The Big Tax

Licking their wounds, the Republicans are seizing upon Mitt Romney and the Cato Institutes' idea of an individual mandate being acceptable by the Court as a TAX. So, if you want to avoid paying the tax, follow the law. Where are you Americans for reason and truth?

Neither Purse Nor Sword

In approximately one hour from now, our Supreme Court will rule on Health Care. Alexander Hamilton wrote in Federalist 78 that due to [having neither purse nor sword]the high court will in essence be the weakest and least feared branch of our government. As I teach the Federalist Papers to my AP students, I always challenge them to explore this notion. I for one, believe it to be the strongest and most powerful branch having stolen its powers through an assumed role of judicial review which we have come to respect and accept. The Founding Fathers recognized the need for a small group of able minded men to make decisions for the rest of us in a three branch organization that checks and balances each other. They correctly believed that our inability as a total electorate to make the important decisions for the land was limted by our lack of exposure to information, education and time. Our Founders, however, were not the government of today. Today if you have an obnoxious personality, a loud voice and a stupid audience, you can easily get elected to Congress. We listen to lies because it is easier. We oppose things without understanding them and we answer poll questions without the foggiest notion of what we are saying. For instance, most Americans are opposed to the mandate, but most Americans have insurance so this view is meaningless. If the mandate prevails, their costs will actually go down. This is just one example of our incapability. Whereas when our nation was founded our government in general was made up of educated, experienced and well heeled men, today our elected officials are made up of those who are intellectually challenged, prone to slick and managed statements and personally attracted to money, power and fame. It isn't, regrettably, populated by the best amongst us. For the rest of us, with limited time, great apathy about the great issues of the day and lazy minds, we vote for people who are not capable of running our land. Due to this reality, the Court has lead the way. For example, were it not for the judgement that "Separate but Equal" is inherently unequal, there would be no Civil Rights Act. The court paves the way, and the rest of the government follows suit with legislation that follows their lead. Courts will tilt one way philosophically and then shift back, but it is made up of people with the sharpest and most intellectually curious minds we have produced. So, when they make their judgement in an hour, pundits from both sides will claim victory and defeat, politicians will continue to lie and distort, and campaigning will continue. The worst of our system will prevail in the short term, but the long term will be protected. Until we think for ourselves, judge in our best interests and smarten up, this process will co-exist with our ignorance. I must say, that President Obama has been a shining example of intellect and since many of us condemn the smart as elite and un American, he is in a tight race....evermore making my point. Where are you Americans for reason and truth?

For the Record

Tomorrow the Supreme Court will rule on the Affordable Health Care Act. For the record, this is a law passed by Congress and signed by the President who did not initially support an individual mandate, but rather a single payer system. In essence, this law was not the first choice of President Obama so Obamacare has been a misnomer from the outset. For the record, the individual mandate was a Republican idea raised by President Nixon and most leaders of the Republican party as they obsessively railed against a single payer system. For the record, Mitt Romney signed into law signature legislation as Mass. Governor that required the purchase of health care, a mandate that he now denies as important while he hides behind states rights. For the record, the Supreme Court has beoome overly politicized to our great misfortune as a nation. When Earl Warren lead the court, he realized that the nation would never accept a split vote on the matter of Brown vs. Board of Education so he worked to insure unanimity through some arm twisting and much compromise but in the end the decision was accepted, grudgingly by some, but its impact was given credibility due to a unanimous court. Chief Justice Roberts for the record, is ruling a deeply split and divided court and these differences are manifestly apparent with each major vote. Bush v. Gore, 5 to 4. Citizens United, split and the public just as it has grown tired of Congress, is now giving the court its least popular rating in decades. These facts, for the record, will put tomorrow's decision in perspective if the mandate is struck down. I hope the justices took the nations' collective disgrace in protecting the health of its citizens more seriously than they took their personal politics. It is just too important. Where are you Americans for reason and truth?

He Simply Cannot Sell It.

With a recent spate of economic news that is less than stellar, the President still retains a lead over Mitt Romney.....close, but the real fight hasn't yet begun and the incumbent has some serious bullets yet to be fired. Why you might ask is the President ahead? Because Mitt Romney cannot sell what he is selling because we don't even know what that is. He has nothing to offer except negativity and blame while six out of ten Americans still hold Bush responsible for the economic downturn. The most recent sales pitch is that the word outsourcing is not offshoring and Mitt only destroyed jobs that he replaced within the country with computers and mergers not with jobs in India. What a great argument to make while running for President. Where are you Americans for reason and truth?

Issa's Folly

Ask Americans who Daryl Issa is and they wouldnt know. Yet this Chairman of the House Oversight committee is in the news. His politically motivated attempt to embarrass a decent man and further attempt to hurt our President is disgusting. But watch out Mr. Chairman....your folly is about to blow up in your face. We just dont care. Where are you Americans for reason and truth?

Morally Bankrupt

With focus on the economy, often times the word bankrupt is used, but I would like to change its context for today's post and use it to describe Mitt Romney. He is morally bankrupt because he offers no view on anything, that is his own. His only consistency is in evoking the opposite of whatever the President says and does and then calls it politically motivated, like there's a shocker. Seriously, however, this man is a danger because on any given day and in any given moment, he will change his alleged convictions, spin them as if there was never any record, say the opposite and then take credit for something he never said. On today's Sunday roundup of news, Mr. Romney was simply unable to give a declarative answer on Obama's Immigration announcement. Why, because he was too busy weighing what the tea party and other influences would think, he was spinning, he was waffling and putting politics aside, he simply doesn't have a moral compass to guide him. He is rich, smart, but soulless and Americans, when they tune in, will run from him like a chicken running from the fox. Where are you Americans for reason and truth?

Dedication

Today I dedicate my post to the eleven remarkable students that have just completed their Advanced Placement, Government and Politics course. It has been my utmost pleasure to teach them, encourage them and guide them throughout the myriad challenges that are faced in understanding our Government and our Politics as a nation. My goal for them, during the course has only been to help them find accurate information on the most important issues of our time so that they can make intelligent and reasoned decisions as voters and citizens. I am confident that they will do just that. Great job kids. Thanks and always remember that We are the People. Where are you Americans for reason and truth?

Hold your Horses

Let's not make such a big deal over Scott Walker's win last night. It was expected. Union membership across the country is declining. The public has always during economic downturns resented unions and has responded to political demonization of them. Wisconsin is a highly divided state on cultural and rural/urban grounds. Tom Barrett was the same candidate who lost the last time and isn't accepted statewide. Lastly, those who voted yesterday would have given President Obama the edge over Mitt Romney by six points. Republicans will chirp that this is a national signal, entrench further in their opposition to growing the economy and run ads nationally about this win, but it is meaningless on the national stage, no matter which experts say it ain't so. Just hold your horses and wait till November. Where are you Americans for reason and truth?