America: Governance In Silence

As we watch the Democratic Party establishment and their apologists lick their wounds after yet another “moral victory” that saw two additional Republican Trump supporters join their many friends on Capitol Hill, I had to reflect on just where we are now as a nation. I’ll get to the twisted, terribly out-of-date two-party duopoly in a minute, but for openers I really have to marvel at how an entire major party can be reduced to mere Loveable Losers, the ones who try and try and fundraise and fundraise, but gosh darn it just can’t pull out the win. Hey, we only lost by a few points, right? We’ll get ‘em next time. They have become the Los Angeles Clippers of politics, and that might be amusing in a time when we weren’t facing the sorts of serious, history altering existential problems we are right now. We can revisit this a bit later but keep it in mind as we go along from here.

America was founded on the idea of transparent, efficient and minimal federal government. I will not delve into the Anti-Federalist rhetoric carried forth by the Libertarians and Anarchists among us, because I feel that there are roles for federal power in this nation, and in fact the current complexity of both domestic and international affairs with the expansion of automation and technology makes it absolutely necessary. But leaving size and scope aside for the moment, the entire idea behind this nation’s founding was independence from an unaccountable monarch who did not run any of his policies by any sort of public voting body for scrutiny. Transparency in policy making seemed to be a central tenet of what the framers and founders were after, did it not?

They are all surely rolling in their graves today. We now live in a world where a vast, sweeping and far-reaching healthcare bill is being debated in secret without any hearings, without the usual markup process, and with as little scrutiny as possible. That this heinous and brazen act of opaque governance is being perpetuated by the same party that made political hay about the previous heath care bill’s “rushed” nine months of hearings, testimony and public teeth gnashing is particularly galling. Even when Republican Senators that realize this is wrong and not how things are supposed to work admit publicly that they have concerns, they still play the role of good soldier, do what they’re told, and go along with it. This shameful act is brought to you by a corrupt and out of control two-party system the likes of which George Washington himself expressed fear about upon leaving office in his Farewell Address:

I have already intimated to you the danger of parties in the State, with particular reference to the founding of them on geographical discriminations. Let me now take a more comprehensive view, and warn you in the most solemn manner against the baneful effects of the spirit of party generally.

This spirit, unfortunately, is inseparable from our nature, having its root in the strongest passions of the human mind. It exists under different shapes in all governments, more or less stifled, controlled, or repressed; but, in those of the popular form, it is seen in its greatest rankness, and is truly their worst enemy.

The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissension, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism. But this leads at length to a more formal and permanent despotism. The disorders and miseries which result gradually incline the minds of men to seek security and repose in the absolute power of an individual; and sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction, more able or more fortunate than his competitors, turns this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of public liberty.

Without looking forward to an extremity of this kind (which nevertheless ought not to be entirely out of sight), the common and continual mischiefs of the spirit of party are sufficient to make it the interest and duty of a wise people to discourage and restrain it.

It serves always to distract the public councils and enfeeble the public administration. It agitates the community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms, kindles the animosity of one part against another, foments occasionally riot and insurrection. It opens the door to foreign influence and corruption, which finds a facilitated access to the government itself through the channels of party passions. Thus the policy and the will of one country are subjected to the policy and will of another.

There is an opinion that parties in free countries are useful checks upon the administration of the government and serve to keep alive the spirit of liberty. This within certain limits is probably true; and in governments of a monarchical cast, patriotism may look with indulgence, if not with favor, upon the spirit of party. But in those of the popular character, in governments purely elective, it is a spirit not to be encouraged. From their natural tendency, it is certain there will always be enough of that spirit for every salutary purpose. And there being constant danger of excess, the effort ought to be by force of public opinion, to mitigate and assuage it. A fire not to be quenched, it demands a uniform vigilance to prevent its bursting into a flame, lest, instead of warming, it should consume.

