The Rise of a Left-Wing Tea Party?
By Thom Hartmann A...
During a heated confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill Wednesday, Georgia Congressman Tom Price, Donald Trump's pick for Secretary of Health and Human Services, refused to say whether or not he would support cuts to Medicare and Medicaid.
Price's refusal to answer that very simple question from Elizabeth Warren comes as Republicans are discovering that their quest to dismantle the social safety net is wildly unpopular with the American people.
Colorado Congressman Mike Coffman learned this the hard way Saturday during a town hall meeting outside Denver.
The event was billed as a "one-on-one" meet-and-greet, but soon turned into a protest as hundreds of people angry at Coffman's Friday vote to repeal Obamacare filled a lobby and began singing protest songs like "This is Your Land."
This display of democracy was apparently too much for Coffman, who fled the event early out a back door.
A similar scene occurred on Monday in Washington State, where Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers, one of the GOP's rising stars, was met with chants of "save our healthcare" during a MLK day speech in Spokane.
So, is this going to happen to every Republican?
Are we about to see a repeat of those 2010 Town Halls in reverse?
Only time will tell, but one thing's for sure: Republicans are playing with fire.
Comments
#2
i fear that the republicans are willing to play with fire because they are the best congress money can buy, they are brave and they have great faith, faith in the koch brothers actually, and faith that a complacent electorate will continue to believe a well crafted message that equates health insurance for everybody as vouchers and believe that the republicans are merely saving the system from itself. my question is, is there a streamlined way to recall our congress that is selling us out, before it is too late? i would certainly be willing to volunteer for that endeavor.
#3
I read today that some Republican congress members are going to start holding "town meetings" on YouTube or Facebook instead of in person. They know dems are taking a page out of the tea party playbook that worked so effectively and are running from them. Let's keep the pressure on these Republicans
#4
That's irrelevant considering democrats voted for a known cheater and liar. They have become illiberal, demanding fealty alone to their brand of identity politics. This election showed one consistent fact. Democrats quit speaking for the Midwest working class. Instead, Democrats, almost entirely all Democrats, demand the working class take it in the.... so they can get paid. Even Howard Dean became a lobbyist for big PhRMA. Democrats are not to be trusted, ever. They will lie, cheat, and steal to hurt the working class, and line their own pockets.
#5
We can start showing up en masse at all their offices, day in and day out. We can tie up the phones all day everyday with complaints and opinions. We should pester them incessantly, never letting them off the hook. They chose to run for office. Now let them reap what they have sown.
#6
@Drrichardpaul, I'm so sick of you trollers. I'm sick of it. The Republicans are dismantling our government as we speak and all you can do is blame Democrats. This kind of trolling shuts down dialogue, but you know that, don't you. You know that by spewing more hatred you can divert attention away from what the GOP are doing. That is the point, isn't it. Fortunately, you will be left behind. Those of us with intelligence will find solutions and responses that are relevant and adult, and you can just stay home and sulk. I live in the Midwest. I'm not uninformed about you people. Go home and watch TV and sulk. Stay out of the way of the adults.
#7
It is now less than 18 hours to Trumpocolypse, and I have resigned myself to the inevitable - Mr. Trump will become Mr. President. I still have hope that Trump will prove to be a sheep in wolfs clothing and will do more to help the average American, and stand up to, and oppose, the Republican agenda.
The iceberg is on the horizon, the rudder is broken, and the engines are turning over at full speed. What will happen next?
#8
Republicans have made the repeal of the ACA the very reason for their existence. Now that they are in power, Republican congresscritters feel they must go through with this or Americans will have a 'moment of clarity' when they realize that Republican politicians are con artists who stand for absolutely nothing except smoothing the way for their very rich patrons. Some of them also realize that there is no plan that will continue providing coverage to the people who got first time coverage under the ACA, once they remove the revenue sources that tax their wealthy patrons. A few of them may also realize that there is a very real chance that once the ACA is brought down, that the health care system in this country will soon follow.
#9
There are numerous, non-partisan, credible analyses -- statistical studies clogging up the non-fiction sections of the internet, university, and public libraries -- that reveal clearly most of the so-called "free stuff," which common working people pay for through their taxes, ends up in the pockets of the corporate "welfare queens" at the top of the self-dealing, fascistic pyramid scheme called "unregulated American capitalism."
