Edwards' new pal repeating his strategy

It’s a post-modernist’s delight when a politician can deliver not just one but two levels of hypocrisy.

“Post-modernism” is an academic fad that rejects generally the concept of universalism and more specifically those of objective reality, truth, and reason. The leftist craze to supplant the certainty of one’s biological sex with a self-defined “gender” exemplifies its application to current public policy.

However, it also applies to discourse, when a communicator makes certain charges while at the same time endorsing, if not emulating, the very behavior criticized in that discourse. A recent letter-to-the-editor by Louisiana’s head Democrat, party Chairwoman state Sen. Karen Peterson, illustrates this.

In this letter, Peterson attacks conservative Republicans on two fronts. First, she decries the congressional GOP, and in particular those from Louisiana, for not voting for bills her national party passed through the House of Representatives to fund national government operations fully. Then, in singling out Republican Rep. Ralph Abraham – by noting in this period he held a fundraiser outside of the capital – she also attacks a challenger to her party’s Gov. John Bel Edwards.

The main sticking point comes over GOP Pres. Donald Trump’s desire to see adequate border security implemented, at the cost of around $5 billion. The Democrats proposed much less for this, thereby continuing insufficient protection. That the standoff has suspended salaries until a later date for federal government employees, including those working in border security, she called “hypocrisy.”

But that narrative, as pointed out in a communiqué by Louisiana Republican Party Chairman Louis Gurvich, if not deceptive, at the very least is selective. Abraham and the rest of the delegation did vote to fund fully the government less than a month ago, only to have Senate Democrats kill it. And he asked why should Democrats oppose spending a few billion more dollars, which is an amount that would run the government for fewer than nine hours?

While unfortunate that many federal employees must wait on pay even as they work, the partial shutdown has barely caused any inconvenience or hardship; certainly, necessary government functions have continued unabated, even as some minor, non-critical ones have ceased for the moment. And, as Gurvich notes, Democrats could end the impasse by agreeing to spend on something comprising 0.1 percent of the budget.

Instead, by linking to their spending bills elimination of the current prohibition on directly funding abortions through U.S. foreign assistance, Democrats have interfered with the process of restoring funding. As Gurvich points out, it’s the height of hypocrisy for claiming Abraham and his party has acted hypocritically when members of Peterson’s party did the same and then tried to leverage another political issue into the fray.

Yet Peterson didn’t intend her national political commentary to serve as her letter’s primary purpose. With Abraham’s declared candidacy, the real motive for her missive tries to impugn Abraham’s character.

In 2015, as a relative unknown, Edwards could ride that lack of voter knowledge and a record of Army service into making the public believe he was a nice, trustworthy guy as opposed to his main opponent, former Sen. David Vitter, who faced aged accusations of extramarital, possibly illegal, marital dalliances. With national issues off the table and with assistance from other Republicans (one of whom he subsequently hired into the number two slot in his administration), he succeeded.

But in 2019, he can’t do that with Abraham, who not only also is a veteran, but who also has a volunteerism record far exceeding Edwards’. So, while Edwards has gone on three taxpayer-funded international trips – to Cuba, Italy, and Israel – little about these trips required his and his family’s physical presence. And while Abraham has gone on a few himself – interestingly, among them to Cuba and Israel – these actually were job-related and most of his recent travel he did for humanitarian purposes out of his own pocket.

Democrats know that if Abraham neutralizes Edwards on candidate image, they lose on the issues. Thus, they will try to make Abraham look as craven and callous as possible, which is the true purpose of Peterson’s note.

Which introduces the ultimate hypocrisy, if not irony. In 2015, Peterson was trying to talk Edwards out of running. In 2019, she’s spinning information disingenuously to try to help him save his job.