You have to tip your hat to a party that is willing to throw its members under a bus for a long-term political agenda.
And that bus is covered in American flags, no doubt. Touring the country with catchy three-word tag lines that sound like the texture of refried beans.
This is not a new insight by any means, but it’s one that is more and more apparent lately.
There are two parts to the Republican agenda: the party and the politician. The latter serves the former like a 16th Century English enlisted solder lining up in the front to get shot for the cause.
The agenda for the part is simple: power. Get it. Keep it. No matter what polls say and the people of the country actually want, when there is an ultra-powerful and unrelenting part of any group, it will eventually pull everyone else towards its position. Always. By out nature we want to compromise in order to live relatively non-confrontational lives, so anyone willing to constantly be the agressor for a cause will steadily pull the “norm” more towards them as new compromises are made.
Today, being a Republican politician in an influential position has nothing to doing things that can improve the country. All it entails is doing things that move the general dialog or policies more in the direction of whomever is actually running the Republican party. I have no idea, but from where I sit it seems to be a very small group of very wealth people who benefit from two things, and for which they will sacrifice anything: tax breaks and deregulation. They piggyback issues on religion, social issues, and prejudice to achieve those two things. All the other issues are nothing more than a means to an end (unless you’re Santorum, he really believes that stuff, but I’m still astounded at the lack of Romney belief).
Being a Republican politician (in D.C., anyway) is a job interview. It’s no longer about getting good things done for the country, it’s about getting things done for the Republican party elites who drive party policies. It’s currying favor from those in power to move the line more to the right so that when they get voted out of office two things result:
- The general policy line has moved more to the right, and;
- The politician who did it but lost office because of it has a six figure job (plus bonuses and options) at a large company who benefits from the movement of the line.
I admire the tenacity. Give them that.
But to what end? And more importantly: Why? And to my hope: when will the people whose beliefs they are exploiting every day realize what’s happening and stop supporting a party who literally uses their deepest beliefs to exploit their way to a tax break and an opening in ocean dumping regulations?
To Republicans on the national level: you are loyal. Well done for taking it for your team. But the way you’ve done it and the reasons that have served for the *real* motivation behind your policymaking… probably nothing will ever haunt you.
But even Dick Cheney has changed and supports gay rights. Maybe your souls will come around, too.
