Meet The New Boss...Same As The Old Boss

All is not well in the land of the Tea Party.

First, according to a recent New York Times poll, the tea party is the most unpopular it has been since they started polling on the tea party’s favorability in April of last year.

Secondly, according to data compiled by two researchers and published late in  2010, and recently updated for a paper back edition (American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us), the tea party ranks lowest in the 24 separate groups of Americans’ or individuals who they polled on. They are among the least popular groups of any kind of Americans in politics and culture right now. They have a lower favorability ranking than Sarah Palin, Democrats, Republicans, Atheist (God Bless Them), and Muslims – who were vilified for trying to build a community center in lower Manhattan.

The authors examine the role of the tea party in American politics and the data is painstakingly researched and brutally honest. For instance, when polled, Americans overwhelmingly stated that given a choice between a tea party president and Muslim president, they would prefer a Muslim president. Not a fake Muslim president, but an actual Muslim.

Wow.

Needless to say, the billionaire sugar daddies (Rupert Murdoch, David and Charles Koch, Dick Armye’s Freedom Works) that are bankrolling America’s so-called spontaneous and leaderless populist uprising have a public relations problem that threatens their self-interested and at times radical agendas.

The other fascinating thing that becomes clear from the data collected is the undeniable fact that the tea party, which is often billed as an non-partisan grass roots political movement, is actually nothing more than the same old republican base with a fresh coat of paint. In fact, past republican affiliation is the single greatest predictor of tea party support today. Also, next to being a republican, the second criteria for being a tea party cardholder is the desire to see religion play a prominent role in American politics.

Despite what Michele Bachmann, Sarah Palin, and Glenn Beck might have you think about the tea party express – the data collected shows that the tea party movement is not a bunch of independents that are upset with the growth of government, fighting the good fight, but actually, the same old religious, conservative wing of the Republican Party. 

The curtain has been drawn back and the wizard as been exposed.

Meet the New Boss…Same as the Old Boss.

Pay As You Go

Considering there have been 36 Presidential disaster declarations in 2011, (there were 267 such declarations from 2001 to 2005, but 330 in the five years that followed) and Hurricane Irene swept through the northeast and left a trail of destruction that is still playing itself out, one would think that budget requests and Congressional appropriations for FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) disaster relief and recovery efforts would be on the rise. Sadly, that is not the case.

The 2012 Homeland Security appropriations bill will include $3 billion in cuts to FEMA’s budget. NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), which has already been hit with budget cuts  (about $140 million) that will diminish its ability to track storms, and FEMA, like much of the federal government, will lose about a third of its funding over the next decade if tea party Republicans have their way.

Normally during times of great need the Federal Government puts aside its partisan bickering, and spends whatever is necessary to help make whole what has been broken or destroyed, and lend aid (food, medical, loans, relocation assistance) to help families and communities rebuild. That has always been one of America’s greatest virtues – we come together as a nation and we help each other. And this humanistic philosophy has served us well since the founding of our great Republic.

Alas, certain congressional leaders have a different view on what is the proper role of government, and what form should Federal assistance take on any given occasion. Case in point—speaking on Fox News Channel, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said a natural disaster like Hurricane Irene is an “appropriate instance” for a federal role, but that the government can't go deeper into debt to pay for unexpected outlays.

“We will find the money if there is a need for additional monies,” he said. But “those monies are not unlimited. And what we've always said is, we've offset that which has already been funded. Unfortunately the government continues to borrow money and to spend money it doesn't have." 

The House Majority Leader equated the situation to what an ordinary family would do in a crisis, doing without a new car to pay for the needs of a sick loved one, for instance. Cantor is the poster child for the tea party, and his position has been the consistent view of majority Republicans since taking control of the House, even with disaster relief funding running thin after yet another severe weather event.

