02 | December | 2010 | Existential Ennui

Tags

DADT, editorial, gay rights, GOP, John McCain, Media, Politics, President Obama, tax cuts

Mr. President:

I finally have had to admit that I’ve been enabling you, and it’s got to stop. This won’t be easy, in fact it will be most painful, but it must be done. Things cannot go on like this.

There have been good and noble reasons for my stance as protector. You have been unfairly and maliciously attacked since it became most clear that you would win the election and become our President.

There is not doubt that those who attacked you have done so on no basis of any unfitness on your part. It has stemmed, rather, from a mixture of utterly foul racism, and perhaps even worse, a personal addiction to power on their part. There are few if any in the Republican party today who are not solely motivated to achieving political power, and they don’t care who is harmed. There are virtually only a miniscule who actually feel any desire to govern in the people’s interest.

There is not a semblance of interest in putting the country’s needs first. These GOP/TeaParty adherents dance to big business and its slush fund for politicians with an occasional nod to whatever base seems to scream the loudest and promise it’s vote to anyone who will agree to enact their sordid agenda of hate.

You have been subjected, as perhaps no other President in history, to a slanderous excuse for a press. One is shamelessly pushing its own agenda, and actively lies to pursue it. They trust that their uneducated and incurious followers will not check out their lies. The rest of the media is too lazy and also too beholden to big business to ferret out the truth.

You have been accused of everything, proven guilty of nothing. You have been assailed as a racist, a Muslim, a communist sympathizer, a fascist, a socialist, and a Kenyan.

You are in fact a great communicator.

But Sir, you are a lousy negotiator.

The GOP has stated directly and probably to your face that it intends only one thing: to get rid of you and resume control of the government. They have made it clear that they will stoop to any low to achieve this. They are children who have been in the midst of a temper tantrum since Nov 5, 2008. Most importantly: They are not going to change.

You cannot continue to try to be bipartisan. You issue a statement that your meeting with the GOP went well, and there are points of compromise on the horizon. They reply with a letter demanding a full capitulation on the Bush tax cuts or they will filibuster any other bill put forth, no matter how much it harms our domestic situation, economy, or foreign affairs. They do not care, they want their way.

You Sir, cannot continue to abide this behavior. You have the bully pulpit. You can take air time any time you wish. You can use charts (Ezra Klein has a great one on what the Bush tax cuts for the rich would do to the deficit. I’m sure he will lend it to you). You must state the case , again and again if necessary. You must plaster the airwaves with truth.

You campaigned on ending the tax cuts to the rich. You cannot compromise on this, especially when it is really just capitulation. Let them threaten, and let them filibuster. Let them shut down the country and then explain that to the millions who are now destitute without unemployment insurance. Let them try to explain why it is so important to protect the rich, while destroying 9/10’s of the population.

Let them explain why trickle down economics is the only way to create jobs, when the charts and numbers, show conclusively that not one job was created in eight Bush years under these policies.

On DADT, Sir, again you promised the end of the awful practice, that demeans millions of our citizens, those both serving, and not. It shames us all. I know you thought, after the election when you sat down with John McCain, that you were speaking to a principled individual. You thought he would stand by his promise that if the military was ready to end it, he would be onboard.

Sir, John McCain, and the rest of the GOP are not honorable people by and large. They are only out for themselves. And for whatever reason they are against you here even when the military is on your side. Some are homophobic, some just hate you, some just want power back, and a very few are wickedly misreading scripture.

On both these issues, the public is on your side. You have the ability, as did Harry Truman, to end DADT by Presidential Administrative Order. Harry integrated the Armed Forces with the stroke of a pen. You can too. Yes, I understand, the GOP can threaten to play with the budget. Let them. And then let them explain.

You have the facts, morality, and truth on your side. When will you realize this? More importantly, as I said, you have good majorities in the electorate on your side as well. You haven’t yet made the case on how well the stimulus has worked. The figures are out there. Tell the people in simple but clear language. Use charts.

I can’t continue to defend you. I can’t continue to hope you have an ace up your sleeve that I’m not aware of. You don’t. You need to fire half your staff and find some folks who have some grasp of reality.

Time is running short. If you fail in these campaign promises, you will not be re-elected, and we will find ourselves in all likelihood with a dunce in the White House. You owe it to us, the public, not to let this happen. It is your moral duty to DO SOMETHING!!!