasonable Republicans and independents? After all, GOP chairman Michael Steele, Republican congressional leaders, and the party's 2012 presidential contenders will have a tough time remaining in the real world while also courting these conservatives who reside somewhere else."

So, what can or should moderates or progressives do?

The first responsibility is to get back to re-growing America´s working middle-class. The past broken trust with hard-working Americans that has occurred over the past 30 years must be repaired and Obama´s promises to support this issue must be kept. If that does not occur, the decline in the middle-class will only continue.

There is strong hope that progressives and the new Independents can continue to win the hearts and minds of more voters. Perhaps they can achieve this with a message of using the government for good, and for protecting ordinary Americans, especially from these right-wing conservative-inspired excesses of their poorly-named "capitalism run wild". We must put forward, more concrete plans for restoring the Middle-Class and the sponsoring of good-paying jobs that will allow America to again enjoy an improved quality of life.

Copyright G.Ater 2009

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