“Barack Obama understands this is a center-right country, and he smartly and wisely ran a campaign that emphasized it.” – Karl Rove, November 2008

“Drawing on Obama's own record and statements, they need to paint him as a big spender, class warrior and cultural elitist; they need to say he's never worked across party lines or gotten his hands dirty solving big issues.” -- Karl Rove, October 2008

My definition of "center right" -- a shorthand device used by elite opinion makers to express the intellectually lazy consensus that has undergirded American politics for the past 30 years. Since 1972, there has really been only one president--Ronald Reagan. The rest of contemporary presidential history is interpreted in relation to that presidency. Clinton never challenged Reaganism much, except from a defensive, "triangulating" posture. Fear of the political commentariat does not equal American public opinion.

Just for fun, here's some recent polling data from our center-right electorate. At least the righties still have gay marriage as a tie vote. One might say they cling to it bitterly. : )

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