Republican train wreck resorts to fear

The only thing we have to fear is Republicans themselves

Published on September 15, 2006 By Calor In Republican

Is the world still dangerous? Yea. What are the Republicans doing about it? Not much. After leading us to a distractive war in Iraq, the Republicans have little to show for the last few years. Let's look at the record.

1... While the deficit boomed, Republicans provided the wealthiest 1% with a massive tax cut. Yes, it was technically across the board. But the richest who pay the most got a huge windfall even as the deficit grows. Who gives tax cuts in a time of war? The rich did well in the 90s with the "high" tax rates.

2... The war in Iraq. Saddam was a baaad man. But taking him out did nothing for protecting the United States and eroded our position in the world. The "war on terror" could have been brought into control by taking out the Taliban which everyone supported. Afganistan gave the terrorists a safe haven to plan their attacks. We took out the regime and disurpted Al Qaeda. The lack of attacks since 9/11 have mostly to do with that and beefed up intelligence which any administration would have done. What a Democratic administration wouldn't have done is go into Iraq. By ignoring international support, the US has gotten little support in the occupation.

3...Congress of corruption. Remember the contract with America? How's that going?

http://www.house.gov/house/Contract/CONTRACT.html

a. Require all laws apply to congress too. We're still waiting.

b. Get a major auditing firm to help get rid of waste. Do bridges to no where count?

c. guarantee an honest accounting of our federal budget by implementing a zero baseline system. It's been 12 years. When can we expect that?

4. An energy policy. Hellooo. So you don't like Kyoto. Nice. Good for you. What's your answer? Drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge? That's your answer? Conservation? Nope. Nada. What about getting other forms of energy going? Number of nuclear power plants built since the past 7 years = none.

5. Sleeping. The Republicans have had 7 years to do something. What have they done. I defy any conservatives here to name what the Republicans have done other than help the rich to get nicer cars.

Now an election is coming and what do we get? Scare tactics. Vote for Republicans or the terrorists win.

Comments (Page 2)

stutefish

on Sep 18, 2006

1. That tax cut is being credited with contributing significantly to the economic recovery. Also, regardless of how big the deficit is, it's still wrong to cover it by finding people with money and taking it from them. You yourself acknowledge that the rich paid most (they still do, by the way). How is that fair, war or no war?

2. Why does everything have to be about U.S. interests, and the U.S. scoring brownie points in the popularity contest of world affairs? Can't we sacrifice our blood and treasure on behalf of people oppressed by tyrants, without everybody turning it into a hatefest of anti-American sentiment? And I don't recall anybody being happier when American didn't use its great power in the service of the downtrodden. Besides, the entire point of hitting Saddam now was to nip his shenanigans in the bud, before he turned Iraq into another Iran, or North Korea. If only Carter, Reagan, GHW Bush, or Clinton had shut down Iran twenty years ago the way we shut down Iraq. If only the same had been done with North Korea. If only Chamberlain had done the same with Nazi Germany.

3. Politicians are corrupt and incompetent. This has always been so. It's not like Democrats are any less corrupt, or any less eager to fix the corruption. The behavior of Republican politicians is not always something to be proud of. But it's almost never something the Democrats should complain about, for obvious and damning pot/kettle reasons.

4. Kyoto is a bad idea. It destroys economies and creates suffering and has a negligible effect on global warming. Meanwhile, the U.S. leads the world in developing clean technologies for industry, and has shown more progress in reducing emissions than any of the Kyoto signatories. And 7 years is not nearly enough time to initiate new nuclear plant construction. If you have a problem with the rate of new nuke plant construction, talk to the environmentalists and the NIMBYs. You know: the ones who work tirelessly to obstruct such alternatives.

5. a. Tax cuts that have revitalized the economy. b. Removal of a hateful dictator. c. Prevention of additional terorr attacks on U.S. soil. d. Advancement of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Initiative, an international alliance of security forces, to track and control the movement of nuclear weapons and nuclear weapons technology. e. Development of a working missile defense system, a necessary long-term project that looks beyond the immediate threats to the potential threats of a world with constantly-advancing weapons technology. f. A bold and challenging new vision of manned space exploration, looking beyond Low Earth Orbit for the first time in a generation. g. When the tsunami hit, the U.S. Navy was first on the scene with helicopters, emergency supplies, and water purification plants. h. Brave attempt at much-needed Social Security reform, which was sadly aborted by the opposition faction. Which reminds me: what have the Democrats done in the past 7 years, either to give Bush's policies a real chance of succeeding to the benefit of us all, or else to offer in a spirit of peace and understanding, a real, compelling, and positive alternative policy? What, exactly, have the Democrats done besides complain and obstruct?

Sean Conners aka SConn1

on Sep 18, 2006

excellent article...i went and reread the contrat, going into some of the more detailed proposals. in their defense proposals, there is all kinds of talk about getting us further away, if not out of the UN. Not respecting any UN authority. All kinds of talk about building anti ballistic missles to fight a cold war that was over by many years by 1995. and not one mention of terrorists, terrorism, Osama Bin Laden (even tho he had already oversaw the 1st WTC bombing) or anything that looking back, was a "good plan" for America.

people forget these days that the contract really wasn't public till after all those guys got elected. they won the election on a democratic backlash, the n broke out the contract to the masses.

Sean Conners aka SConn1

on Sep 18, 2006

i think some network needs to rerun the old twilight zone episode,,,"the monsters of maple street" on national TV, primetime...hell of a lot of truth in that old show.

Keith Olbermann said it best....

And long ago, a series called "The Twilight Zone" broadcast a riveting episode entitled "The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street." In brief: a meteor sparks rumors of an invasion by extra-terrestrials disguised as humans. The electricity goes out. A neighbor pleads for calm. Suddenly his car -- and only his car -- starts. Someone suggests he must be the alien. Then another man's lights go on. As charges and suspicion and panic overtake the street, guns are inevitably produced. An "alien" is shot -- but he turns out to be just another neighbor, returning from going for help. The camera pulls back to a near-by hill, where two extra-terrestrials are seen manipulating a small device that can jam electricity. The veteran tells his novice that there's no need to actually attack, that you just turn off a few of the human machines and then, "they pick the most dangerous enemy they can find, and it's themselves."And then, in perhaps his finest piece of writing, Rod Serling sums it up with words of remarkable prescience, given where we find ourselves tonight: "The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs and explosions and fallout. There are weapons that are simply thoughts, attitudes, prejudices, to be found only in the minds of men."For the record, prejudices can kill and suspicion can destroy, and a thoughtless, frightened search for a scapegoat has a fallout all its own -- for the children, and the children yet unborn."When those who dissent are told time and time again -- as we will be, if not tonight by the President, then tomorrow by his portable public chorus -- that he is preserving our freedom, but that if we use any of it, we are somehow un-American...When we are scolded, that if we merely question, we have "forgotten the lessons of 9/11"... look into this empty space behind me and the bi-partisanship upon which this administration also did not build, and tell me:Who has left this hole in the ground?We have not forgotten, Mr. President. You have.

COL Gene

on Sep 22, 2006

The Comptroller General of the U.S. has documented that the Bush tax cuts have only produced NEW revenue equal to 1/2 the lost revenue from the tax cuts. Thus the tax cuts NET have ADDED to the deficit and we are borrowing money to give the wealthy, who do not need a tax cut, a tax cut. That is the surest way to create a financial problem!!!

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