Cooper: This is who they are

In this May 10, 2018 file photo, Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks during a news conference in New York. New York Gov. On Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2018, at a bill signing event in Manhattan, Cuomo said that America "was never that great" during remarks criticizing Republican President Donald Trump and his slogan "Make America Great Again," saying America won't be truly great until all Americans have true equality. Republicans quickly pounced on Cuomo's remarks. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II, File)
In this May 10, 2018 file photo, Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks during a news conference in New York. New York Gov. On Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2018, at a bill signing event in Manhattan, Cuomo said that America "was never that great" during remarks criticizing Republican President Donald Trump and his slogan "Make America Great Again," saying America won't be truly great until all Americans have true equality. Republicans quickly pounced on Cuomo's remarks. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II, File)

"We're not going to make America great again. It was never that great." - Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo

Christian baker Jack Phillips looks like a woman, and his job is gay. - Talk show host Jimmy Kimmel

"You could put half of Trump's supporters into what I call the basket of deplorables. Right? They're racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic - Islamophobic - you name it." - 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton

"Don't vote for ching-chang!" - Michigan Democratic state senate candidate Bettie Cook Scott, on her Asian-American opponent

"The idiots aren't listening." - Tennessee Democratic Party spokesman Mark Brown, on supporters of Donald Trump

"[Republicans] don't give a s- about people." - Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez

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Why?

The above are only a few examples, but what is it with the hate on the left?

None of the statements are in response to something specific said by the often-bellicose President Trump, either. They are all unsolicited. Clinton's comment, in fact, came during the 2016 campaign, before Trump even was elected.

Is there anyone left in the Democratic Party to call a halt to such statements?

The above remarks, as anyone who follows the news knows, are just the tip of the spear. A Virginia restaurant owner refused to serve White House spokesman Sarah Huckabee Sanders. California Congresswoman Maxine Waters suggested the public harass members of Trump's Cabinet. College campus officials refuse to allow conservatives to speak, and students perpetrate violence to prevent such appearances. Charlotte, North Carolina, Councilwoman Dimple Ajmera said Trump supporters have no place on the council.

The political game is rough and tumble, no doubt about it. Democratic and Republican politicians alike have always said critical - and often unkind - things about each other. But the discourse today has deepened and darkened and broadened to include supporters of politicians and Americans in general. And it has become personal, the attacks often including someone's look, their race, their religion.

They are truly the politics of personal destruction.

Less than 25 years ago, Democratic President Bill Clinton - chastened by a sound beating at the polls in the 1994 mid-term election - tacked toward the center for the rest of his term in office. With the help of the Republican Congress, he forged a balanced budget and a strong economy.

Candidate Clinton, you'll recall, came from the moderate wing of his party. It's the only place Democrats at the time knew they might find success.

During the presidency of George W. Bush, though, Democrats turned a hard left. Unfortunately, they mistook an unpopular war for support for a left-wing agenda. Then they were fooled by an unvetted, little accomplished community organizer who promised hope and change. By the time the two terms of Barack Obama had ended, the party of Bill Clinton was hardly recognizable.

It and its adherents - especially Obama and Hillary Clinton - had adopted the practices in Saul Alinksy's 1971 book "Rules for Radicals."

Many will recognize today's Democratic Party in several of the rules:

3. "Whenever possible, go outside the expertise of the enemy." Look for ways to increase insecurity, anxiety and uncertainty.

5. "Ridicule is man's most potent weapon." There is no defense. It's irrational. It's infuriating. It also works as a key pressure point to force the enemy into concessions.

8. "Keep the pressure on. Never let up." Keep trying new things to keep the opposition off balance. As the opposition masters one approach, hit them from the flank with something new.

11. "If you push a negative hard enough, it will push through and become a positive." Violence from the other side can win the public to your side because the public sympathizes with the underdog.

13. "Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it." Cut off the support network and isolate the target from sympathy. Go after people and not institutions; people hurt faster than institutions.

This is the party that wants to take back the U.S. House and the Senate this fall and the tactics it wants to use. We can't conceive that a majority of Tennesseans approve of this and want it to be the face of politics in the Volunteer State.

Democratic politicians in the state can deny this is what their party has become, or deny they would ever participate in such on a national level. But politics at a national level is a different game. Much is expected; independence is not tolerated.

If you look, you can find a few of the statements we started with partially walked back, or weak apologies made for them. But those are just words. Until Democrats unchain the hate, they don't deserve to have the trust of Americans. Tennesseans should do their part to deliver that message this fall.

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