"Two events, each more than a century old, instruct us about how we should act in the face of what happened Friday in Newtown, Conn. On March 25, 1911, fire broke out in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in lower Manhattan. Because the owners had locked the doors and stairwells, in an effort to prevent theft and unauthorized work breaks, the garment workers were trapped in the fire; 146 of them, almost all young female immigrants, died. In the wake of the disaster, New York politicians -- including future Gov. Al Smith and future Sen. Robert Wagner -- “exploited the tragedy.” How? By helping push through a series of reforms that made New York state a model of workplace safety. Little more than a year later, on April 15, 1912, the unsinkable ocean liner Titanic struck an iceberg and sank, taking 1,522 passengers and crew members to their deaths. After the disaster, regulators and public officials “exploited the tragedy.” How? By insisting that ships carry enough lifeboats for all passengers (the Titanic, operating under then-current rules, had barely enough for half); by insisting that ships man their radios 24 hours a day; by better designs of hulls and bulkheads. A shocking event is exactly the right time to start, or restart, an argument about public policy. … Consider a more recent example. On March 7, 1965, voting rights demonstrators on a march in Alabama from Selma to Montgomery were met by a phalanx of state troopers at the Edmund Pettis Bridge. They met the marchers with fists and billy clubs. A week later, President Lyndon B. Johnson spoke to a joint session of Congress. He made no apologies for “politicizing the tragedy.” Instead, he said:-- Columnist Jeff Greenfield, December 17, 2012, referring to the December 14, 2012, shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT.
“At times, history and fate meet at a single time in a single place to shape a turning point in man's unending search for freedom. So it was at Lexington and Concord. So it was a century ago at Appomattox. So it was last week in Selma, Ala.”The speech -- which borrowed the famous assertion that “we shall overcome” -- propelled the Voting Rights Act into reality and effectively ended 100 years of state-sanctioned repression. … Newtown forces us to look at the consequences of decisions -- or indecision -- squarely, unflinchingly. It forces us to ask ourselves, “What do we do in the face of this new evidence?” That is as far from exploitation as you can get."
Comment: Greenfield argues that there is nothing wrong with "politicizing" or "exploiting" a tragedy if doing so simply means responding to that tragedy with policies that address its causes and try to prevent more of the same from happening. That's not to say, however, that Greenfield has the right idea about which policies on guns will achieve the goal of minimizing gun deaths.
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"We gather here in memory of twenty beautiful children and six remarkable adults. … But we, as a nation, we are left with some hard questions. … And every parent knows there is nothing we will not do to shield our children from harm. And yet, we also know that with that child’s very first step, and each step after that, they are separating from us; that we won’t -- that we can’t always be there for them. … It comes as a shock at a certain point where you realize, no matter how much you love these kids, you can’t do it by yourself. That this job of keeping our children safe, and teaching them well, is something we can only do together, with the help of friends and neighbors, the help of a community, and the help of a nation. And in that way, we come to realize that we bear a responsibility for every child because we’re counting on everybody else to help look after ours; that we’re all parents; that they’re all our children. This is our first task -- caring for our children. It’s our first job. If we don’t get that right, we don’t get anything right. That’s how, as a society, we will be judged. And by that measure, can we truly say, as a nation, that we are meeting our obligations? Can we honestly say that we’re doing enough to keep our children -- all of them -- safe from harm? … I’ve been reflecting on this the last few days, and if we’re honest with ourselves, the answer is no. We’re not doing enough. And we will have to change. … We can’t tolerate this anymore. These tragedies must end. And to end them, we must change. … We can’t accept events like this as routine. Are we really prepared to say that we’re powerless in the face of such carnage, that the politics are too hard? Are we prepared to say that such violence visited on our children year after year after year is somehow the price of our freedom?"-- President Barack Obama, December 16, 2012, speaking at a prayer vigil held in response to the December 14, 2012, shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT.
Comment: But what are we supposed to do? How are we supposed to change so as to reduce these tragedies? Different people have different beliefs about gun policy, and about the best way to stop shootings like this. What is it Obama is referring to when he talks about "politics" and how are we supposed to put it aside? How exactly are we supposed to "come together"? Are people supposed to give up on their beliefs about what amounts to good policy on guns? Is this basically a call to get rid of "ideology"?
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"On Friday, we learned that more than two dozen people were killed when a gunman opened fire in an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut. … As a nation, we have endured far too many of these tragedies in the last few years. An elementary school in Newtown. A shopping mall in Oregon. A house of worship in Wisconsin. A movie theater in Colorado. Countless street corners in places like Chicago and Philadelphia. Any of these neighborhoods could be our own. So we have to come together and take meaningful action to prevent more tragedies like this. Regardless of the politics."-- President Barack Obama, December 15, 2012, during the president's weekly address, referring to the December 14, 2012, shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT.