How much of what Washington feared still rings true today? Jealousies, false alarms and animosity? Check. Foreign influence and corruption? Check. Alternate domination of one faction over another? Check. A party strongman riding a wave of popular angst directed toward the other party and using that angst to “the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of public liberty?” Have you seen who is currently President lately? We live in the very country he feared most.

So now we live in a country where the modern tradition of the daily press briefing is done in silence, with audio and video recordings banned. We live in a country where cabinet members and Congresspeople alike duck, dodge or just flat out ignore questions from the assembled press, that is if they are even allowed in the room, on the plane, or along for the foreign trip. We live in a country where Russian press gets their question in, but not CNN. Where the man currently in the White House made a joke about murdering journalists on the stump during his campaign, garnering cheers from the assembled crowd. We live in scary, scary times.

But the Democrats are just fine running on nothing, and opposing these things in words, but not in deeds. Too often, we see the only realistic opposition party we have shrink from a fight at the federal level. Shut down the Senate? But how will we work with our Republican colleagues on measures of importance? Refuse to vote for Trump’s unqualified wolves to watch over our various federal cabinet henhouses? But they promised me they would do a good job! And sure, we lost those special elections, each and every one of them, but we’re in the right, and Trump is wrong. His supporters will come around and start voting for us soon enough, you’ll see. Any day now.

Well I prefer to live in the world of reality, the world where the 1% tighten their chokehold on the 99% and their wallets. Where mega-rich business criminals occupy every cabinet post, poised and ready to rob us all blind and line their own pockets. Where the Democrats are content to “express concerns” but still seem to value team play over having principles, where being not quite as bad as a party goose-stepping into full on fascism is good enough. Well, count me as being utterly unsurprised at the upcoming drubbing in 2018, the continued rule of Trump and his ilk, and count on this continuing no matter how Russiagate shakes out. Remember: Trump is only one piece of this puzzle, the front man. Even throwing him out does not change what I said above, and in fact it just streamlines things as Pence is a connected, experienced transactional politician in his own right. No, not until we actually wise up, rise up and resist fully and truly, and actually stand for something besides the obviously broken status quo, will anything change. So our hopes are somewhere between slim and none.

But go ahead, America, prove me wrong.

--Joe

Mission Statement for 2017 and Beyond

The New Year brings with it new challenges: a new government, a new President, and new battles to wage both at home and abroad.  This is a list of what I feel needs to be emphasized as we press into 2017 and grapple with these challenges, and I put these forward mostly to keep both myself and everyone reading focused on the important things, making it easier to filter out all the noise going forward.

First: I support the causes of freedom and liberty in all forms.  To define this: I will oppose, both publicly and otherwise, any effort to curtail the freedoms and equal protection under the law of people of color, of LGBTQ citizens, and really anyone else threatened by the Trump administration or others.  We are all Americans and all deserve the same protections from oppression in any form.

Second: I support the exposure and tearing down of the corporatocracy in all its forms.  The preceding five presidents have done plenty to cede the power held by us as citizens to corporate interests of varying stripes, and the incoming Trump administration promises to be the most nakedly corrupt administration yet.  Not since the days of Teapot Dome was a presidential administration so seemingly entrenched in graft and corporate interest above all and it is incumbent upon us as citizens to not only oppose, but to bear witness and tear down every instance of corruption and graft as they come up.  Dictatorships function in the shadows, so we must cast light on corruption every single time it comes along.

Third: I oppose the bombing of citizens anywhere, either by drone or by plane.  I am against war in almost every circumstance, unless it is a targeted defensive strike in retaliation for a direct attack.  Offensive wars and proactive conflicts in which we invade a sovereign nation without provocation and/or as a result of flawed or false intelligence, such as the war in Iraq starting in 2003, are wrong and I will oppose them as well.