Should not most of the hard-earned taxes return to the workers and regular citizens in ways that help themselves and their families, rather than mostly to the wealthy one percent dynasties and their heirs? And what is more important in our society than the life, health, and general welfare of the People?
The question becomes: What is the purpose of our government and of our economy -- to enrich the few or the many?
Tsultrim Melong nailed it! Trolls are not solving the problem; they are the problem! And not just on this forum, but across the entire political landscape of America. Thus, we now have fouling the Oval Office an egomaniacal sexual predator and pervert, an immature, rapacious greed-head with his cabal of racist advisors, war-mongering generals, and billionaire scavengers.
FYI: The vast majority of the "working class" -- including but not limited to: Native Americans, Black Americans, Hispanic Americans, Muslim Americans, Immigrant Americans, and most White Americans -- voted overwhelmingly for the Democratic Party, even if you exclude the seven million who were disenfranchised by Republican voter suppression schemes (which is the main reason why Democrats -- of many stripes -- "lost" the severely limited, undemocratic Electoral College).
What the good doctor (assuming by his moniker that he is) apparently means is that Democrats "quit speaking" to white racist Americans and lost their vote. Well, good riddance!
#10
Deepspace - I don't know when common sense and human love of fellow man began to degenerate
Was it ever there unless in my idealistic mind
Got a strange feeling Trump is not going to be able to regenerate
#11
@ ikeberltersen:
Right on! Either way, the rank and file Republicans, who will need healthcare as much as anybody else, will inevitably realize they've been totally had by their politicians, who only care about their wealthy donors and how to stay in power.
Sure, largely due to "Buckley v. Valeo" and "Citizens United v. FEC," Democrats also have to play the money game to play the political game. At least most politicians in the Democratic party, the traditional party of the common man and woman, fight for legislation that benefits struggling workers, as opposed to most politicians in the Republican Party, the traditional party of the comfortable wealthy, who only fight for legislation that benefits their donor class.
It's high time we reverse the economic and political paradigm in this country and regain power of, by, and for the People. We need to realign the system so that it more fairly (to borrow a phrase from humorist, Finley Peter Dunne) "...comforts th' afflicted, afflicts th' comfortable..."
#12
@ Hephaestus:
You always ask the most thoughtful and unanswerable questions about the plight of humanity and the condition of the human spirit.
Heehaw! I'm just an Irish horse, so a wee bit o' Guinness in my trough makes life good... :--))
Now and then, however, I like to read the works of different philosophers -- haha, for all the good it does me.
One of my favorites is j. krishnamurti. Here's a quote about belief systems to ponder:
"If we had no belief, what would happen to us? Shouldn't we be very frightened of what might happen? If we had no pattern of action, based on a belief -- either in God, or in communism, or in socialism, or in imperialism, or in some kind of religious formula, some dogma in which we are conditioned -- we should feel utterly lost, shouldn't we? And is not this acceptance of a belief the covering up of that fear -- the fear of being really nothing, of being empty? After all, a cup is useful only when it is empty; and a mind that is filled with beliefs, with dogmas, with assertions, with quotations [I plead guilty], is really an uncreative mind; it is merely a repetitive mind. To escape from that fear of emptiness, that fear of loneliness, that fear of stagnation, of not arriving, not succeeding, not achieving, not being something, not becoming something -- is surely one of the reasons, is it not, why we accept beliefs so eagerly and greedily? And, through acceptance of belief, do we understand ourselves? On the contrary, a belief, religious or political, obviously hinders the understanding of ourselves. It acts as a screen through which we look at ourselves. And can we look at ourselves without beliefs? If we remove these beliefs, the many beliefs that one has, is there anything left to look at? If we have no beliefs with which the mind has identified itself, then the mind, without identification, is capable of looking at itself as it is -- and then, surely there is the beginning of the understanding of oneself."
#13
Talk about Republicans playing with fire, I see Giuliani's role in the Comey scandal is finally being exposed.... geeeez what the hell took so long?
