Easy To Be For "No"

My parents always told me to be "for" something.

Just like the country song says.

It is easy to be against something, and that is the road the weak Republicans are taking. They also seem to be relishing in their new role as the Party of No.

Here is something to think about. Complex problems need complex solutions. The GOP has never believed in this. Their philosophy is based on simple black and white messaging. Tax cuts, government is bad, pro-life, anti-gay, etc... these all make for simple, easy to understand messages for the ill-informed.

What they lack is the hard work required to sort out complex issues like the financial crisis we are in now. Look at Bush's performance and the GOP controlled House and Senate for most of the last 8 years. Applying simple solutions to complex issues has lead to the greatest financial collapse since the Depression.

Now we have a President that will need to be better than most in order to get us out of their mess. It will be hard and mistakes will be made but after less than a month in office the reviews are positive. Obama reached across the partisan divide. Despite what the "all or nothing" GOP says, there are many Republican ideas in the stimulus bill. So do not be fooled by the GOP buzz being stirred on late night talk radio and the Fox News channel. This President is succeeding and is credible.

The only thing the GOP can do now is be the Party of No. They do not have the credibility to do anything else. Any argument they make other than "no" is going to be looked at as ridiculous. So we should not expect anything different. The GOP will only truly change once it is truly defeated. That day of reckoning for the Grand Old Party is coming. They think they have hit bottom but the truth is that the hole they are falling in is much deeper then they think. Their free fall to obscurity will continue and there is no Palin Parachute that is going to save them. They need to come to the table as honest brokers and allow for compromise. Unless they do that, they will be walking through the vast desert of irrelevance for decades to come.

Giving Just Enough Rope

Media reports have passed the judgment that this past week was pretty bad for the White House as the GOP leadership was able to stick to their talking points and pick apart the stimulus plan.

What came out was the true nature of the GOP. Putting politics ahead of working families and, especially, the middle class. In the end, the GOP will lose on the legislation, lose on public perception and lose on moral grounds.

They have had some strange plays through this process. To suggest that the New Deal did not actually save the country from ruin in the 1930s is treating the electorate like they are idiots. Or that government jobs are not "real". These are just plain dumb things to say.

No, no... I think that Obama gave the GOP just enough rope to hang themselves. This may not have been intentional but it worked.

The GOP has an obvious and severe crisis in leadership. They will now be the party of "do nothing" and that label can really stick if Obama wants it to. The GOP has forgot an important lesson, that no voice is ever louder than the bully pulpit of the President.

The Republicans may be able to stick together, but for what? The ruining of our economy? If today's serious challenges can not muster their support, then really nothing outside of war probally can.

The Republican brand is dirt and they are only adding filth to it.

GOP Just Doesn't Get It

The only thing that the GOP Congressional members will understand is YOU walking from the unemployment line to the VOTING booth.

Watch out Pat Roberts, Lindsey Graham, etc... those solid red starts are showing a bit of purple.

The economy will be fixed and it will be because of the Democrats and those smart Republicans that contributed.

The rest can keep obstructing their way right out of power.

Here's An Idea

For all the obstructionist GOP senators and representatives who vote against the stimulus, leave their states and districts out of receiving any of the spending. Simple.

Then they can explain to all the people losing their jobs in their state why they voted the way they did.

Real Leadership

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GOP - Sticking To You!

As I stated in a previous post, the Republicans have squandered their chance for bipartisanship and a seat at the table by their idiotic counter attack to the stimulus package.

Since my last post, over 5,000 people have lost their jobs in my city due to layoffs. Many at my company.

Who are the Republicans representing? Here in Kansas, a solidly red state, I am seeing the winds of change blow through and many people are starting to realize what the promises of big business really means. It means that heartless rich executives and bean counters can rip your lively hood out from under you without even batting an eye. Blue collar or white collar will mean nothing this time. The Republicans have done EVERYTHING in their power to rip away the social safety net for those seeking work, so now what?

The GOP perscription is more of the same. They promise more tax cuts for the rich. Are you f...ing kidding me? If you are one of those Republicans, waiting in the unemployment line for the first time, you are in for a real treat when your turn comes up.

The money you get, if any is left in your state, will not even cover your mortgage. When your savings drys up and you have to sell your house, it will be at a loss. There are no jobs left, so thank you for voting for the GOP all these years. You did this to yourself.

Remember their answer, more tax cuts for the rich and none for you because, after all you are now poor and if you do not pay taxes, you get nothing.

Republicans Living In Alternate Universe

In listening to the Sunday talk shows it is amazing to hear Republicans continue to offer the same old tired solutions that have not worked. Cut taxes, increase military spending, etc.

They are thinking small when we require dramatic, big (and, yes, complicated) solutions.

Obama continues to hold out the fig leaf. I think that leaf will disappear very soon if they do not re-think their lost strategy.