Krugman: Paranoia Taking Over GOP

New York Times :

Last Thursday there was a rally outside the U.S. Capitol to protest pending health care legislation, featuring the kinds of things we've grown accustomed to, including large signs showing piles of bodies at Dachau with the caption "National Socialist Healthcare." It was grotesque -- and it was also ominous. For what we may be seeing is America starting to be Californiafied.

Read the whole story: New York Times

Comments

[wildedge]

Krugman's article is spot on, as most of his writing has been. But with a weak president and a divided Democratic Party, there seems to be no proper response from those with the authority and supposed savvy to make such response. Instead we are offered platitudes and offers of 'bipartisanship.' Whatever Obama or the Dem leadership in Congress do now will likely be 'too little, too late' - and I just don't really see them doing anything.
But politics for Beltway insiders is all about lobby money, so what fool could have hoped or believed change was or is possible?

[dakotawoman]

There seems to be no winning this war. And if Klugman is right -- that the obstructionism and anarchy being released is DELIBERATE as the reactionary, self-justifying Right Wing discontents live out their anti-government agenda -- then where is the remedy? The only alternative is to violate their free speech rights, but doing that would make us criminal thinkers/b­igots/oppo­rtunists/n­ay sayers like them. Dilemma!

Even during Dubya's most egregious awfulness, I never ONCE contemplated taking to the streets with signs portraying him as a monster. I might have carried a sign calling him on his crimes, but not the hate-filled, almost traitorous calls to violence that the Tea Baggers and Co brandish. The fact that such behavior today is barely commented upon by ANYBODY -- taken for granted, I suppose, considering the source -- is intolerable.

And deeply disturbing.

[dakotawoman]

I have felt a growing sense of the insanity of the extremist Right Wing for almost a decade. For much of that time, I was uneasy, but hopeful that rational statesmen (and I judged Obama to be one) could reverse the death spiral. I am less hopeful, not because of any perceived failures by current statesmen, but because of the sheer reckless abandonment of all restraint and all pretence at reasonableness from the Right.

At what point does recognition of this sickness in the "body politic" enable and abet its flourishing and/or at what point does one combat it? And how? Apparently pointing out what's happening merely stirs 'em up like a stick in a nest of snakes, resulting in lots of hissing, coiling, venom dripping, posturing and snarkiness from the defacto leaders like Limbaugh and Beck.

But silence or marginalization gives them room, time and encouragement to spread the virus; they gloat at that point, claiming that their "righteousness" has silenced the enemy.

[Lori Bowles]

In the words of monty python " I just sh/t my armor".
His article made way to much sense! More work has to be done to wake these people up, grandma has to start playing more bingo no more protests!

[IllinoisTexan43]

Since when has paranoia NOT been a hallmark of the GOP? They thrive by infecting their supporters with it.

[wildedge]

Don't miss Krugman's point! - The GOP politicians are no longer using these people, they have become one with them. In Krugman's own mild nightmare scenario, the legislative branch would simply stall to a standstill, unable to address debts, deficts, the need for new programs, economic downturns. But there is an even scarier scenario. Having utterly identified with the far right, if the GOP attain power they would ram through a horrific right-wing agenda. Iran would be invaded; once Roe v Wade was overturned, performing abortions could become a capitol offense in some states; Medicare and Social Security would be privatized; an amendment could be passed requiring Chistian prayer in public schools, as well as loyalty oaths taken on the Christian Bible; the remnants of welfare would be removed, leaving hundreds of thousands more homeless; minimum wage would go, necessitating 16 hour work days (x7 weekly) for the working poor; we would all need to carry our birth-certificates which could need to be presented on demand from lawmen. Women would be pressured out of the workplace or allowed only with drastically reduced wages; there would be laws effectively resurrecting segragation - by race in some areas, by religion in others; there would be at least one major attempt to 'round up' illegal immigrants and hold them in concentration camps; Habeas Corpus - gone; right to bankruptcy - gone; right to privacy of property except in case of warrant - gone.
Yes; Bush was a nightmare come true - but it

[goto1000]

Yep, the lemming in you folks is alive and well! Get voting!!!

[blueshield]

I'd never seen it clearly before, but I think Krugman's got it right: the conservative / GOP of today have no interest in governing, at all. They are truly anti-government, and see their role as dismantlers and disablers.

Nothing explains better the current crop of politician­s-cum-medi­a personalities and the recent default of governance and responsibility.

