Month: April 2010

Conservative Propaganda Against Health Care Reform Leads To Death Threats Against Democrats: Time To Cease And Desist! :(

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The poisonous atmosphere promoted by talk radio, Fox News Channel, and many Republican spokesmen has now led not just to verbal epithets and spitting and angry telephone and email messages, but also to real death threats that have caused the FBI to arrest a man in Washington State for endangering the life of Senator Patty Murray!

Also, Florida Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz has given information to the FBI about direct threats against her, and she faced Tea Party activists who attempted a disruption of a Town Hall meeting in Broward County.

And the vile, vicious, threatening email against African American Congressman John Lewis of Georgia, one of the heroes of the civil rights movement in the 1960s, also are an alarm bell that the opposition to health care, which has spewed forth propaganda and lies for a year now, MUST cease and desist, as the danger of violence has reached a new stage that demands responsibility by politicians and media!

What will finally convince these right wingers that they are sowing the seeds of bloodshed and violence? 🙁 Will it take the assassination of politicians to silence these characters, who only care about their own enrichment and advancement, and not the good of the nation? 🙁

As has been stated before, enough is enough! Let’s promote what unites us, instead of what divides us! 🙁

John McCain: His Greatest Strength Now Denied–What A Sad Commentary! :(

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Arizona Senator John McCain has been in the Senate now for 24 years, and has long had a reputation as a “maverick”.

But now he is denying this reality, even though he has often called himself that, said so in his memoirs, and emphasized it in his 2008 Presidential campaign.

And to top it off, his Vice Presidential running mate, Sarah Palin, came to Arizona to campaign for him, and called him a maverick just ten days ago!

But McCain is running scared, as he faces a right wing challenge from former Congressman J. D. Hayworth in the GOP primary, and is opposed by Tea Party activists.

So McCain is trying to change his image, but in the process he is repudiating much of what he believed in and advocated for the past 24 years!

He has always been someone who people respected, even if they did not agree with him. But now he just looks like a typical image of a politician–untrustworthy, dishonorable, unprincipled! Really, he has become a shell of his old self, and that is truly sad! 🙁

The likelihood is that he will lose his Senate nomination nevertheless, but even if he wins the nomination and defeats his Democratic opponent in November, how would he be able to restore the dignity and stature that he once had? 🙁

McCain is selling out for another term as a United States Senator! Is being reelected that important, that he is willing to destroy everything he ever believed in? 🙁 What a sad state of affairs, much to be regretted! 🙁

Tom Coburn Surprise: Tone Of Civility Toward Nancy Pelosi And Strong Criticism Of Fox News Channel! :)

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It is always nice when you can praise a politician for his civility and open mindedness! 🙂

So although I consider Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn one of the worst members of the Senate, there is always hope for improvement!

Coburn has proved to be both good and bad in the past few days. It is because of him that this week, with Congress out of session for the Easter break, unemployment compensation is being cut off because he put a “hold” on voting on the bill, due to concerns about the national debt. This is the same tactic used earlier this year by Kentucky Senator Jim Bunning. There is no way to look at this tactic of putting a “hold” on a vote by a single Senator as anything more than disgraceful behavior, and a sign of lack of care for those less fortunate! 🙁

However, it turns out that Senator Coburn, at a Town Hall meeting in his home state, defended Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi as a “nice” lady, who should not be personally attacked and should be treated with civility, whether by individual citizens or by Fox News Channel!

He accused Fox News Channel of distorting the news about the Health Care reform legislation, which he himself opposed, but says we should not be promoting mistruths, such as a person will be thrown in jail if he does not buy health insurance.

Imagine, a conservative Republican actually attacking Fox News Channel! This is a well deserved criticism of a station that sets out to distort reality, and has willing accomplices from journalists who work for the channel and sell their soul for their employment! This is not good journalism, and should be condemned! Plaudits for once for Senator Tom Coburn for his civility and his frankness! 🙂

Time For Reconsideration Of Afghanistan Policy!

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United States involvement in Afghanistan has always been seen as a problem by many observers, since the Soviet Union suffered its downfall to a great extent due to their military engagement in that nation from 1979 to 1988.

It was also the graveyard of earlier attempts at military takeover, including the British Empire.

US and NATO involvement in Afghanistan has been based on the threat of the Taliban, who have associated with Al Qaeda, and since September 11 occurred due to Al Qaeda being in Afghanistan, it seemed essential that this nation invade and overcome those who did this dastardly deed!

But the Afghan War has not gone well for years, and the country is a disaster area as far as the levels of poverty and corruption that exist! Afghanistan has long been a “failed state”, and its leader, Hamid Karzai, has a horrible reputation as an evil, corrupt man, whose own brother is allegedly involved in the cocaine trade. What a despicable alliance that the Western powers are associated with, and to be connected with such a venal family and his followers! 🙁

And now, Karzai has attacked the West and suggested he might join the Taliban himself!

