Politics used to be a dirty business. It's changed.
It's gotten dirtier.
And I hate it.
Politics has become a no-holds-barred game of no-pad tackle football played on a sloppy, grimy field. And you know who's got the better team? The Republicans.
I don't think they have better ideas. And I don't believe that they have what's right for the majority of Americans as their goal. But when it comes to the game of political annihilation, they're just plain better at it.
They're organized, methodical and indefatigable when it comes to trying to destroy Democrats. And what's maddening is that the Democrats seem to sit idly by even though they know what's being done to them.
The Democrats are trying to be polite and civil. I like that about Democrats. It's a classier way to behave. They know that people are judged by the company they keep and it's hard for them to see a benefit in joining the pigs down in the mud.
But times are dire. And enough's enough.
We've got Harry Reid. We need Dirty Harry.
We've got Nancy. We need Sluggo.
It's time for Democrats to take a page from Network and, a la Howard Beale, get mad as hell and not take it any more.
The high road is certainly the preferable route, but traveling it to everywhere just ain't workin'.
Right wing conservatives frame issues with lies and relentlessly hammer away at them until those lies are perceived as reality. They do so loudly and with scowls and grimaces. And when the cameras are off and microphones have been put away, I'm guessing they smile and congratulate themselves on pulling off yet another successful ruse.
The laws of physics tell us that for every action there's a reaction. Then for every lie, there should be a truth. And the louder the lie, the louder the truth needs to be.
But lately, when Democrats answer back, they step up to the microphone, shake their heads and sigh as if trying to imply that everyone knows the real truth. Sorry, if that were true senior citizens wouldn't think to ask their president if his health care plan is out to kill them.
And when the Dems do raise their voices in their own defense, during the next news cycle the GOP is right there branding them as angry partisans. Then instead of staying angry, the Democrats back off. It's beyond frustrating.
Sorry, but when someone tells a lie about you, remaining silent does nothing for your cause. Thinking that joining the liars in the mud is beneath you is high-minded but totally ineffective.
A hero's service was lied about so often and so effectively that "swift boating" became a commonly used phrase meaning to lie and get away with it. John Kerry chose not to dignify his detractors' lies until after they'd beat his candidacy to death with them. By then, of course, it was too late.
I believe Obama's a good man. His classy intelligence and suave manner are a pleasant change from Bush's crude cowboy act. I think he's doing what he believes is right and what he thinks will work for the good of this country and its citizens. After eight years of people who I don't believe really gave a damn about any of us, I find the nascent Obama administration refreshing.
That said, I think it's time for Obama to come out fighting.
It pains me to say this, but he needs to be just a little less polite. I think he should pick up a club and starting swatting the lies down. All of them. He shouldn't let even one go unanswered. If he believes he's right then he's got to go out there and say so. Not calmly. And not professorially.
He's in a brawl. He's got to brawl back.
He's got to get pissed off. And, afterward, when the Right labels him as an angry man, he shouldn't calm down to appease them. Not answering one's critics gives the impression that you have no answer.
When the GOP talking points say that the Obama health plan is intent on exterminating our elderly when their care becomes too costly or troubling, I think Obama needs to come out and say that's not true. Not with a wry smile, but with closed and pounding fist. Something along the lines of, "Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Mark Levin and every other commentator and blogger who say that are flat out lying to you because they think you're too stupid to check their facts." Then he should point to a big enlarged picture of the exact verbiage in his plan about end of life counseling that the right wing is falsely paraphrasing and explain exactly what it means.
When the Republicans start throwing the term "socialist" around, Obama should take to the airwaves and explain exactly what that means, who's saying it and why it's not a fair or honest description of his economic policies. He should also not be afraid to "look backward" and remind America who created the mess we're in now and make it clear that the huge deficits and bailouts started months before he took office. Of course, his critics will say he's shifting the blame away from himself and holding the Cheney administration responsible. Well, in certain instances, that's exactly what he should do.
When the Right says Obama wasn't born in this country and isn't legally the president, I think he should use his television time to name names and kick asses. Tell the country in strong terms that they're being lied to by the "Birthers" and explain that they're doing so to distract the public from legitimate issues that should concern us all. And when they do it again the next day, he should be right back out there labeling them as the liars they are.
The Right is so good at their deception that their latest tactic was to send their Minority Whip, Eric Cantor, out to tell us that the Left made up the Birther movement so that the Right would be blamed for it. Huh?
Besides, the left isn't organized or devious enough to think of that.
I wish they were. But they're not.
And I wish they didn't have to be. But they do.