The Van Jones Affair

View 1:
Dude's a truther. Dump his ass. Crazies are for the GOP.

View 2:
He's not a truther, and, even if he were, there are crazier people in the actual legislature. Also, dumping him means giving in to the Obamaphobe loonies, ergo emboldening them.

My not-very-carefully-considered position: I'm a View Oner.

I can't believe any person sane enough to hold down a job is an actual truther...but, then I can't believe that anyone sane enough to hold down a job is a birther. Or a deather. Or a beaster (that is, someone who believes that Obama is the Antichrist). But hey, shows what I know.

At any rate, I'm inclined to believe Jones when he says he's not a truther. But the thing is, there are some skeletons such that having them in the closet means that you really shouldn't be on the list for high-level advisory positions. We really ought to have something close to a zero-tolerance policy on the Crazy.

Now...is it fair that obscure advisers in Democratic administrations should be held to higher standards that, oh, say GOP vice-presidential candidates? No, it is not. But I think we want to set the bar a little bit higher than the GOP does. Look what happens if you don't.

Furthermore, remember that one of the battles the Dems are fighting is against the dreaded false equivalence; and party 1 has to be lots, lots better than party 2 to win that fight. The other side will continue to assert that they're better (or saner) until they're obviously worse (or crazier)...then they'll start arguing that they're equal. That's the phase the GOP is in right now. And the Dems will only win out by being virtually spic and span.

There's a political price to pay, but that's of secondary importance. And, of course, there'd be a political price to pay if he stayed around.