Recently I’ve been hearing some words coming from our president that are more in line with what I was expecting upon his first election, but I have to admit that I’m somewhat deflated by some of his ACTIONS since attaining the “White House.”  I don’t think I’ll EVER get over his decision to BLOCK all the NEEDED investigations of the Bush/Cheney cabal that clearly believed themselves ABOVE THE LAW.  That action, in itself, I think empowered the republicans to initiate this OBSTRUCTION that has been going on since day one of the Obama administration and which has gained so much “steam” that the potential “accomplishments” of those behind the republican “scene” are getting scarier all the time.  In addition to the ill advised policy of “looking forward instead of back” that President Obama put forth shortly after his inauguration in 2009 he has “deflated” his liberal “base” on several occasions.  (I will never forget Obama’s first “chief of staff,” Rahm Emanuel calling liberals “f_____ng retards”) He extended the “Bush Tax Cuts,” he followed the Bush negotiated exit from Iraq, we’re still in Afghanistan (I’ll NEVER understand that one), he’s put Social Security “on the table,” (regarding negotiations to reduce the debt that Social Security has no part in), and now I’m hearing that Larry Summers could be the next chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank.  That is the same Larry Summers who, in a coalition with Phil Gramm and other right wing republicans, orchestrated the end of the Glass-Steagall requirement that banks be banks and investment houses would not be gambling with American’s savings accounts.  The repeal of Glass-Steagall led to the “too big to fail (jail)” Wall Street “banks.”

I’m just beginning tonight’s rant with that caveat because I believe Obama’s rhetoric has become just that to many on the left (like myself) because of his “republican lite” reality in so many ways.  I continue to be one who longs for President Obama to SUCCEED in the face of a HUGE onslaught of right wing money aimed at insuring his FAILURE, but I’m just not sure he (or his advisers) “get” the reality of the “WAR” that is going on in America as I write this – and, it’s not a war coming from some external force, it’s that war from within that President Kennedy warned us about over 50 years ago.  Most people don’t understand the threat of people like the Koch Brothers (Charles and David Koch) and the stealth strategy they’ve been following for MANY, MANY years.  For example, not many Americans (including myself until recently) know about the “American Legislative Exchange Council,” (ALEC)  or the Heritage Foundation – both the outgrowth of the Koch’s whose father was a founding member of the John Birch Society.  These organizations are real threats to anyone who believes in the founding principles of America which were personified in the “New Deal” of Franklin Roosevelt and furthered during the years of Dwight Eisenhower (you don’t hear many republicans praising Eisenhower), JFK and Lyndon Johnson. The advances brought forth from Roosevelt’s election in 1932 until Reagan’s election in 1980 created the world’s greatest “middle class.”  These Koch funded groups are “chipping away,” little by little, every advancement for working class Americans they can and their sophisticated methods are bearing more and more “fruit” as time goes by.  They have unlimited funds, they have no sense of integrity (money, power, and profit are their motivators), and they are VERY resolved.

In reality, the political climate in America was changed by the election of Ronald Reagan (FBI informer) in 1980 to allow for institutions like ALEC and the Heritage Foundation to flourish.  Reagan led the charge to undermine the strength of Unions when he “busted” the Air Traffic Controllers union on national TV.  Since that day the number of unionized Americans in the workforce has declined to less than 10% from something approaching 35%.  It is not a reach to say that republicans are “anti-union.”  They will not be happy until there’s not a trace of a union workforce left in America.  They hate things like the minimum wage, unemployment insurance, social security, medicare, overtime laws, safety regulations, pollution regulations, bank regulations, and I could go on (and on) – anything that benefits us “little people.”  Read “The Family,” by Jeff Sharlett – it will open your eyes to their philosophy that the rich and powerful should make the rules – PERIOD!  (I’m not kidding when I point out they’ve adopted parts of Nazi philosophy along the way – this group has been fighting the New Deal since its inception)

If you don’t know – ALEC is a corporate funded group which writes corporate friendly (“conservative”) legislation for members of state legislatures and includes “funding” for the legislators who initiate their agenda. (in other words, they’re buying local politicians all across America)  This is probably happening in a legislature near you.  One reason ALEC has been more in the news is because they are the “force” behind the “Stand Your Ground” laws put forth (and supported by the NRA) and passed in something like 31 states nationally.  It is this “Stand Your Ground” law that apparently allowed the Sanford Florida court to “exonerate” George Zimmerman for murdering Trayvon Martin. (I’m assuming you’re familiar with that case)  It should be obvious to you that this is a “wake-up call” to all Americans who believe in civil rights.  I just finished reading a book about the Summer of 1919 when Blacks in America were tortured, beaten, and lynched in unbelievable numbers and this is the era that the people behind ALEC wish to return us.  (Check out the recent Supreme Court decision gutting the voting rights act and put it all together with Citizens United, “Stand Your Ground,” and the efforts to ensure our Black president “FAILS” and you should get my “drift”)  Click here to find out all you need to know about ALEC.

