I have for a long time railed about the Republican
opposition to President Obama and virtually everything and anything he has
tried to do to improve things. I believe their opposition has at times reached
virtually to the boundaries of treason. At the same time I have observed Obama’s
naivete when it comes to expecting bipartisanship, his continual expectation
that Republicans will eventually do the right thing when it has become obvious
they have no intention whatsoever of doing the right thing when it comes to taxation, spending, poverty, health
care, employment, minimum wages, unions, etc., etc.
I still believe Republicans have repeatedly rejected any
attempt s to improve the lot of ordinary citizens and have gone overboard on
their attempts to destroy Obama. But I have also grown weary of the Democrats
apparent timidity when it comes to governing the country and getting things
done. Some say this is a result of the lack of leadership on the part of Obama
and that may be true. But there seems to be more to it than that. Democrats in
the House and Senate appear to me to be too timid to go all out for what
desperately needs doing. Take the matter
of gun legislation, for example, only one example of how they have failed to
act, to do the right thing. If Harry Reid (and the Democrats) had not caved on
the matter of filibuster reform we would have easily had sensible gun control
measures passed. I don’t know exactly why Reid agreed to some ridiculous
promise on the part of McConnell, but he did. This was a terrible mistake.
When it comes to taxing the rich the Democrats again lack
the will to do the right thing. They are arguing over some paltry two or three
percent increase in taxes on the obscenely wealthy and corporations when they
should demand probably fifty or more percent. I believe they could do this if
they truly wanted to do it, after all Teddy Roosevelt and Franklin Roosevelt
managed to achieve such changes. Health care, too, could be changed into what
is obviously required, a single-payer system like all other industrialized
countries have, instead of the inefficient, insurance-run travesty that we now
have. We could also have strong unions, a decent minimum wage, Social Security,
unemployment insurance, Planned Parenthood, and other critical social programs
if Democrats would demand such things and enlist the public behind them.
In order to achieve their stated goals about lifting and
supporting the middle class they would have become ruthless, more ruthless than
the Republicans who oppose them, but
somehow they seem unable, perhaps unwilling, to do this, simply caving
in to the small minority in the House that appears to be running the country. It
seems to me the Democrats lack the courage of their convictions (if, indeed,
they truly have these convictions). I do not believe that a loony minority in
the House of Representatives cannot be overcome, removed from office, and
relegated to nothing more than a bad memory, if an effort was made to that end.
It is possible, of course, as some believe, there is little
or no difference between Republicans and Democrats, they are all in the pockets
of the same corporate and wealthy powers, and maybe that is so. If it is, then,
we should have no expectation of any change for the better. But if Democrats
are truly serious about what they claim to be for, and if they stop being so
timid and passive, giving in time and again to a few loonies in the House, I’m
sure they could succeed in actually governing our country. The world does not
belong to the weak and submissive. Reid should begin by immediately doing away
with the filibuster and making it clear to Republicans their nonsense will no
longer be tolerated. That message, by itself, would set the stage for positive
changes.
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