Yesterday I wrote a post about how “absurd” the discourse in this nation has become, largely as a result of the propoganda campaign launched by Republicans in the eighties during the reign of Ronald Reagan. Any semblance of telling the truth in the national debate went out the window as the politicians figured out how to use the new technologies which were evolving at the time. Remember, cable television was in its infancy – we still had people like the recently deceased Walter Cronkite repoting the news. There were standards that most Americans pretty much took for granted – like there was actually some semblance of respect for journalists in those days. As I stated last night, the Limbaugh phenomenon hit the airwaves and the so-called “talking points” were thrust on the unsuspecting public in a way that led to the “Contract for (I really call it “on”) America which brought in the likes of Newt Gingrich, Tom Delay, Dick Armey, Bob Livingstone, and a host of other Republicans who would eventually prove their entire message was based purely on hypocrisy (all of the above were removed from Congress in disgrace for violating the very principles they were claiming as their own). Combined with the fact that many in America (including myself) were outraged by the abortion issue and the seeds were planted for the disaster that has unfolded itself into today’s Republican party. And, I truly believe when all is said and done, these Republicans will hold a place of infamy in the history books of the United States of America.

I get a close-up look at where this Republican party is coming from. They feed on the fears of people who have the best intentions, but who either have no interest in politics or who are just ill-informed. Unfortunately, in America – where “we the people” determine the course of our government – there are many who are turned off by politics, have no interest in politics, or just assume that our leaders must be telling the truth when they speak. We’ve been inundated with subliminal messages since I can remember on how the United States is the “greatest nation on earth,” to the point where it is just not possible to believe anything else. We’ve all heard our leaders talk about how we are the world’s defenders of “human rights,” and all of our politicians pretty much have to be wearing the American flag when in public or they stand the possibility of someone accusing them of not being patriotic. On top of all of this – kind of combining it – we’ve become (and by we’ve, I’m talking about the working middle class which I feel I’m a part of) so busy trying to keep our heads “above water” that – unless we go out of our way to become informed – we depend on “sound bites” for information (“sitting ducks” for the talking points strategy).

Email has become a weapon for spreading information as more and more people rely on their computers for news and whatever else that “feeds” them – from an information point of view. I see it from both sides – I get email from Democratic sources (I donated some money in the last couple elections even though I’m not officially a Democrat) and my wife gets the right wing Republican email. Actually, she’s not at all interested in politics, but she got pulled into the Republican side of things because of the abortion issue. While I agree (mostly) with my wife on abortion, I figured out long ago that the Republicans were using this issue – just as then Senator Obama said, and was widely criticized, as a “wedge” issue – garnering votes from people who are often times voting against their own self interest because they have no idea what else these Republicans are up to (on top of this, I believe the Republicans have no desire for the abortion issue to be resolved in “their favor” – meaning their favor is for repeal of Roe v Wade – thereby, giving them a staunch “base” that pretty much cares about little else that has to do with politics). Additionally, I’ve always been curious listening to my middle class Republican friends touting the tax cuts for rich people (something them or I have no clue about – being rich that is) and then trying to blame the deficits that resulted from that “philosophy” on the “big spending” Democrats (I’m still seeing emails claiming that the way to solve this present economic crisis is MORE TAX CUTS). The argument is absurd on its face – but Republicans have been GETTING AWAY WITH IT Since Ronald Reagan promised to “reduce taxes and balance the budget.” I’m not claiming that the Democratic emails are without bias, but they are not TOXIC like the ones I see coming from the “Right Wing” (personally, I call it the wrong wing).

