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thatcrazycajunThe very next right-winger I hear or see or read trying to blame anything on the soi-disant "Democratic Congress" is getting my foot so far up his or her lying backside they'll be tasting shoe leather in the back of their mouth. And that goes double for those on the right who keep insisting that anyone on my side who speaks out about our government's documented mistreatment of its citizens and the rest of the world hates this nation and wishes to see it destroyed (yes, David Zucker and Kevin Farley, I'm looking at you).
Let's review the actual facts: Of the 100 members of the Senate, my party only has 49 and occasional support from two independents, one of whom is the Bushite turncoat Joe Lieberman. In the House of Representatives, only 235 of its 435 members are Democrats. This at least partly explains why, on issue after issue from S-CHIP to FISA to the Iraq war to the Wall Street bailout—oh, pardon me, I meant to say "rescue plan"—all Junior Bush and the Repugnants have had to do is maintain party discipline and do a little judicious arm-twisting to get what they want out of the alleged "majority"...or whip out the veto pen in the rare instance when they don't.
So long as the Democrats do not have a veto-proof, filibuster-proof majority in both houses, they cannot be said to have real control of the Congress...and therefore, of the legislative agenda. What they have had since the elections of 2006 is defined in parliamentary procedure as a "plurality," not a majority. As long as they cannot muster a margin of 60 votes in the Senate or the House, the Democrats are essentially powerless when push comes to shove on the really contentious issues...which explains the utter capitulation of Pelosi, Reid and Co. to Junior and his minions on nearly all of the things we Democrat voters sent them there to do two years ago.
The only hope we have of putting some steel into their spines is to re-elect every last sitting Congressional Democrat who isn't retiring, replace the ones who are and add a bunch more, four weeks from now. Electing Barack Obama and Joe Biden to the top two jobs, while certainly crucial, is actually less so than giving their party real control of Congress, as Obama has proven with his actions on FISA and the bailout bill that he needs a strong leash yanking him to the left to keep him in line. (And if, all gods above and below forbid, McCain and Palin win—which is still entirely possible, if only through yet more GOP voting-booth chicanery—they'll need it even more.) Once the Democrats have a veto-proof majority in both houses and regain the White House, then you can criticize their leadership of the government and have some credibility. Not before.
If you want someone to blame for our country's current problems, well...um, how about the party that for the last eight years has had effective control of all three branches of government? The party that's spent that time larding the federal judiciary with right-wingers who put ideology ahead of justice, law and precedent, all the way up to and including the Supreme Court? And done the same with its appointees and policies at the Departments of Justice, Labor, Commerce and the science agencies? And the party that has run Congress for 3/4 of that time, and the White House for all of it? (Read this book if you doubt me. Then this one. And this one. And this one, too, while you're at it.)
And if you can still vote for that party after all the evil they've done with their near-absolute power, I have just one question for you: How on God's green and pleasant Earth do you manage to sleep at night?
Let's review the actual facts: Of the 100 members of the Senate, my party only has 49 and occasional support from two independents, one of whom is the Bushite turncoat Joe Lieberman. In the House of Representatives, only 235 of its 435 members are Democrats. This at least partly explains why, on issue after issue from S-CHIP to FISA to the Iraq war to the Wall Street bailout—oh, pardon me, I meant to say "rescue plan"—all Junior Bush and the Repugnants have had to do is maintain party discipline and do a little judicious arm-twisting to get what they want out of the alleged "majority"...or whip out the veto pen in the rare instance when they don't.
So long as the Democrats do not have a veto-proof, filibuster-proof majority in both houses, they cannot be said to have real control of the Congress...and therefore, of the legislative agenda. What they have had since the elections of 2006 is defined in parliamentary procedure as a "plurality," not a majority. As long as they cannot muster a margin of 60 votes in the Senate or the House, the Democrats are essentially powerless when push comes to shove on the really contentious issues...which explains the utter capitulation of Pelosi, Reid and Co. to Junior and his minions on nearly all of the things we Democrat voters sent them there to do two years ago.
