While many of us within the liberal and the populist wing of our Party have been frequently frustrated and disappointed by our President, his bold and decisive executive action on immigration reform injected a new sense of energy among our ranks. Personally, the President's action reminded me of why my family decided to vote for, contribute to and volunteer for candidate Barack Obama in 2008 and later for his re-election in 2012. While we may disagree with the President on a number of issues I think most of us are proud of the President's empathetic and compassionate commitment for those who come here for the very same reason as most of our own ancestors.
And despite all of the hysterics and histronics coming from the right, most of us are on the same page with the President on immigration reform.
Meanwhile here in Texas it took fewer than twenty four hours since the President announced his executive action on immigration before the lawsuit obsessed Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott, soon to be Governor, weighed in with the predictable.
Sue the "lawless" President for his "unconstitutional" action on "amnesty."
It really does not matter to Greg Abbott or any Republican lawmaker for that matter, that the President acted within the framework of laws and actions available to him as the POTUS. These Republican shills for the rich ignore facts they don't like, or ones that contradict their ideologies, which are those that are prescribed by the 1% that owns the Republican Party.
All of the Republican puppets for the 1% must receive daily talking points from a head spin doctor, likely Frank Luntz, or maybe it is Rush Limbaugh, who prepares their scripts. When I explained this to my husband yesterday he asked me how I knew. I replied that it is easy to know. All recite the same lines. All spout the same buzz words and blow the same dog whistles. All repeat the same lies, knowing they are lies.
I have no formal training in political science or communications but I've been an activist long enough to understand a lot. Activists who have been in the trenches know all about Lee Awater and Karl Rove's scorched earth politics.
Another aspect I shared with my husband is to pay attention to the serial Freudian projection that drives Republican politicians, pundits and propagandists and their messages.
For the actual lawless ones are doing their best to frame the President with lawlessness.
President Obama and the Democrats did not shut down the government last year nor did we threaten our country with a financial default. Ted Cruz and his band of tea party anarchists gleefully shut down the government last year that resulted in furloughing millions of federal employees. Many of them had to apply for unemployment benefits. It seems that most federal workers do not earn six figure salaries for doing nothing, like Ted Cruz and his tea party deadbeats.
Our Party did not lie the American people into a completely unnecessary war that has been an unmitigated disaster on so many levels. This war unleashed the ISIS genie from the bottle.
Our Party did not abdicate its responsibility to govern.
Our Party would have never appointed so-called extreme left wing activists and politically ideological hacks (i.e. the Lyndon LaRouche groupies, transformed Marxists into right wing conservatives) to serve as Supreme Court Justices.
The Republican Party of the 1%, on the other hand, appointed right wing political activists as Supreme Court Justices. By enacting Citizens' United and its outcome, the John Roberts' SCOTUS essentially robbed voters of our voices in government. Money is speech. The Koch boys, the Sheldon Adelsons and the Waltons uncorked the champagne bottles.
Our Party did not appoint right wing activist judges who rule in favor of corporations over individual rights. Lawless corporations can now run rough shod over consumers.
Our Party did not invite energy CEO's to help fashion our nation's energy policies. Remember Ken Lay and Dick Cheney? Enron anyone? Brownouts in California?
Our Party has not ginned up Jim Crow Voter Photo ID suppression laws that have been ruled unconstitutional by a federal judge. At least this is the case in Texas. Lawless Republican politicians have disenfranchised between 500,000 and 800,000 American citizens from their right to vote in the state.
A state judge has also ruled the Texas School Finance System as unconstitutional.
Straight R voters in the state elected a crook for its Attorney General.
Texas Republican Governor Rick Perry has been indicted for the abuse of power.
As Attorney General Greg Abbott let his and Rick Perry's friends loot the state cancer institute, (CPRIT).
This is only the tip of the iceberg.
So let's be serious about the meaning of lawlessness.
For example, when I opened the Houston Chronicle yesterday one of the first sentences I read is a quote from John Cornyn.
This is an unconstitutional abuse of power.
No it isn't. John Cornyn knows he's lying. He very well knows that
all Presidents for the last sixty years have issued some kind of executive action on immigration.
But John Cornyn lies anyway. Why? To please the right wing base and his donors who hate the President? And for low information voters the lies and propaganda give Republicans an opportunity to stir the hate and fear pots. The base is too distracted to know that their "representatives" do not represent them.