Comment: This is a platitude (or maybe several platitudes). Of course, everyone wants to do something "meaningful" to prevent these tragedies. But what? Different people have different beliefs about gun policy, and about the best way to stop shootings like this. What is it Obama is referring to when he talks about "politics" and how are we supposed to put it aside? How exactly are we supposed to "come together"? Are people supposed to give up on their beliefs about what amounts to good policy on guns? Is this basically a call to get rid of "ideology"?
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"A gunman whose name we do not need to memorialize took advantage of our gun control laws to slaughter some 20 children and seven adults in a Newton, Connecticut elementary school. In addition to the gunman, blood is on the hands of members of Congress and the Connecticut legislators who voted to ban guns from all schools in Connecticut (and most other states). They are the ones who made it illegal to defend oneself with a gun in a school when that is the only effective way of resisting a gunman. What a lethal, false security are the Gun Free Zone laws. All of our mass murders in the last 20 years have occurred in Gun Free Zones. The two people murdered a couple of days earlier in the shopping center in Oregon were also in a Gun Free Zone. Hopefully the Connecticut tragedy will be the tipping point after which a rising chorus of Americans will demand elimination of the Gun Free Zone laws that are in fact Criminal Safe Zones."-- Executive Director of Gun Owners of America Larry Pratt, December 15, 2012, referring to the December 14, 2012, shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT.
Comment: Is this politicizing or exploiting the situation? Or even rooting for failure? I don't think so. It's reasonable to respond to a mass shooting by discussing what policies could help prevent such tragedies (which is not to say that Pratt's ideas about what accomplish that goal are correct). It could, however, be argued that Pratt's discussion of gun policy was "too soon". Also, is it really the case that gun control advocates are complicity in murder? Isn't that demonizing, or at least exaggeration?
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"We’ve endured too many of these tragedies in the past few years. … As a country, we have been through this too many times. Whether it’s an elementary school in Newtown, or a shopping mall in Oregon, or a temple in Wisconsin, or a movie theater in Aurora, or a street corner in Chicago -- these neighborhoods are our neighborhoods, and these children are our children. And we're going to have to come together and take meaningful action to prevent more tragedies like this, regardless of the politics."-- President Barack Obama, December 14, 2012, referring to the shooting that day at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT.
Comment: This is a platitude (or maybe several platitudes). Of course, everyone wants to do something "meaningful" to prevent these tragedies. But what? Different people have different beliefs about gun policy, and about the best way to stop shootings like this. What is it Obama is referring to when he talks about "politics" and how are we supposed to put it aside? How exactly are we supposed to "come together"? Are people supposed to give up on their beliefs about what amounts to good policy on guns? Is this basically a call to get rid of "ideology"?
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REPORTER [unidentified]: Jay, if I could ask about -- in connection with the shootings, yesterday and today, obviously tragic events. Do these raise limiting handgun violence or other gun violence on the President's list of priorities in any way?-- White House briefing with Press Secretary Jay Carney, December 14, 2012, referring to the shooting that day at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT.
CARNEY: We're still waiting for more information about the incident in Connecticut. As we do, I think it's important on a day like today to view this as I know the President, as a father, does; and I, as a father, and others who are parents certainly do -- which is to feel enormous sympathy for families that were affected and to do everything we can to support state and local law enforcement and to support those who are enduring what appears to be a very tragic event. There is I'm sure -- will be, rather, a day for discussion of the usual Washington policy debates, but I don't think today is that day.
Comment: This could be classified as an evasion, as Carney doesn't answer the question about what President Barack Obama's policy on guns is. However, as a timing issue, Carney does make a legitimate point that the discussion of gun policy -- which is a contentious debate that doesn't serve to comfort those hit by the tragedy -- is an inappropriate foray into politics that can be postponed briefly (though not indefinitely).
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"Even as I was explaining and reacting to this horrible shooting in Newtown, Connecticut -- Maybe, what, 14, 16, 18 children are dead. Some are only four or five years old. Even as I was saying/predicting that the left/the media were trying to figure out how they could blame this on conservatives -- or politicize it, turn it into an event to advance their agenda. As I was saying that, a hostette at MSNBC, Alex Wagner, said, "Hopefully, this shooting will result in political capital to reform gun laws. It is hopefully -- and we say this every single time we cover one of these things. There's gotta be some kind of measurable change, some kind of reaction. One would hope there would be some political capital to reform the way in which we handle gun and gun violence in this country." So they're already calculating. That's what so peeves me about these people. You've got a horrible event here, and they're already looking to politicize it. It's not what it is. It's an opportunity! These people look at stuff like this as an opportunity -- it's sickening -- to advance their agenda or blame conservatives. … the left is already mobilized. As they always will and always do, they try to politicize the event for their advantage, mobilize down their anti-gun highway. … And even as we speak, the Drive-By Media and the Democrats are attempting to politicize the issue to advance their own agenda. In this case, probably an assault on the Second Amendment again. I guarantee you that they are overturning everything they can in their quest to be able to blame this on Republicans. This, to them, is an opportunity. At least to the Democrat media people that are tweeting and Facebooking on this, they are excited about it. Oh, yes, it's a golden opportunity. It's sick."-- Radio pundit Rush Limbaugh, December 14, 2012, referring to remarks made by MSNBC TV pundit Alex Wagner concerning the shooting that day at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT.
