The outrage over Senator Man-on-Dog's comments comparing the Democrats to Hitler because of their stand on the filabuster is well-deserved. The comparison is flat out wrong, unfair and a complete slap in the face to all of those who suffered at the hands of the Nazis.
However, I think a more compelling case could be made that Bush & Co., the GOP and Santorum are acting like Stalin. One only has to look at the record to see the track record:
- Consolidation of Power. Stalin destroyed Trotsky to consolidate power. That isn't any different than what the Republicans are doing in order to make America a one-party country. Control the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branch and you seize and secure your empire until another revolution comes along.
- The Great Purge. There is no doubt that crackpot Dobson has been calling the shots, demanding litmus tests, and all but throwing people out of the party who aren't in league with the nutjob from Colorado Springs. Frist is playing right along because of his political aspirations. It was no secret that under Stalin, those who paid the most lip service to Stalin were the ones rewarded the most. But if you aren't willing to play by the rules of Dr. Dobson, then you will get your walking papers. Maybe not from the party, but you will get your comeuppance.
- Tortured confessions. In the 30s, when Stalin was garnering more support for himself and the Communists, he and his toadies began smear campaigns and made public confessions of political prisoners, confessions that had been forced through psychological and physical abuse of detainees and prisoners.
- Collectivization. Stalin pushed for giant government cogs to control the production and distribution of food, citing the supposed inefficiency of smaller, independent farmers and distributors. This drove the standard of living for most peasants down even further. There isn't much difference between that and allowing Wal-Mart to put mom-and-pop stores out of business while their workers make less than stellar wages and receive meager benefits, if any, while the government stands by and does nothing. In Stalin's case, his shrew move led to widespread famine.
- Bourgeois pseudosciences. Stalin was determined to manage every aspect of society. If there was a scientific view he didn't like, it was demonized and labeled "bourgeois pseudoscience." Currently, stem cell research and evolution are not winning points with Bush and Company, so they are labeled "secular" and "anti-God."
I am not suggesting that the Bush administration is a Stalin-like regime. (Yet.)
However, the old adage tells us that if you own a glass house, keep the stones firmly planted in the garden.
Ricky Santorum can play this game all he wants, but his team is hardly the saints he portrays.