Are You Smarter Than a Republican?

Tags

climate change, GOP, health care reform, John McCain, Republicans, right wing extremism, Sarah Palin

Chances are the answer is simple: if you aren’t one, then yes you are, and if you are one, no you are not. See how easy?

As I have watched the usual machinations of the GOP over the last few weeks, I certainly come to the conclusion that I’m one very brilliant woman. For I can see this is not going to go well and well, it’s god awful obvious.

First we had the brilliant strategy of the GOP to simply say “NO” to virtually everything proposed by any Democrat. This worked for a while, and certainly keeps their strange base happy, but Dems have caught on.

Just keep proposing really cool things that nobody would object to and watch the Rejected Rethugs twist slowly in the wind. This is starting to gain traction as people like Franken and others introduce bills that are so innocuous and so very obviously good that the GOP is reduced to claiming they’ve been hoodwinked into voting against such measures. Just keep pouring it on Democrats and such intransigence will not sit well in those districts and states come 2010.

Then the darlings proposed a “loyalty oath” of sorts. This was a capitulation to the crazies on the extreme right who now control the party in everything  but name. Moderates of all types were essentially told to go home and shaddup. Needless to say, similar marching orders of “outa town” have been already issued to African Americans, gays, and Latinos. They’ve decided to go forward with the “old white men” logo.

Much of the rhetoric against and for, (depending on what is being proposed) medicare, and much of the health care reform bills circulating, is a firm commitment to cast all their eggs in a desperate hope to gain the “senior” vote. When we talk about public option, they oppose claiming medicare will be cut. When we talk about enlarging medicare to cover more people, they oppose claiming it’s a flawed program and will implode anyway. In other words they are wanting to protect medicare when they aren’t wanting to gut it. Depends mostly on the day of the week.

Recent polling suggests that anyone spouting the “tea bagger” mantra has a better chance of election than any Republican. This is putting some hefty pressure on some of the good old boys in the Senate and House who are up this year to have their cards stamped for another 2 or 6 years. Most if not all are facing severe challenges at home from the extreme right.

One in particular is the dude who is threatening Johnny McCain’s seat in Arizona. J.D. Hayworth is raising money hand over fist as they say. He lost his seat in the House to the Dems over his associations with Abramoff. But to the average nutty right wing voter, apparently such illegal and nefarious behavior with being bought and sold doesn’t really matter. They’d rather have someone who spouts their swill whether he/she/it votes for it or not. More of the same bait and switch that the Rethugs are so good at against the haplessly stupid right wing voter.

Hayworth is now in a statistical dead heat against McCain, though there is plenty of time left for any manner of scandal to yet come forth to doom either of the two. This all goes to explain the increasingly whiny right wing patter than one hears from McCain these days. He must it seems, now remember to always shout loudly against the Democrats on everything. No more Mr. negotiator for him and certainly no hint of bipartisanship shall peek forth.

Meanwhile the usual sex scandals continue to erupt. Some former state legislator from Missouri is under investigation for beating up his girl friend during sex. I don’t think the wife was present. Anyway, his defense is that she didn’t use the “safe word” which was green balloons. If you are smirking already, I’ll leave it at that. You can presume said legislator was big on family values and all that usual holier than thou stuff.

It just seems to be that each and every addition to the Republican game book is crazier and patently stupider than the last one. We need not go to Sarah Palin to establish that.

Speaking of Sarah, she’s editorializing in the Washington Post on climate change, did ya know? And being the expert she is, she counsels Obama to stay away from Copenhagen which is just pushing a “political agenda.” I guess she’s a denier. Least it appears that way, but then, like most Rethugs, Sarah doesn’t believe in record keeping. 

If she did, she’d know that there is a transcript of her erudite remarks on climate change that she shared with Katie Couric some months ago. Remember when she strung this impossible silly string of words together?

Couric: Is it man-made, though in your view?

Palin: You know there are – there are man’s activities that can be contributed to the issues that we’re dealing with now, these impacts. I’m not going to solely blame all of man’s activities on changes in climate. Because the world’s weather patterns are cyclical. And over history we have seen change there. But kind of doesn’t matter at this point, as we debate what caused it. The point is: it’s real; we need to do something about it.

But then, heck, Sarah is Sarah. . . . she sounds good saying whatever right? And she’s “hot” as the boys at the bar are so happy to relate. Good credentials for a new party. I’d suggest the “Knownothing Party” but dang, that’s been done. Any ideas?