From the sublime to the ridiculous, in one fell swoop!
http://thinkprogress.org/2007/03/08/malkin-downplays-coulter/Michelle Malkin Uses Controversy Over Right-Wing Ex-Pornstar To Excuse Ann Coulter
The real question about Ann Coulter’s latest hate speech is not whether she’ll change her ways (she obviously won’t), but whether the conservative movement will finally reject her en masse.
One of the most prominent right-wingers to condemn Coulter’s “faggot” remark was Michelle Malkin. But in less than a week, Malkin is already downplaying what Coulter said.
At the CPAC conference, a Marine named Matt Sanchez was awarded the Jeanne Kirpatrick Academic Freedom Award. After the conference, a blogger discovered that Sanchez was once a gay porn star and male prostitute, working under the names Rod Majors and Pierre LaBranche.
Malkin’s initial reaction:
I guess we’ll see who the real bigots–on both sides of the aisle–are now. I have a feeling Ann Coulter isn’t the only one who’ll be tossing around the f-word as the story develops.
Malkin today:
I said the other day I thought CPAC organizers would be justified in being embarrassed if the rumors about Sanchez’s porn star past 15 years ago turned out to be true. Well, the rumors are true. But it is neither CPAC nor Cpl. Sanchez who should feel embarrassed.
It’s the nasty, gloating liberals who claim to stand for tolerance, privacy, human rights, and compassion. I predicted the other day that left-wing bigotry would rear its ugly head. I was right. The e-mail I’ve received is more disgusting than anything Ann Coulter stupidly said at CPAC.
It’s unclear why liberals should be embarrassed because they believe in privacy (Sanchez’ history was completely public) or tolerance and human rights (liberals don’t care if he was gay). What’s notable is that Malkin compares Coulter to these alleged “liberal” emailers. Malkin doesn’t get it: the random people allegedly writing her don’t have regular appearances on NBC News or receive warm praise from leading presidential candidates. Malkin’s attempt to conflate Coulter with random emailers simply downplays Coulter’s influence. Ann Coulter is a leader of modern conservatism, and it looks like that’s how things will stay.