This makes one wonder why in good sense we continue to feel a need to fight and die in Afghanistan, when the Taliban are no threat to attack us, and Al Qaeda has gone elsewhere, including Pakistan, Somalia, and Yemen as their havens.

With other nations rapidly leaving Afghanistan, President Obama needs to make a commitment to withdraw our forces over a measured period of time, and not allow any Republican or conservative opposition to stand in the way of a sane policy, of taking us out of the impossible Afghan morass, which has no winners and no hope for major improvement in the future!

President Obama, take what President Hamid Karzai has said as the justification for US withdrawal from a country not worth fighting for! We have spread ourselves thin and endangered our own economic and security future by allowing ourselves to be engaged in Afghanistan for the past nine years, and it is time to withdraw, and soon!

More Political Party Division Today Than Since The Reconstruction Era!

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Newsweek Magazine this week has an article about the massive political divide that exists between the Democrats and the Republicans presently, and comes up with a shocking statement!

The partisan warfare between the parties, with each unable to cross the aisle for support in a bipartisan way, is the absolute worst it has been since the Reconstruction Era after the Civil War, when the Republicans dominated, and depicted the Democrats as the “party of treason”!

Does this mean that the American people are more divided by ideological conflict than during other controversial periods, such as FDR’s New Deal during the Great Depression; the McCarthyism “Red Scare” of the 1950s; the tumult over civil rights and the Vietnam War during the 1960s and early 1970s; and the administration of Bill Clinton in the 1990s?

Unbelievably, YES, as even in these periods of great conflict in the past, there were still the ability of a substantial number of the opposition party to work across the aisle, rather than the “lockstep” mentality of Reconstruction times, and the present period where the concept of cooperation has become totally repudiated, sadly! 🙁

It is tragic, that in the time of the Great Recession, and so many intransigent problems facing the nation, that we cannot have cooperation and bipartisanship! That is what is causing the dangerous levels of extremism that we are seeing with the militia groups and the Tea Party Movement!

Rather than uniting around our common American nationalism, we are dividing based on such factors as race, religion, geographical section, age, and widely varying views of the meaning of the Constitution!

What we need is statesmanship, rather than partisanship, but the likelihood of improvement in the relationship of the two major political parties is not likely at any time in the foreseeable future! 🙁

The Republican Party, Mitt Romney, And 2012

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At this point, before anyone announces their candidacy for the GOP Presidential nomination in 2012, it makes sense that the strongest potential nominee is former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.

Romney has the record of having been the favorite of those Republicans who did not want Senator John McCain of Arizona as their Presidential nominee in 2008.

Conservatives rallied around him, even though one could argue that his record in Massachusetts, particularly with the state health care plan enacted in 2006, made him seem more as a moderate to many Republicans.

As the alternative to many Republicans, he stands now in a similar position to Bob Dole in 1996 (after President George H. W. Bush) and John McCain in 2008 (after George W. Bush). In other words, he is, in many people’s minds the heir apparent for the nomination.

Romney’s personal background as a successful businessman and promoter of the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, and his photogenic appearance and wonderful family image, also help him greatly.

But, at the same time, the fact of the Massachusetts health care plan being very much like the Obama Health Care Plan now in effect, harms Romney, despite his attempt to deny that there is much of a link between the two plans.

And, unfortunately, the fact of his Mormon faith remains a problem for many evangelical Christians, who see the Mormon faith as a cult.

By far the most reasonable choice for the Republicans, the question also arises whether the Tea Party Movement activists will see him as an ally, which at this point seems highly doubtful.

So at this point, Romney will not say if he plans to run. Apparently, President Obama thinks so, however, as he referred this past week to Romney as a presidential nominee.

It will be interesting to see how Romney deals with the problems surrounding his candidacy over the rest of this year.

But also realize that except for Jimmy Carter, it has been the reality, in the last century of American politics, that the party which wins the White House always keeps the control for at least eight years.

So it will not be easy for any Republican to defeat President Obama in 2012, even though one could, theoretically see the President as in trouble, due to the problems with the economy.

Poll Shows Most Want To Tax Rich, But Not Cut Medicare And Social Security!

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A Quinnipiac Poll shows that a vast majority of people, 60 percent, want to tax more those who make over $250,000, and 70 percent want to tax more those who make over $1 million. This includes both Democrats and Republicans stating such views.

But 80 percent do NOT want any tax increases on those making under $250,000, and most are vehemently opposed to any cuts in Social Security and Medicare.

