What the hell happened in Wisconsin? Rick Perlstein (@rickperlstein), Rolling Stone columnist and author of Nixonland, says Republicans cheat. He joins Sam to discuss. Click thru for links and updates. Use this post as today’s thread.
6/19 Email from a listener: To Vote or Not to Vote
Hey Sam,
Just listened to the Monday 6/11 show yesterday, and I can’t tell if none of your listeners and correspondents have the ability to construct a cogent argument for voting third party or if you’re just reading the letters of the rhetorically challenged. So I felt compelled to give the defense a shot. Whether you respond or not, I does not care (as Herman Cain’s father would say). I just have to know that someone has presented you with these points.
First, I think that what we’re having is an honest disagreement. I don’t think that one’s position on this is an indication of stupidity or naivete. Rather, each side has tangible reasons for believing as we do, which is why we’re reaching different conclusions. Having said, I do think that voting to re-elect President Obama is a mistake. It’s short-sighted and tactically wrong-headed. There is no question that Democrats are more competent governors than Republicans. But we are living in a time when we cannot afford continuity of the status-quo. Transformational leadership is required. So, as a tactical matter, it behooves me to examine what course is most likely to force change and to cast my vote accordingly. With the prospect of catastrophic climate change looming, and the window to avert the long-term disastrous effects on our kids closing, I cannot wait for the Democratic tanker to conduct a U-turn. In such desperate times, it would be better for it to hit the iceberg.
To me, both major parties are absolutely horrible, just in distinctly different ways. The Republicans are off the rails batshit insane. The Democratic malevolence is more subtle, cementing in place the establishment-protecting precedents that work to strengthen the inequality suffocating the country. Also, they act as a bulwark against genuine progressive candidates and policies. This fact is undeniable, and it’s partly why the Republicans have not been completely marginalized already. Establishment Democrats run interference for their rhetorical foes. The two parties need each other as foils so they can both maintain their positions of power.
So, my calculus is how can both be either destroyed or completely transformed by real-world events. Hence, I’ve concluded that in the short-term it would be better if the Republicans regained the reigns of power, as much as it sucks to contemplate how bad things will get. If they do, they’ll almost certainly crash the economy, further shred our legal framework, and descend us into a draconian nightmare.
However, in such a scenario, I have great faith that the backlash will be tremendous. Following the election of Obama, we saw the rise of the Tea Party, then witnessed almost 3 years of progressive malaise as we watched the President work to thwart the change he promised on the campaign trail. Finally, the Occupy movement could take it no longer and began to fight back. But the momentum has clearly petered out. If Republicans win in the fall, I’m confident that the movement will rekindle with a vengeance, and as the incompetent governing commences, the backlash will grow and be joined by a large number of normally inactive Americans who are feeling the effects of austerity. I know this scenario isn’t guaranteed. But I think it’s far more hopeful than a continuation of beltway normalcy.
Second, you keep saying that Presidential electoral politics isn’t where the real leverage lies. This baffles me every time because that’s MY argument. It doesn’t matter who one votes for, the energy in the streets and at the grass-roots is far more important. So why get so emotional about supporting or failing to support a candidate, even if it’s for President? What matters is the pressure that builds among the populace. It’s the only power we have to push back against the plutocracy and their bought duopoly. Hence, my strategy is to refuse to support either D’s or R’s. I’m not sure why anyone would think it’s a good idea to not vote. I ALWAYS vote, about half the time I’ve supported Dems. But this year, I plan to vote for a third party, which one I’ve yet to decide. I don’t regard this as a “half vote” for Romney, since my Democratic support is never guaranteed. Rather, it’s an affirmative vote against the two-party monopoly. If you don’t take my vote for granted and call it partial support for Romney, I won’t consider your vote a tacit approval of the two party system. Deal?
