The Hysterical Style in American Politics

The post-Joe McCarthy era and the candidacy of Barry Goldwater once prompted liberal political scientist Richard Hofstadter to chronicle a supposedly long-standing right-wing “paranoid style” of conspiracy-fed extremism.

But far more common, especially in the 21 century, has been a left-wing, hysterical style of inventing scandals and manipulating perceived tensions for political advantage......... 

Nothing was off limits—not forging a federal court document, calling for a military coup, rioting on Inauguration Day, or radically changing the way Americans voted in presidential elections.

- Victor Davis Hanson 

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