If you’ve spent much time around this site you know that I’m not too happy with President Obama, whom I supported in the last election, but I’m disgusted with Republicans as they are presently “constituted.”  That is to say, I fully believe in a vibrant two party system of government where you have legitimate debate on pressing issues and ultimately end up with bipartisan legislation which represents the best of both points of view.  However, since the late sixties when I started voting I’ve watched as bipartisanship has slowly ebbed into political oblivion while partisan “rancor” has emerged as the “way of life” in Washington DC – much to the chagrine of most Americans in the “heartland.”  I believe the real deteriorization escalated after the Watergate scandal which was a time when Republicans would vote alongside Democrats and vice versa depending on the legislation.  I don’t remember a time back then (it probably happened occasionally) when a really important issue would be decided without a single vote from someone “crossing over the isle.” 

The original FISA legislation, for example – which was passed in 1978 came from the Senate committee chaired by Frank Church, a Democrat from Idaho, working alongside John Tower and Barry Goldwater – both as conservative and Republican as they came – all of them recognizing the importance of Congress requiring warrants for government agencies before they could invade the privacy of American citizens.  And, the Republicans of that era didn’t just “roll over” without defending “their” President during the Watergate hearings of the mid-1970’s, but when it became apparent that Richard Nixon had “obstructed justice” they didn’t practice “blind loyalty” as present day Republicans would, but actually “encouraged” Nixon to resign.  Back then there were Republicans like Everett Dirksen, Mark Hatfield, Bob Packwood, Nelson Rockefeller, the aforementioned Tower and Goldwater and others who were independent thinkers and very honorable men.  They were truly great statesmen.  However, this era also spawned the likes of Lee Atwater and  Roger Ailes which eventually led to Karl Rove – men who were/are political strategists who would do anything in order to win elections.  I believe this was the era when the idea of the “permanent republican majority” was born. 

In the 1980’s the “conservative” wing of the Republican party began to push out the men listed above (Dirksen, Rockefeller, etc.) and Ronald Reagan emerged as the “icon” who’s image still drives the Republicans to this day.  They won the election in 1980 by supporting a “third party” candidate – John Anderson, a liberal Republican – who siphoned votes from disenchanted Democrats unhappy with Jimmy Carter and they’ve been using “dirty tricks” to win elections ever since (it’s also been widely reported that the Reagan “team” worked a “deal” with the Iran government which was holding 53 American hostages to insure they weren’t released prior to the election insuring Carter’s demise).  Republicans have continually represented the interests of the few but have managed to masterfully use wedge issues and various dishonest techniques to convince average middle class voters to vote against their own self interests since the emergence of Reagan.  In a sense you have to give it to them – they are very good at winning elections with the philosophy that the end justifies the means.  Both Bush’s won elections subsequent to the Reagan years using less than honorable tactics.  Remember the Willie Horton ads of the George HW Bush campaign which pretty much undid Michael Dukakis?  And I certainly will never forget the George W Bush “win” in Florida set up by Bush’s brother Jeb and Florida’s Secretary of State Kathleen Harris in concert with the Supreme Court – an election which will have a still undetermined negative effect on this nation for generations to come.  And, of course, there is ample evidence that GW Bush cheated his way to re-election in 2004 as well through widespread voter suppression and fraud in Ohio which was enabled by Ohio’s Secretary of State who was also Bush’s state campaign chairman – a conflict of interest that I still can’t believe could happen in America without challenge in the 21st century (not to mention the “swift boating” of John Kerry during that campaign).  Again, the Republicans are REALLY GOOD at winning elections through ANY MEANS POSSIBLE. (and, the flip side – Democrats seem, at least to me, way to willing to allow them to do this)

The end result of all this from the Republican side is we have a group which has been marginalized and is dwindling in size, a group which is now resorting to “loyalty oaths” for anyone interested in “leadership” positions (I honestly don’t understand how those two things – loyalty oaths and leadership – can go together – except maybe in a place like Germany circa early 1930’s), a group which has become overtly racist (not a surprise to many who’ve been paying attention – just totally out front with it at the “tea bagger” events and such), and a group which has “locked arms” in a unified effort to make sure that President Obama FAILS!  Well, as mentioned above, I’M PRETTY MUCH DISGUSTED WITH THESE REPUBLICANS!  So, where’s the problem I would have with our new President – he’s got to be better than all of that, right?

