Richard Cohen is perhaps the most abused political columnist in the country. On a weekly basis, his brand of center-left politics attracts a surprising amount of bipartisan fury. The liberal snark-blog Wonkette frequently leads the charge, labeling him the "worst writer in America." Gawker is never far behind, dubbing him "staggeringly terrible" while Salon is content with calling his work merely "terrible." At the high-end of liberal thought, Harper's magazine contemplated "How Awful Is Richard Cohen: Let Us Count the Ways" last October and the Washington Monthly's Steve Benen described him as "downright embarrassing" in 2008.

In the non-liberal category, Reason magazine dubbed his Oct. 5 column "The Worst Column of the Year," moderate Ann Althouse said it was indicative of an "aging columnist" with "folk-music plugged old ears" and the conservative site Big Journalism called him a "troubled soul."  

Today, a new demographic joins the anti-Rich Cohen club. It's Cohen's former colleague David Weigel. What we have here is a tweet from the former Washington Post blogger-turned Slate writer:

If you follow the link, it leads to Cohen's article from today titled "Meghan McCain goes where Republicans fear to tread." It's anyone's guess what Weigel is most disappointed by, but giving undue attention to the significance of Meghan McCain probably isn't a bad guess. Here's the start of Cohen's piece:

Can it be that the conscience of the Republican Party resides in a 26-year-old woman who has never held elective office and derives her authority, not to mention name recognition, for the fame of her father? I am referring to Meghan McCain, daughter of the once-forthright John, who said of Christine O'Donnell, the erstwhile witch and current Republican senatorial candidate from Delaware, that she is a "nut job."

This searing evocation of the truth, this refreshing statement of an obvious fact, has not come from any other Republican of note...

Well, at least the guy's got thick skin.

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John Hudson