Fourth: Russia is NOT our ally.  While I did not support the Hillary Clinton view on Russia, I also do not support the Trump plan of cozying up to a despot who oppresses his own people.  This is not a New Cold War, and I would never be so ignorant as to suggest that it is.  However, Putin’s Russia is a rival power that is frequently working to thwart American interests abroad, and has done so throughout his term in office.  Dubious accusations of hacking aside, I do not support Putin and will oppose anyone who does, up to and including Trump himself.

Fifth, and finally: I demand that Trump immediately and visibly sever any and all connections to his for-profit businesses and disavow, in public and on television, any interest in said businesses, adding released and independently verified legal documentation proving that he has done so.  Anything less than this is obfuscating the blunt reality that he and his family have, and are poised to profit immensely from his time as president, which is an insult and a perversion of our most hallowed founding principles.  The presidency ought not be for sale, and Trump continuing to delay and redirect the plain truth that he is running a multinational for-profit business while he is also acting as our elected head of state is unacceptable, and ought to be disqualifying.  If he refuses to do all of this, it is incumbent on Congress to impeach him and remove him from office.  The framers of the Constitution were crystal clear on this as a central tenet of the Executive Branch, namely that the President works for us and not himself, and it will be upheld.

The year 2017 promises a lot of hard work ahead, and I for one am ready to roll up my sleeves and begin.

--Joe

The Five Stages: A Democrat's Guide to Grief

It will all soon be over.  No, really.  I mean eventually on a long enough time line we all live and die and spend way more time being dead than we ever spent worrying about money, relationships, the environment or politics, but that is not what I am talking about.  The Electoral College process, the end result of which will be (just as it is now) a man named Donald J. Trump as the President-elect.  Then, on January 20th, he will officially take the oath of office and proceed to loot the country blind as his designated cabal of corporate raiders descend en masse onto Washington to flick on the flashing "Open for Business" sign, lest some lobbyist or corporate scumbag kickback agent not get the memo right away.  We have seen this movie before, sadly.  Rest assured, with the system we have in place, we will again.  Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

But there is still a flicker of hope this week amongst spurned Democrats, a flicker that will be stamped out under the cheaper-than-it-looks polished shoe of Donald Trump.  That flicker of hope is that somehow, someway, someone will rise up and, with the will of the Electoral College's bravery behind them, will silence all critics and banish the Donald back to the television from whence he came.  Surely there has to be a storybook ending to this roller coaster ride we've been on these last eighteen months, right?  The good rise up to slay the bad guy?  Hate to say it folks, but life is not a storybook.  It's ugly, messy.  And it looks to be both ugly and messy for some time to come.  No, the electors will not save us.  I am here to map out the stages of grief Democrat/Hillary supporting folks will experience this week as events unfold as I think they will.

Stage 1: Denial

This one we're already in and have been since November 8th: not MY president!  Love Trumps Hate!  In protest after protest, all across the country, sloganeers have been sloganeering on countless signs, shirts and poster boards, usually hoisted high by someone screaming their contents at the top of their lungs.  Surely this cannot be happening.  Surely he did not win.  But, look at how many popular votes Hillary got over him!  How could he win when he said all those horrible things?  Look, I'm sympathetic.  Really, I am.  I was a Bernie supporter but I never wanted Trump.  But this is the system we're stuck with, sadly.  I urge you to weigh the consequences: we continue on with the system we have, leaving it intact for 2020 when we have a chance for someone to throw Trump out on his ass, or we upend the whole apple cart and make it impossible for anyone to ever win ever again.  Do you honestly think this country could rationally amend the Constitution right now, to make things fairer?  Do you honestly think we would not immediately descend into chaos if the electors did not vote how they were allocated under the system we've had in place since this country's founding?  Quote Hamilton all you like, he would not even come close to comprehending what happened in this election, so I doubt his words are very instructive right now.  Just stop.  Hillary lost, and there are many legitimate, controllable ways she could have won.  Destroying the system to help her, or anyone else, end up being President next January is suicide, pure and simple.

