We are loathe to report on the Cindy Sheehan story. But that little voice in our head is telling us that we must, so we are going to get it all out in one big post. This isn’t Hans Island, for Gods sake, it’s a woman who experienced a tragedy and is leveraging every ounce of it via a compliant media and a disjointed political party. She’s accomplished what should have been impossible, a mother who lost a son but who is no longer sympathetic.

As Powerline states:

As time goes by, and people learn more about Sheehan–e.g., her anti-Americanism, and the fact that she was so fervently anti-war BEFORE her son enlisted that she vowed to run him down with her car if he joined up–her ratings will no doubt slide further.

It turns out that the latest poll numbers back up what Powerline is saying. From the most recent Rasmussen Reports:

Cindy Sheehan, the grieving mother who maintained an anti-War protest outside of President Bush’s ranch, is viewed favorably by 35% of Americans and unfavorably by 38%.

Sheehan is viewed favorably by 34% of men and 35% of women. Forty-two percent (42%) of men and 34% of women have an unfavorable view.

In general, people see in Sheehan what they want to see. Opinion about her is largely based upon views of the War, rather than views about the woman herself. Democrats, by a 56% to 18% margin, have a favorable opinion. Republicans, by a 64% to 16% margin, have an unfavorable view. Those not affiliated with either major party are evenly divided.

People who think we should withdraw troops from Iraq now have a positive opinion of Sheehan (59% favorable, 12% unfavorable). Those who do not think we should withdraw troops at this time have a negative view (15% favorable , 64% unfavorable).

Among those with family members who have served in the military, Sheehan is viewed favorably by 31% and unfavorably by 48%.

Sheehan is preaching to the choir which is a nice way of saying she is accomplishing nothing, and it may get worse for the Democrats. Sheehan is now saying that she didn’t back the war in Afghanistan either. The more she talks, the more extreme her views become, and the further from the mainstream she goes. This isn’t necessarily a good thing if you are the party out of power. (Of course this pattern has been a systematic problem of the Dems for many years. No matter how bad the Republicans mishandle an issue, the Dems respond by attacking Bush, a man they loathe, but without ever putting forth a coherent alternative strategy that a majority can get behind–so all we hear are shrill voices. Sheehan is yet another example of this trap. Q and O has it right when they said:

Rather than lead a responsible examination of America’s strategy for Iraq, they have handed off the debate to a distraught mother who is grieving for her lost son.

That’s not a strategy. In fact, making a loose cannon like Cindy Sheehan your face for the anti-war effort is like using Ward Churchill to get more educational funding. The backlash is already happening. Scott Randolph, a self-described liberal recently had this to say:

The good little democrat in me tied the little noose around his neck and jumped off the stool. He just couldn’t take it anymore. Take what? The whining. The constant whining by the extreme left about the reasons for war, the incompetence of this administration, and how we’ve all been lied to, and how we should pull out of Iraq immediately, because, *gulp* our soldiers were in danger.

Of course, we should not expect the Democrats to do anything differently as that would require leadership. Who’s going to do that? Dean? He’s part of the problem. Clinton? She’ll duck this as much as possible if she’s smart, and we know that she is. Biden? Ha, ha, ha. And there you go.

Additional reading: Patterico has a different perspective from the parent of a fallen soldier.

hat tip on Randolph: Ace of Spades

technorati: cindy sheehan democrats anti-war

This entry was posted on Friday, August 19th, 2005 at 10:28 pm by Insider and is filed under War. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.