Thursday, October 21, 2010

The Failure of Republican Ideology, and its Shattered Remnants in the Tea Party

There's an article in the huffingtonpost today that talks about the how Republicans try to have it both ways when attacking government health insurance, while simultaneously defending Medicare.

It's a good piece I suggest reading, because it points to a deep contradiction in Republican ideology. In the article, Sharron Angle is quoted criticizing the health insurance reforms enacted by Democrats.

Republicans like Angle cynically state the solution to health reform is "simple." Just let "the market" reform itself. I am so sick of hearing that ridiculous talking point. How naive you must be to think that health insurance reform will magically happen if we just have faith in the oh-so-great "free market."

Y'mean that great free market that inflated real estate values, traded toxic derivatives, and made rich creeps richer while bankrupting our nation? That free market that allowed insurers to jack your rates and discriminate against people with preexisting conditions, while making billions of dollars profit? The one that inflated gas prices and collected billions in profit while Americans lost jobs?

If we are to believe the conservative dogma about the oh-so-great and magical free market, we are to understand that health insurance companies would reinvest their profits in new jobs and better services. That Wall St. would put those profits from selling grandma's house back into our economy. That Meg Whitman would hire American workers at a decent wage.

But that doesn't happen does it? No, Ms. Angle the problem is not too much government intervention in the free market, it is a free market gone wild.

We have seen direct evidence of the complete failure of deregulation and unrestrained greed, in the 8 years of Republican rule our country endured.

Democrats have turned us in a new direction. We can either go forward, or we can return to the same failed policies that bankrupted us in the first place.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Democrats: Acting Responsibly to Restore the American Dream

If you haven't seen it yet, there's a video on Huffingtonpost today, in which Arianna and Mike Huckabee find some common ground about capitalism and the middle class. Its a great discussion, and I think it illustrates some interesting ways that progressives can engage Republicans on common ground.

I would love to see more conversations like this between people from different political backgrounds, because ultimately our system of government predetermines some kind of compromise in the end, regardless of who is in power.

What's interesting it that despite party differences, Mike Huckabee and Arianna Huffington agree on quite a few things.

For example, they both agree that an erosion of the moral basis of capitalism is destroying the American middle class. But Mike seems to reflexively think this erosion is because of too much government intervention, and Arianna makes a great point that government itself is, in fact bought and paid for by capitalist interests.

These special interests purchase influence on legislation to benefit their greed - even if it hurts the country in the long run. In fact, that's how we got where we are now.

What we need here, is a way to persuade conservatives like Huckabee that government is the problem inasmuch as it is influenced by lobbyists and special interests.

From this perspective, passing health insurance reform and Wall St. reform was about government acting morally, to restore a sense of fairness to industries that had become too powerful and abusive of the American people.

We progressives wanted stronger reforms, but our conservative brethren thought if we tampered any more with the system we must be "socialists," so we went for a moderate approach. In the end, we implemented reforms that in fact changed a lot of things: we ended discrimination for preexisting conditions, and covered millions of uninsured Americans. We ended the insider dealings of Wall St. by requiring derivatives to be traded openly. And we stopped the recession, while at the same time investing in green industries that will lead our country into a new era of prosperity and freedom from foreign oil.

Socialists? Tyrants? Hardly. Democrats have acted morally and responsibly, and history will vindicate them for how much they achieved in two short years.

Saturday, October 2, 2010

Dobbs, Whitman, and The Lie of Tax Cuts for the Rich

I hope you have all been following the story about how Lou Dobbs had illegal immigrants working for him, because this issue - along with the recent Meg Whitman scandal - says something very important about the difference between Democrats and Republicans.

Dobbs crusaded on his show against companies who hire illegal immigrants. Dobbs made it clear that he thinks there is NO excuse, even if a subcontractor hires them.

Now, we find out that Dobbs is hiding behind the same excuse. The problem with Lou, is that he is a hypocrite with his "Do as I say, not as I do" attitude. He isn't even denying that contractors hired illegal workers.

The larger point that needs to be made, though, is this: Dobbs, Whitman, Romney, and all the other *wealthy* right-wingers who have been caught benefiting from illegal workers, are addicted to cheap labor.

