We liberals continue to be defeated by our own in the Democratic Party. We are unable to stand up for those who we say we represent.
Harry Reid had not only the ability to change the course of the Senate when he had the power to stop the silent filibuster, he had the backing of the American people. Instead, he made a deal with Mitch McConnell. Of course, McConnell interpreted the "deal" as Reid backing down, and the Senate republicans continue to batter us -- the American people -- with impunity.
And then there are the Democrats who have never found a cause that is worth standing together on.
Health care? Gun control? Taxation? Whether it's closing loopholes for pharmaceutical companies, gun shows or Exxon Mobil, you will always find a Democrat willing to stand up for the powerful.
There are always good reasons, too. Mostly, it has to do with risking losing the next election. This is why the big donors give to both parties. And why the right wing and fat cats have been able to pick off any liberal that is willing to take a stand against the powerful.
If only. If only we had the courage of our convictions that the right wing of the Republican Party has. If we had people that care about the poor, the disenfranchised, those who are unable to fight with millions of dollars and highly paid lobbyists, like for example, elected Democrats, we would be able to get our country back on the right track.
Which leads to the subject of sequestration. Let's not even talk about whatever possessed Obama to buy into this nonsense. It sounded reasonable at the time, but in retrospect, we know we are dealing with unreasonable people. While the poor and the sick are being denied services, the Tea Partiers in our Congress are taking victory laps. They alone have saved us from our deficit. And, it turns out, done it without ever having to inconvenience the wealthy and powerful.
It shamed me that our Congressional "leaders" voted to override the cuts to air traffic control in order to cater to those with the clout to be heard. Oh, and themselves. And shame on the Democrats who voted in large numbers to undermine the little bit of power the sequestration actually had.
What's it going to take for us to stop spiraling into self-absorbed obscurity? Money only being spent to make more money for those who already have it; cutting jobs and government services, trains and teachers, bridges and health care. Strangling regulators who have not in decades had the power to protect us from bad food, bad water, bad air, unsafe airplanes, Wall Street and corporate fraud. Defunding research that would lead to better lives for ourselves, our children, and our grandchildren.
And while the right wing is taking that victory lap, the moderates are clutching tightly to their own purses afraid of losing their own job security.
So today I am saddened. Yet I hope there will be a liberal backlash. I imagine that like the courageous fast food workers, more of the weak in our country will risk everything to stand up to the powerful. Perhaps mayors and moms will become as powerful an influence on our legislators as the NRA. And maybe the real small business folks who have been fooled by the right wing into thinking they are being represented will realize that they have been sold out to corporate power.
Maybe President Obama will find his spine on all these issues, as he seems to have done with gun control.
But the bottom line really is -- and the Republican right wing know this -- if we don't care enough to stand together, we are lost.
Congress continues to obstruct everything from the confirmation of a Secretary of Defense to resolution of the impending sequestration which threatens to damage everything from jobs to defense. Just as they were able to win the House of Representatives in 2010, the Republicans continue to believe that their future resides in the destruction of the Obama Administration. The contradictions and hypocrisies that lost them the Presidency as well as seats in Congress in 2012 have merely translated to a need to reword the message, and a double-down against the President.
If you have watched any video of South Carolina's own Lindsey Graham lately, you will see a mean, whiny and self-serving man who is out of touch with his constituents as well as with the country he professes to love. The state which he presumes to represent ranks #13 out of 50 in instances of gun violence, yet he opposes any gun control measures. He has made false and absurd statements about people whom Obama might be interested in nominating to cabinet positions, from Susan Rice (who had not even been nominated) to Chuck Hagel, lately having the gall to indicate that he would hold up Hagel's nomination based on circumstances totally unrelated to his qualifications.
Amidst upwardly spiraling gun violence, we have no director at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. Judicial appointments have been routinely blocked, leading to backlogs on dockets across the country. We have all heard of all the legislation that had once been supported (in fact, proposed) by republicans that has been denounced as soon as it was supported by President Obama.
Are we safe? If we are, it is not thanks to the republicans in Congress, but because of all the end runs the President has had to make around them.
While today Lindsey Graham might be cheering on Obama's use of drone strikes, the President could not count on Congress to engage in constructive debate around such an important issue. Because Congressional republicans continue to behave like tantrumming toddlers, tyrants and bullies, Obama could no more ask for help in creating rules for the use of drones than he might have asked for a hand in planning the assassination of Osama Bin Laden.
As a man with great respect for the law, who also takes seriously the task of protecting the American people with as little loss of life as possible, perhaps the use of drones was the only option available to this president.
As go Skinnerian rats, so go the corporate CEO's and Wall Street honchos.
Everybody's in a panic over the impending sequestration/disappearing tax cuts.
I'm frankly tired of hearing about how big business (or, as the right wing calls them, small business) and the stock market are reacting to the potential loss of pennies on their billions of dollars.
We plain old people have been called whiny, lazy, greedy and unimportant for quite long enough. Since 2008, many of us have lost homes and jobs; since long before that, we have not been able to afford health care. Creepy Mitt Romney, who some still believe is a nice guy, figures that Obama won the presidency by offering us unwashed masses goodies like health care and affordable student loans. His prediction for liberals winning the White House in 2016 is free dental care.
Asshole.
Really. It's hard to frame a serious rebuttal to a man who builds elevators for his cars, while for years a growing number of Americans have had to choose between the mortgage and medication, car repairs versus clothing.
Mormon or Christian, there is no religion that I know of that scorns people for wanting to be safe and healthy. And while our friends and neighbors helplessly lost their health and security, we have had to listen to politicians and the media whine about fearful, insecure multi-millionaires.
How could we even conceive of denying bonuses to the Wall Street geniuses that plunged us into recession??? How can we expect corporations to hire people and pay taxes at the same time???
Bullshit.
When times are bad, we have been told to suck it up. Pull your kid out of college, skip those dental appointments, patch up that old car yet again.
I believe it is time for the wealthy to stop the hell whining. If you want your business to prosper, invest in research and pay a living wage. If you want the stock market to succeed, then sell stocks that are worth the investment, and not mere quick and dirty trades. Stop screwing around with the power you hold.
And our politicians need to stop feeding the power machine. Because it is broken.
As for me, I've given up so much financial security over the years as these criminals have continued to plunder our democracy, that raising my taxes doesn't scare me. I can't afford the dentist or the car repair as it is. You really can't take that much away from me.
So sequester the hell out of yourselves. And end those tax cuts. Lets see how long the cowardly bullies who hold all the cards last when the cards become worthless.
In this country, there have been times when things got so bad that Americans stood up and said, "I am willing to risk my life to make things better." It's time to do that again, folks. For ourselves and for our children.