The only hope we have of putting some steel into their spines is to re-elect every last sitting Congressional Democrat who isn't retiring, replace the ones who are and add a bunch more, four weeks from now. Electing Barack Obama and Joe Biden to the top two jobs, while certainly crucial, is actually less so than giving their party real control of Congress, as Obama has proven with his actions on FISA and the bailout bill that he needs a strong leash yanking him to the left to keep him in line. (And if, all gods above and below forbid, McCain and Palin win—which is still entirely possible, if only through yet more GOP voting-booth chicanery—they'll need it even more.) Once the Democrats have a veto-proof majority in both houses and regain the White House, then you can criticize their leadership of the government and have some credibility. Not before.
If you want someone to blame for our country's current problems, well...um, how about the party that for the last eight years has had effective control of all three branches of government? The party that's spent that time larding the federal judiciary with right-wingers who put ideology ahead of justice, law and precedent, all the way up to and including the Supreme Court? And done the same with its appointees and policies at the Departments of Justice, Labor, Commerce and the science agencies? And the party that has run Congress for 3/4 of that time, and the White House for all of it? (Read this book if you doubt me. Then this one. And this one. And this one, too, while you're at it.)
And if you can still vote for that party after all the evil they've done with their near-absolute power, I have just one question for you: How on God's green and pleasant Earth do you manage to sleep at night?
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no subject
Date: 2008-10-05 08:24 am (UTC)and by showing that tasteless 9/11 montage and telling the nation that if we vote democrat, it will happen again, then by definition, they are running as fascists.
Venting
Date: 2008-10-05 08:56 am (UTC)People keep saying "we live in a democracy". Under the original framework of the Constitution, we were a Republic. Do you know why we are having so many problems now? Because we have moved toward more of a democracy and democracies DO NOT work. Democracies are like three wolves and a sheep determining what is for dinner....
I really wish people would get off this "party affiliated" crap. Labels. That's all it is. STOP thinking like a particular party member and START thinking as indviduals and citizens of this great nation. At this rate, government is going to become the same as organized religion..too many labels and noone agreeing on anything!
Put the power back in the hands of the free market!
Re: Venting
Date: 2008-10-05 05:19 pm (UTC)i don't think obama is perfect. for one, he was totally pro-bailout and that upsets me.
what upsets me more is that candidate who have the real solutions can't get heard. like ron paul. and, weirdo that he is, ross perot. that's the problem with both parties. tey have now successfully locked out all 3rd party candidates, AND anyone in their own parties who threatens the status quo- e.g. Ron Paul, a true statesman, one who opposed the bailout, the war, and has taken other unpopular stances. a republican, and no one i talk to knows who i'm talking about. he also did not release his delegates to mccain at the convention and refused to bow to party line and say "i love john mccain" so of course he was not allowed to speak at the convention.
i think both parties are way off track. i think one is more off track than the other, but they are both dead wrong on this issue.
i think they should have let the banks keep failing and merging and used $700 billion to create jobs by doing big projects like oh i don't know how about rebuilding our failing bridges and levees? and schools!? we're doing that somewhere already where was it... oh yes IRAQ.
Re: Venting
Date: 2008-10-06 01:25 pm (UTC)As if they have a monopoly.
The fact is that ALL of the systems of government have succeeded and all of them have failed. It's not the systems that fail, it's people. It's always people.
When a system that has people who care, who have basic compassion, and a will and a mission to think beyond themselves and their personal agendas is used, it succeeds no matter what it's called or how it's implemented.
You think that the "free market" will save us?
Ha!
Talk about a pack of wolves.
Hm. I wonder what *would* happen if a bunch of greedy, shiftless, uncaring predators *were* finally unleashed on by getting rid of all those regulations...
Wait, I can see it right now!
no subject
Date: 2008-10-05 02:32 pm (UTC)I see that Al Franken, who was running way behind in his bid for a Minnesota senate seat, is now running close to dead even with his opponent. And Obama is polling way over 100 electoral college votes ahead of McBush. Source: http://www.electoral-vote.com/
Al Franken in the senate is something I, for one, would really like to see. I've read all his books, and I think he's actually better as a politician than he is as a comedian.
Republican 2008 = Fascist 1938
Date: 2008-10-05 03:42 pm (UTC)If you believe that only the elite decision-makers of the country's largest corporations have enough expertise to run an efficient government, then you might just be a fascist.
If you believe that only a caucasion male of your own ancestry is the only capable candidate for the presidency, then you might just be a fascist.
no subject
Date: 2008-10-06 01:25 pm (UTC)