emotional reaction

In describing standard right-wing propaganda, Justin Rosario explains "how the right debases political and moral debates in this country:"

Liberals says, "We want to keep violent criminals from buying guns" and a conservative will claim we said, "Ban all guns." Liberals say, "We want everyone to have access to healthcare" and a conservative will claim we said, "Kill the sick and elderly." Liberals say, "America is open to all religions, not just Christianity" and a conservative will claim we said, "Ban Christianity and the Bible."

This is how people who are afraid to confront their own failings respond. Rather than simply admit their greed or fear or prejudice, they mischaracterize our positions to make it easier on their conscience when they oppose us. If conservatives would only be honest about their motivations, we could have an honest conversation but that will never happen as long as the political platform of the right is built on hate and anger.

Gulliver at DU suggests that the real reason they're sabotaging America (h/t: Rightardia) is their own "personal humiliation:"

Their man, George W. Bush, was president for eight years, and their party also held majorities in Congress for most that time. And the result? [...] ...everything went horribly, horribly wrong. All on their watch. All in broad daylight. Afghanistan fell apart as Bush's unnecessary, ill-conceived, and falsely motivated war in Iraq dragged on. Osama was on the loose. Bush made a complete ass of himself in every news conference. And the whole country came apart at the seams in 2008. Republicans were wrong, and it was obvious.

The Busheviks hid their embarrassing cheerleading under tricorn hats and Gadsden flags:

The most incompetent, most blameworthy, most idiotic Republicans dodged their identity as Republicans to become Tea Partiers. Then they came back and "took over" their party again. It wasn't the old Republican Party that had done all of those bad things to the country anymore, though. All that sin was washed away by the name change and the Uncle Sam costumes. The Republican party rose phoenix-like from the ashes. And all the old, bad ideas were now new and worse. [...]

Republicans needed Obama to fail because Republicans had themselves failed so badly. America lost horribly under their leadership, and the were not about to let America win under someone else. It is as ugly and simple as that.

When GOP mouthpieces say "I hope he fails" or proclaim that their "single most important" goal is defeating Obama, they're being honest--as ridiculous as that may seem to those of us who are less emotionally invested in ideology.