The 12Ds of “Progressivism”: Liberals at Their Worst

by Sean Aland

In 1832 Noah Webster stated “[I]f the citizens neglect their duty and place unprincipled men in office, the government will soon be corrupted”.
The Democratic Party—the so-called progressive party—is not only corrupt but is wedded to what I call the 12 D’s of progressivism: Deny, Defy, Distort, Deceive, Discredit, Demonize, Distract, Discourage, Destroy, Do, Disagree, Disclose. In this day and age, as politics becomes more and more corrupt, the political tactics recommended by Saul Alinsky have been perfected by today’s progressive democrats. Not only that, they are now widely used by our liberals throughout our celebrity society.
We have gone from civil discourse, to uncivil, to corrupt in just three administrations. One can pinpoint when the new tactics started: in the early 90’s during the Clinton’s first presidential campaign as they established a “bimbo eruptions team”. Hillary Clinton, who was the brains of the outfit, used her expertise gained from Saul Alinski’s book “Rules for Radicals” to usher in a whole new strategy on how to deal with opposing individuals and ideas. No doubt her expertise revealed in her college thesis was put to good use as she rewrote the rule book for the Clinton camp.

Take any politician today, especially a democrat, who gets in trouble and see how many of the 12 D’s they employ. To enable the strategy you need to have a news media that is no longer objective, and panders to those in power, while pushing their own agenda in concert with the politicians. No doubt the mainstream media has sold its soul to the DNC. The media has become the de facto Public Relations arm of the Democrat Party, Obama Whitehouse, and liberals in general. Pravda would be proud.
With the media’s assistance, anytime liberals find themselves in an embarrassing or compromising situation, they simply employ the “12D’s of progressivism.
1. DENY. Deny the facts while claiming that the issue in question has nothing to do with the evidence at hand. Common weasel wording includes such lines as: there is an “on-going investigation and I cannot comment on it”. Also deny being part of what has taken place. Bill Clinton’s famous denial ‘I did not have sex with that woman…” is an example of this tactic. Obama’s denials concerning the attack on the consulate in Benghazi, Libya is another example.

2. DEFY. Display artificial indignation and claim to be a victim, even when the opposition has photos, video, recordings and witnesses proving their story to be factual. Then play the beleaguered victim while hurling accusations at the accusers.

3. DISTORT. Cloud the facts, bend the truth, and blame everything on someone else (e.g. the previous administration). With this tactic it is important to use some facts, but not the whole truth and to bend the truth in the desired direction. Mainstream media surrogates make this easier.

4. DECEIVE. When necessary, lie. Go on the attack with the most offensive story possible. Offer up counter accusations to throw the opposition off balance. According to Alinski, if your enemy is spending his time defending himself, he can’t pursue accusations against you.

5. DISCREDIT. Create doubt about the opposition’s integrity, honor, character, proof, witnesses, video, or photos through lies, distortions, and counter-accusations—preferably aided by the mainstream media. Get the media on message with talking points and “Key phrases”.

6. DEMONIZE. Accuse and label the opposition. Use the old “they want …” line and fill in the blank from the following menu: They want… to starve kids, to take medicine away from old people, pollute the water and air, live large while others starve, keep it all for themselves, let people to die while they profit, etc. Over the past four years the Obama administration has used the following terms to describe the opposition: “malicious”, “insensitive”, “evil”, “hostile”, “threatening, “the enemy”, and “flat earthers” to name just a few. Class warfare is an effective aspect of this tactic.

7. DISTRACT. Create another crisis such as the fiscal cliff debacle, to distract people from the real story (e.g. Benghazi, etc.). Create a “war on…” women, children, the poor or blame it all on something else such as a video or anything else that will distract observers from the real issue.

8. DISCOURAGE. Threaten the opposition with dire consequences. Get the media to join in by echoing the threat. To see firsthand this tactic in practice watch CNBC or MSNBC.

9. DESTROY. Engage in character assassination. Go after any aspect of their life that might be vulnerable—nothing is off limits—and use maximum intimidation while claiming the opposition is “mean spirited” and engages in the “politics of personal destruction.” Divide and conquer the opposition by pitting them against each other.

10. DO. Press you agenda while the opposition is distracted by your tactics. As the media adds to the distraction by covering your distortions and misdirection, make as much progress advancing your agenda as possible.

11. DISAGREE. Continue to disagree about the facts no matter what happens. Disagree vehemently and loudly with anyone in the opposition no matter how obvious the validity of their claims may be. Follow Hillary Clinton lead in giving testimony on the Benghazi debacle: pound the table in indignation. Look directly at the camera and with all of the artificial sincerity you can muster, claim your innocence.

12. DISCLOSE. Acknowledge the facts of the case but only when the trial is over, the election is won, statute of limitations has passed, you don’t think it will matter anymore, or the book deal payoff is big enough. Finally, admit the truth but make light of it as if the matter is of little importance—after all it happened so long ago. Do not admit to any responsibility, and show no remorse.

These are the tactics that make up the grand strategy of today’s so-called progressive democrats. Observe liberal democrats during Obama’s second term and I believe you will find that Noah Webster was right!