Jonathan Chait, in a post that proves his wisdom by linking to a prior post of mine, points us to this rather remarkable column by conservative radio host and columnist Dennis Prager, which is worth discussing. Prager argues that conservatives just don't have the same kind of dislike for their opponents that liberals do:
Granting the exceptions that all generalizations allow for, conservatives believe that those on the left are wrong, while those on the left believe that those on the right are bad. Examples are innumerable. Howard Dean, the former head of theDemocratic party, said, “In contradistinction to the Republicans, Democrats don’t believe kids ought to go to bed hungry at night.” Rep. Alan Grayson (D., Fla.), among many similar comments, said, “I want to say a few words about what it means to be a Democrat. It’s very simple: We have a conscience.”
Has any spokesman of the Republican party ever said anything analogous about Democrats' not caring about the suffering of children or not having a conscience?
Indeed -- when has a prominent conservative ever said anything mean about liberals? You've trumped us with those two examples, Dennis -- well done!
Actually, survey data from sources like the National Election Studies has shown for a long time that conservatives have lower opinions of liberals than vice-versa. But I don't think that's what Prager is really talking about here -- he's talking about raw hatred. People saying really, really nasty things. Like comparing your political opponents to Nazis, the way Glenn Beck does. Or advocating the murder of figures from the opposite party, like Ann Coulter does. Or regularly saying that people who disagree with you on the wisdom of going to war hate the troops and don't love America. It sure is good conservatives never stoop to that sort of thing but instead calmly and rationally critique the other side's policy prescriptions, without casting any aspersions on their character.
What I think the interesting question this raises is, does Dennis Prager actually believe this? It's possible, of course, that he knows it's absurd but is just trying to score some points. Maybe. But I think it's more likely that he does believe it. I think if you asked him about Beck, he'd probably respond, "Well, some things Obama is doing really are like Hitler!" In other words, when someone on my side says something extreme, I'll look for some justification for why it's actually not totally unreasonable, while when someone on the other side says something extreme, I'll conclude that it's the product of their dark heart.
This is a version of what psychologists call the "fundamental attribution error," which says that we explain our own behavior in terms of situations and outside influences (I tripped on the sidewalk because of poor sidewalk construction) and others' behavior in terms of their character (you tripped on the sidewalk because you're a clumsy fool). We are all prey to it to a degree. But if you reach the point where you think conservatives don't hate liberals, for God's freakin' sake, you really have left planet Earth.
-- Paul Waldman