But of course all Republicans know that their lies will be repeated repeatedly by the right wing hate machine of talk radio and Fox Propaganda.
Greg Abbott is a prime example of deception as well as a master dog whistle blower. This is a man who boasts about how he goes to work every morning, sues Obama, and then comes home. That sends the signal to his right wing base that Abbott's sticking it to a President who didn't deserve to get elected because Mr. Obama is not one of them.
Great news for the President. Why on earth would he want to be one of them?
Last night, President Obama announced his long-awaited decision to reorient the country’s immigration priorities. Because of his decision, millions living in the shadows will be able to step out of fear and work legally (though notably not gain citizenship), and deportations will decrease to a relative trickle. It’s a huge step.
Congressional Republicans, of course, are preparing to do all they can to roll back the progress. They’ll be joined by Texas’ new governor, eager to continue his legacy of feckless lawsuit distraction. Abbott’s promise as incoming governor of the state with the second highest (1.46 million) number of undocumented immigrants:
As is the case with most Republicans Greg Abbott would prefer to ignore the immigration problem here and continue with the status quo. Immigrants would continue live in the shadows, in constant fear while Greg Abbott's donors and business owners can exploit their status by paying low wages with no benefits.
According to Greg Abbott:
President Obama has circumvented Congress and deliberately bypassed thew ill of the American people, eroding the very foundation of our nation’s Constitution and bestowing a legacy of lawlessness. Texans have witnessed firsthand the costs and consequences caused by President Obama’s dictatorial immigration policy and now we must work together toward a solution in fixing our broken immigration system. Following tonight’s pronouncement, I am prepared to immediately challenge President Obama in court, securing our state’s sovereignty and guaranteeing the rule of law as it is intended under the Constitution.
The fact of the matter is Greg Abbott and Rick Perry are the true dictators. For both men always side with corporate interests and the moneyed powerful over the needs and well-being of Texas residents. Unregulated chemical plants can and will blow up communities, and kill people with few consequences.
The article in the Burnt Orange Report nailed Greg Abbott for his obsession with frivolous lawsuits.
Unfortunately, there’s also a long and established precedent of Texas suing the administration pointlessly, expensively, and fruitlessly. Incoming state executive Greg Abbott sued 25 times as attorney general. In the vast majority of those cases, Texas lost badly and stood as the lead or the only plaintiff. More than 14,000 staff hours were spent on these cases, while Texas schoolchildren, women, air-breathers and water-drinkers suffered without catching the interest of state government.
Greg Abbott's war on the President and the federal government has done little to benefit Texas residents. As I mentioned above, the state's school's finance system has been ruled unconstitutional by a state judge. We are not spending enough to give Texas children the education they need to get accepted into distingished higher institutions of learning or to be able compete for jobs in a global economy.
Greg Abbott sued to appeal the ruling.
Does Greg Abbott's hatred for the government blind his vision for the importance of education?
And if Greg Abbott and other Republicans like him are so anti-government, why on earth do they run for office?
Simply to muck it up and loot the state and federal treasuries?
Like Ted Cruz, Greg Abbott is in the game for himself.
So, when Republicans like Ted Cruz and Greg Abbott point a finger at President Obama and accuse him of lawlessness, just know that three of their fingers are aimed dead straight at themselves.
Why Texas Democrats are not giving up. All of the above and below.
Despite the tough recent election, there is positive news ahead in Texas. Battleground Texas held debriefings so far in Austin, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and the Rio Grande Valley. Although I could not attend the one in Houston friends who had said the meeting was very productive and energizing.
Despite our losses there were some jewels that were won. In my state's house district 134, Leticia Van de Putte won.
BGTX had a big learning curve in the Lone Star state and admitted it should try to hire more local organizers. Meanwhile we are all committed to the ultimate goal of flipping this state purple.
Because you know what? If most of us voted, I bet we might already be purple. But we won't know for sure until we can get more folks to the polls.
The work will continue. Our next step is for activists to become re-deputized to register voters. All expire on 12/31/14.
In Houston we will hold our second annual voter registration efforts on Martin Luther King Day, January 2015.
Meanwhile, the political director for the Harris County Democratic Party is going to help me re-build a democratic club in my neighborhood.
Turning the state purple will be a long, tough and very mean road. But we're ready to fight and we are definitely up to the job. We have bruises to prove it.
