Now to start I want to be clear in saying I am not talking about all Republicans or conservatives. I know plenty and they are nice people. But I am talking about the key players in politics. The ones who pick candidates to take to the big leagues, the ones who choose where to send the heaps of cash to, the ones who decide this is the way the while of the party should be going. I hope any Republicans passing through will give this a read and think about how they feel about their party. And then, what are they going to do about it.
Starting with this year's turning point, when the majority realized the House was drifting from their influence and the Senate started to budge, Republicans needed to make choices. Steele, in a blue state tried to blend into the blue background. In California, the Governator ran to the left and progressive programs. Worked for one, didn't for the other.
In places like Tennessee, a different tact was taken. Walk about the edge of "race baiting", as seen in the troubling attack as on Harold Ford Jr., and let the audience do the mental leg work. RNC leadership was okay with the ad. They considered it a valid argument, and simultaneously backed away from any responsibility. It was a tricky tightrope to traipse. But they seemed to do it proudly.
Now if this was it that would be one thing. A dark and nasty moment, but one could try to move on, and just note it. But since then GOP has seemed to embraced this sentiment. Is it out of desperation? Is it a shift in internal power? I can't say. But in the last week the power players are shifting in DC and those seeking to nest there.
This week the Senate welcomed back an old friend. Trent Lott. Remember him? He is back in power as the Minority Whip in the Senate, the number 2 post. What's worse a doctor/senator who blithely makes shady medical prognosis from the Senate floor for political gain or someone too proudly steeped in the worse the old South has to offer. It is hard for me to say.
And now, heading into '08. We have Gov. Mitt Romney of MA hiring AlexCastellanos, a GOP ad man. Famous for his ads against Gore in '00 and for Jesse Helms in SC, implying good whites were losing jobs to the minorities. in 1996, Bob Dole refused to run some of his ads, saying they went too far. One Jeb Bush used during his first run may have cost him that election.
He is an old party favorite, and he will be back with more ads.
But it goes beyond party leadership.
Look at Glenn Beck, on CNN Headline News, but they love to bring him on to CNN proper to give "everyman" insight. This week, on his show, he brought on the newly elected representative of Minnesota, Keith Ellison. He happens to be Muslim. So that should explain why Beck chose him out of all the numerous incoming freshman class. He had some questions. Why should he be trusted? Will be betray America? Charming stuff, of course, couched in claims that he didn't believe it, but that it concerns some. Apparently not the populace of his MN 5th district, but still.
Here's his starting question"
"OK. No offense, and I know Muslims. I like Muslims. I've been to mosques. I really don't believe that Islam is a religion of evil. I -- you know, I think it's being hijacked, quite frankly.
With that being said, you are a Democrat. You are saying, "Let's cut and run." And I have to tell you, I have been nervous about this interview with you, because what I feel like saying is, "Sir, prove to me that you are not working with our enemies."
And I know you're not. I'm not accusing you of being an enemy, but that's the way I feel, and I think a lot of Americans will feel that way.
Soooo. He does not think he's a terrorist. Buuut, he gut tells him he needs proof. And that is what "a lot of Americans" think. Sadly, it probably true, Muslims are almost as hated in the US as atheist. Quite a feat.
Now Beck is good a couching his nasty remarks. Saying it isn't his opinion, or is wrong. But then he proceeds with it and keeps coming back to it. It is his M.O. for doing a show. "X is a horrible thing...Not that I think this...But a lot of people do." His says so many nasty unfounded thing, but unlike the Weiner, he ducks for cover. It allows him to throw out these, abominable, ideas, without any responsiblity (It would seem to actually make him worse than the Weiner). And this is the face of conservatism, beside Bill O'Reilly, Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, Michelle Malkin, Laura Ingraham, and others. That's a nasty bunch.
Especially if you consider there effect. Liberals/Democrats/Progressives/Immigrants/Scientists/etc. want to destroy America. That is the message sent out. What happens when this message is delivered and blindly and fervently embraced?
You get Chad Castagana, a Free Republic member, who idolized the likes of Coulter, Ingraham, and Malkin. What did he do in their honor? Sent out white powder and threats to create anthrax scares. Against who? The media, like Olbermann at MSNBC. Politicians, like Pelosi and Schumer. Entertainers, like Jon Stewart and David Letterman. Why? They opposed America and its safety. And worse some opposed his idols.
You spread hate and venom, hate and venom spread. Seems obvious. America is stuck reaping what these types sow. Yet time and again these people are brought up to the forefront by the GOP to rile up the base, and strike and wound their enemies. Amazing how literal this effect is in the end. They are actually creating terrorist. And not just in Iraq and Afghanistan anymore.
This is out Republican party, defiantly race baiting, questioning the patriotism of non-Christians (to start), and spewing such hate that they inspire terrorism
Is all of this what they have to offer America now? No wonder they lost big. It is something to remember in 2 years.
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