I'm trying to recall how many times I posted that we needed NATO to oversee our election over the past couple years???? It looks like the justice department refuses to act on this particular crime....which in turn sends a clear message that election fraud is just fine when it's the billionaire party doing it.
I'm watching Obama leave office with seemingly little concern for the 99% of us who are about to get sodomized by the billionaires. He'll be fine ...no problem man! He made a statement to the effect that things in this country will be OK....for guys like him...you bet! I'll never forgive him for pushing the god damn free trade right along with the republicans in a presidential election year....in fact I'm not forgiving anybody, including members of my own family for voting for the Fascist/billionaire party.
Obama knows what's in those Trump/Putin classified reports and yet he is calmly leaving office...zero outrage over what amounted to a third world election. It seems Stephanie Miller is the only media personality that gets it....the election was a complete fraud and should have been declared invalid. F the smooth transistion of power when it's based on treason.
Our current government is basically about to allow a Russian expansionist dictator to take control of our executive branch, and it's all about oil deals.... sound familiar?
One more time...It probably won't sink in , but I'll try again. When a voter has been lied to and votes based upon that lie, those he voted for are in power to only represent either themselves and or those individuals who fomented the lies to begin with...certainly not those who voted for them. Polls show us all what the true will of the people is. Obama made a giant mistake by thinking republican voters desire what their elected officials legislate for. Compromise is a totally farcical approach when massive misinformation is introduced into the equation of democracy.
Screw it....nobody in power stood up to the Fascist coup...I had hope a CIA employee would leak the info before tomorrow..now we're all fffed!
If you truly want to fight back....Join and participate with anonymous!
#14
Hey flyguy 8650, I guess that's what the slaves said to their masters: "Please don't take away our Free Stuff!" And that's what the laborers say to the your greedy, shit-head, billionaire buddies after they take the best of their lives and toss them away like garbage, after they are done with their years of backbreaking labor.
I really can't tell you how much I despise callous, heartless, turds like you.
I will say you got the president you deserve.
#15
Fixed elections, intimidated press, dumb-downed population, one-party rule, extreme wealth disparity, for-profit healthcare, for-profit schools, for-profit prisons filled to the ceilings, for-profit everything, low wages, stingy safety net, broken treaties, rubber bullets, tear gas, freezing water cannons against peaceful protestors, widespread civilian surveillance, soldiers in the streets, Ninja Turtle-look-alike cops, unarmed (perceived) "criminal" minorities gunned down at the slightest provocation, destruction of the environment, poor people fighting rich people wars...
Does anybody still doubt that fascism has already come to America, "wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross?"
#16
Deepspace,
And it all happened during the time when a democrat occupied the White House.
K2
#17
@ Kilosqrd #16:
Virtually every single time a right-wing troll posts shallow, bumper-sticker, programmed talking points on this forum, they reveal to the world their, apparently, willful ignorance of history and a high degree of naivety and gullibility in their emotional and mental make-up, which has allowed their conditioned minds to be thoroughly manipulated and brainwashed by fascistic punditry, Republican propagandists, the echo chamber of the fringe blogosphere, hate radio, corporate TV, and, more than likely, Fox so-called "news."
To come up with such a half-baked notion and then deliberately make the effort to login and actually type it out for all to see, indicates you are too far down the rabbit hole to effectively communicate on a level that would be constructive for either of us. Your present position and state of mind can only be pitied -- and I mean that in the compassionate sense with all sincerity.
Please, for your own sake and for the good of the country, shed your right-wing skin of fear and hate and ignorance, expand your limited base of knowledge and horizons; then, join the rest of humanity.
Briefly, to respond to your inane comment:
The sweep of modern history that has led to our nation's present sad state of affairs did not begin with Obama, as you well know -- or certainly should! In fact, I will proffer that all of our politicians of all stripes, going back a very long time, were and are just as much victims as the rest of us fools of what Eisenhower described in his original notes for his farewell address as the "military-industrial-Congressional-complex" -- a growing, out-of-control, malevolent beast that is consuming nearly all aspects of our lives and that mocks the original principles upon which our nation was founded.
Furtive fascism serves to benefit the obscenely wealthy leeches who have been around forever, sucking our blood behind the scenes, while bought-and-paid-for politicians come and go like fruit flies on the public stage.
