September 15, 2015
Walls*
With 17 candidates running for the Republican Presidential nomination, you'd think just one of them would say something mature, intelligent and constructive...eventually...just by accident. Okay, I'm joking. Because when it comes to policy, the next time a Republican, any Republican, says something mature, intelligent and constructive, it'll be the first time. And to think we have seven more months of this nauseating road show, and then seven months of a nauseating general campaign.
This Republican Presidential nomination campaign isn't just a race to determine which candidate can get the furthest right Neanderthal. It's also a race to the bottom, the intellectual bottom, because as this blog has proven, all Republicans have are lies, attacks, ridicule, hypocrisy
Republicans hold a similar competition with the former Soviet Union, Ronald Reagan and guns: who can hate Communism the most, who can glorify Reagan the most and, as sickening as it is, who can glorify guns the most.
So in order to out
So this isn't about honest disagreements between Republicans and Democrats. Heck, the next time Washington has an honest debate about anything it'll be the first time. No. This is bare-knuckles, partisan politics. It always is with stubborn, selfish Republicans who won't even admit Obama was born in the United States.
And it has to be this contentious because if Republicans don't oppose, block, ridicule and attack Obama and the Democrats and whatever they're for, all the time, it would be seen as supporting, or, God forbid, agreeing with those evil "liberals." And Republicans won't have any of that, regardless of how foolish it makes them look. And the more antagonistic and obstinate they are are in their opposition, blocking, ridiculing and attacking, the better because they have to out
For example, as far as re-writing history is concerned, here's Paul Krugman:
In fact, talking nonsense about economic crises is essentially a job requirement for anyone hoping to get the Republican presidential nomination...
...the G.O.P. never acknowledged, after six full years of being wrong about everything, that the bad things it predicted failed to take place, or showed any willingness to rethink the doctrines that led to those bad predictions. Instead, the party’s leading figures kept talking, year after year, as if the disasters they had predicted were actually happening.
As for automatically disagreeing with Obama because Republicans have to, no matter what, take ISIS. Obama, naturally, doesn't want to send young Americans into another Mid-East ground war. And for good reason. Who the hell would? Well, Republicans running for president. And that's because hard core conservatives have been, as I said, trained brainwashed into despising Obama so much, that Republicans have to be against whatever he's for. So if Obama doesn't want "boots on the ground," then Republicans have to be for the opposite.
So sending American soldiers into the middle of a Sunni-Shia-ISIS-Iraqi-Syrian-Iranian -Russian Mid-East war by supposedly pro-life Republicans gets votes. Yup, makes sense to me!
Hey, that's what a petty, spiteful, ignorant, partisan, political "party" cult, that has nothing constructive to offer, does.
To show how petty the moronic GOP conservative base is take Gov. Chris Christie. He was thought of as a legitimate presidential candidate but never caught on with Republican voters and has fallen in the polls mainly because of the hug he gave to President Obama after Hurricane Sandy and days before the 2012 presidential election.
You see, since the Republican Party this cult does nothing but attack all day long, it has created such a hateful and venomous base - a base that must be kept perpetual state rage at, again, Obama, Democrats, "liberals," environmentalists, foreigners, police protesters, the United Nations, the media, or whoever right-wing talk radio or Fox "News" declare is the enemy of the day (or hour) - that under no circumstances will Republicans lift a finger to assist or support Obama or whatever he's for. Ever. And that even includes a respectful greeting in a time of need. Can you believe it? You should because this is exactly the political atmosphere the GOP wants and needs to have since they can't argue policy, facts or ideas.
It would be nothing short of a miracle if a Republican said something nice or complimentary about Obama. Because if one ever did, it would look as if he was cozying up to and agreeing with that evil, Socialist, Communist, Muslim-embracing African. And that's not going to happen, the GOP base wouldn't stand for it. And whenever Obama does anything or says, well, anything, or makes a policy decision, it 1) gives Republicans the opportunity to unleash a barrage of attacks (as if they need a reason), which, 2) appeases the base, and 3) out conservatives ignorants crazies the next guy...until the next guy comes along. And that's why you get sickening, fanatical dogma like this from presidential candidate Gov. Mike Huckabee about the nuclear deal with Iran:
This president's foreign policy is the most feckless in American history.
As opposed to say, George W. Bush's foreign policy?
