I managed to stomach “Meet the Press” with David Gregory for about 15 minutes today and it just reminded me about how “low” we’ve gone as a nation in the past 35 or so years.  Our “liberal media” seems to be nothing more than entertainment.   Gregory was moderating a “discussion” on “Obamacare” (The Affordable Care Act) with Rob Portman, a republican senator from Ohio who sounded as if he came right out of the republican “sound machine,” and Chuck Schumer, the democratic senator from New York (I really wanted to say “from Wall Street”) – a corporatist democrat.  As I watched the show (and, it was difficult to keep from turning it off) I kept thinking that the political debate in America has been pushed so far to the “right” since the election of Ronald Reagan that people like Schumer are considered “liberals.”  While I’m no fan of the Affordable Care Act – in reality, it’s the Heritage Foundation’s answer to the health care crisis in America – I struggle to listen to our present day politicians “debating” this issue.  Republicans apparently against helping America’s working poor gain health care and democrats defending “Obamacare” out of instinct.  (Neither talking about the “single payer” solution that makes so much sense)

Because “Obamacare” is the “best we could get” after President Obama’s initial election victory, it seems as if we should be trying to make it work.  Republicans are doing everything they can to undermine the Affordable Care Act – even though it’s their brainchild – because their NUMBER ONE GOAL is for President Obama to FAIL!  While they could be debating the program and trying to work out solutions that make it better and easier for people to access, they are doing just the opposite.  I believe more and more people (I’m talking about media pundits) are (finally) coming to the realization that the idea of a Black person in the “White House” is the motivation that drives EVERYTHING the republican party does. (I truly hope this issue – race – is honestly discussed as we approach the 2014 elections) If I need to clarify;  I believe they (republicans) are attempting to make sure this (a person of color in the “White House”) doesn’t happen again!  (and, I wish the “liberal media” would quit tiptoeing around this reality)  Honestly, they (republicans) remind me of my sixth grade students who continue to refuse to do anything in class and seemingly expect me, as their teacher, to eventually quit expecting anything from them.  Well, I can tell you that the solution to this republican intransigence, as I see it, is not to ignore them, but to vote as many of them out of office as possible.

It’s true that with the help of people like the Koch brothers (who’ve finally been exposed for what the really are) the republicans have a very sophisticated plan to regain power in Washington.  They’ve gerrymandered many congressional districts across America (during the 2010 census) to ensure they keep a block of extreme right wing members of Congress with “safe seats.”  However, when it comes to numbers, as the saying goes, “there’s more of us than there are of them.”  By that, I mean if progressives and progressive leaning independents (like me) go to the polls in numbers, the republicans could easily become an afterthought within a few election cycles.

Of course, they’ve had a long term plan in place for many years that has somewhat come to fruition.  They had the makings of their “permanent republican ‘majority'” in 2000 when the Supreme Court overturned the “will of the people” and, with the help of Jeb Bush being the governor of Florida, anointed George W Bush as president.  I’ve said many times on this site that Bush screwed up their plan with one blunder after another, but what he accomplished was to put John Roberts and Samuel Alito onto the Supreme Court which furthered the Koch led scheme immeasurably.  Many Americans have come to realize the devastation caused by “Citizens United” – The Supreme Court’s undoing of 100+ years of campaign finance regulation and enabling of the uber rich, people like Charles and David Koch – two brothers right out of the John Birch Society heritage, to have an unlimited influence on our present and future elections.  And, anyone who doesn’t understand that Citizens United opened the doors for foreign influence on our electoral process is either totally naive or stupid.  (unfortunately, many Americans STILL don’t have any idea what Citizens United is)

As I listened to Portman this morning, it was as if Charles or David Koch could have been the guest.  These two brothers have “invested” HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS of dollars in buying our congressional “leaders” (I’m sure Portman is one of the recipients of their largess) and the reality is that if one republican votes against their interests, they can expect to be “primaried.”  The Kochs are the funding behind the so-called “Tea Party” – which is nothing more than a bunch of right wing corporatists, with overt racist tendencies, funding what they orchestrate as a “populist” movement.  The Kochs are in the same mold as “The Family,” which I’ve written about on this site and the Dominionist Christians – all of who believe in rule by the elite – the wealthy and powerful.  These are the people, by and large, who gave us “Trickle down economics,” in the 1980’s (I’ve always called it “Trickle up economics”) and have been able to continually gain strength – despite the failure of their ideas – through a sophisticated propaganda scheme.

This propaganda scheme was taken right from the philosophy of Joseph Goebbels, the propaganda minister of the Third Reich, and has been extremely effective.  If you take the time to listen to a variety of republican pundits, you will see clear evidence that they are practicing what Goebbels called the “Big lie theory.”  That is, if you repeat a lie often enough people will begin to believe it’s true.  Periodically, I’ll put my own beliefs to the test and force myself to tune into several different sources of what Fox “news” calls “free and balanced” reporting.  What you hear is a variety of different “pundits” pushing the same lie with the same “code words.”  While democrats seemingly attempt to counteract this, they are terribly less efficient liars.

Anyone who believes, for example, that Fox “news” is anything but a propaganda arm of the right wing of the republican party is simply fooling themselves.  Fox has managed to ingrain their propaganda so deeply into people’s heads that it’s almost impossible to reason with any “devotee.”  Today, David Gregory had the audacity to challenge Senator Portman’s claims (falsely, by the way) that the Affordable Care Act will cause millions of lost jobs by asking, why then did he recently vote against extended unemployment benefits.  Gregory pointed out there were something in excess of 50,000 Ohioans who lost benefits when the extended benefits expired.  Portman paused, as if to say – “how could you throw that question in” – and then tried to avoid any kind of sensible answer as he attempted (and successfully) to swing the argument back to the health care law.

