This week we will discuss the Republican party’s descent into authoritarianism and extremism that puts the entire American Democratic experiment in dire jeopardy. From new information coming to light about former Attorney General Bill Barr’s outright lying to Congress and the Courts, to the savaging of any Republican who will not kiss the former guy’s ring by espousing The Big Lie, to the GOP’s inability to come to terms with the members of their party who continue to subvert the rule of law, and key party figures within their House and Senate caucuses who actively engaged in sedition in planning the violent insurrection at the Capitol on Jan 6th. We will look back at a historical pattern of GOP deceit and discuss remedies the Democratic party and voters can take to safeguard the future of our Democracy. More coming up on POLITICAL MOTIVES.
This past week, we have witnessed the Republican party leadership savage Representative Liz Cheney of Wyoming who laid out the case for the toxicity to Democracy that The Big Lie is having on their party and more critically the country. The title of her recent OpEd says it all “The GOP is at a turning point. History is watching us.” Since the Jan 6th Capitol Insurrection, the GOP has done everything to try and turn the page on the violent attack, incited by the former guy and underpinned by his unfounded, unproven belief in The Big Lie. Since that day the Republican party has censured or attempted to censure multiple members of their party for being unwilling to engage in a what can only be described as the GOP War on Truth. Looking to sideline any Republican who is unwilling to espouse that the former guy is still the President, and that the election was rife with fraud. An outright, bald-faced, brazen lie. In addition to the Republican party punishing Rep Liz Cheney with her likely removal as third most senior Republican, we see Rep. Elise Stefanik from NY, doing a media tour to position herself as little more than a carnival barker shouting out her agreement with the former guy’s Big Lie. Supplicating herself to gain the favor of the party of nut jobs, conspiracy theorists and extremists you wonder why multiple GOP Leaders are climbing over each other to get in line to espouse lies. More critically as they continue to feed their base a steady stream of BS they party fritters away any opportunity to turn the page and move on from Trump. It just keeps getting ever more dangerous for our Democracy.
We also are witnessing a bizarre continuation of the election in Arizona. This recount is not only jeopardizing the chain of custody of Arizona’s 2020 election ballots, it perpetuates the belief among the right-wing conspiracy theorists and undermines confidence in our elections. When one-third of the electorate believes the lie that US elections were stolen, we face an existential crisis that Trump created, and his enablers feed every day. As we head towards the 2022, we are on the precipice of our Democracy being threatened. We are looking at a very real threat that Republicans will never honor free and fair elections, will seek to overturn elections in which they don’t win, criminalize dissent and protests protected under the First Amendment and attempt to disrupt and suppress the vote through either voter suppression or outright violence like what we witness on January 6th at the U.S. Capitol.
Until the entire Republican leadership puts the good of the country ahead of their thirst for power we remain in grave danger.
Minority House Leader, Kevin McCarthy, has shown a willingness to ignore the ugly violence of the Capitol Insurrection on January 6th. He looks to bury the truth and pray that the country’s collective memory quickly fades. He is willing to gut the third in line in the House, Wyoming Representative, Liz Cheney, a Congresswoman who has consistently maintained a conservative voting record who is now being replaced with NY Rep Elise Stefanik. Stefanik, who after graduating from Harvard and having a less Conservative voting record then Rep Cheney, has suddenly embraced Trumpism with a fervor not seen since well both Kevin McCarthy and Senator Lindsey Graham both flip flopped on holding Trump accountable for inciting the insurrection as they examined the political calculus and belief that the 2022 mid-terms offer a very real chance for Republicans to retake the House.
We need to recognize that the GOP presents an absolute threat to our country. Their authoritarian, anti-democratic, thirst for power puts in jeopardy President Biden’s entire agenda. The time is now, for an aggressive push forward recognizing that any chance for bipartisanship, is now dead as Senator Mitch McConnell has made public statements indicating that he is 100% focused on blocking the President’s agenda. Now that it is clear that the Republican party seeks only to waste time and has already started to push back on the American Family’s Plan and the American Jobs plan with unsubstantiated claims that the ongoing extra unemployment supplement of $300 is somehow responsible for people not returning to work. Perhaps if Republican’s recognized that for too long companies have exploited workers and paid them wages that would not allow them to subsist. So instead of Republicans’ trying to paint low wage workers as lazy let’s look at how companies have taken advantage of workers paying them below poverty wages and that by mandating a federal wage standard of $15, we can provide workers with meaningful employment that allows them to work one full time job. President Biden correctly came out and said that the slower than expected jobs growth numbers reinforce the need to pass the American Jobs Plan quickly. He should push this forward via reconciliation and at the same time remind the American public that Senator Mitch McConnell has made it abundantly clear that he will never be a partner in meaningful legislation. It is no longer necessary to go through the dance of reaching out and engaging in a dialogue when Senator McConnell will circle the wagons ensuring that there will not be on single Republican vote. The time is too short, and the Biden Administration must demonstrate that it can deliver for all Americans, while the Republicans continue to be the party of No obstructing any change that benefits American workers.
