Happens with liberals as well. When Bush was in office, it was not uncommon for liberals to pine for the return principled of small government conservatism of Goldwater and the budgetary constraints Eisenhower placed on the military, without thinking about the consequences of that. When liberals got a renewed taste of it after 2010, suddenly Goldwater, Ron and Rand Paul became the enemy again...and slowly, slowly, some are even starting to revisit Nixon and George W. Bush and think them decent and moderate, despite their decades-long dispute with both. It's transparent, because before Obama was a serious contender, Hillary was perceived as the worst case scenario for Republicans. When Hillary and Obama were months into their grueling primary bout, Republicans suddenly turned Hillary into the sensible, experienced, and decisive Democrat that could make the tough calls and make America safe in comparison to the neophyte that had captured the imagination of the Democratic Party base.