GOP Tsunami Warning: July Edition

It's four months before the midterm elections, and things are not looking good for the Republicans.

According to an AP-Ipsos poll in a piece written by Donna Cassata of the AP, "Americans by an almost 3-to-1 margin hold the GOP-controlled Congress in low regard and profess a desire to see Democrats wrest control after a dozen years of Republican rule."

Makes you feel kinda warm and fuzzy all over, doesn't it?

The AP piece goes on to say that:

"Further complicating the GOP outlook to turn things around is a solid percentage of liberals, moderates and even conservatives who say they'll vote Democratic. The party out of power also holds the edge among persuadable voters, a prospect that doesn't bode well for the Republicans."

Nevertheless, the election is still four months away, and the Republicans could still do a lot to try and turn things around -- in fact, they've already started. Have you seen all the news stories about the terrorist plots that have been foiled? Plots that you haven't heard about before even though they date back months and sometimes years? Do you think it's a coincidence that we're only finding out about these now?

The G.O.P. is still trotting out the old playbook -- "If you don't vote for us you're all going to die in a mushroom cloud in the next five minutes. Did you hear us! DIE! In a FIREBALL! DUCK AND COVER! DUCK AND COVER!!!!!!!"

It would seem -- at least at the moment -- that Americans are beginning to see through the Republican bullshit and understand the reality of where this country is right now.

But is it enough?

Let's look at the reality. According to the AP piece, "To seize control of Congress, the Democrats must displace 15 Republicans from House seats and six Republicans from the Senate."

Given the way that Congressional districts have been rigged (or, to use the politician's expression, Gerrymandered) to favor incumbents, this is a very hard mountain to climb.

And yet sometimes there is a feeling in the country that the tide is moving in a certain way. I know that I'm heading into Peggy Noonan territory here, but there's a feeling that people know what's happened to this country. We're a little slow on the uptake sometimes, so it can take us a while to pay attention (especially when the powers that be are doing everything in their power to distract us from what's important), but I think that the fog has lifted and people in this country are facing the reality of the situation -- possibly for the first time.

What exactly is that reality?

Well, I've said it in this blog any number of times. The Republicans have complete control of the power structure of this country. They have the White House, both Houses of Congress, and for all intents and purposes the Supreme Court. And they've blown it.

They inherited eight years of peace and prosperity and they've thrown it away. They took a budget surplus and tossed it in the trash and took out the old credit card and started borrowing with it. They got us into a war we didn't need to fight that has cost us thousand of American lives. And although they will never admit it, their negligence was a direct factor in the attack of September 11th.

They took a country that was pledged to the rule of law and they've done things that only totalitarian nations usually do. We've invaded a sovereign nation that no intention of attacking us in an aggressive war totally without justification. They've kidnapped people and sent them to other nations to be tortured. They've imprisoned people for years without trial or any formal charges being filed against them. They have turned us into a nation that tortures people.

We have become the kind of nation we usually fight against.

The Republicans have fucked up this country beyond recognition. It's time to throw the bums out.

But there's one thing you can count on -- and that is that Republicans don't give up power easily. They will do whatever they have to -- fair or unfair, legal or illegal -- to maintain their hold on the levers of power in this country. So while the numbers are looking good for the Democrats to do what Democrats have been relegated to doing over the past quarter-century -- that is, cleaning up after the messes that Republicans have made -- it is way too early to start celebrating.

So do whatever you can do to help out. Give your money or your time to candidates such as:

Nick Lampson in Texas: http://www.lampson.com/

Ned Lamont in Connecticut: http://www.nedlamont.com/

Tammy Duckworth in Illinois: http://www.duckworthforcongress.com/

These are the kind of people we need to elect to public office in order to make our country something we can be proud of again. So do what you can, and don't let the Republicans steal another election.

Because they're going to try. You can count on it.

Tom Moran