POLITO: LEFT AT FAULT TOO
Debate answer on ‘extreme’ rhetoric praised and panned
Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito’s answer to a debate question Monday night was still being commented on yesterday.
When asked Monday whether President Trump’s rhetoric can be directly linked to acts of violence like the deadly shooting in Pittsburgh over the weekend, Polito said both sides contribute to today’s unique and highly charged political climate.
“I think there is a polarization on the national level both on the extreme right and the extreme left,” Polito said during a debate on WGBH Monday night, “Which is why in Massachusetts a lot of people say to us, ‘I feel like we’re living in a bubble here in Massachusetts,’ because of the tone and the civility that we, working across party lines working to get things done, is evident here.”
When Polito’s opponent, Quentin Palfrey, was asked if a similar rhetoric is coming from the left, he said, “I don’t think so.”
Polito also said that Trump’s suggestion that an armed guard could have prevented the tragedy was “not helpful,” and that oftentimes his rhetoric is “more divisive” than it is “unifying.”
“I think the lieutenant governor’s response was very appropriate,” former Romney adviser Ryan Williams said. “The political rhetoric needs to be toned down, and the president’s initial response was not unifying or particularly helpful. That being said, this person was clearly motivated by hatred and anti-Semitism that goes beyond political rhetoric.”
Conversely, Democratic consultant Scott Ferson said Polito’s response represented a false sense of equivalency.
“I think her response is inadequate,” Ferson said. “It buys into this fallacy that all things are equal here, and that’s not the case. Is Donald Trump to blame for this? No, but words have consequences. and when you use heated rhetoric like this in any circumstance, take the politics out of it, you have to know that people are hearing this and might act on it.”
Ferson added that because both parties in Massachusetts are “reasonable” in their rhetoric, it is “tone deaf” not to see the charged atmosphere on a different level.
“She’s one step away from saying he wasn’t motivated by the vitriol on the right, and that’s just wrong,” Ferson said. “My sense is that these are safe places to go to in terms of talking points to try to not address the situation in a confrontational way in your own party.”
Williams argued that tragedies like this have happened both during Republican presidencies and Democratic ones, and the expectation is that the sitting president will “rise to the occasion and bring our nation together.”
“Hopefully (President Trump) can change his course and improve his response in the coming days,” Williams said. “It’s a sad reflection of our politics today that both sides can’t put aside political rhetoric for a few days in the wake of this tragedy to grieve the victims.”