Then there’s the Heritage Foundation (a “Think Tank”) That was founded by one of the Coors Beer family and Paul Weyrich – famous for encouraging voter suppression – and supported by a long list of right wing “conservatives” including the Kochs.  (click here for the list supporters)  They are run by Jim DeMint, former racist senator from South Carolina.  Their website encouraging you (and me) to join, in their quest for 1 MILLION members is promoted by the likes of Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity.  Now, if you’ve listened to 15 minutes or so of Limbaugh you know he’s an overt racist and misogynist.  Hannity, on the other hand, (at least when I’ve been able to stomach a few minutes of his schpeel) is much more subtle than Limbaugh.  The other day I was listening to about 10 minutes of a conversation Hannity was having with someone regarding the George Zimmerman murder of Trayvon Martin (I actually happened on this accidentally on my XM car radio) and I was astounded at the number of racial “code words” spewing from Hannity’s mouth as he attempted to guide his unwitting guest through the conversation.  Personally, I prefer the Limbaugh type who come right out with their beliefs than someone as sleazy as Hannity.  These people are the “face” of the Heritage Foundation which is focused on the reversal of the “New Deal” and “liberalism.” (you know, the “mess” – as they refer to it – brought about by things like unions, bank regulations, civil rights, voting rights, child labor laws, etc., etc.)

An offshoot of the Heritage Foundation is the CATO Institute – with Charles Koch as one of the founders.  This is another right wing (libertarian) “Think Tank” that has as its purpose the elimination of as much of the “New Deal” as possible.  Their funders include a wide range of corporate interests who presumably benefit from, in the words of Grover Norquist, “shrinking government to the size where it can be flushed down the drain.”  It didn’t surprise me to see the oil companies and tobacco companies as their sponsors, but computer related companies like Microsoft and Sun were a bit unexpected to me.  Here’s the link to info about CATO.

I’m just pointing this all out to show the depth of the assault on America’s middle class.  Obviously, I believe the advancements that have come since Roosevelt’s election in 1932 have tremendously moved America in a positive direction.  In my mind, all you need to do is go back and study American History beyond what’s in the text books and it should be clear to you that the attacks from the “right” are dangerous and serious.  People like the Kochs, the Coors, the Scaife’s, the Walton Family (Walmart), and others with unlimited funds are not the people I want to depend on to do the right thing for us “little people.”  They have bank accounts that are beyond the imagination of “we the people.”  Their power grab is exactly what Thomas Jefferson was worried about as the American Constitution was evolving.  These “think tanks” are behind the “permanent republican majority” strategy that intends to suffocate America’s working class into a proletariat like under-class.  And, they’re succeeding while the rest of us are too busy to notice.  They obviously have control of the Courts and they virtually have control of congress (via the filibuster in the senate) along with control of our “liberal media.”  (calling our media “liberal” is such a sick joke to me that I don’t know how people can still be falling for that one – this is where the “Big lie theory” comes in)

This gets me back to President Obama.  He was elected to reverse the abuses of the Bush/Cheney regime and he, instead, chose to ignore them – and, in some instances, perpetuate them (i.e. – the “data mining” of U.S. citizens phone and email conversations).  As our president pursues his “grand bargain” – which includes cuts to programs like Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, etc. (I’m not totally sure how aware he is that the republicans would love nothing better than to “rid” America of these “socialist” safety net programs) – apparently thinking he MUST get SOMETHING  done in the face of this unbelievable obstruction from the “right,” I’m a bit confused as to what he envisions as his legacy.  I’ve stated this before, I hope he understands the FOLLY of being the Democratic president who allows Social Security and Medicare to be undermined.  I TRULY hope he has no intention of letting the likes of Paul Ryan, Mitch McConnell, John Boehner, and others on the “right” help to “fix” our social “safety net.”  Their “fix” would be to get rid of it!

