It’s What They Don’t Say. Take Geoffrey Garin for Example.

Greg Sargent at TPM, yesterday:

Hillary chief strategist Geoffrey Garin dramatically raised the stakes in the battle over Barack Obama’s comments about small-town America, saying in an interview that they would be “damaging” to him in a general election, could set back the Democratic Party’s efforts to reach heartland voters, and should be something that super-delegates consider when deciding whom to support.

“These are the kinds of attitudes that have created a gulf between Democrats and lots of small-town and heartland voters that we’ve been working very, very hard to bridge,” Garin told me today in his first public comments about the flap.

“I saw Senator Obama’s comments as a step backward to building those kinds of bridges,” Garin continued, saying the following of the impact that the comments could have in a general election:

“They will be damaging. And they could be significantly so…I don’t think that the kinds of attitudes that Senator Obama expressed are consistent with Democrats doing what we need to do to win a general election.”

Since this is Hillary Clinton’s people we’re talking about let’s parse that last para. Notice what he doesn’t say, which I would think would roll off the trounge a bit easier:

“I don’t think that the kinds of attitudes that Senator Obama expressed are consistent with views Democrats hold.”

He doesn’t say that because he can’t; It’s simply not true.

Garin knows that Democrats as a rule DO hold those views. Which is exactly why Obama will get by with it; It’s not shocking or unexpected in any way for those outside the Democrat party to see such views being expressed by a presumptive Democrat presidential nominee, having seen it so often at every other level of the party in this and every other election cycle for the last dozen at least.  Those inside the Democrat party, and in particular, those to the far left wing or in the Jeremiah Wright wing of the party, agree with the man and see nothing wrong with what he said.  So Garin parses his comment differently, and to his true issue; Winning the election.

And if you doubt this one, perhaps a visit to Obama’s website in the commentary sections, will give you a clue. Funny thing; I just took some heat tonight for suggesting the Democrats tend to come up with this nonsense more frequently.

Addendum:  (David L)

Newt Gingrich, Newt is directly addressing BO(Barack Obama) but Newt strikes pretty close to the ‘rats in general:

If you go to the most expensive private school in Hawaii and then move on to Columbia University and Harvard Law School, you may not understand normal Americans. Their beliefs are so alien to your leftwing viewpoint that you have to seek some psychological explanation for what seem to be weird ideas.

They can’t really believe in the right to bear arms.

They can’t really believe in traditional marriage.

They can’t really believe in their faith in God.

They can’t really want to enforce the law on immigration.

Therefore, they must be “bitter” and “frustrated.”

This is the closest Senator Obama has come to openly sharing his wife’s view that “America is a mean country”. Not since Governor Dukakis have we seen anyone so out of touch with normal Americans. It makes perfect sense that it was in a fundraiser in San Francisco that he would have shared the views he has so carefully kept hidden for the entire campaign

Yes BO doesn’t understand Americans, then neither do his fellow ‘rats.   BO, in particular, and the ‘rats in general, are fustrated normal hard working Americans will not abandon traditional ideas that work, for the ‘rats’ promise of some mythical utopia.