Huckabee wasn't finished
It is so naive that he would trust the Iranians. By doing so, he will take the Israelis and march them to the door of the oven.
No, Huckabee couldn't just disagree, maturely, like a presidential candidate should. He had to attack Obama and the deal in the most vicious way possible so he can out conservative ignorant crazy the next guy. And he didn't offer a credible alternative because there is none, except military action and war.
(If you would like a legitimate comparison to the Nazis, check this out. Also, while Republicans go out of their way to glorify Reagan and dump on Iran to out conservatives ignorant crazy the next guy, keep in mind, that it was Reagan who illegally sold weapons to the those Iranian "terrorists" who want to "blow Israel of the map.")
President Obama responded to Huckabee's comments.
The particular comments of Mr. Huckabee are I think part of just a general pattern that we've seen that is, would be, considered ridiculous if it weren't so sad....When you get rhetoric like this, maybe it gets attention and maybe this is just an effort to push Mr. Trump out of the headlines...But it's not the kind of leadership that is needed for America right now.
That's being kind. I would have liked to have seen Obama go a bit further in his response by saying something like:
I'm not surprised by Mr. Huckabee's comments because this is nothing new from Republicans. I've heard it for six years now. So here's a challenge for Republicans: If you have all the easy answers to Iran's nuclear program - a program which they have a right to undertake and will undertake whether there's a deal or not - then what are they for, other than military action? Or pick any issue you want or any topic you want, and without attacking me or the Democrats and what we've done, and without reiterating your opposition to the ACA and calling for its repeal without a credible alternative, and without using the phrases "less government" and "tax cuts," say something mature, intelligent and constructive. If you have all the answers to everything, what are they? But just give me one. That's all I'm asking for. Just one legitimate idea that is void of the "less government" and "tax cuts" propaganda. For six years you've shown the country that you can throw stones, and throw them very well I might add. Let's see if you can pick up one for a change. I dare you. And I challenge you. And you know what? I bet not a single Republican can. Not one. So go ahead, Republicans, here's you chance to actually prove me wrong for a change. And it would be the first time.
Of course, conservatives would say that Republicans do have real policy ideas and point to Donald Trump's "ideas" on illegal immigrants. Please. If that's considered new constructive ideas, then the bar is set awfully low and I've been proven right, it is a race to the bottom.
Actually, though, at least Trump did come out for something concrete, literally: a wall on the Mexican border (but did not mention that it won't be easy to build, nor did he mention the $166 billion it would cost, or the offsets that Democrats would have to come up with to pay for new spending that they'd want. And no, Mexico's not paying for it.).
And it didn't take long for a Republican presidential candidate to try and out conservative ignorant crazy Trump. Gov. Scott Walker said building a wall on the Canadian border is "a legitimate issue for us to look at."
What's next? A call to track immigrants the way Fed Ex tracks packages? Oh wait.
See what I mean?
But just think about it. Instead of calling for re-building the country's schools; instead of calling for a massive nation-wide infrastructure building program; instead of calling for a bold, 21st century plan of modernizing our railroads, airports and our cities' mass transit systems, and paid for with a yearly increase in the gas tax and a tax on carbon; instead of getting the government behind a "moon shot" renewable energy program that called for solar panels and wind turbines to generate say two, maybe three times the power at a third the size and a third the cost within his first four years as president, and for the United States to monopolize the renewable energy industry globally, all Republicans can come up with is a wall. A stinkin' wall.
Actually, it's quite fitting because Republicans couldn't be summed up any better. Whether by race, region, religion, income and, of course, politics, all they do is build walls.
Their walls are seen in their daily pugnacious attacks, Trump's included. And they're seen in their (lack of) governance which is all part of the GOP's plan to grind government down to a crawl so it will fail, and in doing so, support their propaganda that "government doesn't work."
Walls divide and create conflict. And that's what Republicans need since they can't argue policy, facts or their horrendous record.
In fairness, Trump did mention rebuilding the country's airports and infrastructure. But he didn't say how he'd pay for it. So where's he getting the trillions of dollars it would cost? A gas tax? A tax on carbon? Drastically cutting Social Security and/or military budget? Just saying "It'll be great" and "It'll make your head spin" won't pay for it. So Trump's a big phony.
