The trailer for the movie “Groundhog Day” says that Bill Murray is going to keep living it until he gets it right. Republicans make me think of this film. They keep saying the same stuff over and over again. In 2008, they campaigned against Obama by calling him a Socialist. We know how well that worked out for them, and yet we still heard screeches about socialism throughout the 2012 campaign. In 2008, they nominated the “moderate” former RINO John McCain, and when he lost complained that his loss was due to his not being conservative enough. In 2012, they nominated a former governor of Taxachusetts, and then complained that he was not a true conservative.
Another thing we hear from the right after loss upon loss upon loss is that the reason for losing had nothing to do with the message, but they didn’t sell it well. Just the other day, a Republican strategist lamented the fact that Asian-Americans voted for Democrats because they don’t understand the Republican pro-freedom agenda. This is coming from the party that rally’s its constituents by complaining that Democrats “think you’re stupid.”
As Jon Stewart would say, “Republicans, meet me at camera 3.” Bill Murray kept living Groundhog day because he needed to learn things. He needed to learn that the elderly women were going to get a flat tire, that the councilman was going to choke on his steak and that the boy was going to fall out of the tree. He needed to learn these things so he could be there to help for the simple reason that he could. He also needed to learn that sometimes people die despite our best efforts. And he needed to learn that that was not a reason to not try.
When Bill jacked up the car and replaced the tire, when he performed the Heimlich, and when he caught the falling kid, he was not making them dependent on him. He was recognizing a need and fulfilling it. People who lost homes due to hurricane Sandy are not losers. Helping them rebuild is not fostering a culture of dependency.
Do people game the system? Of course. However, rich people game the system as much as poor people do. The problem is that poor people gaming the system doesn’t cost nearly as much, and we need to operate from that understanding. Government is not the enemy of freedom. In fact, I believe I read somewhere that governments are instituted to secure our freedoms (hint; it’s in the Declaration of Independence).
You claim to worship at the altar of The Constitution, yet you abhor the first three words, “We, the People.” You have written off the black vote telling your white audiences that “they” will never vote for you. While we’re on the subject, referring to your all-white audiences as “Real Americans” implies that other people are not “Real Americans” so stop it. And then you blame Democrats for dividing the country.
You tell us that you don’t want government to get in between a doctor and a patient, but you don’t mind getting between a doctor and a woman. If life begins at conception, then I’ve got a newsflash for you; the biggest abortionist on the planet is God! Between fertilized eggs that don’t attach to the uterine wall and naturally occurring miscarriages, the numbers dwarf abortions performed.
As people of faith, you believe in a day of reckoning. That day was November 6, 2012. You lost. You kept the House of Representatives because of gerrymandering. Over 1 million more people voted to be represented by Democrats in the House than Republicans. However, the rules allowed you to maintain power. We are willing to play by those rules. That’s what makes us America. Your constituents voted to secede. They have forfeited the right to call themselves patriots (although the First Amendment will still protect their right to do so).
You won in 2010 because we forgot to show up. To quote The Who, “We won’t be fooled again.”