While many dedicated progressives are cautiously – behind closed doors and after the room has been thoroughly swept for bugs – toasting to the Mitt Romney campaign tripping over its own monocle chain and into a gold-lined swimming pool that would make Hearst’s ghost blush from embarrassment (or envy… one can never tell the nuanced difference with the Lords and Ladies) … the 2012 election is far from over.
Romney and Co. might be on the verge of losing funding from Karl Rove (being the metaphorical stake to the heart; or at least pulling the batteries out of the tin man), but all of the things that have happened since the 2010 mid-term elections are still very real issues that need to be addressed, stopped, and brought to an acceptable conclusion.
Democrats must keep the majority in the Senate.
Even though a simple majority is all but meaningless because of the obscene number of filibusters by the minority party, the Senate remains, sadly, the one room in Washington where there is any hope of dignified debate and compromise – however fleeting that hope may be.
Mitt Romney’s black eye, sprained ankle, and wet, chlorine-saturated suit can hurt many down ballot elections (a very soft can… more of the rigidity resembling an 1860’s water bladder slung over the saddle of a horse won from a tense back-room poker game), but the curse of the Democratic party is assumption (coupled with a total lack of ability to bluff): assuming people will “come around” and that “people will be reasonable when presented with the facts.” That complacency tends to manifest itself in low voter turn out, which is the antithesis of what all Americans need to see happen in the 2012 election.
Importantly (and in bold italics): this is NOT just a concern for democrats or progressives. It ought to be the concern of anyone who wants to see the US Government get sh*t done in Obama’s second term. The extreme right of the Republican Party that has been hyper-focusing on restricting rights, and redistributing wealth to those who already have most of the money cannot be rewarded – Mitt Romney losing his bid to be President is not enough to make the message clear that “we’re not down with that, dude.”
Democrats, moderates, and even small government republicans need to make it very clear with their 2012 election votes that the way of the current manifestation of the Republican Party is not the way of the United States.
As such they cannot win a single additional seat in the Senate – if anything they should lose a few as a message from the voters: stop filibustering and start finding solutions. If the Republican Party WINS seats in the Senate… if they even keep the same number… then we as a country are saying to them, “Hey… it’s cool that you are totally incapable of doing anything… pay us citizens no mind. Keep on keeping on.” (For the sarcastically challenged: that’s NOT the message we want to send the Republican Party Senators in the 2012 election.)
Remember the Boston Tea Party
Honestly, people, have we no love of American history? I seem to remember Mrs Fowler saying (HUGE crush on her I did have, I fully admit), she told our class sitting in mini-chairs and chipped desks somewhere in the thin atmosphere of Colorado that one way that courageous patriots expressed their distaste for how they were being governed was by throwing crates of tea into a particular harbor in a particular town (because there was no way they’d throw their rum away, which was just as heavily taxed ;)
Point being: throw the tea overboard. Show the Tea Party the door. Walking into office preaching small government and using funding from an AstroTurf, Koch brothers-funded organization is one thing… but doing what you crazy kids have done in Washington is another.
Show the Tea Party the door. It’s time to get the adolescents out of Washington and let the gown ups get down to business. Personally, I doubt anything of any courage will ever successfully make its way out of the House, but something is better than nothing. They came in on small government, and all they did was expand it by forcing their own religiously-driven social agenda onto an entire population. Anyone who does not respect that religion serves no place in policy, other than to protect 100% of our population to practice whatever religion they darn well please, does not deserve to wear a flag pin. I wouldn’t even give you a 5 cent tour of the outer hallway.
Get Your State Houses In Order
Dear me and oh my have not the Republican-led states been up to some shady business these past two years? It’s too much, too many, and too maliciously malignant… is that a double negative that doesn’t actually negate itself, or is it just overkill similar to voting 30+ meaningless times to repeal Obamacare?… alas… I can’t bother listing all the insanity. Just read some other rants of mine, or do some Googling about republicans in the states doing everything from passing illegal laws (and passing those laws by illegal means) to push their social agenda right up your arse or your vagina. Civil rights are so passe, and voting is just something people who think like them should do.
Remember: elections are county by county, state by state. If states pass laws and county elections boards pass rules that in any way mess with your ability to vote, then that has an impact on national elections as well.
Tell your state and local governments: rigging elections is not Democracy. And don’t reward them for their behavior by sitting by and allowing those who have abused the legal system to the ends of rigging the election process to be re-elected. They strive to restrict the very essence of democracy… so how can they legitimately represent one?
Mitt Romney’s campaign has, and will continue to implode until election day (because, what…? He’s just going to quit? The man has to stay in the race.). But do NOT let that assumption stop the hard work still required to fix what needs fixin’ in this here country.
Toast and smirk in gracious thanks. Heck, go ahead and acknowledge the TRUTH that being rich does not inherit being well-qualified, or that being a good businessman doesn’t mean being a good leader of government…
… and now get your asses back to work: register, educate, and vote.
Published: by | Updated: 06-27-2013 10:16:44
