What does it mean to be a Republican?
Larry Beinhart: What It Means To Be A Republican
The vice president shoots you in the heart and in the face. Then you apologize for all the trouble it’s caused him. That’s what it means to be a Republican.What it comes down to is this: Republicanism today has nothing to do with ideology or a philosophy of government. It is completely disconnected and insulated from reality, and its adherents live in a fact-free universe where truth is whatever Dear Leader says it is. Republicanism is the Cult of Dubya, and Bush worship is their only credo. And we won't wrest power from them by being shocked and sad, dear Frodo.
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The president puts together false claims to go to war with the wrong country. His party universally supports him. That’s what it means to be a Republican.
[snip]The president orders wiretaps without warrants, a straightforward violation of the constitution. When the Attorney General is called to testify, the head of the Judiciary Committee insists that his testimony not be under oath. The head of the intelligence committee suggests that the law be changed, now, to make it legal after the fact. That’s what it means to be a Republican.
Alberto Gonzales helped come up with the program that rejected the Geneva Conventions, that permits torture, that says that the president is above the law and that “I was only following orders” should be a defense against a charge of war crimes. Ah, if only the Nazi war criminals who were hung at Nuremberg had Gonzales there to defend them. The president nominates Gonzales to be his new Attorney General. He is confirmed with little debate and no outrage. That’s what it means to be a Republican.
[snip]
What it implies is that Republicans can’t be dealt with as if reason and facts will sway them. Because it won't. It’s hard for reality-based people, regular Democrats and Liberals, to understand that.
Technorati Tags: Republicans, Bush, Dubya, cult, worship, Fuehrerprinzip