Also to be fair, I don't hear Obama or any Democrat talking about any massive, nation-wide rebuilding projects either. But they are for those things and the few times they talk about infrastructure, they're immediately attacked by Republicans and the right for being "tax and spend big government liberals." And Democrats curl up in the fetal position and we don't hear it again for a long time.
Bottom line, whether it's Trump, Bush, Walker, Huckabee, Christie or any of the other GOP presidential candidates, there's no maturity, no intellect, no creativity, no ideas and certainly no leadership. Just hate, attacks, ridicule, lies, hypocrisy, "less government," "tax cuts" and walls - literally and figuratively.
Donald Trump is a clown. An embarrassment. But then again, our entire political process is a dysfunctional three-ring circus so adding one more clown car to the show won't make much of a difference.
However, despite the ignorant things he's said, and lack of substance, I understand why he's leading in the Republican polls. He's not a politician and doesn't talk like one. I must admit, I like that too. No, not his ignorance and immaturity, the GOP and their moronic base can have that. But he speaks the way most Americans scream at their TV sets. And that's refreshing because there's nothing I dislike more than typical politicians. Then again, he spins, deflects, avoids and doesn't answer questions just like the rest of them. So of course he'd be much better if he took on the tough issues, didn't pander to the mindless and gullible GOP base and provided ideas instead of insults and substance instead of antics. But all that said, I wish Democrats had a credible Trump. Let me explain.
This blog has also shown how weak and intimidated Democrats have become. They have allowed the right to hijack issues such as guns and abortion. And instead of calling out Republicans, Democrats moved sprinted to the right and implemented their crackpot agenda.
Consider that despite 9/11 and the Iraq War, despite being political terrorists, a cult, and radical fundamentalists, despite their disastrous record, and despite not only being wrong on everything, but couldn't be more wrong on everything, Republicans still took control of the House in 2010 and cleaned up in last year's mid-term elections, even at the state level, when there shouldn't even be a Republican Party anymore (just like there wouldn't be a Democrat Party anymore if 9/11 happened on Bill Clinton's watch and then lied the country into a war and had it turn into a colossal disaster. The Republicans and the right would have made sure of it. Oh wait, I went a bit too far there. Clinton and the Democrats would have been finished after 9/11.).
It's as if the GOP has become the country's default party or the "lesser of two evils." And that's amazing because the truth, the facts, the arguments, the better record - heck, the sanity! - are all on the Democrats' side. So not only does it show how weak and intimidated Democrats are, but it shows that Democrats couldn't argue themselves out of a paper bag...a wet paper bag.
Therefore, imagine if Trump was a smart, intelligent Democrat and ran for President. Imagine if he went after Republicans on their disastrous record. Imagine if he went after Republicans on 9/11 and the Iraq War the same way he's attacking his Republican opponents (consider that in just a matter of days, Trump has been harder on Jeb Bush for the Iraq War than Democrats had been over 12 years on his brother who lied us into it. What does that tell you about the Democrats?).
Imagine if he went after the NRA and the gun nuts. And I mean really went after them, every day, like he's doing with illegal immigrants and made strong national gun control the top issue it should be.
Imagine if he called out "pro-life" Republicans and their hypocrisy by trying to sabotage Obamacare and block millions from getting health insurance, but make it easier to buy guns.
Imagine if he called out "pro-life" Republicans for wanting to bomb Iran and not giving peace a chance. Imagine if he called out "pro-life" Republicans for wanting to send American troops to the Mid-East to fight ISIS.
Imagine if he called out Republicans on their lies, hypocrisy and incessant attacks.
Imagine if he called out Republican tax cuts for the crock that they are.
Imagine if he called out Republicans for being the sociopaths and political terrorists they are.
Imagine if he called out the Republican "Party" for being a cult.
Imagine if this intelligent "Trump" called for an increase in the gas tax and a tax on carbon to rebuild America - schools, infrastructure, transportation and renewable energy - with a corresponding mandated bump in energy efficiency standards on everything from lawn mowers and dish washers, to cars and trucks.
No, it won't be cheap but that's the honesty and bold leadership the country needs. Not more walls.
Yes, Trump, the Republican, is an egomaniacal, narcissist clown. But imagine if Democrats had a smart "Trump," a mature Trump, a Trump that wasn't afraid to take on Republicans and actually fought back.
Just imagine.
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