Broken Government: A Must Read

I have read the last three books in John Dean's trilogy of criticism of the Republicans and neo-conservatives. Worse Than Watergate and Conservatives Without Conscience were extremely interesting and informative. Broken Government is the book that really gives the reader startling information about how the Republicans have attempted to destroy the processes that have been the foundation of our constitution. And they have done it in ways that have not been reported by the MSM. I was shocked at the methods the Republicans have used in governance to try to destroy our three branches of government for their benefit and attempt to convert this country into a fascist dictatorship.

At the end of the book, Dean implores the reader to vote against the Republicans in order to save the Constitution and our republic. The final paragraghs below of Broken Government need to be used as the platform for the Democratic Party in every campaign throughout the country.

"As I was writing this closing section, an old friend from the Nixon White House called. Now retired, he is a lifelong Republican who told me that he voted for Bush and Cheney twice, because he knows them both personally. He asked how my new book was coming, and when I told him the title, he remarked, 'I'll say the government's broken.' After we discussed it, he asked how I planned to end the book, since the election was still a good distance away. I told him I was contemplating ending midsentence and immediately fading to black-the way HBO did in the final episode of The Sopranos-but that I would settle for a nice quote from him, on the record. He explained that he constantly has to bite his tongue, and the reason he does not speak out more is because one of his sons is in an important (nonpolitical) government post, and we both know that Republicans will seek revenge wherever they can find it. How about an off-the-record comment? I asked. That he agreed to.

'Just tell your readers that you have a source who knows a lot about the Republican Party from long experience, that he knows all the key movers and shakers, and he has a bit of advice. People should not vote for any Republican, because they're dangerous, dishonest, and self serving. While I once believed that Governor George Wallace had it right, that there was not a dime's worth of difference in the parties, that is no longer true. I have come to realize the Democrats really do care about people who most need help from government. Republicans care most about those who will only get richer because of government help. The government is truly broken, particularly in dealing with national security, and another four years, and heaven forbid not eight years, under the Republicans, and our grandchildren will have to build a new government, because the one we have will be unrecognizable and unworkable.'

Those comments summed up our current situation and our possible future as eloquently as anything I could have wished."

Comments

[Herrington]

"another four years, and heaven forbid not eight years"

Startling indictment from a life long and connected Republican. It gives me hope.

I pine for the days when the question before the nation was a simple matter of small vs. large government, a time when a Goldwater was the most frightening politician on the landscape. Somewhere along the line, probably with Reagan, the Republicans turned so viciously committed to forcing their ideology on America that they turned into a monolithic deceit machine bent on victory at any cost to decency, liberty and economic sensibility.

And within that monolith a poisonous few found the perfect place to hide and nourish their agenda of the pillage of America. Now that we have all suffered, Republican and Democrat alike, under the reign of terror unleashed by the greedy under the flag of the ultra right, it is time to force the mainstream Republicans to breathe the political air that they have been party to poisoning.

What self respecting Republican would stand and watch his own party rape the traditional honorees of his party, the thrifty and hard working middle class, at the behest of a handful of greedy would be despots? And, which of them does not feel the pain of abandoning the economy, the budget and the debt to a class of people who does not give whit about any of it? How can even an archtypical self reliant Republican think there is not something wrong in a system of free enterprise based healthcare that is getting massively more expensive even as the technology and labor productivity, that nominally should reduce costs, increases?

Take a deep breath Republicans. The stink is because of you.

[anfractuous]

The fact that Dean's source couldn't speak on the record, says it all. Everyone has some good (usually financial)reason to keep their mouths shut. Managing to open them, in defiance of all the good reasons, is what was once known as courage. If it wasn't for this guy's son, you can bet, it would have been something else, like his boat payments.

[Robert59]

He confirmed my suspicions in his first book. Another excellent read is "American Theocracy."
But Al Gore and Michael Moore have said it too.
Vote Democratic!!!!!

[newdem]

Read John Dean!

[oldpotsmuggler]

DON"T FEAR The Second American Constitutional Convention!!!

It"s getting harder to find anyone who does not think poorly of our current Administration and fret for the future of our nation. In fact pessimism that things are even salvageable seems now to be far more prevalent than any optimism.

And then the subject of a Constitutional Convention is broached as a way to bring things back to an even keel, and a common response is fear that working on this fix would be worse than the course we are now on. It is said that politicians, BUSHCO, big business, etc. etc. will hijack the situation and use it to drive the final nail in the coffin of our fast fading liberty.

Think about that, though, and it becomes readily obvious that these sorts of responses lack logic. It might be correct to say that those who have co-opted our current system so fear the results flowing from a Convention that they will join in preventing us from going that route. But how can it be correct to say that not trying the one thing that is designed to remedy exactly the sorts of abuses of power that we are subjected to on a never ending basis today is going to give a better result than making the effort? The goal of convening is to combat the problem caused by office holders being beholden to big money interests. They will be no more beholden if we have a convention, and no less beholden if we don"t. They will proceed to exactly the end result that clear thinking people rightly fear unless and until a decisive end is brought to their ability to do so.

The fact is that we"ve lost if we don"t fight and that the only arena available to fight in is the all powerful entity that exists when The People pull their authority from all government and exercise it in ways that create true remedies. That entity is a Constitutional Convention and, by definition, democracy can conceive of no more powerful institution.

[nowaterboardUSA]

I think the American public's rejection of Bush's Social Security Privitizing shows that there is currenly opposition to some of the neo-con agenda of privitizing first all of America than the world creating a capitalisitic nightmare that makes the robber barons of yesteryear look like saints. However, the neo-con reps have been very good at dividing and conquering using the lowest common denominators of race and class baiting to keep themselves in power. Don't look for them to go quietly and not anytime soon!

[seawolf77]

I was saying this right before the 2004 election and BAM they re-elected him. Unbelievable. That's when I knew I could no longer remian here. I have lost all faith in my fellow citizens.

[mrcontinental]

They stole that one as well my friend.

[wldnswmmr]

Yet what to do when Richard Lugar and Chuck Hagel vote against the Kyl/Lieberman go-to-war bill, and Harry Reid and Carl Levin are enthusiastic supporters? I think what's going on is that the Republicans are very bad indeed, and the Democrats, in general, pretend to be aghast at the "party of corruption" in order to seize power for themselves and dole out government favors to the insiders of their choosing, so they can repopulate K Street with Demo supporters. I don't think we're going to change course by incremental tinkering, and if you really think we're in or headed toward a Fascist dictatorship, then I guess you need to look at the kind of world events which were necessary to break the hold of Fascism in Germany and Italy. One thing's for sure, the populace in those countries did not vote their way out of it.

[BBackSoon]

Viva la Revolution!!!