Stage 2: Anger

We'll see this starting today: protests, protests, protests.  We will see the following in the next few days, mark my words: large, loud, angry protests in existing flash points like Seattle, Oakland, Portland and other Democratic enclaves, despondent editorializing aplenty, social media reports of angry, sometimes violent confrontations between Democrats and Trump supporters, and enough half-informed memes to make you want to crawl into a warm cup of cocoa from now until New Year's Day.  It will be noisy, and it will be ugly.  Ignore it as best you can.  The anger right now, the death threats against electors, it is all an incredibly misguided waste of time.  Do not waste or use up your anger now.  You will need it later on, when it serves a practical and actionable purpose.  But many will not heed my advice.

Stage 3: Bargaining

The manifestation of this stage, to me and as it pertains to this election, is the Russian hacking narrative.  Is it possible that things happened, possibly things that need some sort of Congressional investigation to get to the bottom of?  Well, they spent four years in Congress to find that Hillary herself did absolutely nothing to warrant any criminal action, and with her defeat chairman Trey Gowdy quietly closed up shop on December 7th, so why not investigate this?  That seems only logical.  But it ends there.  We may never be able to prove Putin knew anything, that Russia had some sort of collusion with the Trump campaign, or that any of this mattered on Election Day.  It may be years before we have any answers at all.  But no matter what we find, it does not change the history written on November 8th and 9th: Trump won.  He lost the popular vote, but captured the requisite number of electoral votes to ascend to office.  Nothing we find on the subject of the Russians or anything Wikileaks did will change that.  I do recommend we find out everything we can, to prevent it from happening again.  But it changes nothing in the here and now.

Stage 4: Depression

This is obvious.  Trump becoming President is depressing.  Having a staunch EPA foe and climate change denier running the EPA, and surely gutting it from within, is depressing.  A Secretary of State cruising the globe to make it easier to burn every drop of fossil fuel possible between now and 2020, with untold damage done to the climate as a result, is depressing.  A union hating fast food chairman as Labor Secretary is depressing.  A cabinet full of Goldman alums surely put there to rub the place blind and blow another bubble guaranteed to explode and cost the taxpayers even more billions is depressing.  But we have to rise above this, to obstruct, to take action, and to expose corruption wherever possible, and use the impeachment process if possible.  But this can only happen after he takes office.  We cannot let depression make us complacent though.  Trump must be obstructed wherever possible.  Act like a Republican and Just Say No.

Stage 5: Acceptance

Optimally the many forces against Trump will be united in criticizing him, obstructing him and defeating him politically in any way possible before the end of his first 100 days in office.  This requires the Hillary supporters currently pushing this "faithless electors/Russian hacking" narrative now to accept that these were losing strategies, just as encouraging Hillary supporters to not worry about picking up Bernie supporters and ignoring much of the American heartland to campaign in coastal liberal strongholds were losing strategies.  Optimally, we're all in this together in 2017 and beyond but honestly, going forward the defeat of Trump is so important, and its base of potential voters so broad and wide-reaching we may not even need most of them to come to their senses.  But hopefully, most of them will.  We accept what happened, and we accept our duty to do everything we can to change it and make sure it never happens again.  Will it happen?

Time will tell.

--Joe

Trump's Cabinet: American Kleptocracy Defined

The Trump cabinet is shaping up to be the sort of “basket of deplorables” we were all warned about, and the news just keeps getting worse and worse.  Never before in America have we had a group of robber barons with actual government power, at least not since the days of Warren G. Harding and his “Ohio Gang” of corrupt thieves.  Harding also promised to consult some of the “best minds” when making his choices, just as Trump did, and in true Harding fashion Trump instead chose “merely best friends,” in this case fellow travelers amongst the 1% and other corporate leaders.  Let’s go over the latest indignities.