Finally, you stated that no one will notice my failure to again vote for Obama if he loses re-election. That the Democratic Party will not learn the lesson that they cannot take their base for granted. You may be right, but I certainly hope not. I’m sure that the corporate media would frame the analysis as simply a matter of voters deciding that Republicans can better manage the economy and ignore the disillusionment among the President’s supporters in ’08. And if they do notice, they’ll refuse to blame the President’s policies for being too conservative or grossly misaligned with his earlier campaign promises. But I sincerely hope that you won’t accept this line of thinking. I can’t imagine you’ll absolve Messina, Axelrod, Geithner, Emanuel, and ultimately Obama from blame for failing to adhere to principled leadership and thereby disenfranchising many Americans. You won’t simply call us uninformed, petulant babies who shoulder most of the blame will you? I hope not, but I guess I’ll have to wait to find out.
Frankly, I’m ambivalent about who wins the Presidency in the fall. If Romney wins, I’m looking forward to re-engaging the fight with the Democratic establishment pushed to the sidelines. But if Obama wins again, I’ll at least be comforted that the first African-American President is not judged by posterity to have been a single-termer. In different, less dire times, this might be enough for me to support him again. Unfortunately, I don’t have that luxury in 2012.
I should also mention, your argument about the Supreme Court appointments is clearly a strong counter. My only response is that the the Court is not only a judicial body, it’s political. We’ve seen this again and again since 2000, at least. So if we get the change in society we desperately need, the court will likely shift too. Well, maybe not Thomas, but the rest of those assholes actually care about their popularity. Besides, if the court stoops to the extremism the Republican Party is destined to plummet into, it might further strengthen the backlash. Look how pissed off so many people are about Citizens United. Many more radical opinions like this one may finally force the Congress to fight back against the Court.
In conclusion, I wanted to say, if you take nothing else from this letter, know that I consider you an ally, despite our disagreement on this matter. I’ll remain a faithful listener. You won me over to becoming a member to get the full show every day. And I’m happy to support you with my modest monthly contribution. Keep up the great work. You’re providing an invaluable service.
Yours in the struggle,
10:50 am
On DemocraticUnderground.com, someone wrote about Sam asking Ron Paul about collecting Social Security. Is there any video/audio of this. Sounds classic!
11:16 am
LOL @ DU
11:57 am
http://youtu.be/jJHakkNBZbA
12:31 pm
Ah, thanks. Still a good get, would have been nice if it had been “our” Sam.
12:10 pm
eya folks! g’morning!
12:16 pm
Morning SJ!
12:19 pm
eya T!
good to read ya!whats the site link for the blue roots offshoot?
12:20 pm
got it! found it in yer sig !
12:44 pm
it is mispelled!
http://prolicarchy.com/
proliGarchy ….
1:00 pm
Proligarchy right!
12:49 pm
Espinosa, with an s instead of z, is Spanish for spiny, thorny, arduous, dangerous, and…bony. Coincidence?
12:55 pm
George Zimmerman, Treyvon Martin’s killer, is of Latino heritage. Assimilating in this country unfortunately has meant for a lot of people adopting facistic racist mindsets, a lot of self hate there. No wonder Fox and the rest of the crazed right media have no problem finding self hating people to get on the air and promote hate.
12:59 pm
Taegan Goddard Taegan Goddard @politicalwire
Obama White House asserts executive privilege for the first time… http://pwire.at/Mgw3TF
1:11 pm
Andy Kroll @AndrewKroll
Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) calls on FEC and IRS to investigate politically active nonprofits like Xroads GPS for their political work.
1:15 pm
If you want to change at the top, you have to get more progressives at the bottom and build from there.
Down ticket votes are much more important. Change the House and Senate to progressives.
Nothing will change til that happens.
1:20 pm
Jeanene was on Current with Behar last night:
We are not a post-racial society’: Behar and Garofalo on GOP’s Obama trash talk
http://current.com/groups/joy-behar-one-week-only/93813022_we-are-not-a-post-racial-society-behar-and-garofalo-on-gop-s-obama-trash-talk.htm
1:25 pm
The “heighten the contradictions” option is an old, old strategy. Has it ever worked in a progressive grass roots direction? . Ask a historian!