In short, wake up, troll! :-O
#18
Thom, I think your recent interview with Bill Ayers speaks to many aspects of these questions:
((The Big Picture/01-19-2017))
http://www.thomhartmann.com/bigpicture/bill-ayers-demand-impossible
#19
Deepspace: I hate to disagree with you but I'm somewhat inclined to agree with Kilogrd on this one. No, it didn't begin with Obama, but he had a unique opportunity to bring it to an end.
I've covered this several times on this site, but again: When Obama was elected in 2008 he virtually had a mandate from the people to demand accountability and bring to justice the Bush administration and all the corporate felons that had bankrupted the country. That was the thing that the people most craved from the new president and what they expected. People wanted to be shown that politicians and the rich were not above the law. Instead, Obama gave them the impression that all politicians are all the same. And if they are all the same...might as well go with the ones you most relate to.
Had he followed through with making these felons and traitors accountable, it's likely that the Congress would not have won by the GOP in 2010 and the Senate in 2014.
Plus things like the Shirley Sherrod and Van Jones and Acorn affairs where Obama failed to show the least bit of guts in defending these people, further alienated many that had crossed over to elect Obama in the first place. The disappointment of voters for this lack of accountability is much of what is still reverberating to this day.
Therefore, he left the door wide open for something like this to happen and of course, Republicans did not miss a beat in charging back into power. Yeah, the Republicans lied and cheated their way to victory, but Obama blew the golden opportunity to bring it to a halt.
#20
@ stopgap #19:
Yes, there is no denying that Obama absolutely did not live up to his obvious mandate to hold the Bush Administration accountable for blowing up the Middle East, militarizing America, and tanking the world economy. I've read a lot of what you've written before and am largely in agreement with your take on things.
My huuuge problem with Kilosqrd and certain others, however, is that they like to deliberately isolate one period of history and take it out of context to insinuate that the long arch of fascism is all the fault of the Democrats, as if history began on inauguration day, January 20, 2009, when Obama inherited the whole happy mess from the Republican binge party.
That is partisanship at its worst. Had he responded to my previous description of the widespread, ongoing fascism in present-day America with any sense of fair-minded balance and fleshed it out a bit in the proper context, I wouldn't have laid into him so heavily, and, perhaps, we might have had a more constructive exchange. I just don't have much patience, obviously, with bumper-sticker trolls who twist history to further a false narrative.
I'm no Obama apologist, but I do feel he has a good heart and merely fell victim to the unimaginable pressures of the military, the CIA, FBI, NSA, the rest of the fascist alphabet soup, and, of course, Wall Street -- as most Presidents do. Nonetheless, since he had so many people who had his back, he could have, and should have, resisted the onslaught more effectively.
In fact, back in the day, I was very active in opposing his natural tendency to seek compromise with hardcore, repugnant Republicans, who continually spurned his advances and made him look foolish. He just was not a good poker player, which was very frustrating to those of us who believed strongly in pushing back hard to accomplish a more progressive agenda during the short window of opportunity that was available. Although he did do a lot of good things that should be applauded, he fell far short, in my opinion, of what he could have accomplished in regards to the really important issues.
The areas where he utterly failed: not holding Wall Street billionaires accountable for the 2008 crash; not holding Bush and Co. accountable for lying us into war; increasing the surveillance state (which is now in Trump's greasy little hands ... my God!); pushing for the goddamn trade deals; continuing the Bush-era transformation of our civilian police forces into quasi-military units; not extracting America from endless resource wars in the Middle East and elsewhere; and not moving more forcefully toward clean energy.
Also, he could have released the intelligence on Russian interference in our electoral process to balance out the endless, one-sided "leaks" against Hillary. And I will forever hold Democrats responsible for not seriously investigating massive, organized, Republican election fraud that goes all the way back to at least the 2000 election, and likely much earlier.
You're absolutely right though; by not holding Wall Street criminals accountable and by not showing the people that politicians are not above the law, Obama set a horrible precedent that ushered in a new dark age in America, and probably across the planet. Of course, this all has to be tempered with the unavoidable fact that the entire Republican establishment -- in concert with a compliant corporate media empire -- blocked this President on everything every chance they got and are just as, or much more, responsible for this sorry state of affairs we find ourselves in.