Your Secretary of State: Rex Tillerson, the CEO of ExxonMobil.  One can hardly imagine a more nakedly brazen pick for a post of such significance than this one.  Rex Tillerson: long a foe of American foreign policy when it conflicted with the international business interests of the only company he has ever drawn a salary from in his adult life, will now be the international deal-making face of America to the world.  Simply a stunning pick, and one that frames every other pick announced thus far in its proper context.  Simply put: Trump has assembled all the pieces of a corrupt kleptocracy, meant to bleed dry both the national coffers and the wallets of every citizen of this country.  Exxon will now surely get the $500 billion Russian oil deal that sat languishing during Obama sanctions, and every country with some natural resources to spare and a corrupt dictator in charge will certainly be paid a visit, out of pure national interest of course.  One can hardly imagine a man more obviously personally profiting and making huge sums of money for himself and those he considers friends while he is in public office, besides Trump himself of course.  Mark my words: just watch the same Republican whore Congressmen and hack pundits who criticized Obama for high gas prices in 2009 laud the corrupt Trump regime for its “good deal-making” even when oil and gas prices shoot right back up again and ExxonMobil’s profit soars.  Trump voters wanted someone to “drain the swamp,” but instead Trump picked a real life swamp monster to high office.

While we’re on the subject of loathsome creatures let me turn to the next pick we will discuss today: the former Governor of my current state of Texas, “Mr. Oops” himself, most recently seen busting a move with Vanilla Ice on Dancing With The Stars, that’s right everybody, give it up for Rick Perry!  Rick Perry: who in three terms made sure every single donor’s palm was well greased, who turned the entire western half into the state into a moonscape of natural gas fracking sites (seriously, check Google Maps), the man who “oopsed” and forgot the name of the agency he will now purportedly lead: the Department of Energy.  Mark my words: if they can frack for natural gas next to Old Faithful or on the edge of the Grand Canyon and somehow make a buck off of it, the wells will go up under this greased pig’s watch.  Perry is a loathsome creature and further evidence that Trump’s strategy with cabinet picks is twofold: either rob the place blind or shut the place down.  I believe Perry’s job is to mostly do the latter, but I’m sure based on his history in Texas he will find a way to also do the former.

When you add these two recent picks to some of the others that were made: foreclosure king and Goldman alum Steve Mnuchin who will try to top Hank Paulson as the most corrupt Treasury Secretary ever, Gary Cohn who joins Steve and the other Steve in a triad of Goldman hacks, Andrew Puzder who made a name for himself as the anti-union leader of Carl’s Jr and a fan of “hot chicks eating burgers,” and Scott Pruitt, the oil industry insider who made a name for himself by being extremely anti-EPA and who will now run the EPA, the message is clear: abandon all hope.  Trump has quite simply appointed the most loathsome list of “stave the beast,” government hating corporate thieves I have ever seen in my adult life.  I challenge every single Trump voter who honestly believed Trump when he claimed he, like Bernie Sanders, wanted to help the middle class to tell me what they’re thinking as these picks are announced.  Do you honestly believe things will improve for you now with these slimy chucklefucks in charge?  If so you’re more delusional than the Democrats still insisting an Electoral College revolt might still save us.  This might just be Game Over.

So enjoy the ride down the drain, folks.  George Carlin would be having a field day with the news of 2016: he saw all of this coming years ago.  It’s a natural progression: instead of appointing corrupt political hacks to cabinet posts who are lobbied, bribed and cajoled into playing ball with the rich business interests, Trump simply recruited the rich corrupt folks right into the government.  At least this way our tax dollars will be stolen with an additional level of efficiency though, right?  The aim now, for those of all political stripes who oppose this brazen perversion of every function of government, is to harness the ease of information sharing of today and expose what happens in every way possible, and to bear witness.  Those who elected this man need to rue the day, and in short order I am sure they will.  Because anyone who is not a billionaire or currently a CEO of a large company is in for a rough ride these next four years.  But at least it will be entertaining even while it’s horrifying, right?

Riiiight.

--Joe