Cantor is a genuine profile in lack of compassion and empathy for the plight of people in need and worse yet, he is a walking disaster for the economy and his constituents. In fact, Cantor, who has been on vacation for a month, has not held one open town hall meeting to talk face-to-face with his constituents about their concerns. Maybe he is afraid they might ask him about jobs, the zero number that he has created and the thousands that have been or will be lost from the disastrous cuts embedded in the debt crisis deals.

The state of Virginia, which he supposedly represents, has suffered through the epicenter of an earthquake, the effects of Hurricane Irene and a near depression. But Cantor never lets a crisis go to waste. So now he and the heartless tea partiers have taken the low road again by saying that disaster relief ought to be offset by spending cuts.

Compassion for the rich and disdain for the rest of us: class warfare in full bloom for all to see.

It’s About Time

After 15 years and some heated debate, the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial in Washington makes it long awaited debut at the National Mall. The memorial is a 30-foot granite sculpture of the prominent civil rights activist, and is flanked by a crescent–shaped wall inscribed with 14 excerpts from Dr. Kings most notable sermons and speeches.

According to Harry Johnson Sr., president and CEO of the MLK National Memorial Project Foundation, “This is going to a first in two different ways—it’s the first memorial on the National Mall to honor a man of peace, and a man of color.”

Building a permanent tribute to the globally revered icon was a long and arduous process that tested the determination and faith of the team behind the project. The vision to build a national memorial dedicated to Dr. King was initially conceived in 1984 by Alpha Phi Alpha, the African-American fraternity of which King was a member. Congress authorized the memorial in 1996, and two years later the Alphas set up a foundation to manage fundraising -- to the tune of $120 million -- and design.

While his legacy has been reduced to snappy catch phrases, ‘limited series’ postage stamp collections and Federal Holidays dedicated to the proposition that all American’s can devoutly worship at the altar of rampant consumerism, ultimately it is much more than a trip to the mall or a quick sound bite on TV during “Black History” month.

The true measure of the man we know as the leader of the American Civil Rights movement is actually more about the “message” that he, as well as other abolitionists and revolutionaries throughout history have given their lives to uphold and defend: the message of healing and unconditional love. Dr. King sought the integration of the spiritual and the intellectual, he asked us to go beyond ourselves and tap into the transcendent moral ethic of love.

Dr. King was the spiritual leader of our nation; he was the Commander in Chef of the war on racism, hate and inhumanity—the war for the soul of our nation. This war still rages on today, three years after the election of America’s first black President. This should not be the case, but tragically, it is. The price of freedom demands eternal vigilance, even more so when we speak of the ugly and odious specter of established racism. Perhaps the human heart will never truly free itself of fear and hate—but I refuse to accept this conclusion. The human race is made of finer stuff, and therefore, the warriors of light and love can never rest until the war is finally won…

But for the time being, right in the heart of our nations capital, bordering Washington, D.C.'s Tidal Basin between the Jefferson and Lincoln memorials, stands a 30-foot granite statue that captures the vision of one man who dared dream of freedom, opportunity and justice for all Americans.

It’s About Time.

Too Little, Too Late

Ohio Gov. John Kasich wants to negotiate a compromise on the anti-collective bargaining law known as Senate Bill 5. The highly controversial bill sharply restricts collective bargaining, ends binding arbitration and bans worker strikes for all state and local public employees.

Perhaps because of the sobering results of Wisconsin’s’ recall elections, or his sharp decline in job approval rating Kasich held a news conference to publicly ask union leaders opposed to SB5 to meet with him and other Republican leaders.

According to Kasich his sudden epiphany and willingness to talk and negotiate with union leaders has nothing to do with efforts to repeal the law, or a recent Quinnipiac poll that shows the measure being defeated by double-digit margin.

Senate Bill 5 which was signed into law on March 31 has dominated the Ohio political landscape for months and has galvanized staunch opposition from all quarters. Boisterous and intense rallies in the Statehouse have drawn huge crowds. One rally in particular attracted more than 8,000 people, which in turn prompted Kasich and his cronies to lock the Statehouse door to keep opponents out. Those types of strong-arm tactics drew national media attention.

