Barone on Fat Cats

Given the grief I have previously directed at Senator Grassley, President Obama, and Thomas Friedman for references to Wall Street "fat cats," it's worth noting that, unfortunately, Michael Barone, senior Political Analyst for the Washington Examiner, a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a Fox News Channel contributor, co-author of The Almanac of American Politics, and one of the best political analysts in the country, is now throwing the pejorative reference around himself. Republicans, Mr. Barone writes this morning, should oppose Senator Dodd's financial regulatory overhaul bill, and "should be prepared to argue that the Democratic bill gives vast advantages to firms whose employees have gotten huge compensation (and who, as it happens, tend to give more money to Democrats than Republicans). The cry should be, no favor to the big Wall Street fat cats." If the Republicans (and their allies at think tanks like AEI) are going to be out there demonizing Wall Street and campaigning against compensation levels in the financial industry, who needs Democrats?