On April 10, Time dot com posted an article on Rand Paul, by Chris Moody, highlighting what it referred to as a ‘two-front war’ Paul is facing as a presidential candidate. I have a different thesis, but let’s look at theirs for a moment. Moody writes:
Only a few days removed from his splashy debut as a presidential candidate -- complete with a "Defeat the Washington Machine" campaign slogan -- Rand Paul is taking fire from all sides.
More below the
fleur de kos!
Hmm, defeat the Washington ‘machine.’ Oh, really. What machine would that be, exactly? I work with machines every day. If a machine does not work, it is either fixed or removed from service. What ‘work’ does the machine Rand Paul refers to perform? He belongs to a party (in the absolute legislative majority) fanatically devoted to the idea that their role is to block the effective functioning of government where it is working, to make it work still worse where it is not working so well, and to make government work to serve MONEY, never people, in all other ways and places. Because, to politicians like Paul, money is more important than people are. Always has been, always will be.
Where in the world is there a 'machine' like that? Who ever created a machine like that, even in concept, much less to build? No one. No one ever would. Except Rand Paul, and people with warped objectives like his. Republicans. Conservatives.
The article focused on problems Paul is having on the ‘Republican side.’ To wit …
A GOP group called the Foundation for a Secure and Prosperous America released an ad targeting Paul, claiming he opposed sanctions against Iran, a nation in the process of developing a nuclear program. The effort was organized by GOP operative Rick Reed, who previously led the "Swiftboat Veterans for Truth" effort against John Kerry when he was the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee. And just to make sure the charge -- decried by some as misleading -- sticks against Paul, the group spent $1 million to air the ad in key states this week. Even the National Rifle Association, one of the most powerful lobbyist groups in Washington, has a sour relationship with Paul because of his association with gun advocacy groups they find too extreme.
The NRA finds him too extreme?! I’m trying to remember when I last heard a more withering political criticism than that one. I can’t think of a time.
Later in the article there is a quotation from Republican political strategist, Ron Bonjean.
He's trying to be an all-inclusive Republican candidate. He's trying to make everyone happy, but in doing so, he's making everyone unhappy.
Oh, believe me, Bonjean, he isn’t trying to make everyone happy. He doesn’t give a shit about 'everyone,' any more than ANY Republican does. He cares about their votes, perhaps, but the last thing he hopes to do is to make ‘everyone’ happy. And, in his myriad fumbles and stumbles, he is NOT making everyone unhappy. Many of us rejoice to see it. You may well believe what you said, but it was stupid.
The final Rand Paul quotation of the article is what struck me, however, where, in an interview with Blitz Blitzer, he said:
"I have been one of the leading proponents saying that any agreement that we come to with Iran has to come back and be voted on by Congress (by the ‘Washington Machine,’ in other words),” Paul told CNN's Wolf Blitzer in an interview Wednesday. "I think that people are desperate somehow to latch on to the status quo and so they put out falsehoods."
Paul would do well to learn what status quo means. Hint: it’s what CONSERVATIVES love. As wikipedia states,
about conservatives:
Conservatism as a political and social philosophy promotes retaining traditional social institutions in the context of the culture and civilization. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others, called reactionaries, oppose modernism and seek a return to "the way things were.”
It is YOU who wants to latch on to the status quo, Rand Paul, or even diminish it. And it is you who is ‘putting out falsehoods. You lying ass.
So, really, your ‘two front’ war is really three, as you’re fighting yourself and your misguidedness at least as much as you are your political adversaries.
Here’s hoping you lose on EVERY front. As you deserve to.
(And here is a picture of him I posted in a diary I wrote about him and three other prominent Republican liars, Scott Walker, Chris Christie and Mitt Romney.)
(I did apologize to Pinocchio in the diary. For the pejorative association ... )
Best to you all tonight! Happy Kibitzing!
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