Most days I'd rather trust these guys than the bozos ruining the House of Representatives. While John Boehner will be remembered for his shortcomings as Speaker, he is parting with a dash of honesty. The Hill is full of "false prophets" and Ted Cruz is a "jack ass."
I expect Cruz to begin channeling tail gunner Joe McCarthy. For the history challenged, he was the drunk demagogue who fueled the "red scare" hunting for communists in Hollywood, the State Department and under the bed. He did a lot of damage until common sense, decency and journalism exposed him for the gas bag fraud that he was. Oddly he is still a darling of some right wing Evangelical Christians, so Cruz may indeed reincarnate intolerance, ignorance and ignominy.
FLASHES OF KID HOOD
While a lot of folks in Washington have lost theirs, Lana still has hers. She's beginning work on some painting ideas and rolled out her kid hood prized marbles.
AND THESE ARE HISTORIC
These clay marbles belonged to her mother and are well over a hundred years old.
A SKY MARBLE
An appreciated cloud cover and fog occluded our view of the eclipse, but the night before the moon and clouds provided a dance of their own.
But Hemingway is especially reluctant. Our recent light rains gave him plenty of reason to stay on the chair.
EMERGING SPRING
BOEHNER IS A BONE HEAD
Some of our founders must be spinning over the jack ass moves of John Boehner.
The constitution gives exclusive powers to the President to receive ambassadors and public ministers of foreign governments. Boehner violated that historic and important principal by inviting Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu to address congress. His vindictive winner take all style of opposition politics might earn him applause from the far right and anti Obama forces, but it is dead wrong. It could be a disastrous precedent in an increasingly dangerous and complex world.
The US Congress is an independent body of course, but historically partisan politics end at the shore. In foreign policy and diplomacy, the US has and must speak with a single voice. The reasons are obvious and borne out by history.
The US cannot deal with other nations with more than a single voice and intent. That is not to say we cannot have robust internal debate, but in bilateral relationships, only the Chief Executive has the power to engage foreign officials and especially heads of state.
Boehner is an inept Speaker and now he becomes an historic blunderer. Even if you are a conservative, Republican, or not a fan of Barack Obama, you must still respect the institution and history of the Presidency and its exclusive role in bilateral relationships. Boehner is a fool and a mean spirited one at that. His move on Netanyahu, meant to embarrass the President and to boost Netanyahu in his own political race, is wrong and indicative of how low the Republican party is stooping. As a matter of fact I suspect Ev Dirksen, John Foster Dulles, Teddy Roosevelt, William McKinley, Henry Clay, Robert Lafollete, Robert Taft and many other Republicans are spinning as well.
Boehner should spend the remainder of this term of congress with a bright yellow A emblazoned on his forehead.
As soon as I started shooting the sign this morning, more than a dozen others got out their cars and began doing likewise. I felt like a translator at the UN, explaining the best that I could. Japanese, Chinese, Greek, Swedes, Italian and French. Those who spoke or understood English then translated to a growing crowd of others who swelled the road side crowd.
The Ranger Booth at the Tioga Pass entrance to Yosemite was under siege. No one, except those with printed reservation forms were being admitted. The Rangers were doing their best to remain cool and apologize. More than once they sympathized with foreign visitors who were here for what is likely their once and only visit to the iconic American vistas.
We were saddened for those who will miss the views that should be on everyone's bucket list. We visit frequently and it was easy for us to shake it off, not so for the others. He must have been a Russian, at least by my guess of his accent. He was explaining to traveling companions, loudly as he walked back to his car. "To close this park. They are a government of stooges!" Agreed, I thought to myself.
We drove on to other destinations. On our way out we passed the group of Brits who shared our lodge dining room only an hour or so earlier. A group of 20 or so had rented Corvettes and are touring California. There they were, bright, shiny convertibles, in a caravan headed west on 120
toward the gate where the besieged ranger probably wished he could tell the increasingly long line of cars that he worked for a government of stooges.
A few Republican lawmakers are doing what should have been done years ago, telling the self righteous and dangerous Grover Norquist to go pound sand.