[dakotawoman]

I agree. As real statesmen (capable, reasonable, competent, citizen LEADERS devoted to the well-being of the governed) were replaced by politicians (partisan careerist office holders more interested in winning votes & retaining personal & party power) the ideal of a real democracy has receded from our grasp. This has been obvious for a long time and we just worked with it as we had few other good options.

Krugman's observation that the anti-government extreme Right is truly ANTI-GOVERNMENT is obvious now that it is articulated. What else can explain the abdication of all the real Republican STATESMEN (if any) and most of their career office holders? It is clear that the Republicans are now dominated by ideologues who are truly bent on obstructing or destroying any government that they don't control. And if the governance of George W. is any lesson, perhaps the destruction of those they DO control.

[RedKnuckles]

As much as I am astounded by the extreme hyperbolic rhetoric of the far rightwingnuts, I am more worried about how their constant drumbeat in the media is influencing progressive politics. Krugman characterizes this very well. We've seen many hints of Obama's governing style, which is not progressive. He was elected by a progressive groundswell and threw progressive red meat to the crowd on the campaign, but he is clearly a centrist and continues to drive progressives crazy with his continous flirtation of Republicans. Much as we saw with Creigh Deeds in NC, who ran mostly as a Dem in name only, while threatening to reject the public option and his embracing of other right wing policies, if Dems continue to run as Republican Lites, people will select the true Republicans. We need more Dems in Congress like Alan Grayson, who shows a genuine concern for the people and doesn't give a rat's patootie what the right wing says.

[LooktotheLeft]

Teabaggers creed:

"My overindulgent life, thus far, has been devoted entirely to serving me, myself, and I. My health care plan s*ucks but I'll be d*amned if I've gonna give it up for something that may be better just so this elitist President can look good. I've been pushed around my entire life, from grade school on up, and I've got a chip on my shoulder the size of Mt. Everest and if I have something to say, by god, I'm gonna say it even though I look like an a*ss and no one with any sanity is listening to me anyway while whatever family members I have cring hoping I won't come home. But I'm gonna scream and shout nonsense anyway until it comes out my ears because I'm getting attention for which I've been so deprived and which I so crave"

[EndRacismNow]

Wow. You're quite analytical. I think you pinned exactly the thoughts of every tea party person. You don't understand them so you came up with some awesome insight into the mind every person who ever attended a tea party. You should be very proud of yourself. Those silly teabaggers. If only they knew the Utopia that the corporate-sponsored Obama will bring them. Heavy taxes to pay off the world banks will bring a new era to America. I can't wait to pay my carbon taxes to Al Gore. That will save the environment and give government more power to control my life. YES!

[LooktotheLeft]

I'm not sure what's scarier...them, or you empathetic to them

[BBinMT]

There is probably alot of truth in this...worrisome.

[TovSquirrel]

While I agree with the article in most respects, I think if the TeaBagger portion of the Republican party were to win House elections in 2010 it would be at the expense of the old guard Republicans.

As for the "Californiazation" of national politics, it has already occurred. In fact, due to gerrymandering, I think the Republicans are over-represented.

[juanni]

Krugman wrote......
In California, the G.O.P. has essentially shrunk down to a rump party with no interest in actually governing — but that rump remains big enough to prevent anyone else from dealing with the state’s fiscal crisis.

BS.
The Republican party is CA is legislatively irrelevent and has been for years.
The fiscal crisis is entirely the result of the layers of liberal nanny state programs and state employee largess.

Sorry Paul, CA is in financial failure because of your party.

[BBinMT]

I thought the Republicans made it impossible to collect/raise property taxes there. It has been brought up a few times that this is one of the reasons the state gov't can't raise revenues.

[CO2feedsPlants]

well said

[Atmus]

Sorry. Dont know what articles in the LA Times you have been reading. But as a Californian resident you couldnt be MORE wrong.

did you see the February Vote when they were trying to fix this mess? Or how about this summer?

You DO know when they were trying to come up with a new budget that it was blocked by the Republican party right? Not just once either.

I dont care what you ideology you believe, but dont come on here and straight lie.

