Karl Rove nailed the difference between liberals and conservatives in the speech he gave at a fundraiser last night.

"Conservatives saw the savagery of 9/11 in the attacks and prepared for war; liberals saw the savagery of the 9/11 attacks and wanted to prepare indictments and offer therapy and understanding for our attackers," Mr. Rove, the senior political adviser to President Bush, said at a fund-raiser in Midtown for the Conservative Party of New York State. Citing calls by progressive groups to respond carefully to the attacks, Mr. Rove said to the applause of several hundred audience members, "I don't know about you, but moderation and restraint is not what I felt when I watched the twin towers crumble to the ground, a side of the Pentagon destroyed, and almost 3,000 of our fellow citizens perish in flames and rubble."

The liberals, of course, are angry and demanding an apology.

Told of Mr. Rove's remarks, Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, replied: "In New York, where everyone unified after 9/11, the last thing we need is somebody who seeks to divide us for political purposes."

The Democrats are demanding a retraction, and are calling on the President to repudiate the comments. Strange, coming from the party that won’t repudiate Dick Durbin for comparing American soldiers to the agents of the most murderous regimes of the twentieth century. But given the continuous assaults on the President and his policies towards the forces of terrorism, I don’t see Rove’s comments as terribly inaccurate, despite what I will admit was a commendable and uncharacteristic pro-American stance in the short-term after 9/11.

And don’t forget who the dividers have been in recent American politics, as collected by the RNC in a new commercial.

Text on Screen): A long, long time ago ...

(Montage of past presidents)

FDR: "The only thing we have to fear ... "

Truman: " ... and are determined to work for peace on earth ... "

JFK: "Ask not what your country can do for you ... ask what you can do for your country."

(Text on Screen): Today ...

(VIDEO) Howard Dean: "I hate what the Republicans are doing to this country. I really do."

(VIDEO) Hillary Clinton: "It is very hard to stop people who have never been acquainted with the truth."

(VIDEO) Howard Dean: "A lot of them have never made an honest living in their lives."

(PRINT) Howard Dean 6/6/2005: (Republican Party) "It's pretty much a white, Christian party."

(VIDEO) Nancy Pelosi: "Our plan is to stop him ... stop him ... he must be stopped."

(VIDEO) Dick Durbin: "You would most certainly believe this must have been done by Nazis, Soviets in their gulags, or some mad regime -- Pol Pot or others -- that had no concern for human beings. Sadly, that is not the case. This was the action of Americans."

(PRINT) Harry Reid 5/6/2005: "I think this guy (President Bush) is a loser."

(VIDEO) Harry Reid: "I apologized for the loser, I haven't for the liar."

(VIDEO) Jon Stewart: "We turn our attention now to Washington, and the Democrats. Political party founded in 1792 that enjoyed an active role in American politics through much of the 20th century. Perhaps you've heard of them. No? Ask your parents."

(Text on Screen): The Democrats Today. No Vision. No Plan. Not your Parents' Democrat Party.

(Text on Screen): Paid For By The Republican National Committee. Not Authorized By Any Candidate Or Candidate Committee. www.gop.com

In short, do you have any moral authority to comment on the Rove speech?

I didn’t think so.

UPDATE: Some of the things that Karl Rove was talking about -- do any of these help jog the memories of those whining about how awful he was in questioning the commitment of the Left to the War on Terrorism.