Comment: How are Wagner and Democrats politicizing the event? After a shooting like this, is no one allowed to advocate a way to prevent such tragedies? Is anyone who points to the shooting as an argument for more permissive gun laws -- since the shooter would more likely have face armed resistance -- also "politicizing" the tragedy?
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"We're hearing reports now that up to 20 children may have been shot. It is hopefully -- we say this every single time we cover one of these things -- a line in the sand. There has got to be some kind of measurable change, some kind of reaction. One would hope that there will be some political capital to reform the way in which we handle gun and gun violence in this country."-- TV pundit Alex Wagner, December 14, 2012, referring to the shooting that day at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT.
Comment: Is this politicizing or exploiting the situation? Or even rooting for failure? I don't think so. It's reasonable to respond to a mass shooting by discussing what policies could help prevent such tragedies (which is not to say that Wagner's ideas about what accomplish that goal are correct). It could, however, be argued that Wagner's discussion of gun policy was "too soon".
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"And by the way, what we shouldn’t do -- I just got to say this -- what we shouldn’t be doing is trying to take away your rights to bargain for better wages and working conditions. We shouldn’t be doing that. These so-called “right to work” laws, they don't have to do with economics; they have everything to do with politics. What they're really talking about is giving you the right to work for less money. … We don't want a race to the bottom. We want a race to the top. … So we’ve got to get past this whole situation where we manufacture crises because of politics. That actually leads to less certainty, more conflict, and we can't all focus on coming together to grow."-- President Barack Obama, December 10, 2012, speaking at the Daimler Detroit Diesel Plant in Redford, MI.
Comment: Obama is indulging in "politicizing" rhetoric. How is it "just politics" to support so-called "right to work" laws? Are there no legitimate non-"political" reasons for supporting such laws? It's not at all plausible to support them on the basis that they increase employment, or because they give people the freedom to hold an occupation without having to join a union? Maybe Obama disagrees with these arguments, but are they bad arguments to the point that the position itself can only be supported by people who are engaging in a crass version of politics? Of course not, that's a caricature. Also, it's a platitude for Obama to say that we want a race "to the top" and not the bottom. Of course we all want that, what we disagree about is which policies will yield that result. Finally, Obama indulges in "unify the country" rhetoric by calling for us to come together. How are we supposed to do that? In particular, how are we supposed to unify when so many people -- Obama included -- are engaging in name-calling?
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"It’s easy to get confused about the fiscal thing, since everyone’s talking about the “fiscal cliff.” … The danger is that the deficit will come down too much, too fast. And the reasons that might happen are purely political; we may be about to slash spending and raise taxes not because markets demand it, but because Republicans have been using blackmail as a bargaining strategy, and the president seems ready to call their bluff."-- Columnist Paul Krugman, December 6, 2012.
Comment: Krugman is indulging in "hostage-taking" rhetoric with his use of the term "blackmail". Also, he's claiming that Republicans are "politicizing" the issue of the so-called "fiscal cliff". How is that so? Republicans can't have any good policy reasons for the position they're taking?
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"The stimulus, which was almost a trillion dollars, that's one huge amount spent within a couple of years. It left not a trace. This is money that went to entitlements, this is money that went to food stamps. At the extreme and the trivial, it went to giving Sandra Fluke free contraceptives that she can't afford at $165,000 a year. She can't shell out $15 a month. … At the other extreme is what you've talked about, the huge increase of people on food stamps. … That's where they want to spend the money and they have to borrow it because we don't have it. … I think it's pretty easy to win elections when you give away candy that you borrow from the Chinese."-- Commentator Charles Krauthammer, December 4, 2012.
Comment: Krauthammer is claiming that Obama's spending decisions were made on a political basis -- to buy votes -- rather because he thought it was good policy. Couldn't it instead be that he thought helping people was good policy, and people voted for him because they agreed with his judgment?
