CBS political director urges Obama to 'go for the throat' of GOP to cement legacy A column published on Slate.com over the weekend urged President Obama to "pulverize" and destroy his Republican opponents -- even "go for the throat" -- in order to "cement his legacy." The words of advice, though, didn't come from a Democratic strategist or a former member of the president's inner circle. The nearly 2,000-word playbook came from CBS News' political director John Dickerson. Dickerson, who also works as chief political correspondent for Slate, had some unusually harsh words for the minority party as Obama takes the oath and launches into his second term. To hear Dickerson tell it, Republicans have proved so intransigent that Obama's only option is to obliterate them. The subhead on the article said, "Obama must declare war on the Republican Party" if he wants to transform American politics. "There's no indication that the president's clashes with House Republicans will end soon," Dickerson wrote. The president who came into office speaking in lofty terms about bipartisanship and cooperation can only cement his legacy if he destroys the GOP. If he wants to transform American politics, he must go for the throat. Dickerson went on to describe the strategy of picking off and cultivating a few Republican allies as "the old way." "Obama's only remaining option is to pulverize," Dickerson said. He wrote that Obama's attempt to build a "post-partisan" Washington didn't work, and in his second term Obama has the chance to "hasten the demise of the old order" of the GOP by "increasing the political cost of having the GOP coalition defined by Second Amendment absolutists, climate science deniers, supporters of 'self-deportation' and the pure no-tax wing." The advice comes despite the eventual willingness of the Republican Party to allow tax increases on top earners, as part of the recent fiscal crisis deal. Republicans have also eased off their opposition to raising the debt ceiling, proposing a three-month extension while a budget is debated. Dickerson was named CBS' political director in November 2011. Representatives from CBS News have not yet responded to requests for comment.