Well, for starters, while I honestly see the importance of “bipartisanship” – as mentioned above – NOT AT ALL COSTS as our President evidently believes!  I got tired of President Obama’s “overtures” to the Republicans shortly after he took office.  And, he still hasn’t given up the attempts.  In the process he’s allowed the “Bush Crime family” to go free (if you’ve been around here much – you know that I’m having a hard time forgiving Obama for this – in fact I’m not sure I EVER WILL – I think I keep mentioning it on the REMOTE chance that an Obama person might happen on this site, read some of my reasoning, and talk some sense into the President – and we could end up with justice DELAYED), we ended up with a woefully inadequate “stimulus” bill in exchange for three Republican votes, Obama is even defending Bush/Cheney’s illegal wiretapping policies in court, and health care “reform” will end up being a watered down “windfall” for the health insurance industry.  And, now we are sending another 30,000 troops into Afganistan.

What we are faced with as citizens of this nation is a two party system where the party on the “right” – the Republicans – consists of a marginalized group of dishonest, disengenuous, authoritarian minded conduits for a continued policy of practicing massive CORPORATE WELFARE while fighting any and all attempts to provide assistance for the “least among us.”  On the left – well, I don’t think there is a “left” anymore.  I believe the left is really the conservatives and the “right” has become the radical fringe – but, for convenience sake lets call the Democrats the “left.”  The Democrats are a bunch of bought and paid for “corporatists” who seemingly have a connection to the “everyday” man/woman – but don’t have the courage of their supposed convictions.  And, our Democratic President fits right in with the majority of the Democrats in the Congress.  While many more Americans than myself are LONGING for the Democrats (or Republicans for that matter – SOMEONE) to stand up for the restoration of the middle class – IT JUST AINT HAPPENING!  The excuses I keep hearing from all of these politicians reminds me of the excuses I get from my sixth grade students.  It’s almost like they don’t want to “rock the boat” – WHICH NEEDS TO BE ROCKED – because it would interfere with their “protocal.” (and the flow of money from the corporations who virtually own them)

Well, I (and I believe millions of others) say TO HELL WITH THE PROTOCAL!  Our government can find the wherewithall to “nation build” in Iraq and Afganistan to the tune of a couple hundred BILLION DOLLARS per year – yet we can’t seem to find the will to “nation build” in our own country.  We can’t find the money to create jobs for the MILLIONS of Americans who are losing everything they’ve spent their lives working for – INCLUDING THEIR HOMES.  We can spend what is going to amount to 3 – 4 TRILLION DOLLARS over the next 10 years  to occupy two countries which we should have little or NO interest in, yet we can’t find the will to spend ONE TRILLION over the same time period to guarantee all Americans affordable health care.  Our Congress didn’t hesitate to FEED WALL STREET what could conceivably end up amounting to tens of TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS to prevent their risky investments from bankrupting the companies which have managed to become “too big to fail,” but when it comes to providing unemployment benefits and food stamps which represent a SMALL FRACTION of this Wall Street bailout expense we see Republicans BLOCKING legislation, and Democrats quietly going along with it.

When I think back to my original enthusiasm for President Obama this all seems like a bad dream.  However, I (and many others) clearly misjudged him.  He’s not following through on his promises to get the troops (all of them) out of Iraq in 16 months, to uphold the American tradition that NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW, that waterboarding is torture, and where there is evidence of criminal behavior the laws will be fairly enforced – HE’S UNDERMINED THE BASIC TENETS OF OUR LEGAL SYSTEM AS MUCH AS BUSH DID! – he’s apparently willing to sign a health care bill which does not include the so-called “public option” – which, even if included, will be watered down and nothing more than an option for those people the insurance industry wants no part of – therefore being destined for FAILURE from the start, and there are many other areas where President Obama is proving to his progressive supporters that they either misunderstood his positions or he was disengenuous in the campaign.  The 30,000 troops going to Afganistan was predictable based on what I heard during the campaign, but I understood him to say the purpose of our involvement in Afganistan would be to “FINISH THE JOB” regarding Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda.  So progressives now have another area of discontent with our President:  Obama’s campaign promise to go after bin Laden seems to have evolved into nation building in Afganistan! America continues to wait for leadership which chooses principled conviction over political expediency.

(As I watch our nation look the other way while our unemployed and underemployed numbers skyrocket I’ve decided to reread Karl Marx “Communist Manifesto.” I will have more to say on that at a later date, but it is facinating reading the predictions of how greed and capitalism “mix.” It would not surprise me if Marx’ philosophy didn’t re-emerge in intellectual settings as the discussion about the growing “lower class” (proletariat) intensifies in America – as it undoubtedly will should our leaders continue to delude themselves into thinking the recession is “over” because Wall Street is on the upswing)