In the days long gone by, one knew roughly what Republicans and Democrats were all about. There was some overlap on the common issues of the day, but the perception was that the Republican Party was the party of big business, little or no change and fiscal conservatism. Of course, it wasn’t strictly true then and it is absolutely not true now.

The public be damned …

Truth be told, both parties have devolved into something that is unrecognizable by us older people who have somewhat of a historical perspective on politics. Today, both parties are about money and control. How to attract the widest possible audience, raise the largest amount of money and exert the greatest influence at the ballot box. Nothing historic or drastically different from the past. But there is a major difference and it is simply the lengths at which both parties will go to achieve their ends.

The degree of corruption, complacency and chaos in the political process has never been greater. We see blatant attempts to cede the party brand, on both sides of the aisle, to the special interests who will continue to fund the campaign and turn out voters on election day. We see humungous 1000+ and 2000+ page bills written in convoluted legalese that hides more than it reveals. And we see a condescending disdain for the average individual voter. Almost as if they were not part of the process until their vote is needed on a few days out of a year.

The democrat party I knew is gone. Instead of principled opposition, we find far-left policies which would have been branded as downright un-American had they been introduced in earlier decades. We find socialists and communists invited to the White House – and in some instances – working openly in the White House. We find that the most frequent visitor to the White House to be an unregistered lobbyist who heads a secretive and extremely far-left union whose fundraising and tactics are suspicious. A man who spouts old communist slogans like “workers of the world unite” and claims “We use the power of persuasion first. If it doesn't work, we try the persuasion of power.” Which appears to be an open allusion to union thuggery, coercion and arm-twisting politics.

The Republicans are no better. The secretive aura about the Bush Administration. The cronyism. The continued hyper-politicization of governmental agencies that began in earnest under the Clinton regime. The incompetence. The out-of-control spending that pushed us to the brink of insolvency. And, worst of all, the abrogation of regulatory duties and actions that resulted in the worst economic meltdown since the Carter years and coming close to being another great depression.

The mainstream media, controlled more tightly by their corporate masters in order to restore some semblance of financial stability, have seemingly abandoned vigilance and viewership in favor of pandering to their political party of choice. They did not adequately vet Barack Obama in the media and we are stuck with an ideologue with little or no experience in anything but reading pre-written words on a TelePrompTer. A black Ted Baxter that plays nightly to the white version in the persona of Bill O’Reilly. Both operating on a cult of personality. It is amazing that one of the most politically maligned broadcasters in the nation, Fox, is also the most watched and trusted. Similarly, the most maligned talk radio shows: Limbaugh, Hannity and Beck also have staggering audiences when compared to the competition. Perhaps it is true, the people do realize that Fox is "fair and balanced" and, at least on radio, gives anyone a chance to air their grievances. All that opposed to far-left outlets which offer little more than the  continual shrill drumbeat of the party line and demonize or diminish both dissent and the American public.

It is apparent that America has lost her way …

It is readily apparent that America has lost her way. When politicians are emboldened to stand before a public audience and lie. Not shading the truth, not interpreting the situation, but out-and-out lying. Using Orwellian constructs such as truth, transparency and accountability when even the dumbest among us can see that this is not true. The democrat-controlled Congress points to the Republicans as obstructionists while locking them out of policy meetings where legislation is being crafted. Or should I say drafted by the special interests. We know who wrote the TARP bailout program and who did much of the legal drafting of the healthcare initiative. All falsely  represented to the American people as the work of dedicated politicians.

There are few trustworthy politicians and the blame resides squarely on the backs of the political parties which will apparently do or say anything to gain and maintain political power. The parties themselves are cesspools of corruption, only manifested by the candidates they field to do their bidding. We the people have been sold out to the “players” the special interests.

Tyranny and tea-baggers ….

We seem to be at a point where the soft tyranny of our government is approaching a tipping point. When government is growing into a self-sustaining critical mass of bureaucrats immune from the economic, health and retirement issues which face us all. Where lifetime employment and pay that often exceeds private sector salaries is the norm. One need only ask oneself, where are the unemployed government workers who were lost in the economic debacle. We see plenty of private sector pain, but nothing even approaching those percentages in government employees.

We see external sources, such as unions, attempting to control government actions through increasing unionization, onerous work-rules and the reward of mediocrity over merit, seniority over excellence.

In protest, we can see the people begin to react to a government who has screwed up their lives with all of its self-interested interference. We see where the government wants to institute a soviet-style command and control system which features the type of central planning which has failed for decades in the communist and socialist countries. We see where the government wants to regulate our entire economy by regulating the production and use of energy (cap-and-trade) as well as regulate our private lives through their healthcare initiatives. We see where the special interests are plundering our Treasury and pushing borrowed debt to the limits beyond sustainability. We see our government engaging in wealth redistribution to non-Americans while our inner cities remain crime-ridden cesspools. All ignored by those who cry “institutional racism” while exploiting the very people they claim are being exploited. And, we see a government, willing to sell out our heritage and national birthright to foreign nationals whose allegiance is to another country – by conferring citizenship with a faux oath of allegiance on illegal aliens now present within our borders.

We are screwed up. Our political parties are screwed up. And the democrats are trying to drive a wedge between those who support the traditional Republican Party and those Americans who realize the clear and present danger of today’s political scene and want something better for themselves and their families.

The Daily Beast is reporting …

“Friday’s showdown with House Republicans marked a new White House drive to force the GOP off the sidelines—and drive a wedge between fiscal conservatives and the Tea Party crowd.”

By splitting the party, the democrat coalition of victims (by race, ethnicity, color, gender, sexual persuasion, etc.) can eke out another victory and continue to turn our great nation leftward to “command and control” socialism.

The Republican Party needs to respond …

How many times have you heard former President Reagan’s prescription: “Bold colors, no pale pastels?” How many times have you heard that the way to win elections is to offer a clear choice of political philosophy and to invite people to join us in pursuing the American dream? Not to become the democrat-lite party – based on multiculturalism, moral equivalency and political correctness" – all of which mask their malevolent intent to subvert America from within and makes us just another nation to accept United Nations guidelines. Tantamount to a bloodless revolution where the enemies of America will have succeeded.

Bottom line …

Therefore I ask you: what is a Republican and what does the Republican Party stand for? Until those questions are answered, Republicans stand for nothing and openly accept the political corruption, chaos and complacency that swirls around them.

It is up to us “We the People” to, once again, tell our party leadership what we want. And to withhold support if it is not forthcoming. They can raise all the money they want, run ads every hour of every day – but it will not change our country in the slightest. We need a return to principled social and financial conservatism. We need a Ronald Reagan-like leader. But most of all, we need the assurances that the Republican Party has not devolved into the old conservative democrat party of days gone by.

Want to argue the point? I am here and listening.

-- Steve

Reference Links:

Obama's Plan to Split the GOP - The Daily Beast