The Scowl

Zell Miller
Originally uploaded by mwthomas87.

Wow! That had to be the angriest, most hatefull vindictive speech ever given in prime time. The scowl never left Miller's face.

What a contrast when compared to the keynote speech at the Democratic convention given by Barak Obama.

Here is Howard Kurtz talking about the speech in the Washington Post:

â??The former keynoter at the '92 Democratic convention totally overshadowed the vice president of the United States. He looked really hostile -- even if you turned the sound off -- as he eviscerated Kerry. No flicker of a smile ever crossed his lips.â??

He then goes on to list the reaction from some other folks:

"I've never heard such an angry speech," said Bill Schneider of CNN, even angrier, he said, than Pat Buchanan's "culture war" address in '92.â??

"I don't think I've ever seen anything as angry and ugly as Miller's speech," said Joe Klein.

The Wall Street Journal's John Harwood said Miller "looked like a spouse at a divorce proceeding who says, 'Oh yeah, she's a child molester too.' "

And here is conservative blogger Andrew Sullivanâ??s take:

"Miller's address will, I think, go down as a critical moment in this campaign, and maybe in the history of the Republican party. I kept thinking of the contrast with the Democrats' keynote speaker, Barack Obama, a post-racial, smiling, expansive young American, speaking about national unity and uplift.
"Then you see Zell Miller, his face rigid with anger, his eyes blazing with years of frustration as his Dixiecrat vision became slowly eclipsed among the Democrats.
"Remember who this man is: once a proud supporter of racial segregation, a man who lambasted LBJ for selling his soul to the negroes. His speech tonight was in this vein, a classic Dixiecrat speech, jammed with bald lies, straw men, and hateful rhetoric. As an immigrant to this country and as someone who has been to many Southern states and enjoyed astonishing hospitality and warmth and sophistication, I long dismissed some of the Northern stereotypes about the South. But Miller did his best to revive them. The man's speech was not merely crude; it added whole universes to the word crude. . . .
"Last night was therefore a revealing night for me. I watched a Democrat convince me that I could never be a Republican. If they wheel out lying, angry bigots like this as their keynote, I'll take Obama. Any day."

William Saletan at Slate dissects both Zell Millerâ??s screed and Cheneyâ??s more subdued but equally negative speech.

Oh, and here is what Zell had to say about John Kerry three years ago still posted on his web site.

Yes, Zell Miller lied and lied and lied. He accused Kerry of trying to disarm our military and leave them with nothing but "spitballs." But the weapons systems that Kerry opposed were also opposed in the House by then Congressman Dick Cheney. And other no votes that he referenced were not against funding the military but against bloated Republican bills that went further than what military commanders were requesting to provide pork for bigtime defense contractors.

I have to agree with Atrios. It was a big mistake to put this angry, bitter, hypocrite up there as the GOP's keynoter. They obviously have nothing positive to say. Fear and Loathing are the themes of this convention.