And that's what really gets me. These people are RICH, for gosh-sakes, they have PLENTY of money to hire American workers at a decent wage if they practiced half the things they preach!

Don't blame the immigrants, who work harder for less than our own citizens. Blame the rich folks like Dobbs, Whitman, and the rest, who have every opportunity to hire American workers, but who are so cheap they just won't do it.

These rich right-wingers benefit from illegal workers, while at the same time they use the immigration issue to divide American workers and illegal workers. What we really need is for American workers and immigrant workers to band together to end the addiction to cheap labor for rich hypocrites like Dobbs.

One final point: Republicans have been selling us on this idea that if we cut taxes for the rich again, they will create jobs. The failure of this idea can be illustrated so well in cases like Dobbs, Whitman, and Romney. Those rich people who have every means of creating jobs for Americans, have been caught in a lie. Their actions have proven they have no intention whatsoever of creating good jobs for Americans. Cheap labor only. That's the Republican way!

Friday, October 1, 2010

"How Democrats Can Pull Off the Mother of All Upsets

I hope you all get a chance to read Michael Moore's great piece on Huffingtonpost today, in which he shares prescription for victory, and argues for five things Democrats can do to win in November

He then asks his fellow democrats to contribute their own ideas, so I thought I'd share mine here. Feel free to add your own, or go over to Huffingtonpost and share them with Michael Moore, too.

Voters like candidates who stand for their values, as opposed to those who waffle on them. Therefore, Democrats should stand proud for the historic achievements they made in 2 short years, despite the GOP obstructing a record number of bills.

Democrats have passed smart, moral, and financially sound reforms.

Stand proud for the Affordable Care Act, which ended discrimination for preexisting conditions, and covered millions of uninsured Americans, all while remaining budget neutral.

They should be proud of Financial Reform, which prevents another collapse like the one we had in 2008, by creating a new market for derivatives trading, updating regulations, and creating a consumer watchdog agency to protect us against unfair business practices.

Democrats should be proud of the Recovery Act, which stopped the recession, while at the same time cutting taxes for working Americans to the lowest point in over 50 years.

They should speak out about the 100 billion investment in private green tech sector growth, which will lead to a renewal of our American manufacturing infrastructure and will put America on the leading edge of the coming green economic boom.

The Democrats have shown vision, as opposed to the other party which just stands there and says no.

Democrats should be proud of making that vision a possibility.

They turned this country in a new direction, and opened the door to a brighter future.

In November, we need to get out the vote and walk through that open door.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Getting the Job Done: How Democrats Can Win in November

In the historic American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the Democrats enacted the largest investment ever in Green Energy. This investment is pumping billions of dollars into one of the strongest areas of our economy. Shortly after President Obama passed the Recovery Act, China - recognizing the economic potential of a Green Tech Boom - invested a similar amount of money in their own Green Tech sectors.

The Green Tech sector was the last to be hit by the Recession, and the first to recover. Today, new Wind Turbine jobs outnumber new Coal Mining jobs. These are private sector jobs, people. American manufacturing jobs, turning shuttered factories into wind energy, and high-tech battery manufacturers.

These investments will not only revitalize our economy, but will also renew our American manufacturing infrastructure. Its time we started exporting American ingenuity once again, and its Democrats who have led the charge on this issue!

This is the future of our Economy, and Democrats have seen it, and led the way. They have seized this moment and turned our country in the right direction, after years of misguided and out-dated policies.

We have acted boldly in turning the page toward a clean energy future, and a freedom from foreign oil. It might not happen overnight, but a vast majority of the American people believe it *should* happen soon. We cannot turn back now.

But let's be clear: renewing our infrastructure through advancements in Green Tech, means big change for the powerful forces who stand to lose in the new energy economy. Change for the greater good, does not mean everybody always wins. There are entrenched interests who benefit from the way things are, even if our country suffers as a result.

The powerful forces standing in the way of Change have not stood idly by - they see the November campaigns as a business investment, and with the supreme court's recent decision to allow corporations - some of them foreign - to spend unlimited amounts of money on elections, they are doing everything they can to prevent America from turning the page, and changing for the better.

