Liz Cheney, Please Go Away, & Sarah, The Tillmans Are Atheists, Don't Pray for Them

IMAGE: Unknown (numerous sources)

What is so remarkable, is that not only are people on the right ignorant of the true agenda of the Republican Party - that being to send as many jobs overseas as possible and reduce the costs of the jobs that remain here - but within two short years, they have forgotten everything that went on before. On CBS Face the Nation this morning during an exchange between Liz Cheney, Howard Dean, Lindsey Graham, and Bill Galston, Bob Schieffer asked each whether this election was a referendum on President Obama or a referendum on the economy. To paraphrase Liz, the president no longer gives "big vision speeches" because he somehow knows that we no longer want to go where he wants to lead. Lindsey Graham faced the camera and told us that people were scared and that "all this spending is not what people expected from this president." He says that two weeks before the election, most people are running against the "Obama takeover of most of society." He goes on to say that, "If he had governed like he had campaigned" there would be no problem (sure think Linds) and "This is an overreach." Graham says that this overreach includes health care, the stimulus, and regulation of Wall Street, as do many others campaigning from the right. Take a look at the video here.

First, why is Liz Cheney there? Are these men offended to have to sit and have these debates with her? Although, probably a lot less offended than Harry Reid is to have to debate Sharon Angle or Mike Castle having to appear on the tv machine with fruit-loop in training (medical terminology), Christine O'Donnell. Liz Cheney's total credentials to have these conversations is that her father was a politician. She is referenced as a "previous state department official," but she was a mid-level manager of a small unit. She had no diplomatic brief, foreign policy assignments, nor involvement in policy matters. Her position was administrative, and administrative at a mid-level only. Certainly as a citizen and one who has involved herself in politics, she has opinions and ideas as do all of us who maintain a deep involvement in world and national affairs, but to be given this level of credibility and gravitas is breathtaking. I expect it from Fox, but the networks? Anyway.

Back to the issues. "All of this spending." Hmmm. Would he be referring to TARP perhaps? Or perhaps the stimulus? Those two bills that had full Republican support? The ones that were watered down to meet Republican demands? The ones that were from the, horrors, Bush Administration? The ones that John McCain suspended his campaign so that he could run back to Washington and organize (of course with BFF Lindsey Graham)? Or maybe it's the fact that for the first time since George and Dick took us into a war of revenge and aggression, allowing our actual enemies to escape, President Obama included the cost of the war in the budget that he sent to Congress, something that Bush never did. To pay for the war, Bush pretended it did not exist, for budget purposes, and then paid for it through supplementals. Obama actually wrote a budget that reflected reality. Of course our deficits took a huge hit after that.

And what about health care you say? The one that Graham and others say Americans don't want? That Obama didn't run on? Not sure where you were Lindsey, but on Jan. 25, 2007, USA Today quoted Obama as saying that universal healthcare would be a "very major part of my campaign." If there is any disappointment about health care and voices saying they don't want it (apart from the teabags, all 11% of them according to a Sept. survey) it is from progressives and other Democrats disappointed that President Obama negotiated away universal health care and began the discussions so low, that the final product while better than nothing, is still far from what is needed.When people - even Republicans - are asked if they are even favor of the individual elements of the health care bill, they are universally in favor of them. It is just when they are asked about some over-arching "health care reform" or "Obamacare" that they fall back on talking point responses that they have been programmed with by Fox News. As far as spending, I note that no Republican (and unfortunately, very few Democrats) are campaigning on the money that we will save over time by this health care bill and the reduction in the total deficit in the past year. Nor are they comparing job growth numbers of the previous presidents (George W had the least of any president since WWII) and the difference between Democratic and Republican administrations when it came to actual job numbers.

My point? To quote Tip O'Neal, "You are entitled to your own opinions, but not your own facts." People who insist on their own version of reality regardless of statistics, evidence, facts, or other demonstrations of reality are the ones living on a unicorn ranch in fantasy land. To expect everything to be fixed immediately is unrealistic and unfair. Unfortunately, they are trying to force the rest of us in the reality-based world to live there with them.

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Sarah Palin, Praying is Offensive to an Atheist, & Really, 2008 Stuff? That's It? 

IMAGE: indiedesign

So here's the thing. Sarah Palin has twice this week referenced comments made by Michelle Obama during the 2008 campaign as if she made them last week, and taken them out of context. Whining that she has obviously not met a soldier if she is only now proud of being an American. Mrs. Obama has, several times, explained that she was referring to the excitement and numbers of young people turning out to vote and volunteer for the Obama campaign. If one didn't know better (and I would bet that most of Palin's bots don't), they would think that these are all things that have happened in the past week or two.

More sickening, in a speech in San Jose, Sarah brought up Pat Tillman since she was in his hometown. Assuming, as she does, that because he gave up a multi-million dollar football career to volunteer for the military, and died in Iraq, that he and his family would want us to thank God every day for his sacrifice for our freedom.

Does she think we're idiots (don't answer, of course she does - she thinks everyone is just like her). Pat Tillman may have thought he was going to fight for our freedom, but he did not. He went to stroke the egos of little men who were too cowardly to serve their country and were petrified after 9/11 and lashed out without thought. They then saw an opportunity to take us into a war they had been planning since the early 90's, and when Mr. Tillman was killed by friendly fire, lied to his family and to us and as usual, manipulated the news to create a climate that would allow them to continue their need to play war when they were too cowardly to be real soldiers. Every time Sarah Palin gives a speech, she brings up the military as if she has a little checklist to cover; God, check, military, check, lamestream media, check, pregnancy, check, Democrat Party, check.

As someone who has studied psychology, sociology, social psychology, and is a trained counselor, I have to say that I am fascinated watching this woman. People who speak in buzzwords and use slurs to demean their opponents say far more about themselves than they do about anyone else. Sarah Palin's use of the term Democrat Party instead of Democratic Party is juvenile, as is her use of the term lamestream media. She thinks it's cute or amusing to coin these catchphrases, hoping that they will be associated with her (they are) not realizing that there are catchphrases and then there are catchphrases. Ones that we might use in middle school come across far differently then ones we might coin as a grownup. All Sarah Palin does is succeed in demonstrating that her emotional and social maturity is locked at about age 13 (witness her use of the term title rather than office - it's her beauty queen mentality). Her history of holding grudges and ensuring that anyone who "crosses" her is made to pay (and really, what does that mean? Cross. In what world does everyone, all the time, agree? Just in Palin world).

Much of what she does and says is the result of losing the 2008 election (although she didn't actually lose. McCain did). She has a real, deeply held anger towards President Obama for his temerity at winning the election. What is extremely bizarre, is that she is in a never-ending spiral that I am still waiting for her bots to recognize. Tillman, a comment by Michelle Obama over two years ago, talking about reading material and "journalists who ask about it" refusing to name Katie Couric (anyone who asks a reasonable question is attacking her or playing gotcha). And really, does she not realize how offensive it is to ask everyone to pray for an atheist? Or to reference God in any way in relation to Pat Tillman's service or death?

And the other teabag candidates have a similar pattern. What is disappointing is that over and over again, whenever asked a question, a teabag candidate replies that it isn't about them, it is about their opponent. It's about the issues. The only problem? If it's about the opponent, shouldn't they be willing to let us know how they are different? If it's about the issues, shouldn't they be willing to let us know what they would do differently? Unfortunately, the media seems willing to let them get away with just about anything and too many of us are willing to go along.

Thanks for stopping by. Come back soon.
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