The email Sam read is not much different from the frequent caller Morning Star’s argument. I guess those two dont know anyone on food stamps or other state/fed govt assistance because they re pretty cavalier about the consequences of a GOP victory.
7:22 am
Has voting for Democrats advanced progressive priorities? That argument works both ways when we continue to lose on the most pressing issues: inequality, corruption, and climate change.
My thinking is still evolving as to who to cast my personal vote for. Still think the wiser strategy is to withhold support from conservative Dems. But if the majority of my ideological allies disagree, I’m stuck. Unless we all jump together, failure is a self-fulfilling prophecy. So maybe it would be better to vote for Obama, and if he loses anyway, at least be able to invoke the moral high-ground, “Hey, I voted for the guy, and he STILL lost. Not my fault. He should have pursued popular progressive policies.”
8:38 am
I also am conflicted, but plan to vote for Obama with a clothespin on my nose (the French really did this a few years ago, to reelect the mildly corrupt Chirac and keep out neo-Nazi Jean-Marie Le Pen).
What puzzles me is how progressives see that the Democratic Party is corrupt or at best really, really stupid (Rahm Emmanuel in Wisconsin, e.g.) but withdraw from the fight and disdain taking over the party from the left, the way the Tea Partiers hijacked the GOP from the right.
We should be increasing our involvement in the party, focusing on school board positions on up, until the DLC leadership is just as pushed against the wall as GOP leadership is now. But for some reason we shrink away, as if the political party mechanism is sullied by its misuse, instead of just using it. Then we start talking about building a third party from the ground up.
It’s as if French resistance fighters came across an abandoned German tank on a country road with the keys still in the ignition and refused to touch it because it was German. The Panzer division had just shot up their French village and caused untold death and misery, but they mustn’t sully themselves by using it. Instead, they will study it carefully and build a new one from scratch.
For Pete’s sake, people! Get in the driver’s seat and push out the dirty-effin’-hippie-hating Rahm Emmanuels – it will take ten years, so let’s get started now.
8:42 am
By the way, taking back the Democratic Party does not in any way preclude continuing to push for change outside the electoral process, including OWS, quite the contrary. The two mechanisms need to work in tandem. Prior to its astro-turfing, that is how the original Tea Party began.
1:35 pm
White Picket Fences, White Innocence:
http://blackagendareport.com/content/white-picket-fences-white-innocence
1:37 pm
Greg Sargent @ThePlumLineGS
Tax expert: As laid out, the Romney and Ryan plans would make the deficit worse: http://wapo.st/LBH1E8
5:47 pm
Hip-Hop Artist Brother Ali Arrested At Evicted Minneapolis Family’s Home
Published on Jun 22, 2012
by UpTakeVideo
125 community members gathered at the home of the Cruz family in South Minneapolis and 13, including hip-hop artist Brother Ali, were arrested when they crossed the police line to protest PNC Bank?s reversal of their commitment to work with the family after the family fell into foreclosure due to a bank error. Brother Ali, who grew up in north Minneapolis, has been an outspoken supporter of Occupy Homes anti-foreclosures protests for about a year.
In front of the crowd of supporters, each of the 13 spoke as to why they were willing to cross the police line before asking the officers to allow them to step onto the property and be arrested, bringing the total arrest count at the home to 39 within the past month.
http://youtu.be/5YfZsFkoRyc
11:46 am
Does admin (Binder)(?)ever peek at any of the stuff I post?
8:40 am
Bleak indeed. People are not being lynched & beaten in the streets because people are not in the streets! They are pacified, lazy, without care. Lynchings in the street are no longer necessary because the minority communities are destroying themselves from the inside out. There is little to zero hope left because people ARE NOT being beaten in the streets.