Unfortunately, it is not sensible to think that such an attitude can work, as the irresponsible cuts in taxes since the Reagan Administration have helped to create the budget deficits we now face! The Republicans have been responsible for most of this budget shortfall, by tremendous increases in defense spending and war spending, particularly under George W. Bush and Ronald Reagan.

Sales and income tax increases will be necessary in the long run, no matter what people might feel or wish. And future reform of Social Security is unavoidable, as it was once modified in 1983 during the administration of Ronald Reagan.

And also, Medicare spending will have to be modified, to get rid of waste and fraud, a lot of it caused by corrupt hospital practices and doctors who overbill with reckless abandon!

What it comes down to is there is no “free ride”, and the American people will have to learn that you must pay for what you want, and that you cannot expect others to pay while you gain everything as if there are no limits!

This, unfortunately, is an age of greed and selfishness, a new Gilded Age, which has been with us for 30 years and must now be reckoned with! We will have to limit expectations that the American people have become accustomed to as entitlements without responsibility!

Justice John Paul Stevens’ Plans To Retire Already Causing Problems!

Ronald 1 Comment

The first hints by Associate Justice John Paul Stevens that he will retire during Barack Obama’s first term has emerged through an interview with the NY Times.

He makes it clear that he will decide soon whether to retire this summer or in 2011.

Stevens has been on the Court for nearly 35 years, having been appointed by Gerald Ford in 1975.

Stevens has been a very significant justice, becoming more liberal as the years went by, and becoming the leader of the four liberals on the Court as other Justices, more famous and notable than him, left the Court.

Stevens will be 90 this month, and would pass Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes in age next February, so might very well decide to stay one more year to break the age record.

However, if he were to remain through July 2012, which now seems unlikely, he would break the longevity of service record of the person he replaced, Associate Justice William O. Douglas, who served more than 36 years.

Stevens is proof that some senior citizens never lose their edge intellectually and physically, as he is an amazing specimen, who has clearly impacted the Court and promoted limitations on executive power, and has been unafraid to clarify his differences with the Antonin Scalia wing of the Court.

But even as he contemplates retirement, the issue of who would replace him is causing waves in the Senate.

Democratic Senator Arlen Specter suggests that Stevens wait to 2011, hoping for more consensus. However, Republican Senator Jon Kyl hints at a filibuster for any nominee that President Obama might nominate!

Isn’t this great, that even before the Associate Justice announces his retirement, already the Republican party is ready to bottleneck his replacement, as they have done for many presidential appointments, which has led to recess appointments by the President when the Easter break began! 🙁

The problem is there cannot be a recess appointment to the Supreme Court, and lack of a Justice for a long time will impede the ability of the Court to do its work!

But apparently, the Republican party has no concern, but to continue to prevent any progress forward by the Obama Presidency! When will they finally act responsibly and stop the government from operating in the name of the American people? 🙁

The presumption is, if this obstructionism continues, that only the American people, in their hoped for wisdom, will punish the GOP by surprising everyone and NOT awarding major gains in Congress this year to the Republicans.

But precisely for that reason, it would be better from a logistical view, to have Stevens leave now, before a likely gain in seats in the Senate by the Republicans, which would make confirmation of a nominee in 2011 more difficult than even in 2010!

Student Loan Reform Another Major Victory For Obama And College Students!

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When the Health Care reform legislation passed, many may not have noticed that student loan reform had been added to the bill, and this is a major change that will benefit all college students around the nation!

The reform ends private lenders being involved in student loans, and therefore saves students the extra costs inherent in such loans.

It doubles Pell Grants funding, which enables more students to afford a college education.

It caps a graduate’s annual student loan repayments to ten percent of that person’s annual income, with it having been often much higher up to now.

It will aid an additional five million Americans to earn college degrees and certificates over the next decade, and particularly will revitalize the nation’s community colleges.

This was a key campaign pledge by President Obama, and it is a major victory for the promotion of more education, which will be essential for the long term economic growth and prosperity of the United States! 🙂

Dan Quayle’s Recommendation To The Republican Party Should Be Ignored!

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Former Vice President Dan Quayle, a major embarrassment and albatross around President George H.W. Bush’s neck during his administration, has been pretty much out of the political scene for years, but now he has emerged with advice for his fellow Republicans.

Quayle recommends that his party unite with the Tea Party activists, as the best way to regain power in Washington, DC.

It is obvious that Quayle has learned nothing new in the 17 years since he left the Vice Presidency, and made most Americans relieved that there was no longer a danger of his becoming President.

If the Republicans voters do indeed follow his advice, and if mainstream candidates such as Charlie Crist, John McCain, and Senator Bob Bennett of Utah lose their races to right wingers, the Republican party will be more marginalized. It is not that Crist, McCain and Bennett are all that centrist, but their Tea Party opponents are so much MORE conservative than they are!