Prominent GOP pollster: Times Square bomb scare gives Republicans an "opportunity"

Will we see Michael Brown go back on Fox News?

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2010/05/prominent_gop_pollster_times_s.html

So it was interesting to see how Ayres characterized the politics of the Times Square bomb scare in an interview with Karen Tumulty and Paul Kane:

Two days after the dramatic arrest of Times Square bombing suspect Faisal Shahzad, Republicans were engaged in a full-bore effort to rewrite the good-news narrative.

Yes, we have been lucky," House Minority Leader John A. Boehner (Ohio) said Thursday, "but luck is not an effective strategy for fighting terrorism."

Whatever the merits of their argument -- and, where terrorism is concerned, it is prudent to keep cockiness at bay -- there is a political imperative at work as well.

"Democrats are always suspect on national security, and anything that makes them look weak on national security creates an opportunity for Republicans," said Whit Ayres, a GOP pollster.

When people are scared, they're not thinking clearly, and the facile nature of Republican "thought" begins to appeal to them. Damn though, catching Shahzad just 53 hours later really scotched that chance to score some political points while people were good and worried. How'd they do that, anyway? All that's left of the incident now for Republicans is impotent whining about "luck."

every event a photo-op. Mr. Bush did that quite often.

plain stupid...

I mean, that actually works. A novel idea.

Compulsive tanning and just saying "NO!" ???

:puke: :crazy:

And let everyone puzzle through how, in the minds of Republicans, somehow it's better to have let planes crash into buildings despite multiple warnings than to capture someone who made a botched attempt and had no criminal record and no other indications that he was planning anything?

The opportunity is for them to sit down, shut up, and learn how to do things properly.

pukes are fucking stupid.

They know if you scare them a little bit they can even get the majority of Democrats to support some Republican boob.

Nothing surprising here.

Don