Betsy DeVos, chairperson of the Michigan Republican Party, delivered a speech at the party's convention in Grand Rapids on Saturday (transcript). While she promised to reveal "some things ... that aren't usually said in polite conversation," her main assertion, that "the political left and the Democrat Party in America have gone out of control" and has become "totally consumed by their hatred of our President," was not particularly noteworthy--such an opinion has long been expressed by members of the GOP.

Perhaps the most unusual aspect of her speech was her statement that Michael Moore is "one of the leaders of the Democrats." While DeVos called for "a return to civil discussion in this country," Moore's new film, Farenheit 9/11, was described as consisting of "vile attacks on President Bush." These comments echo DeVos' comments last time Moore visited Grand Rapids, when she accused Moore of "juvenile and incoherent leftism" rather than focusing on the substance of his criticism of George W. Bush. DeVos' hatred of Moore is akin to that of the Democrats whom she accuses of fixating on Bush and reflects an unwillingness to engage critics of the Bush administration on a substantive level.