Unfortunately the working and middle class in Ohio didn’t take kindly to being shut out of their Statehouse and decided to collect 1.3 million signatures demanding the repeal of SB5. WE Are Ohio spokeswoman Melissa Fazekas, who was waiting outside Kasich’s Statehouse office, made it clear that the time for talk and foot dragging was long past.

"These politicians who passed Senate Bill 5 have the ability to come back and repeal the law," she said. "And that is what they should do, repeal the entire law. Or they can join us and vote no in November on Issue 2."

Gov. Kasich and the Republican leadership in Ohio rammed SB5 down the throats of the people of Ohio, they locked the doors of the Statehouse to keep opponents out and they made a mockery out of the democratic process. They own SB5 and they are going to defend it to the bitter end, and they will do anything, including standing before the cameras at a press conference and asking the people who they ignored and victimized, “hey lets talk.”

In most cases, an honest an open debate is the way to go. Democracy is dependent on compromise and respect for differences of opinions. Unfortunately Gov. John Kasich and Scott Walker in Wisconsin see the democratic process as something to be discarded when it stands in the way of their political aims. They talk real tough when the game is rigged in their favor, but when the voters take up the call to arms and stand against them, and then they have an epiphany and run to the cameras to plead their case. In the case of Senate Bill 5, the time for talk was 197 days ago when Gov. Kasich ignored the will of the people he works for.

1.3 million voters have already spoken and their message is succinct and clear, “Too Little, Too Late.”

Why ask Why?

Nouriel Roubini, the well known economist that predicated in 2005 the housing bubble would cause an economic crisis in America, says that former President George W. Bush is to blame for America's current economic crisis. Well duh!

Roubini, or Dr. Doom as he has been labeled because of his dour outlook on the state of our economy, claims that there are five factors that have led to our current fiscal condition.

1. We cut taxes.

2. We spent $2 trillion on two unwinnable wars.

3. We doubled discretionary spending. Some conservatives originally aimed to "starve the beast" or big government by cutting taxes in order to force future cuts in spending. But spending grew so out of control in Bush's term that no beast was starved, Roubini said. In fact, the beast was fed.

4. We added entitlement benefits like the Medicare drug benefit.

5. We entered the largest economic and financial crisis ever, which caused a huge increase in the deficit through the "recession deficit" and the cost of bailing out the banks and financial institutions.

According to Roubini, "We destroyed our fiscal sustainability before [President Obama] came to power. We had guns and butter and low taxes. It doesn't work. If you want guns and butter, you should have high taxes during wars."

The "guns or butter" portion of his statement refers to the macroeconomic model, that says that a nation must choose between defense spending or civilian spending, or some combination of both. In other words you cannot throw a big party without paying for it, or, you better have money in your checking account to cover that big purchase.

Of course most well informed and intelligent people (the operative word being "intelligent") understand that when President Obama came to power, he inherited a budget deficit of $1.2 trillion. When Bush came to power, the country had a surplus of $300 billion. But that is not going to get any traction at Fox News. Its easier to play the victim rather than take credit for the mess your political party helped create. And sadly it's far easier to stand on the side line and call President Obama an outsider, and "a non citizen of the United States" and vilify him as Satan incarnate rather than help him fix the mess.

Remember, the "Hell No Party" want him to be a one term President, and they are perfectly willing to allow the middle class and the American economy go into the abyss to accomplish their short-term aims.

To be sure there is more than enough blame to go around in Washington, our lack of leadership in Congress has contributed to S & P's credit downgrade which made Wall Street very unhappy last week, which in turn made all our 401k's very unhappy. But re-litigating who should shoulder the blame and how we came to this sad predicament isn't going to solve the problems we face as a nation.

We are here, and it is now. We need Jobs, Jobs, and more Jobs. The middle class needs help and the time for cute sound bites, and empty promises is over.

The time for "Why Ask Why?" is over.

The time has come for all our elected leaders to do the unthinkable and do their jobs and actually lead...

