If we know one thing about Nancy Pelosi, it's that she's a hippie. Sure, she wears designer suits and lives in a really, really nice house in Pacific Heights, but you know where that is, don't you? San Francisco. As any good Republican knows, that's about as far as you can get from Real America. This is an argument Republicans make with some regularity, and here (via Ben Smith) is the latest attempt. Only this time, it comes from a Democrat, Rep. Jim Marshall of Georgia:
Let's put aside the fact that this is just about the lamest argument one could make in favor of one's candidacy -- it's not "I'm an independent voice for Georgia," it's just "Do you hate Nancy Pelosi? Me too!" Something tells me Marshall's Republican opponent hates her even more.
But hippies? Really? Come on. And they're hardly trying -- they just took three girls, threw some bandanas on them, and told them to smile and dance around. Where are the love beads? The tie-dyes? The skull bong? You couldn't even throw in a couple of bars of "White Rabbit"?
It's 2010. Does that really work anymore? Maybe it does. Maybe Marshall's district has thousands of angry old white guys still burning over the fact that back when they were young, the hippies had all the fun, and they never even got the chance to punch one in the face. But I think we've reached a point where rage at hippies is no longer a potent political motivator.
-- Paul Waldman
