Where Have All the Extremists Gone?

Two weeks ago, the Department of Homeland Security issued a report warning of a possible rise in “right-wing extremist” activity directly imputable to the recession and the election of President Obama.  The latter is dually causal in that Mr. Obama is the first African-American to be elected to the office, and the perception of these groups regarding certain policy proposals in his agenda, e.g. gun control, abortion, and immigration.  One example listed in the report was the following: “A recent example of the potential violence associated with a rise in rightwing extremism may be found in the shooting deaths of three police officers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on 4 April 2009. The alleged gunman’s reaction reportedly was influenced by his racist ideology and belief in antigovernment conspiracy theories related to gun confiscations, citizen detention camps, and a Jewish-controlled “one world government.”

 

No one should dispute or decry the blurring of the line between government and politics – it’s the nature of the beast.  What is abhorrent about this report, however, is the manifest attack of political opponents under the guise of reporting concerns of security.  It is at best laughable and at worst libelous to use the language employed by DHS.  My favorite part is “Rightwing extremism in the United States can be broadly divided into those groups, movements, and adherents that are primarily hate-oriented (based on hatred of particular religious, racial or ethnic groups), and those that are mainly antigovernment, rejecting federal authority in favor of state or local authority, or rejecting government authority entirely. It may include groups and individuals that are dedicated to a single issue, such as opposition to abortion or immigration.”

 

This language conjures imagery of Neo-Nazis, Skinheads, and the Ku Klux Klan – the perceived albatrosses of the American Right.  What escapes me, however, is the connection between those groups and the tenets of conservatism.  When one considers the associated tenets of Nazism, i.e., Aryanism, Pan-Germanism, totalitarianism, government control of business, etc., there are no ostensible philosophies congruent with the conservative movement in the United States.  Only when compared to the “left” and “right” in the European sense, such as that of the French Revolution, could any correlation be established.  But to deny the marked differences in American and European political philosophy, not to mention  the centuries-old evolution of labels like “conservative” and “liberal” is irresponsible and misinformed at best and nefarious at worst.

 

Of course, those on the left, the American left that is, would point to the racism and militarism of the Nazis as alleged rightwing trademarks.  I would argue that we have never seen true militarism in this country; saber-rattling and mobilization for battle, yes, but true and unadulterated militarism, no.  The racism accusation is a long-employed tool of the left used in attempts to discredit conservatives.  There is absolutely no principle of authentic American conservatism that would support or allow an advocacy of racism or bigotry.  There is no correlation or intrinsic connection between the two worldviews whatsoever, and any attempt to create such a congruency for the sake of political expedience is detestable.

 

Of course, the timing of the DHS report had nothing to do with the “T.E.A. Parties” of last week.  Nonetheless, this report is the latest instance of the polarizing nature of this administration and its apparent inability or unwillingness to accept criticism and opposition of any sort.  To attempt to subliminally group political opposition with the scourge of society’s fringes is indefensible, and the American people should hold the administration accountable.