Political Irony

In the 2004 presidential race, the Bush campaign and right-wing pundits jumped all over the fact that Kerry had married an heiress (his second wife), and that they had a (gasp) prenuptial agreement:

• “If his own wife doesn’t trust him with her money, why should we trust him with ours? Teresa Heinz Kerry is not sure about her husband’s character. Are you?” “He’s always had a net underneath him throughout his political career — in his case a net woven of homespun 24K gold.” – Joseph Farah, World Net Daily (with the headline “President Gigolo?”)
• “He’s basically a skirt-chaser, folks. He’s a gigolo.” “Kerry never had to worry about the money he earned, the taxes he paid, or the programs he and Ted Kennedy forced the rest of us to pay for. … Mr. Kerry Heinz is not effected [sic] when these neighborhoods are destroyed and working class families lose the largest asset in their retirement plans — their home’s value.” – Rush Limbaugh
• “John Kerry can’t really speak to the middle class tax cuts, inasmuch as he is a kept man. He lives off the money made by other men and left to their daughters or wives.” – Ann Coulter (in her book, she refers to Kerry as a “gigolo, the male Anna Nicole Smith”)
• “Having a wife who provides you with a private jet and eight multimillion-dollar vacation homes provides for a comfortable life. But is this the right preparation for becoming president?” – Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, World Net Daily
• “If John Kerry wins in November, he will be the premiere president of this great country of ours to be also a gigolo. The dictionary defines ‘gigolo’ as a man supported by a woman in return for his sexual attentions and companionship. It might sound rough for John Kerry, but it’s right to the point.” – Taki Theodoracopulos, American Conservative
• Jay Leno even joked about how Kerry would eliminate the federal deficit “He said all we have to do is find a really rich country like Switzerland and marry it.”

So why haven’t the same people been saying the same things about McCain? McCain married a rich heiress who funded his political career. McCain signed a prenuptial agreement. McCain has a safety net (a private jet and so many homes he can’t remember them all). McCain and his advisors are not “effected” when working class families lose their homes. Why aren’t they calling McCain a gigolo?

From Glenn Greenwald.