When America elected its first bi-racial President division took on a new and more sinister face. I say this not because Barack Obama actively attempted to divide our nation, I say this because the white conservative/republican/Evangelical alliance against President Obama set about to insure his Presidency would fail. You may remember the republican leadership actually verbalizing their desire to see Obama fail. When he was reelected it sent the conservatives and republicans into meltdown.
With a growing economy and an ever improving job market at the end of President Obama’s second term Americans elected one Donald J. Trump to the most powerful job in the free world. Unlike Obama, a man who wished only to unite all Americans, Trump set about dividing Americans along socio-economic, cultural, and racial lines.
Trump has been called a narcissist, a misogynist, a bigot, a racist, a xenophobe, a crook, and a mendacious story teller among other undesirable character traits. All true to a very high degree. As many of my associates and acquaintances would say, Donald Trump is a real piece of work. I assure you they don’t mean it in a complimentary way! For an excellent perspective on Trump be sure to head on over to Progressive Eruptions.
Interesting enough I was once a staunch conservative and a successful business manager for most of my adult life. Until I realized (belatedly) that the modern conservative (republican) agenda is in fact a scam. Conservatism was once about fiscal responsibility and making an honest attempt to maintain a manageable federal debt. No longer is this the case.
Today conservatives/republicans TALK the talk of fiscal responsibility, reducing deficits, and the federal debt. Yet in reality they spend like drunken sailors on the MIC (Military Industrial Complex) and maintaining the USA war machine. At the same time they ignore the nation’s infrastructure and minimize the importance of the social safety net. IE, their words and actions clearly demonstrate that conservatives and republicans really don’t care about the middle class, the disadvantaged, or the working poor. Conservatives and republicans are ONLY concerned about cutting taxes for corporations and insuring that their multimillionaire and billionaire buddies are able to avoid paying their equitable share of taxes. In short their attitude is I got mine, screw you. IMO (In My Opinion) the majority have zero social conscience and fail to realize their present course may very well result in a major social/economic upheaval of gargantuan proportions. If and when it happens is ain’t gonna be pretty. Mark my words.
As for the blogosphere? Let us just say that the wealth of misinformation and totally false information is astounding. Unscrupulous individuals with misguided agendas spend their time pushing boat loads of bullsh*t that ill-informed and uninformed folks believe simply because it is what they WANT to hear and believe. It is made worse because we have a president, Donald J. Trump, that is as guilty of willfully spreading misinformation and outright lies as anyone in blogistan. Either right or left blogistan.
I consider myself a classical liberal. Although, for most of my adult life I identified as a conservative. Now, at 67 years young seeing where conservatism has led us, to Donald J. Trump, I find myself questioning how I let myself be hoodwinked for so many years. It really has been very clear since GWB, and maybe even as far back as Ronald Reagan, that Republicans, many conservative, and even some Evangelicals have become the consummate hypocrites. Like the old saying goes, better to find out late than never.
While I have refused to join the Democratic Party since leaving the Republican Party over ten years ago I plan to support every effort to defeat President Trump in 2020. The democratic presidential field has some promising candidates. If Joe Biden decides to run he likely will be my early on favorite. However, I must say Kamala Harris and Beto O’Rourke are both impressive. Rounding out the front four, albeit in the back, is Bernie Sanders. No matter which democratic candidate secures the party’s nomination they will get my vote. I encourage every knowledable and patriotic American to do whatever they can to insure the defeat of arguably the worst president in American presidential history.
I still believe America will figure out that Donald J. Trump is a malignancy on our democratic republic. And, I believe it is possible she will get it right in 2020 and send our national malignancy packing back to where he came from. The pressure now being brought to bear on Trump by the democratic majority in the House as a result of the Mueller investigation and the Southern District of New York is both proper and a very good thing. Truth always has a way of finding the surface. When it does justice will be served. One way or the other. The foundations of our representative democracy is solid and it is sound. It has withstood many difficult challenges over the course of its history and it most likely will be able to withstand the huge fart that Americans allowed to blow into the Oval Office on January 20, 2017.
As this final post goes up I want to say thanks to ALL of my readers who happened to stop in over this 10 year run. For their positive comments as well as their criticisms. They have been appreciated in more ways than some could ever imagine. My readers, both supporters and detractors, have taught me more than I ever imagined they would 10 years ago when I first entered the troubled waters of America’s political blogosphere.
Thanks again. Enjoy life and don’t sweat the small stuff.
Social Security is not a retirement savings plan; it is a social insurance program. It's a contract that says, as a society, we will look out for you and your family when you can no longer work.
Jeff Bingaman
Update May 16, 2019:
