If House Speaker John Boehner is to be taken at his word, it looks as if the Republicans under his wing are not looking to change their ways. Mr. Boehner recently declared that, while he'd be open to finding additional sources of revenue, tax increases would still be off the table, even for the uber-wealthy:
Here are two items that he and his cohorts should be considering:
1. While the Republicans did maintain control of the House,
they did not receive a popular mandate. Just shy of 115
million votes were cast for members of the House nation-
wide, with Democratic candidates prevailing by a margin
of well over a million.
Because the majority of state capitols are dominated by
Republicans, they were able to rejigger congressional
district boundaries to favor their candidates in the wake
of the 2010 census. Otherwise, there's a chance that
the Democrats might have recaptured the House.
2. Numerous surveys, including the NBC/Washington Post
poll, indicate that an overwhelming majority of those
sampled believe that the wealthiest households should
pay their fair share of taxes.
Even some of the most conservative media voices, William Kristol for one, are suggesting that it's time to consider raising taxes for those who can most afford to pay them. Now that Grover Norquist's luster seems to be wearing thin, will Mr. Boehner and his congressional colleagues wake up and smell the coffee?
Stay tuned.
Friday, November 23, 2012
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Grover Norquist's Post-Mortem: The Kindergartners Won
During a recent interview on CBS This Morning, Grover Norquist, the Poobah-in-Chief at The Club for Growth, claimed that President Obama won the election because he called Mitt Romney a poopy-head. This is the guy who strongarmed the majority of Congressional Republicans into signing a pledge never to raise taxes on anyone for any reason. Consequently, many pundits once considered him to be the most powerful man in the nation.
It seems as if American voters had other priorities this time 'round. In the wake of his political meltdown, The Guy Formerly Known as the Most Powerful Man in the Nation has been reduced to kindergarten-level rhetoric. Mr. Norquist's poopy-head remark has been captured on a 57-second video: I had to replay it several times to make sure that my comprehension skills were still intact. Anyway, here's the evidence:Grover Norquist at his Finest I'm not joking; just listen up at 0:24.
So there you have it. Issues no longer matter. All any aspiring office-holder needs to do is to hone his (or her) schoolyard vocabulary. Mr. Norquist implies that there's no longer any need to be well-informed about the compelling issues of our times, such as the state of the economy, health care, education, or international concerns.
Just call your opponent a stinky-pants!
It seems as if American voters had other priorities this time 'round. In the wake of his political meltdown, The Guy Formerly Known as the Most Powerful Man in the Nation has been reduced to kindergarten-level rhetoric. Mr. Norquist's poopy-head remark has been captured on a 57-second video: I had to replay it several times to make sure that my comprehension skills were still intact. Anyway, here's the evidence:Grover Norquist at his Finest I'm not joking; just listen up at 0:24.
So there you have it. Issues no longer matter. All any aspiring office-holder needs to do is to hone his (or her) schoolyard vocabulary. Mr. Norquist implies that there's no longer any need to be well-informed about the compelling issues of our times, such as the state of the economy, health care, education, or international concerns.
Just call your opponent a stinky-pants!
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Post-Election Stray Thoughts
Is it morning in America once again? Well, the sun did rise and it does seem to be providing a modicum of warmth. Thankfully, we can now be assured of a presidency with relatively humane values and priorities for at least the next four years.
The Senate emerges with a slightly bluer tinge; a net gain of two seats for the Democrats. Among the new senatorial faces in Washington will be Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, every Wall Street poobah's living nightmare. Also D.C.-bound is Wisconsin's Tammy Baldwin, our nation's first openly gay senator. For the first time ever, 20% of that august body will be of the female gender. Nothing wrong with that!
The House? Well, that's another story. But few observers expected the Democrats to recapture the House. As I write, nine seats are still in play. When all is said and done, the Dems will have posted a gain of maybe six or seven seats: still well short of the 25 that were needed.
