Politics and Press

The interaction of the press and politics; public diplomacy, and daily absurdities.

Tea party

Grand Old Party, R.I.P.

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Mark Hatfield died last week. He served six terms in the U.S. Senate as a Republican from Oregon and added considerable class, intelligence and courage to that semi-August group. Mac Mathias, former Republican Senator from Maryland died early last year and left a similar legacy. Both were committed to developing policies for the good of the country regardless of narrow party ideologies.

Today we have Mitch McConnell as (Republican) minority leader in the Senate and John Boehner as Republican Speaker of the House, committed to destroy the presidency of a Democrat president regardless of the damage to the country. It is no longer amazing – it is the common thread that connects the likes of John Birch to the Tea Party zealots to the religious zealots like Rick Perry and the Ayn Rand kooks like Senator Paul and his son, Congressman Paul.

It should not be necessary to review the craziness of last week’s rush to the edge of disaster when the Tea Party loonies emasculated Boehner and put America in a position of just another banana republic. That they are blaming it on the black president no surprise; that it will work is perhaps not so obvious. But it is absolutely clear that we have a relatively small group of dangerous, fundamentalist clowns forcing gutless politicians to damage their country rather than govern responsibly.

The American press has been complicit in this disaster by providing coverage of a small group of rabid political fundamentalists without calling them out for their foolishness and their lack of understanding of even the basics of the economic and governmental challenges facing the country. It is apparent that the issue for them is to destroy a presidency and if the country goes down with him so be it.

So we search in vain for the Mark Hatfileds and Mac Mathiases in the Republican Party. The only serious candidate for their legacy remains Richard Lugar who will face a primary challenge from the Tea party. Mere pretenders to their legacy are the likes of Senators Snow and Collins of Maine, Scott Brown of Massachusetts and Leslie of Graham of South Carolina. Each of them has taken stands based on the rigid demands of their base, either out of political cowardice or an inability to comprehend the reality of the country’s needs. Their attempts at moderation have left the country with an inadequate stimulus plan, an inadequate tax revenue stream, and an economy foundering on a level of debt made worse by their actions.

The Republican Party has become a party of ideological fanaticism that if left unfettered could lead America into the abyss that their Christian fundamentalist supporters seek: a kind of Rapture unlike anything described in any bible.
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A German “Peace Corps” Comes to America

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With the U.S. economy still climbing out of its greed-induced recession, support for government services to the disadvantaged is hard to find. Trapped by reduced  revenues and laws  against deficit spending, states, cities and towns have been forced to  lay off  employees that provide   many of their most important services: teachers, librarians, mental health workers, social workers, homeless shelter staff, etc.

Historically the Republican party and conservatives in general have sought to limit the role of government under the mantra of reduced taxes without adequate consideration of long term consequences. Their strategy of “starving the beast’ is very simple: reduce support for basic services to the point where the services are hopelessly inadequate, blame the government providers for not being able to perform and then call for further reductions in taxes by eliminating “wasteful services”. It becomes an endless cycle in which schools get worse, libraries cut hours, and the disadvantaged of all stripes are left to fend for themselves.

It is in this context that we find help coming from Germany, a country that we helped rebuild after WW II and that now supports a small but helpful reverse Marshall Plan. Young Germans – unlike Americans – face mandatory military service or – if they are conscientious objectors, mandatory public service. The Boston Globe has reported that for at least one small group of young Germans this has meant coming to the United States to provide care to a group of Americans “with conditions such as autism, mental retardation and emotional disabilities.” While we can be grateful for Germany’s help, that we need that help is one small example of how the strategy of “starving the beast” can bear bitter fruit.

A day of reckoning is coming but it seems unlikely to be reckoned right. With groups like the Tea Party clamoring for more  tax cuts – as long as they don’t affect programs they benefit from  – America seems headed for a continuing slide into mediocrity. The tea party folk do not seem to be arguing for less defense spending and they sure as hell do not want to cut their medicare or social security – which leaves them to argue for cuts in the future. It may only be a matter of time before the future, in the  form of their  children and grandchildren, turn around and bite them in the ass by cutting the programs aiding the aging middle class in favor of their own short-term needs and wants. “Be careful what you wish for” would not be a bad mantra for the tea party ‘s members.

Newsless in Vieques

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A week on the beaches of Vieques left me anxious for news from the Capitol of the World. So I gather we have a healthcare bill of some sort, that president Obama grew some cojones and that the Republicans are in some kind of shocked disbelief that their Tea Party did not prevail. As for Scott Brown, I guess he stayed true to whatever values he might have hidden away and managed to vote against the bill that replicated the Massachusetts Senate bill that he voted for a couple of years before. Go figure.

And oh Lordy, ABC News told me that Obama had made 15 recess appointments that – again – the Republicans are simply shocked that they were not allowed to hold them up for another year or two. I mean talk about uppity? Who does this black dude think he is? President? Interesting that the white guy on ABC ends the broadcast wondering why Obama has not changed the way Washington works. Cannot make this stuff up.

Thankfully for Congressman Boehner (pronounced “boner”) and Senator Mitch Rhino McConnell, their Tea Party comrades got their collective shit together to spit on black Congressmen, yell “nigger’ at them, call Barney Frank a” faggot”, and all in all bring to the forefront what seems to offend the Boners of the world – the country is going to hell with all these different looking people taking over. Throw in the Mexicans and the Asians and all of a sudden the Tea Party begins to look a lot like the hierarchy of the Catholic Church – white, old, male, totally confused about right and wrong and scared of losing the illusion of power.

And good old Big Dick Cheney and his daughter Liz figured out that lawyers who defend accused people in America are not to be confused with patriots, but rather to be lumped in with Arabs, Terrorists, people of color other than Justice Thomas, and Benedict Arnold. Great to see a former Vice President setting an example.

And then I turn the channel to find Sarah Palin pimping for old geezer McCain in Arizona. Poor old Crash McCain has this deranged smile on his face as Sarah points her fingers here and there after exhorting her people via her website to “reload” and go after the President – that would be her President as well as mine. She then moves on to some little town in Nevada, known mostly for being Harry Reid’s hometown – to lead a group of 6 or 7 thousand tea partiers in a semi-Christian bible meeting aimed at driving old Harry the Antichrist out of office.

Probably the best stories revolved around one of my favorite cities – Rome – with side trips to a Wisconsin School for the Deaf, several Bavarian catholic churches, and the evil New York Times. No need to rehash the story here but it sure did not warm my heart to see the  Catholic  Church excusing itself from accountability for the abuse of thousands of young children on the twin bases of “everyone else was doing it” and “the New York Times is picking on us”.

The Vieques beaches are wonderful, there is no wifi on them, and I recommend them to all.