In an attempt to put all this into perspective, today I looked at a questionaire sent to my wife telling her that the answers to the questions will “underwrite our Party’s campaign to take control of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate in 2010.” It says, “be certain to answer each question carefully and honestly.” OK, I “get” the idea of trying to “poll” your supporters in order to guide your policies. BUT THIS QUESTIONAIRE IS SO ABSURD that it’s a backhanded attempt for “rubber stamping” the plans they already have on their agenda. I guess, the idea is to try to make people like my wife feel like they’re part of the process, while getting some meaningless data that supports what they’re going to do no matter what (they may be a bit surprised when they get this questionaire back). Oh yes, and one more thing – THEY’RE TRYING TO GET SOME MONEY. Now, I really get that too – I receive the mailers asking for money all the time. I did notice one thing that was different from the ones sent to me by Democrats (who I’m not sending money to either, but that’s a story for a different day) – while the Democratic mailers usually ask me for – starting out – maybe $25 or $35, this one starts out by asking for $500. Now, they do work their way down so that the “regular people” like us could donate $25 or $50 – but, they start at the higher number whereas the Dems that send fliers to me start at the lower number. I’m not sure what that means, but I thought it was interesting – I guess I think it means that the Republican fundraisers are used to dealing with donors with more money than public school teachers like myself and my wife.

I hear what you’re saying so I’ll get to the point: The questions on this questionaire – at least to me – assume people are idiots. They are framed to not only appear to be asking the reader for their “opinion” but they clearly are an extension of the dishonest propoganda scheme these guys have been expertly perpetrating for more than the past 20 years. I’ll give you some examples: “Should Republicans continue fighting congressional Democrats’ efforts to grant full unconditional amnesty to illegal immigrants?” (the question obviously doesn’t refer to the FACT that former President Bush wanted to do this – to some extent – although I’m not sure that anyone, Republican or Democrat, is promoting “full unconditional amnesty.” Here’s another one: “Do you agree with Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi’s efforts to impose massive tax hikes on the American people?” (The truth, of course, is that what has been proposed is that the top 1% of taxpayers revert to the same level of taxation they had under Clinton – remember, when the budget was in surplus? – and most Americans are now receiving a modest tax cut from the so-called stimulus bill WHICH HAD VIRTUALLY NO REPUBLICAN SUPPORT). Want more? OK: “Are you in favor of the federal government using tens of billions more of YOUR tax dollars in an effort to further bailout the U.S. auto industry?” (This one’s really cute, isn’t it? First, it was Bush/Paulsen who originally gave GM and Chrysler about $30 Billion in the last days of their tenure – WITH NO STRINGS ATTACHED – that would be a “bailout” – Obama/Geithner forced accountability with the companies – actually firing GM’s CEO – and forcing them into a planned bankruptcy which will actually allow both companies – and, over a million workers – a strong chance to succeed – and give the taxpayers [when they say “your” tax dollars and they’re talking about billions – I know they’re not really talking to me or my wife] a good chance to recoup their money with interest – remember, Obama/Geithner gave GM and Chrysler loans NOT BAILOUTS, and us taxpayers own a large share of the companies until they get back on their feet).

I’m going to give a couple more examples, but my point is EVERYTHING THESE REPUBLICANS DO IS FRAMED IN DISHONESTY – it’s a way of life for them – PATHOLOGICAL LYING. But, it gets worse: “Do you support the Democrats’ efforts to create a massive new federal government bureaucracy that would be run by unionized government employees and would have complete control of your heathcare costs and choices?” (If you want more of an idea of how dishonest this one is, read my previous posts. The truth is that the Republican party [and unfortunately a few Dems as well] have been bought off by the special interests in the health care industry. A couple things here – Republicans hate unions – unions are on the side of the workers, which most of us are – and the “complete control” claim is SO DISHONEST I don’t know where to start. Personally, I wish it was true – I believe a single payer system is what we really need – but THE TRUTH IS what is being proposed is the OPTION to purchase a government insurance policy along with the OPTION to keep your private insurance. What the Democrats are proposing is a system that will reduce costs and make health insurance available to ALL AMERICANS! What is it that the Republicans don’t like about that?)