In many states, especially Florida and Ohio, the voters mightily resisted blatant attempts at voter suppression as well as the toxic add campaigns made possible by the US Supreme Court's Citizens United decision. Maybe this sounds a li'l sappy, but my faith in humankind is somewhat reaffirmed.
Still, every effort should be made to repeal Citizens United v. FEC (Federal Election Commission) as well as the draconian measures put in place to make voting difficult for minorities, lower-income households, and college students.
As an early voter in Chicago, I was in and out of the polling place in 15 minutes; there's no reason why every voter shouldn't expect the same level of convenience.
Anyway, it was comforting to know that the $1.5 billion dollars invested in campaign media buys mostly by Republican political action committees, didn't resonate. I guess most voters must be savvier than the ad-buyers assumed.
In any event, with a divided Congress for at least the next two years, we could still be facing some contentious times, especially with the so-called "fiscal cliff" looming ahead up the road a piece. Despite some new faces, many of the same cast of characters will remain in place, especially in leadership roles. Speaker of the House John Boehner ("His Orangeness") will probably still wield the gavel unless his Republican colleagues decide otherwise.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who once declared that the Republican priority was "to see to it that President Obama will be a one-term president", will now need to redefine that goal. How about this one: Keeping the Republicans relevant.
Tough challenge!
The Senate emerges with a slightly bluer tinge; a net gain of two seats for the Democrats. Among the new senatorial faces in Washington will be Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, every Wall Street poobah's living nightmare. Also D.C.-bound is Wisconsin's Tammy Baldwin, our nation's first openly gay senator. For the first time ever, 20% of that august body will be of the female gender. Nothing wrong with that!
The House? Well, that's another story. But few observers expected the Democrats to recapture the House. As I write, nine seats are still in play. When all is said and done, the Dems will have posted a gain of maybe six or seven seats: still well short of the 25 that were needed.
In many states, especially Florida and Ohio, the voters mightily resisted blatant attempts at voter suppression as well as the toxic add campaigns made possible by the US Supreme Court's Citizens United decision. Maybe this sounds a li'l sappy, but my faith in humankind is somewhat reaffirmed.
Still, every effort should be made to repeal Citizens United v. FEC (Federal Election Commission) as well as the draconian measures put in place to make voting difficult for minorities, lower-income households, and college students.
As an early voter in Chicago, I was in and out of the polling place in 15 minutes; there's no reason why every voter shouldn't expect the same level of convenience.
Anyway, it was comforting to know that the $1.5 billion dollars invested in campaign media buys mostly by Republican political action committees, didn't resonate. I guess most voters must be savvier than the ad-buyers assumed.
In any event, with a divided Congress for at least the next two years, we could still be facing some contentious times, especially with the so-called "fiscal cliff" looming ahead up the road a piece. Despite some new faces, many of the same cast of characters will remain in place, especially in leadership roles. Speaker of the House John Boehner ("His Orangeness") will probably still wield the gavel unless his Republican colleagues decide otherwise.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who once declared that the Republican priority was "to see to it that President Obama will be a one-term president", will now need to redefine that goal. How about this one: Keeping the Republicans relevant.
Tough challenge!
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
A Salute to the Voters in Florida & Ohio
As I write, these two states are still too close to call for either Obama or Romney.
But in the meantime, I'd just like to express my admiration for the dedicated voters of Ohio and Florida, who defied the obstacles placed in their way. In many cases, they've endured infinite hours of waiting and waiting, doggedly determined to exercise their franchise.
Hey, guess what! As of 10:13 PM, Ohio has just been declared for the President, giving him 274 electoral votes, four over the top! Here's to another four years!
But in the meantime, I'd just like to express my admiration for the dedicated voters of Ohio and Florida, who defied the obstacles placed in their way. In many cases, they've endured infinite hours of waiting and waiting, doggedly determined to exercise their franchise.
Hey, guess what! As of 10:13 PM, Ohio has just been declared for the President, giving him 274 electoral votes, four over the top! Here's to another four years!
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