Stop making terrible arguments for blind loyalty

If I’ve heard this once, I’ve heard it a thousand times. The argument goes something like this:

“The GOP is so stupid. Look at how the Democrats handle controversy. They circle the wagons, no one breaks ranks, and their media help. Clinton commits perjury? Democratic leaders stand with him in solidarity on the day of the impeachment vote. The Clinton State Department botches security in Benghazi and then the Obama administration lies to the American people about the attack? Phony scandal. The IRS systematically targets conservative groups? Also a phony scandal. The Obama White House and the Democratic National Committee backed Hillary to the hilt even though she was under criminal investigation. Our Republican president is under attack, and what do you so-called conservatives do? You help the Democrats bring him down.”

The argument usually ends like this: “That’s why they win and we lose. That’s why we have to take a page from their playbook. They play hardball. We should play hardball.” Or, to put it the way it was put to me in a call yesterday, “Put on that red jersey and get on the field.”

It’s stunning to see such a bad argument gain such broad currency. It’s politically wrong, it’s wrong in concept, it’s wrong morally, and it represents a fundamental misunderstanding as to how the Left truly does prevail (when it does) in politics and culture.