There’s not much time left for the reality of the situation to sink in to President Obama.  If he really wants to accomplish what he was elected to accomplish, he needs to join the FIGHT to rid this nation of the present day republican party.  Now, I’m not saying the republican party per se – I’m talking about this “Tea Party” infected, right wing, Koch Brothers, etc. party – the “conservative” party that’s been hijacked by right wing extremists in cohorts with the authoritarian corporatists.  Traditionally, the republican party has been the “home” of some great American statesmen – Dwight Eisenhower, Everett Dirksen, Mark Hatfield, Tom McCall, Abraham Lincoln, Nelson Rockefeller, and I could go on (those are a few names off the top of my head) – and, people like the Koch’s and the Coors’ and the Scaife’s, etc. were always on the “fringe” due to their extreme (and selfish) corporate and “libertarian” views. It will take a mammoth effort by “we the people” to get the message across that this republican party is unacceptable in 21st Century America, and we need strong leaders to stand strong against a very sophisticated “enemy.”  President Obama has the opportunity to lead the way, but he’s got to quit envisioning his “grand bargain” that sets the cause of America’s middle class back to the “robber baron” days.  Obama, himself, in my view is pursuing policies comparable to a moderate republican of days gone by.

For most of my life I’ve disagreed with many republican positions (although not always), but I could respect their place at the table and appreciate many results of bipartisan “negotiations.”  For example, Bob Dole is a republican who I generally disagreed with but mostly always respected because of his ability to communicate “across the isle.”  Actually, John McCain fell into that category until he ran for president and somehow got “sucked in” to the extreme right – possibly upon his choice to associate himself (almost unbelievably to me) with Sarah Palin.  In fact, the reality that republicans were comfortable with someone as uninformed as Sarah Palin being “a heartbeat away” from the presidency says it all to me regarding the depth of thought ruling that party today.  I’ve listened to several former Reagan officials who are almost as alarmed as myself regarding the direction of the “conservative” movement, but, in the end, it will have to be President Obama (or President Clinton – Hillary), or someone who “gets it” to be the leader of the FIGHT to put this present day republican movement back where it was after 1932 and the election of FDR.  I honestly thought Obama understood that when I originally voted for him, but as I watched his first choice of Emanuel, Summers, and Geithner to lead us out of the MESS that Bush/Cheney left I was somewhat alarmed.

I keep hearing, as stated above, the rhetoric that implies our president understands the issue, but he hasn’t shown me the where-with-all that would encourage his LIBERAL base that he’s serious about taking on this fight.  In actuality, I believe the republicans will not allow him ANY successes – NO MATTER WHAT – so, success will only be measured in how much progress he can make in leading this nation to purge the republicans from the congress.  Due to the gerrymandering of 2010, it will take a mammoth effort to regain control of the House and by firing up America’s working class LIBERALS I believe many of the worst offenders of the racist OBSTRUCTION in the Senate (Like Mitch McConnell) can be defeated.  Democrats should be doing everything in their power to make sure people like John Boehner, Paul Ryan, Eric Cantor, McConnell, and others have to FIGHT to retain their seats in congress.  If President Obama would concentrate his efforts on the importance of regaining control of congress and making sure the American people (liberals) understood the importance of electing Democratic presidents until the Supreme Court is purged of people like Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas (unfortunately, Justices Roberts and Alito will be there until my children are my age – ughhh!) I believe he can energize his LIBERAL base to the point where they can overcome all the dirty tricks of the republicans.

Remember, with Citizens United (if you’re still not aware of what that is, Google it – it’s one of the worst Supreme Court decisions to come down in the HISTORY of the United States – the epitome of judicial activism) the republican corporate cronies will be FLOODING every future election with MONEY and misleading (to lying) advertising designed to BUY elections.  Additionally, the Supreme Court recently GUTTED the Voting Rights Act and republican Secretary’s of State all over America are already busy initiating voter suppression plans designed to limit voting by minority voters, students, and elderly people who already find it difficult in many precincts to vote.  (Remember, in places like Florida, Ohio, Michigan, and Pennsylvania – in the last election, people in predominantly democratic areas had to wait in line up to 9 or 10 hours to cast their votes.  Obviously, many people are not able to do that.  It is at the voting booth that the revolution needed in America MUST take place, and republicans are (and will be) doing everything they can to stop it!  It will take more than empty rhetoric for President Obama to energize America’s Liberals to persevere in this BATTLE!  He needs to change his focus from the “GRAND BARGAIN” (that republicans will NOT agree to – and democrats like me don’t want) to the “GREAT BATTLE” – with the goal to purge the “Tea Party” republicans and those leading assault on the “New Deal” from Congress.  Only then will it be possible for an agenda that addresses the REAL problems of America!  (the failing infrastructure, the decaying inner cities, the unemployed and under employed, those without health care, the militaristic foreign policy, the “too big to fail” banks, too much corporate money in politics, corruption in Washington DC – and in American politics in general, etc., etc.)