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"After the election of Jimmy Carter, the honorable Coleman Alexander Young, he went to Washington, DC, he came back home with some bacon. That's what you do. That's what you do. This is a -- our people in an overwhelming way supported the re-election of this president and there ought to be a quid pro quo and you ought to exercise leadership on that. Of course, not just that, but why not?"-- Detroit City Council member JoAnn Watson, December 4, 2012. Young was mayor of Detroit, and had supported the presidential campaign of Carter in 1976. The city of Detroit received millions in federal funds after Carter's election.
Comment: Is Watson claiming that a policy choice -- sending federal funds to the city of Detroit -- should be made on a political basis? That is, as payback -- a quid pro quo -- for the voters in Detroit supporting President Barack Obama in the 2012 presidential election?
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"Here’s what we know about the political context of our fiscal challenges: … The American people, whose trust in government has plunged to near-historic lows, want the parties to resolve their differences through an approach that requires compromise on both sides. … The American people are sick of delay. They are sick of pretend solutions that address the politics of our problems rather than the problems themselves. … Getting this done will require a rebirth of leadership. Specifically: Tell the people the full truth. … Tell us how big the problem is … And once and for all, agree on the facts, so that we can spend our time on the real issues. Govern for the future. … Put the country first. … Finally: work together. … there are only two options: bipartisan compromise and success, or partisan gridlock and failure. There is no third choice, and it’s time for our leaders -- all of them -- to stop pretending that there is. … It’s time for real leadership. And that means it’s time for truth."-- Political advisor Mark McKinnon and political advisor William Galston, December 4, 2012, in jointly-written article, "With the Fiscal Cliff Looming, It’s Time to Take Politics Off the Table".
Comment: First, McKinnon and Galston are indulging in "Americans want" rhetoric. What is their evidence for their claims about what the American people want or are sick of? Second, what do they mean about "pretend solutions that address the politics" of the situation? They don't specify, though it sounds like "politicizing" rhetoric. What do they believe that politicians are doing that isn't responsive to legitimate aspects of the problems we face? Third, the demand that we should agree on the facts is difficult to follow. The world isn't an open book, we have legitimate disagreements about what's happened in the past (and why it happened) as well as what's likely to happen in the future. This is especially true in social sciences, such as economics. Finally, McKinnon and Galston are indulging in platitudes -- "govern for the future", "put the country first", and "work together" -- without giving much in the way of specifics about how to do so. Are politicians really not putting country first in their disagreements on these issues? Again, how are they supposed to "take politics off the table"?
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"It's surprising to me that the President, essentially, who could get the revenues he wants from the deductions and exclusions, but insists on rates not for economic reasons but political. He wants to break the back of Republicans. This is a continuation of his campaign. He thinks he is won it and now he wants to drive a stake through the Republicans. It's all about the politics; it's nothing about economics."-- Commentator Charles Krauthammer, December 3, 2012.
Comment: Krauthammer is accusing President Barack Obama of "politicizing" or engaging in "negative politics". Is some crass form of politics really the only reason Obama could have for preferring a raise in tax rates? Perhaps Obama believes that getting increased revenue by increasing tax rates rather than eliminating deductions and exclusions is better for economic reasons, or that it's more likely to achieve the revenue goal he has in mind.
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And we look to Democrats and Republicans in government at all levels to put the people before the politics.-- Republican candidate former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-MA), November 7, 2012, addressing his supporters while conceding defeat in his race against President Barack Obama.
Comment: This is more "unify the country" rhetoric, as well as "politicizing" rhetoric. What does it mean to "put people before politics"? Without specifics, isn't this an empty platitude? What is Romney himself going to do to put people before politics? Will he apologize for his acts of incivility during the campaign? Or is he just going to leave people with the impression that incivility is a problem created by someone other than himself (the "only my opponents" caricature)?
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OBAMA: Governor Romney had a very different response. While we were still dealing with our diplomats being threatened, Governor Romney put out a press release trying to make political points. And that’s not how a commander in chief operates. You don’t turn national security into a political issue, certainly not right when it’s happening.-- President Barack Obama, October 16, 2012, during the second presidential debate in Hempstead, NY, between Obama and former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-MA).
Comment: Obama is accusing Romney of "politicizing" the attack on the US consulate in Libya. What does it mean to "politicize" an issue, though, and why is it bad?
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BARACK OBAMA: On all these issues, but particularly missile defense, this, this can be solved but it’s important for him to give me space.-- President Barack Obama, March 26, 2012, speaking with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. Medvedev is referring to incoming Russian President Vladimir Putin.
DMITRY MEDVEDEV: Yeah, I understand. I understand your message about space. Space for you.
OBAMA: This is my last election.
MEDVEDEV: Yes.
OBAMA: After my election I have more flexibility.
MEDVEDEV: I understand you. I will transmit this information to Vladimir, and I stand with you.
Comment: Is Obama saying that he's taking certain positions just to get reelected? Is he going to change positions after the election? Does this mean he's "politicizing" certain issues?
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