Thank you

[gabemill]

I find the use of the term "conservative" an abuse of the language when applied to the current incarnation of the republican party. What is conservative about politically opposing every proposal of a legitimately elected administration that came into power with a mandate from the American people? When in power, what was conservative about taking the biggest surplus in history and turning it into its largest deficit? What is conservative about the alleged family values crowd conducting criminal activity (http://www.republicanoffenders.com/)?
What is conservative about the alleged patriotic, support the troops crowd opposing the New GI Bill? What is conservative about opposing litigation for rape in the workplace (Franken Amendment)? What is conservative about opposing the Equal Pay Act, that sought to equalize women's pay? What is conservative about leading a band of thugs that compare Obama to Hitler? The list is long!
These aren't conservati­ves......t­hey are OPIC's (Obstructionist Party for the Information Challenged).

[Booblius]

"What all this shows is that the G.O.P. has been taken over by the people it used to exploit. "

I'm sure I'm being redundant and obvious as many other posters have already observed, but I've got to agree with Paul, and it feels so good to blog it out loud "the nuts have taken over the assylum."

[DEvans1]

Great article.

[DickTater]

I agree with ­the majorit­y of his arti­cle. But the democratic sweep of 2006 and 2008 weren't the final blow.

They had their chance. 8 years, and the republicans did nothing for them. The radical right and religious folks and the anti-abortion crowd and anti-immigrants and racists did not get what they wanted. Even when the republicans did give them what they wanted, it didn't make the differences that the right-fringe thought would come about.

Denied science, global warming, evolution. Didn't make the world a better place for rightwing crazies. We shut up liberals, ruined journalism, jailed dissenters, spied on all the lefties, pushed abstinence only...didn't change the world for the better for the rightwing crazies.

Pushed for religion, hard on Trial Lawyers, curtailed abortions, curtailed personal bankruptcy, gave all the powers to Cops/CIA/B­­anksters.­.­..did everything a rightwing crazie could love and it did not make them happier or improve their benighted, ignorant existence. Still they hated on the liberals, the immigrants, the welfare moms, the lazies....and nothing was good enough or made their world resemble what THEY THOUGH­T WOULD HAPP­EN if they got their wish-lists approved.

Now we witness the backlash. They got eve­rything the­y wanted, and still their ignorance/­­persecuti­o­n would not lift. Now many of their leaders voted out, they are turning their frustratio­­n/ignoran­c­e levels up to 11.

[MontanaSouth]

And yet, they go on wishing to all the things they think will give them their country back. It is total disconnect for them. They refuse to believe that their belief system is flawed.

[EndRacismNow]

Hardly. Bush was anything but a conservative. I wouldn't call him liberal either. He is a globalist before any other label. Everything he did was for the global corporate cabal. I don't see how shipping all the jobs overseas with 'Free Trade' agreements made right wingers happy. How about importing millions of undereducated workers into the country to displace American jobs? Then Bush wanted to give them amnesty and bring more in with a 'Guest worker program' so we could have legalized indentured servitude. This is all for corporate profit. Why pay American decent wages with benefits when you can outsource factories and bring in cheap labor to do the jobs for them? Both parties have this philosophy. So just like Obama is pissing off the left wing, Bush pissed off the right wing. Neither party gives a d@mn about their ideology or their electorate. It is all to keep the global elite in power. The Left/Right paradigm is only in place to confuse and divide Americans from rising up and kicking both parties out of office. Corporate America, Wall Street, and the international bankers really pull the strings and they don't care if you elect an R or a D because they have the money and the means to control whoever the media helps get elected with their very slick mind-control that just pacifies the masses with confusion and apathy.

[DickTater]

pRetty much off topic. I guess you can whip out that rant for every single dilemma facing america. Not that I disagree with you on much. I didn't say Boosch genuinely tried to make all the rightwingers dreams come true, but he sure threw them a lot of bones. All that ownership society stuff, all the religion, all the anti-science and creationism and abstinence and anti-abortion. Right wing supreme court justices.

You do not address much of what I brought up. And I believe my point still stands. So many of the things that the rightwingers wanted were made true. And it didn't change the world one bit like they all screamed that it would. And just like Montana South stated above your comment, they feel more than ever that the country was stolen and needs taking back at gunpoint.

Sure, nobody is ever completely happy. Left wingers aren't happy with Obama and Rightwingers weren't happy with Boosch all the time. Anyways, Krugman's article about the paranoids is pretty spot on, aside from my small divergent take.

[TooLooze]

You are pretty much saying that Bush deregulated everything he could possibly deregulate. He got government out of everything necessary for his agenda which was pretty much the same agenda as the tea baggers. He left the economy in a shambles and our standing in the world as low as it could possibly be.