I'll give the trolls one thing though -- they can make their points, however false, in much shorter bits and bytes...
#21
Amen!!
Yeah, it's one of those things that I hate to keep harping on but I'm afraid it could well have been the last opportunity to stop these fascists. Now, with all the power they have, and controlling every branch of the government and media from top to bottom, there may never be another chance.
However, if there ever is another chance, Democrats have to learn from Obama's mistakes and never let these bastards off the hook. The political war does not end with winning an election. A fact that Republicans know all too well with their 24/7 politicking. And with their Congressional investigations, they are particularly good at campaigning on the public dime.
Just as an analogy, if Grant had been Lincoln's top general from the start, the civil war probably would have only lasted a few months. He knew better than winning a battle or two and resting on his laurels. Once the enemy is on the ropes, you don't let up until they are completely beaten to a pulp. And make no mistake, Republicans are the enemy!
This should have not been a secret to Obama as virtually every week of the Bush presidency there was a book exposing their criminal and treasonous conduct. I guess what really bothers me is how or why this was not apparent to Obama and his advisors? There has to be something else going on here. It can't just be incompetence.
#22
I think it all comes down to money in politics. When Presidential and Congressional candidates have to raise billions and billions between them to stay in the game, they are more beholden to the interests of their corporate donors than they are to the interests of the people. That attitude translates into Executive initiatives as well as into Congressional legislation.
Obama and Hillary are "moderate" (I hate that term!) Democrats and are both guilty as hell of selling out -- not quite as much as Republicans, for sure, but enough that it came back to bite them in the ass. By the time they tumbled to the realization that the mood of the electorate had shifted far away from the normal paradigm of political calculation, it was too late to back peddle. Trump is a dummy, but he was at least smart enough to steal Bernie's talking points and run with them -- not that he will, or can, fulfill any of them.
Bernie Sanders proved that there is a different path to follow, in spite of the corporate-friendly money rules of the game set forth in the contemptible decisions by a right-wing Supreme Court. He had a simple message that he stuck to no matter what and kept repeating forcefully and loudly. The inarguable truth of it resonated with everyday people, who gladly donated to his campaign. He almost made it despite every imaginable force arrayed against him -- his own chosen Party, his opposing Party, the Hillary campaign, corporate media, and the entire right-wing blogosphere swamp of lies. Alas. At least he's still in the Senate speaking truth to power.
If Trump and the Republicans overplay their hand and bicker among themselves, creating their own self-imposed gridlock, if Democrats wake up and learn to fight back as a minority Party like the Republicans did, if they can stick to the simple truth of Republican depravity and frame a more positive message to break through the media sound barrier, and if American voters get serious about democracy, do their homework, and sort out the truth from the lies, it's highly probable for the Democrats to regain at least a Senate majority in two years.
Then, they could block all the crap sure to excrete from the House and prevent it from reaching Drumpf's dirty little hands, which can barely hold a pen. Let the immature pervert tweet away in the middle of the night as much as he wants.
That's a lot of "ifs" ...
#23
Deepspace:
Let me help you shorten your bloviated posts. I'll rewrite the ones @kilosqrd 16 and @stopgap19. I'll eliminate all the condescension, name calling, undocumented "facts", blaming and BS. Here's what they would look like with the above eliminated.
@17 Kilosqrd
@19 stopgap
:))
#24
Why, aren't you the clever little troll, nipping at the heels on the ass end of threads.
Your points are always as diminutive as your posts -- but then, emptiness is expected from empty minds. Curt and concise, your marketing skills have served you well.
However, irreverence is a difficult path at life's end, Grasshopper. May "Imus in the Morning" continue to light your way.
:--))
#25
Ou812, You're little bio a while back told us more than we need to know. You can step out of the closet now and quit hating yourself.
#26
The epitome of left wing condescention. Calling those that disagree with you trolls,
#27
You are not trolls because you disagree; you are trolls for spreading despicable lies. This forum would be much better without your offal clogging up the pipes. Go away!
#28
Trump is attacking on all fronts. If we fight each battle separately, according to individual interests we can never WIN any. Time to Unite together and just say NO! to EVERYTHING.
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