There’s a lot more and I’m going to limit myself to one other example, but my point here is that these people don’t even have the integrity to be honest with their own – everything they do seems to be an attempt to manipulate people into supporting positions that go against their own best interests. I’ll give the Republicans credit for one thing – THEY ARE GOOD AT THIS – even thought it’s despicable. Here’s the last example (believe me there were a lot of choices for me here): “Do you believe that American business and industry will be able to compete in the world economy if the Obama Administration bends to pressure from radical environmentalists and implements draconian regulations on emissions, energy consumption and transportation beyond what is required in other industrialized nations?” (I could go on and on here – I’ll try to keep it short – but note their choice of words – draconian means harsh or severe. I’m assuming they equate “radical environmentalists” with the overwhelming number of scientists who are telling us that if we don’t change our ways SOON we are in danger of catastrophic consequences from “global warming.” All I can say here is that every “expert” they have put forth which I’ve seen has been employed by one of the major oil companies – par for the course with Republican leaders, they’ve aligned themselves with the “bottom line” and not the interests of the people they serve. And, to suggest that we shouldn’t go beyond what is “required in other industrialized countries” means to me that we should base our response to the environment on the requirements of countries like China and Russia. Personally, I would hope we’d choose to be leaders, but that won’t happen if Republicans ever get back into office. The harsh (draconian) regulations on emissions and the other regulations they mentioned are part of Obama’s plan to get us away from our dependence on imported oil. WHAT IS WRONG WITH THAT?)

As I said, I could go on, there were 17 questions on this questionaire and at least 15 of them were ridiculous and either blatantly dishonest or at least disingenuous. What does it mean when you can’t even trust the people who support you with the truth? They are all about using people and manipulating. The challenge then, in my view, is to find conservatives who have the courage to be honest and stand on real principles – because we really do need a conservative option as voters. Personally, I believe in a fiscally conservative government. The problem, for me, is the only administrations in my lifetime that were at all fiscally responsible (you know the idea – PAY AS YOU GO) have been Democrats. Jimmy Carter reduced Nixon/Ford’s deficits in half – and was defeated by Ronald Reagan whose campaign slogan was “reduce taxes and balance the budget.” Well, if you know anything about recent U.S. history, you know how that worked out. Bill Clinton, for all his weaknesses, had the courage to “raise taxes” and actually balance the budget (in FACT, he left office with a projected surplus for the next 10 years). again, we all know what GW Bush’s tax cuts and war by credit card did to that. It remains to be seen if Obama can reduce the deficit even in half during his term in office, but the TRUTH is that he inherited a deficit of 1.7 TRILLION dollars and the WORSE ECONOMIC DOWNTURN since the Great Depression. For the Republicans to attempt to project the fallout from the mess left behind by GW Bush on Obama is obviously UNACCEPTABLE TO ME and the height of dishonesty. But, in my view, that doesn’t mean we don’t need a responsible Republican party.

Questionaires like the one my wife received in the mail the other day tell me it will be a long time until there’s a Republican with the guts to stand up and admit that their party is OFF BASE. I believe that we can have a combination of fiscal conservative government along with social compassion. I have a lot of Republican friends right now who are collecting unemployment benefits (there was a question in the questionaire that asked if you believed the “founding fathers intended for the federal government to provide unemployment assistance?”) and I’m sure they are grateful for the help – IT’S REALLY HARD TO FIND A JOB RIGHT NOW, ESPECIALLY FOR US OLDER FOLKS. Why would anyone vote against providing assistance to good hard working Americans who lose their jobs through no fault of their own? One of my friends had a back injury and no longer has health insurance so just “toughed it out” hoping that the injury would heal on it’s own given time. He was lucky, but what if he’d needed surgery so that he could go back to work once a job was available? Would it be fair for him and his wife to lose their home because it’s impossible for working class people to pay for insurance on their own, especially when unemployed? Somehow, I can’t buy that one, AND I DON’T THINK MOST REPUBLICANS WOULD BE IN FAVOR OF THAT IF THEY HAD THE TRUTH ABOUT WHAT’S GOING ON OUT THERE. I guess my point tonight, because I’ve been harping on the “lying Republicans” for some time now, has been to give concrete examples of one way Republicans go about their dishonest propoganda campaign. It’s all well thought out, and as I said, they are really good at it – but who wants to be good at something that goes against the very principles they claim to stand on? Let me end by saying, I believe it’s possible to be conservative AND to tell the truth AND believe in social justice! When someone comes along with those credentials, I’ll once again consider casting a vote for a Republican!