Tax the Rich… What A Concept

Tax the Rich… What A Concept

Rarely does a billionaire write an opinion piece in The New York Times that receives a positive response.

When someone like Warren Buffett urges U.S. law makers to raise taxes on the country’s super-rich to help cut the deficit, it’s a pretty big deal that makes many people shake their heads in disbelief.

On the one hand, the vast majority of people will say, "you an ungodly amount of money and you have some nerve complaining." Then there are those that will say, that your opinion is spot on and the rich do need to pay more in taxes, and, "you have an ungodly amount of money."

According to Mr. Buffett, the concept of shared sacrifice should apply to all Americans…yes, even billionaires with ungodly amount’s of money. The Tea Party’s line-in-the-sand, that implicitly states that government spending must be slashed while taxes can never be raised, even for the superrich, is an unsustainable strategy that lacks any semblance of common sense and leadership.

Too many American families and small business across our nation are struggling and need help. They no longer have the patience for all the Washington shenanigans’ that has led S & P to downgrade our credit rating. If this country is going to pull itself our of the ditch then its going to take compromise and shared sacrifice from everyone, yes, even millionaires and billionaires who have ungodly amounts of money.

It’s embarrassing and shocking when a billionaire has to scold our elected leaders to act in the best interest of our nation. But who better than a man who has an ungodly amount of money in his bank account to speak truth. To be sure, there are many die-hard, self-described capitalist that will swear we will let loose the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse if we dare ask the superrich to pay their fair share in taxes.

The Republican Party and their Corporate Overlords will shape the narrative into the following sound bites, “The rich are not like us, they create jobs, they can’t pay higher taxes, corporations will pack up and leave if their taxes go up, its democratic socialism, etc.”

And unfortunately, some people will buy the con-job, hook, line and sinker. After all, the rich and the powerful in this country have always been very successful at making solidarity, and communalism appear blasphemous.

Perhaps John Steinbeck had us figured out when he said. “Americans don’t like socialism, because the poor here see themselves not as an exploited proletariat but as temporarily embarrassed millionaires.”

In the meantime, one lonely billionaire with ungodly amounts of money has stated what is normally considered unthinkable.

And America is still standing…imagine that.

Corporate Greed At Its Finest

The Verizon Strike of 2011 is not about Health Care!!

If it were about Health Care there would be no work stoppage.

The Verizon Strike of 2011 is about one thing only: Corporate Greed!

Verizon wants to accelerate the outsourcing of American jobs to other countries by removing all aspects of job security from upcoming contracts, to freeze all pension for current workers, and completely eliminate them for future employees, slash sick time, eliminate disability payments for injured workers, eliminate holidays (including Veterans Day) and completely gut health care plans for current and retired workers.

Verizon wants to bust the CWA and the IBEW unions, then take the 45,000 unions jobs and outsource them.

Some fun Facts:

Verizon claims that the landline portion of its network is in decline and not profitable, yet they fail to mention that landlines are the backbone network of their FIOS, DSL & Wireless operations. They want you to think that there is no need for a landline because they want their FIOS & DSL to be classified as “internet or data” instead of exactly what they are: landlines. Every cell tower connects to a landline network. Without Verizon’s landline business they would have no wireless business!

Despite making $19.5 billion in profits and paying out $258 million to it’s top 5 executives in the last four years, Verizon wants to take back more than 50 years of collective bargaining and destroy middle class jobs.

The President of Verizon makes $55,000 a day, and has free, lifetime medical coverage.

Verizon has paid $0 in federal corporate income taxes over the last three years.

Verizon received nearly $1 billion in tax benefits from the federal government (your money) over the last three years, how much has the average American worker received in tax benefits?

Yet again…the Verizon strike of 2011 is about plain Corporate Greed.

The American Middle Class is under siege and its time to circle the wagons and defend the homestead.

One last thing…I am CWA member who is fighting for the future of my children and the American Dream.

Can You Hear Me Now!