These powerful interests are trying as hard as they can to make people fear the important changes our country needs to make. These are big changes that are having a profound effect on our people from every state, every region. The recent economic collapse has shaken people, shaken their confidence in our economy. The GOP - at the behest of powerful special interests - has taken advantage of people's fears. They seek to divide us, rather than unify us. While Democrats are focused on positive solutions, and have worked hard to turn the page toward a more hopeful future, our opponents have spread fear, anger, and their only solution is to repeal the progress we have already made.

We can't let fear prevent us from getting the job done. We all know it needs to be done, and someone has got to do it. We cannot turn back now. Finish the job, Democrats. Stand proud for the new path we have turned America on. The path that leads to economic prosperity, freedom from foreign oil, and a revitalized American manufacturing infrastructure.

Martin Luther King wrote:
Fear knocked on the door
Faith answered
There was no one there.


Over the last year and a half, Democrats have opened that door. The Republican Party stands in our way, trying to scare the American People from stepping through that door, into a brighter future. Our job as Democrats - from now until November - is to remind America that we opened the door, and to give them faith in the brighter future that awaits. In November, let's unify our country, and take a step through that door into a new century of responsibility and prosperity!

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

"The Waterworld of White Self-Pity"

Christopher Hitchens just wrote a brilliant article about Glenn Beck and the Tea Party on Slate.com, that I highly recommend you read.

Hitchen's basic premise is that tea partiers perceive themselves as an oppressed minority, and seek to reverse the advances of other oppressed Americans, because they fear losing their white privilege. He writes,

In a rather curious and confused way, some white people are starting almost to think like a minority, even like a persecuted one. What does it take to believe that Christianity is an endangered religion in America or that the name of Jesus is insufficiently spoken or appreciated? Who wakes up believing that there is no appreciation for our veterans and our armed forces and that without a noisy speech from Sarah Palin, their sacrifice would be scorned? It's not unfair to say that such grievances are purely and simply imaginary, which in turn leads one to ask what the real ones can be. The clue, surely, is furnished by the remainder of the speeches, which deny racial feeling so monotonously and vehemently as to draw attention.

I love that last part about how much the speeches focus on a denial of racial feeling as to make you question why. Methinks thou doth protest too much.

Are Tea Partiers really going to win in November, as they constantly boast?

Tea Partiers pretend they are an oppressed minority, while at the same time they brag about how they are going to win in November. According to a CBS News poll, 84 percent of Tea Partiers believe they represent the views of most Americans, but overall Americans disagree: 25 percent say the Tea Party represents their views, while 36 percent say it does not.

The Tea Party wants to have it both ways: they claim are both an oppressed minority (89 percent white according to the poll), AND at the same time they are the majority of voting Americans.

Something's got to give. My bet is that all this braggadocio about winning in November is nothing more than boastful bullying. Let the Tea Party be the minority they claim to be - they are the last gasp of a dying population: bigoted, fearful, and exclusionary.

Win in November? Hardly. Not if we GOTV.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Beck's Rally, and the Spiritual Foundation of the Christian Taliban

Recent news articles - including those on left leaning publications - have been marveling at the fact that Glenn Beck's "Restoring Honor" rally delivered a "Religious, not political message."

Really? Anyone who writes about politics and claims this event was more about religion than politics needs to have their head examined!

They are forgetting one of the most important things about politics: All politics is moral. This rally attempts to build a religious underpinning to Beck's radical political ideas.

It attempts to blanket his followers politics under the cloak of religion, much like the way the Taliban cloaks their radical politics under religion.

We know what these folks believe, by now there should be no question about it. They have radical ideas that subvert our constitution. They believe they are the only true Americans, and anyone who disagrees is to be treated like an enemy. They believe they are at war with anyone who disagrees with them. They believe only their ideas have validity, and they are willing to engage in extreme measures - such as armed revolt - to enforce their far right ideology.

So when Imam Beck and the former Republican vice presidential candidate stand before this crowd and talk about Christianity, it must be noted they are talking about a very specific kind of Christianity: it does not include you or me, or anyone else who takes a different view. It is no less than the beginning of a spiritual foundation from which to grow an American Christian Taliban.

"Not political?" Give me a break!

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

On Being Angry at the President for Not Being Bolder

A lot of progressive people who voted for Obama in 2008 have been expressing anger about him not being more bold in his presidency. Its understandably frustrating that we worked so hard to elect this candidate, and we believed so strongly in ideas like the Public Option, that we feel let down when it doesn't happen 100% the way we think it should.

