It’s Still Politics As Usual With Deeper And Wider Divisions
I fully appreciate the phrase, “words mean things.” It stems from something I was told often while growing up both at home and at school: Say what you mean and mean what you say.
It’s something I’ve never forgotten and it created a habit of mine when it comes to politics at any level. I always try to stash away somewhere for future recall what candidates say during their campaign and then compare them to what they say and do if elected.
As you might guess, more often than not one’s performance after election night rarely keeps promises made during a campaign. Some of that is beyond the control of the people’s choice for office at any level. Some of it may be a subjective evaluation and much of it was never intended to be fulfilled.
Politicians’ words have proven over and over again to be like chaff in the wind – quickly scattered and never to be seen or heard from again.
I’ll be honest. I never did buy into the hope and change promised by President Barack Obama. He promised nothing I wanted or hoped for. He promised just about everything to everybody and I took it for granted he knew he couldn’t, nor would he really want to deliver on all those promises.
What he wanted was votes and, as we’ve found out recently, blind allegiance. He also wanted power. Raw, unadulterated, unchecked power.
But one thing this President said during his campaign I did file away for future reference was his promise that if elected it would not be politics as usual in Washington. We were to enter a new age of bi-partisan government. We would witness the transformation of America.
Powerful words with undeniable meaning. When Obama was elected, America would become something it had never been before. And that is a promise the President appears determined to keep regardless of what he and his administration has to do.
Politics continue to divide this country and more now than ever but I don’t think that’s what the President meant when he promised it wouldn’t be politics as usual. At least that’s not what he implied. But this President has declared and proven that he considers those who are not in complete lockstep agreement with him to be his sworn enemies.
Nothing new there. What is new is the level to which he has taken it. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Fox News, Humana Healthcare Systems, the entire health insurance industry are but a few of the organizations on his enemies list.
But he’s not content to do battle with them or engage in debate. He and his administration refuse to debate as he promised he would. Rather he demeans and marginalizes those who disagree with them and suggests to others it is not in their best interests to follow in their footsteps.
There was a time when this country operated on a system of carefully plotted checks and balances. It worked better than any other form of government in world history for more than 200 years.
But this President isn’t interested in the free and spirited debate of ideas or the free speech guaranteed in the first amendment. He would rather have the praise of a fawning public dependent on him and his government for every need.
The President doesn’t concern himself with checks and balances, only making absolutely sure that everything is weighted in his favor and controlled by him, including the media. Those aren’t my words, but those of the President’s own director of White House communications.
The same Anita Dunn who leans more on the philosophy of a maniacal, murdering Chinese dictator than this country’s founding fathers for her political philosophy. We know what Mao ZeDong would do to his political adversaries. One must wonder if Ms. Dunn shares that point of view as well.
It used to be differences of opinions and different political parties didn’t put us on different teams. We were all still Americans, trying to live the American dream the American way.
At least that’s the way it was here on The Other Side.