July 2006 Archives

Politics is all about appearance - forget substance; that comes later, if ever! This last week has seen all manner of political actors mugging for the media attention. Election season is officially open. Following are a number of stories highlighting the mugging for cameras and print news. A few even hold out the promise of substance later on, but, don't hold your breath.

Nedra Pickler reports:

President Bush presided over a citizenship ceremony on Monday for three soldiers injured in Iraq, calling them "men who knew the cost of freedom and were willing to pay that cost so others could live free."

Bush also used his visit to the Walter Reed Army Medical Center to promote his stalled proposal for overhauling the nation's immigration laws.

I know many folks cruise blogs for that short jibe that appears to say in 10 words what most others say in a book with years of research. But, America is the most complex single organization to ever exist in world history outside of nature herself. The argument that an economic train wreck for our economy is just over the hill cannot be made in 10 words or less. But, this understanding also, could not be more important, nor the emergency, greater.

In five and one half years as President, GW Bush, could not find his veto pen to curb record deficits and national debt, an issue, which an overwhelming majority of Americans want addressed. In similar fashion, Pres. Bush is disappointing the majority of Americans again on federal funding of stem cell research, by vowing to make it his first veto as President. The President's action is right, the wrong reasons.

Donna Cassata of the AP, recently wrote about a new Associated Press-Ipsos poll in which voters prefer Democrats to Republicans this November. In her article it states:

The AP-Ipsos survey asked 789 registered voters if the election for the House were held today, would they vote for the Democratic or Republican candidate in their district. Democrats were favored 51 percent to 40 percent.

Not surprisingly, 81 percent of self-described liberals said they would vote for the Democrat. Among moderates, though, 56 percent backed a Democrat in their district and almost a quarter of conservatives - 24 percent - said they will vote Democratic.

Pres. Bush said yesterday, that we are making real progress on the deficit. "We" in this context meant Republicans under his leadership, and "progress": well, I will get to the meaning of progress in a moment. First, here are some facts: some of which, were stretched and absent in Republican's touting their great economy and deficit reduction yesterday.

One fact was straightforward and honest. Our economy is seeing job growth. This fact is not surprising in light of the fact that we have been rebounding from a worldwide recession, and job growth has been rebounding across the globe. That is not to say that corporate tax cuts which, lowered the cost of doing business, did not help create jobs. They did. Whenever businesses see increased consumer demand, as when we are coming out of a recession, and lowered costs of doing business, jobs will be created.

Sen. Joe Lieberman is willing to run anyway he can. And he is willing to reject the voter's choice at the Democratic primary in Connecticut, if necessary, to preserve his incumbency. He says he is doing it for the good of the people.

If the voters choose Liberman's challenger in the primary, Ned Lamont, Sen. Lieberman announced he will reject the voter's choice and run in November as an independent. This is precisely the kind of behavior that demonstrates how little respect far too many incumbents have for our political system, our democracy, and our government. Winning is everything, and everyone else's concerns are secondary.

In a somewhat biased article, Paul Rogat Loeb, writes about Lieberman's loyalties. Loeb's article misses the mark though, pointing to Lieberman's loyalty to the Republican leadership, when reality appears to reflect Lieberman's loyalty to the preservation of his own power, regardless of which party's voters he must pander to.