Its frustrating because we know deep down that if we could just implement strong progressive policies, we could solve *so* many problems. We could prosper as a nation. We could even save money.

But we are pitted in an ideological battle that has been going on in America since its founding. It predates Barack Obama. And I think we must keep this in mind as we roll up to the November 2010 Mid-term elections.

Remember, when the candidate Obama told us that the work couldn't end in the election - that even after the election he would need our help - and our party would need our help - during what would be a long hard fight to bring change?

Personally, I was under no illusions about Obama when I voted for him: I knew I was voting for someone who I believed would act from the goodness of his heart and the strength of his intellect when given the enormous and *conflicted* job of President. That whatever faced in inside that Oval Office, he would do the best he could given the circumstances.

And so he went - into that bubble we call the American Presidency. And he is counting on us out here to both support him and keep him on the straight and narrow.

The question then becomes for me: when you feel that anger, when you feel that the president is not acting as bold as he should, what do you do with it?

I strongly believe we should channel that energy into finding ways we can positively support the President and our party, while *persuading* them at the same time.

Finding hope in the candidate who we sent to the White House was not that tough; but bringing *change* well that consists of much a harder and imperfect kind of work.

Democracy is messy. And if we squander this opportunity - if we allow our party to fracture in anger - then we will lose what little toehold we have gained, and the republicans will take us back to the miserable days of Goerge Bush and Dick Cheney.

We cannot allow that to happen. We've already passed some of the most historic reforms in a generation - and we have made the largest ever investment producing a Green Economy with the stimulus. These are changes we should cherish. Can you imagine the chances of these things passing under Republican leadership? Other presidents have tried for decades and failed.

So. How do we channel that energy into ways to support our party and increase voter turnout in November? Because if we don't do that, any hope we did once have, will surely never come to be.

On Recess Appointments, and the Vote in November

There's a report on the Huffingtonpost today about President Obama and the possibility of recess appointments for important nominees, should the GOP continue to block votes on them.

According to press secretary Robert Gibbs, the President said it would depend on Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell whether or not recess appointments were made.

These important appointments have been held up for political reasons. I'm sorry to say it, but you can't help getting the feeling that some in the GOP *want* our country to hurt, so they can benefit from it in the November elections.

In addition holding up important nominations, the GOP has been filibustering a record number of bills from coming to a vote - including a much needed Jobs bill.

These actions have a damaging effect on our country, because they are blocking responsible plans to recover our economy. And the longer we wait, the worse it gets.

So, while Democrats are doing the hard work trying to get something *done*, the very-powerful minority has actively worked against them.

Meanwhile the powerful minority offers no plans of their own, and when pressed the only thing they offer is the same plans George Bush had.

Yeah, we saw where that got us. And these guys think they should get *more* power?

I think that in November - when presented with a clear choice of the party who is actually working on solutions vs. the party who jeers from the sidelines - the voters might give the GOP a big surprise.

Monday, April 5, 2010

Republicans of Yesterday Considered "Liberals" by GOP of Today

There is a lesson in here for us progressives and liberals. We should take note.

Justice John Paul Stevens announced he is going to retire during Obama's term - most likely within then next couple of months - and already Republican leaders are vowing to fight against anyone the President nominates who is not deemed conservative enough. The GOP may even hypocritically filibuster Obama's nominee, despite their long-held position that nominees deserve an "up or down vote."

The problem for Obama lies in the fact that today's Republicans are far more conservative and ideological than those of the past. Justice John Paul Stevens considers himself a Republican, and he was appointed by a Republican president. So how is is that he is widely considered "the leader of the liberal wing" of the Supreme Court?

The answer is simple: he is apolitical (as all Justices should be), and since his appointment the court has become highly politicized. In today's Republican party, and its lurch to the hard-right, objectivity is not enough. For the rabid members of today's Republican party, if you are not outwardly ideological; if you are not overtly politicizing everything to the benefit of the fringe right, you might as well be a liberal. Therefore, in his objectivity and his attempt to stay out of politics, Justice Stevens is deemed a "liberal" in the eyes of his Republican brethren.

