Marshall Nails It.

TPM has hit the nail on the head with this one.

But there's a very big problem with this strategy above and beyond the absurdity of the argument. "Congress" may be really unpopular. And the Democrats now control Congress. But politics is a zero sum game. At the end of the day, in almost every case, you've got to pick a Republican or a Democrat when you vote. And if you look at the numbers, congressional Democrats are pretty popular. And congressional Republicans are extremely unpopular. If you look at the number, the Dems are at about 50% or higher in most recent polls, while the GOP is down in the 30s.

The city remains wired for the GOP. Not that it's done them a great deal of good of late. But it remains a key part of understanding every part of what is happening today.

This is a very, very, very important point, and it really does explain a lot of the disconnect, and why, when I listen to Republicans, any Republicans: on the radio, on TV, on the internet, there is this cognitive dissonance that makes my head explode. Ten minutes of Rush Limbaugh, 15 seconds of Sean Hannity, hearing Mark Lavin's name raises my blood pressure 20 points. The only Republican I actually enjoy listening to is Michael Savage, and that's just because he overshoots hyperbole and leaps into the realm of batshit insane.

When Republican ideology has failed so spectacularly, in theory and in practice, I guess you have every right to live in your delusional world where as long as you say it seriously, you somehow remove all sense of irony. The problem is, nobody is cutting their mic.

They really should get the fuck out of the way until they return from the wilderness with a workable plan for the country, but they just can't bring themselves to do it.

I'm trying to be helpful here; they need a sabbatical from their dialogue with the country until they sort things out for themselves. Does conservativism stand as a bulwark for personal liberty, or does it seek to legislate who marries whom, while making sure we don't talk about terrorism on the phone? Are conservatives serious about governmental spending, or just about tax cuts?

Until they work these problems out, and until they can figure out a way to become serious about the issues that matter, it does the country absolutely no good for the press to give Republicans carte blanche to lie. That's all they're doing, really. Lying with impunity, which makes the non contexualizing press complicit. Their role is to be skeptical of whatever a politican says. When the last time you've seen that? They're stenographers.

It really does remind me of when your drunk uncle grabs the microphone at your wedding reception to air family secrets. They are embarrassing themselves and hurting others. All you have to do is cut the mic.