Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Tug o' War

People really aren’t letting the midterm elections go. As if something completely unprecedented happened and now everyone and their mother has to offer opinions and play-by-plays as to what went wrong and what needs to happen now. So, I might as well chime in too.
People saw the tea party as too extreme, the democrats too spineless and clearly unable to get the job (any job) done. And republicans just right...that’s what i think happened in many cases. Here we see an archaic emergence of a possible multi-party system. I verbally teeter around that statement because we haven’t really seen the extent to which the tea party can or will go with their extremist agenda. The only thing that’s clear is that they are making their mark in the political realm. However, it’s not enough of a mark to coax the left and the right into significantly altering how they do business. Aside from the open Democratic admission that legislation would be trickery to get across (aka nothing will get passed unless it’s a Republican idea), Democrats also re-elected Nancy Pelosi as their minority speaker, despite the clear public opinion that she has done jack-squat for her party, constituents and country (well nothing positive anyway). Obama continues on his cowering way towards a ferocious fail in 2012 while Republicans continue with their gun-toting, praise Jesus and America, I’m right you’re wrong mentality. Really, it’s business as usual.
At this juncture, the Tea Party is more a thorn in the side of two giants playing tug-o-war than a viable contender. And I doubt much will change until the Tea Party or (please, christ, please) some other party steps up to the plate and demands an end to this bi-partisan shit show.
So, enough about me, let’s see what everyone else is saying. DeWayne Wickham of USA Today suggests that Obama and friends grow at least one set of balls and step away from the moderate center and kick some Republican ass from the liberal corner. He says “voters will reward a party that fights tenaciously for what it believes.” E.J. Dionne of The Washington Post agrees saying that “moderation and compromise is a loser’s game.”
Well guys, here’s the problem with that mentality. Politics is about compromise, it’s about debate and push/pull. If you can’t do that, you have no place in government. The other issue is that the US is made up of moderates. Polls have shown for years that most Americans only vote one way or the other because it most closely represents a few main issues, and by no means is a solid representation of them as citizens. Multi-party system, cough, cough. The problem isn’t that the Democrats have compromised, the problem is that they have given way, big difference. Compromise entails using a majority and muscle when you need to and working to hurdle differences for the good of the people you govern. Of course if you go up against the hard headed Republicans with nothing but a weak request for change you’re gonna get your asses handed to you. But if you walk in there, dispense with the niceties of crossing the aisle, kumba-ya and all that shit, flash ‘em of a glimpse of your “big stick” as it were and then bullet point what the hell needs to get done, it’ll get done.
It’s so easy to retreat back to your party fold and say, ok fine, we lost, daddy donkey will make it all better again. Horse shit. Daddy donkey needs to be put out to pasture and you need to come up with something fresh. The demure approach clearly didn’t work. Standing your ground when your foundation is built on washed up spineless wishy-washers (umm...Pelosi) and loosely formulated ideas that are just begging to be ripped apart (ummm...health care, economy) is another recipe for disaster.
Get the lack-luster cooks out of the kitchen, roll your sleeves up and govern. And that’s that, that’s my take on the whole cluster fuck.

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