This toxicity is bad for America. The GOP is moving so far to the right, that people once considered centrist republicans are called liberals. In fact, for today's Republican Party the rule is simple: if you are not for them in every way, you must be against them. A party cannot govern with this kind of ideological purity - this litmus test - And thus, we have the Tea Party fielding candidates against their own party if they are not deemed "pure" enough. They will fragment the GOP in their desire for extreme purity.

I doubt the Republicans - or the Tea Party for that matter - can win enough voters to turn the tide in their favor. They have painted themselves into an ideological corner. But if they do gain seats in Congress despite their extreme views, it will be bad for America. We are a nation of diverse views and beliefs. We cannot be governed with an ideological iron fist.

So get out an make sure your neighbors and friends are voting in 2010! We have so much work left to do, and the election of our new President was only the beginning. We need to support him and support our party, because we are the party of inclusion, not exclusivity; we are a big ideas, big tent party and we will not let the toxicity of ideological purity paint us into a corner.

This is what our President believes in. He is a moderate Democrat. I know my colleagues feel he is not liberal enough, but remember he never promised to be. We all knew from the beginning he was much more of a centrist - and if you didn't realize that I'm sorry but you must not have been paying attention.

I am as liberal as they get, but I will not hold progress hostage to my own sense of ideological purity. Look at the Republican party of today as an example of where that kind of certainty and purity leads.

Thank you for reading,
D. Tree

Thursday, January 21, 2010

On Opposing the Senate Healthcare Bill... Don't Do It!

Dear Fellow Democrats,

We worked so hard to elect a Democrat majority in 2006, and Barack Obama in 2008. We accomplished this by coalescing our different internal groups: progressives, liberals, independents, and - yes - even Conservadems.

Now that we have some amount of power, I am so saddened to see our party do what it has done in the past: our diverse groups are fragmenting because we expect some "perfect" version of policies to be enacted immediately. We seem unable to act like a TEAM.

How will we ever be able to govern, if we cannot compromise with each other? It will be impossible, and we will lose the power we worked so hard to attain... before we ever have a chance to show the American People that our ideas will make this country better.

Let me give you an example: Like you, I am receiving emails from various liberal and progressive causes - causes I supported during the elections, and during the fight for a public option. These action groups are now calling on me to petition the President to fire his top adviser. They are calling on me to demand my senators and congresspersons vote against the Healthcare Reform bill because it doesn't have a public option. In essence, at the same time conservatives and independents flee our party, my liberal fellows are actively fighting AGAINST the president we worked to hard to elect!

My fellow Democrats, don't you see how wrong this is? Have you ever heard the phrase "Cutting off one's nose to spite their face?"

Please don't misunderstand me. I am as liberal as they get! But I am also a PRAGMATIST. We need to learn a bit of pragmatism in our party. We have a Healthcare Reform bill that will cover over 30 millions uninsured Americans, will end discrimination against pre-existing conditions, and that will reduce the deficit. What, pray tell is wrong with that???

In politics there is a concept called a "Strategic Initiative." It is an idea that Republicans have long used to powerful effect: When you can't get a "perfect" bill, you pass something as close as you can get. A bill that opens the door to more progressive change, and that makes it harder to turn back time. That is what the Senate Health Reform bill is. Its not perfect, and it doesn't include a public option - something I fought very hard for, and something I know in my heart is necessary for effective reform. Heck, I support a Single Payer system, but I understand its too early for us to get that right now.

The House has passed its bill. The Senate has passed theirs. The time for insisting on a Public Option in THIS bill is passed. But, ask yourselves this: Are we more likely to get a public option in the future if we let this bill die? Or, having passed this bill that gets us one step away from a Public Option, will we be in a better position to pass it in the near future?

Fellow Democrats, we MUST seize this moment and pass reform now. We have delayed long enough. Debated long enough. If we work against this bill now, we are only playing into the hands of Republicans who want to kill the bill and start over. This is wrong politically, and will be the death of progress before it even has a chance.

Look, Democracy is messy business. Its not perfect, and it will never be! We cannot afford to hold progress hostage to our own perfect versions of reality! If we do not learn how to compromise with each other to form a Governing Coalition, we shall never achieve our progressive aims and our beloved country will only suffer further under the leadership of a party that CAN work lockstep together - and you know who that is.

Thank you for your time,
D. Tree