The issue of immigration reform came up and Portman, true to being a republican, spewed – carefully – the republican position that there can’t be reform while President Obama is in office because “he can’t be trusted to enforce the law.”  OK, that argument is absurd on its face (and I refer you to my previous post for more on that) but, the point is these people are like a bunch of sheep and they all say exactly the same thing – it’s like they’re pre-programmed before every public appearance – and, people like the Koch brothers and their network of wealthy donors are the shepherds.  (many call them the “puppet masters”)  Almost as absurd, was Schumer’s suggestion that republicans vote to pass the law and stipulate that it won’t become law until after Obama is out of office.  Just further evidence that there’s not much FIGHT in the so-called leaders of the democratic party.  I thought, with friends like that, who needs ………….. you know the rest.

The Kochs have reportedly already “invested” around $30 MILLION into the upcoming 2014 midterm (and, I use the term “investing” literally, because it’s a known fact they don’t “donate”) and they’re orchestrating the “investing” of many other MILLIONAIRES and BILLIONAIRES who believe that government shouldn’t exist (except for the military), they believe polluters should be governed by the “free market,” they don’t believe in taxes or any government regulation of business, and they will seemingly spend their entire fortune attempting to ensure we never have another person of color in the “White House.”  Can you imagine what they’re going to do in 2016 if Hillary Clinton runs for president?  If you haven’t noticed, they’ve already started their attempt to make sure that she never makes it back to the White House.  (or any other woman makes it there, either, for that matter)

What’s so hard for me to understand is that it’s still only 5 years since the Bush/Cheney regime hi-tailed it out of Washington DC with their “tails between their legs.”  With the help of this “liberal media” America’s voting public has a very short memory.  Of course, President Obama is not helping as he continues WAY TOO MANY of the Bush/Cheney policies for my liking (and, many other progressives) and, as I’ve stated here ad nauseum, he blocked the NEEDED investigations into Bush/Cheney misdeeds.  But, let’s, for the sake of brevity, just talk about health care.  I still clearly remember, in the 2008 primary season, Dennis Kucinich lobbying for a single payer health system, to the ridicule of his fellow democrats who considered that (totally practical) idea WAY TOO “liberal.”  Looking back, I think Kucinich seems like he was the “adult in the room.”

I’m re-reading “Chain of Command” by Seymour Hersch and I really don’t understand how any American could “long” for the days of the republicans who brought us endless war in Afghanistan and a “Viet Nam all over again” experience in Iraq.  Of course, the republicans who gave us this policy were the same ones who used deferments or connections to avoid the aforementioned Viet Nam fiasco – but, for some reason felt compelled to create a fiasco of their own.  Our “liberal media” has so much influence (and beholden) from the “military industrial complex” that I seriously doubt we’re anywhere near the point where anyone who might gain the “White House” would be able to have the courage to “call off” the “war machine.”  What would we do with the BILLIONS that would be saved by pulling the plug on that “vacuum” that is sucking the heart out of our taxpayers.  (I read a proposal the other day that Congress pass a law making college tuition FREE – to republicans, a truly educated society must be a scary thing)  We have so many other issues we could be focused on besides the military, but to listen to our politicians that would be total heresy – and, this goes for both of our major political parties.  Kucinich, with his message of universal health care and peace was the MAJOR target of the right wing in 2012 – and, they succeeded.  This year, my guess is that Alan Grayson of Florida, a true liberal, will have to fight MILLIONS of Koch money in order to hold his seat.  (if you’re reading this and have a job, think about sending him some money – I send it in $10 – $25 increments as I have it)

I could give you a long list of “progressive” issues I believe “we the people” should be focused on, but with a media led by the likes of Gregory, it appears the “road is long.”  I would challenge any “right winger” who might happen this way to look at the statistics regarding most of their fundamental complaints from a “prism” beginning with the election of Ronald Reagan.  Things like the deficit and the national debt – look at the statistics from 1980 until the present.  Look at the tax burden and how “we the people” have fared versus Reagan’s “friends.”  Look at the military and what’s happened since Reagan’s election (I know, you’re going to claim Reagan defeated the Soviet Union – that’s an argument for another day).  Look at education, regulations (especially with the financial sector), environmental issues, poverty, look at the middle class in general – compare it from then to now.

I’m not opposed to business, I’m not opposed to ingenuity and progress, I believe entrepreneurs should be rewarded for their success – it’s just the general accepted “mindset” that’s been allowed to permeate our society since 1980 that is so troubling to me.  Anytime you hear a “leader” reminding us of our history (from the “New Deal” through the 70’s) as a “we” society that created the greatest middle class the  world has “known” that “leader” is vilified by our “liberal media” with monikers such as “socialist.”  I believe the evidence is overwhelming that if “we the people” allow people like the Koch brothers and their “ilk” to succeed America will be on the way to second rate status.  Bush/Cheney did immeasurable damage to our “standing” in the world community and, it seems, the only ones who don’t understand what’s happening to our nation is US.  I know there’s a lot of people pushing back, but the truth is that without courageous leaders who will “just say no” to the corporatist interests America will continue to decline.  We definitely need innovative corporations, it’s just that we also need to return to the days when the workers are more important than the stockholders and the corporate executives are not rewarded for greed and self interest.  My point tonight is, with a “liberal media” featuring the likes of David Gregory, “don’t hold your breath.”