I Call It Demagoguery

When Democrats criticized President Bush regarding national security concerns, their patriotism was questioned by Republicans. My, how things have changed with a change in administrations:

President Barack Obama's top counterterrorism adviser said Sunday that lawmakers and others are using national security to score political points and defended the handling of the attempted Christmas Day bombing of a U.S. airliner.

Deputy national security adviser John Brennan complained that politicians, many of them Republicans, were unfairly criticizing the administration for partisan purposes and second-guessing the case with a "500-mile screwdriver" that reaches from Washington to the scene of the abortive attack in Detroit. (link)

When the Republicans had an opportunity to voice concerns when the cameras weren't rolling, they were mute:

Brennan said he had personally briefed top GOP lawmakers on Christmas night about the arrest of accused bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab and that none of them raised objections….

Among those he said he briefed were Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.; House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio; and the top Republicans on the congressional intelligence committees, Sen. Kit Bond of Missouri and Rep. Pete Hoekstra of Michigan.

It's only when the cameras are rolling that they complain, which demonstrates they are politicizing their national security "concerns."

Republicans have been outspoken in criticizing the administration for treating Abdulmutallab as a civilian and reading him his rights.

I call it demagoguery.