We look at what Democrats can and should do to block Republicans.
The Democratic party, the DNC, DCCC, DSCC and every single Democratic leaning political action committee and advocacy group needs to ramp up the rhetoric that we are in the fight of our lives for the soul of the country now. We are in mortal peril with the very real potential to lose the House in 2022. With structural advantages that the Republican party will enjoy post redistricting and their state legislative voter suppression march with bills restricting voting access targeted squarely at Democratic constituencies, we are not out of the woods because Trump still holds sway over the Republican party who continues to betray the truth and dishonors our Democracy with their systemic attacks on our country. When we can no longer count on a loyal opposition, instead we are faced with a party that traffics in The Big Lie and conspiracy theories. The Republican party does not put the country and the Constitution before their own craven quest for power. It puts the entire country at a very dangerous crossroads.
We must fight for every single voter and we must push forward aggressively with The American Jobs Act, The American Families plan and the For the People Act. We can pass both the American Jobs and Families Acts quickly without Republican support because frankly any attempt to gain support will end in failure. We know this because the Republican party refused to support the Covid Relief legislation and then had. The audacity to campaign and send out messaging to their constituents celebrating the very legislation that they themselves refused to support or vote to enact. We need to make it clear to all Americans that we can deliver government programs that improves the lives of voters. Why waste one second in the futile belief that Republicans will think of anything else but focusing on their unchecked quest for power. Speed is of the essence. These bills need to be in place so that Democrats have a solid platform to run on demonstrating that Democratic policies can positively impact everyday American’s lives. We also need to remind every single voter that Republicans aren’t interested in improving their lives they seek only control and power. They would rather an American toil away at a low wage job that doesn’t cover their family’s everyday needs, then increases taxes on the wealthiest 1% and corporations. Now remember, Republican will scream that if we increase taxes then jobs will disappear, but we need to remind all Americans that in every instance where corporate tax rates were decreased, corporations didn’t invest in more American jobs, instead they engaged in stock buy backs to pump up the value of their companies and increased senior executive, not the pay of rank and file workers.
Democrats do a really bad job of articulating the tangible benefits of their policies. One thing the Republican party and the former guy in particular, has been great at is creating pithy branding slogans to describe complex policy like “Build the Wall” “America First”. It will be imperative for Democrat’s to go on the offensive nationally and break down in simplistic and easy to understand terms how their policies and programs are making their lives better. With the programs like Child Care, Parent Care to assist working Moms re-enter the workforce, with investments in rebuilding our infrastructure, extending broadband access to underserved communities so they can connect to the internet. These programs are the bedrock of rebuilding our economy as we slowly emerge from the pandemic. Republicans want to distract the electorate making them fearful of the economy overheating, inflation or the lie that jobs aren’t returning because people would rather remain unemployed for an extra $300 payment than recognizing that many can’t afford childcare or that childcare which is still disrupted by Covid-19 and schools slowly getting back to normal.
But focusing on selling the benefits of the Democratic legislative priorities isn’t the only critical need for the Democrat’s over the next six months we also need to preserve our legislative majorities in the House.
In addition to better promoting their legislative programs and the long-term effects these programs will have, the Democratic party must also take aggressive measures to fight back against the Republican’s efforts to gerrymander and enact repressive voter suppression laws that limit access to the ballot box making it more difficult for the elderly, people of color, and young adults to vote. The litany of voter suppression laws creates a direct threat to free and fair elections. It is time that the Democratic party including Senators Joe Manchin (WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (AZ) recognize that unless we have to maintain a majority in all three branches of government lest we risk a quick descent into minority rule. That Republican minority wants to turn back the clock on progress, take back civil right, minority rights, reproductive rights putting in place a corrupt oligarchy that runs the economy for the benefit of the wealthiest Americans who continue to manipulate the economy for their own personal financial gains.
It is now time for the Democratic party to commit to dismantling the filibuster and pushing through the For the People Act. Unless we put in place a federal Voting Rights Law, we will be unable to ensure that voting access will be respected given the entire electorate, no matter their political leanings an equal voice and equal vote.
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