John Gurda is one of the real treasures of Milwaukee. He has written numerous books on the history of the city and is always the go-to person for historical perspective on current events. Today his essay in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel explains how football is very much like politics, especially as played by Republicans. He writes in terms of Wisconsin, but his metaphor would apply equally to other states suffering under complete political control by the GOP.
Politics and football may seem worlds apart, but they actually have a great deal in common. Although one is government and the other's a game, both involve spirited competition between clearly identified teams who play to definite outcomes. You know exactly who your opponents are, and it's easy to keep score.
There are times when politics is more like football than others, and Wisconsin in 2016 is a prime example. After years of divided government, Republicans swept the governor's office and both legislative houses in 2010. As soon as they took the field, it was clear that they were going to play a particularly aggressive brand of football: smash-mouth, take-no-prisoners, blitz-every-down action from first whistle to last.
He ticks off equivalencies: keep the opposition from fielding a full team (gerrymandering), prevent the other team’s fans from attending (voter ID, etc.), slash the other team’s payroll (anti-union laws), fire the referees (abolition of the nonpartisan agency that administers elections), listen to the head coach (Scott Walker), and others.
These are a few well-thumbed pages from the Republican playbook. Sure, they're aggressive, you might say, but isn't that Wisconsin politics as usual? Well, as a matter of fact, it's not. We've had one-party dominance more than once in the last century, but it has always been tempered by a modicum of restraint on both sides, an instinctive awareness that the well-being of democracy is more important than the well-being of either party. Not any more. We've returned to the excesses of the 1800s, when politics was a blood sport and partisans tried diligently to inflict lasting harm on their opponents.
This is an extraordinary presentation of our current situation, and I urge you to read the whole thing.