Dangerous? How else would you describe an ego freak who collects "pledges" from federal lawmakers to abide by his view of government or else face a challenge by a Norquist lackey, funded with millions of dollars. Norquist really believes that a pledge to him is more sacred than any oath of office, or the unfettered performance of the duties of the office to which his "pledgees" were elected. He likes to strut, bantam rooster like, before a weekly gathering of political operatives, mostly conservative and mostly Republican, who are there to kiss his keister.
PRIDE BEFORE THE FALL
Really, where does Grover Norquist get off thinking that he alone can control Republican tax policy and votes?
Who appointed him to this extraordinary power? By the way, Norquist is a bit of a fraud.
He's been an associate of Jack Abramoff, the convicted power broker who found plenty of ways to use and divert federal tax funds. He's also an associate of the phony Ralph Reed, who has ripped off and manipulated Christian rightists with his own brand of sleaze. Why Norquist has not been tossed over simply because his association with those scum probably goes back to those pledges that he collects and his threats to unseat anyone who challenges his view.
Norquist calls himself a boring Methodist. He is of a particular ilk of Methodist though, one who is married to a Palestinian Muslim who worked for the Islamic Free Market Institute. The Islamic Free Market Institute was founded by Norquist. That's cozy isn't it? The Institute also took money from two organizations that were linked to SAAR-the organization with ties to international terrorism. Norquist should feel right at home since he employs a kind of political terror on the Republican party. And Norquist's wife worked with USAID. USAID of course pumps US tax dollars into foreign venues and initiatives. Boring Methodist hardly seems an apt description for such a master of double talk, phoniness, duplicity, sleaze, self aggrandizement and zealousness.
If the late director Alan Pakula were doing the film, Norquist would be brought down by his own self importance and fraud. If the Wachowski's were directing Norquist would be vaporized by a drone as he preened before the Wednesday gathering of sycophants. But since this is real life it is men like Senator John McCain, Speaker John Boehner, Senator Lindsey Graham, Senator Tom Coburn and Senator Bob Corker who may be the founding architects of the movement to depose the self exalted would be dictator.
Senator Tom Coburn called Norquist's pledge "a tortured vision of tax purity." The inclusion of torture and Norquist in the same sentence seems to bring this screed full circle. What goes around, comes around.
SOMETHING NEW
Proprietors of the historic Cambria Pines Lodge have
added to their already well visited Christmas lights display.
Before we leave this most expensive presidential campaign in history, a few thoughts from a self avowed political junkie-who got paid to cover politics. (Talk about larceny!)
WHAT NOW FOR THE GOP?
Lot of people are saying the GOP needs to "reform" or change, to shift away from being a party dominated by whites, males, conservatives and the wealthy. I'm not sure I buy those descriptions as being the complete sum total of the party. But if it is true, the party ran a very close race as it is. Charles Krauthammer says instead the GOP needs to look to a younger generation of itself, particularly to younger governors or members of the senate.
Aside from Jon Huntsman the other GOP candidates were extremists, flawed, whackos or unqualified. Romney won in a court of dunces. In truth he was a north eastern moderate who had to play to a party that is in the grip of a right wing, some of whom border on zealots. Old line republicans were not in evidence and frankly some held their heads down in shame.
The Republican party needs to do a few things. Throw off the control of social issue, right wing, moralizing and/or tea party extremists. It needs to move toward an historic moderate position where it could tolerate candidates as liberal as Nixon, Reagan, Dole and even Eisenhower. Many of the current crop of Republicans would dispute the policies of their own historic leadership. Just as Romney did with his own previous Massachusetts record. The GOP "base" is too far right. Let the right wing go start their own third party movement. The GOP needs to come to grips with the changing demographic of America. More about that in a moment.
WHAT NOW FOR THE DEMOCRATS & OBAMA
The Obama machine and the Democratic leadership has been terribly shortsighted. Yes re-electing the president was paramount, but should not have been their only interest. The Democrats, and even the Republicans, should both begin to rebuild national parties. Today the association is only nominal and temporary. National, grass roots based organizations should exist to hear local needs, respond to those issues, demand accountability, train and vet future candidates for state legislatures and federal office. Think of how much better off Obama would be if the Democrats controlled the House. Strong national parties, engaged in finding and funding strong candidates for the House are a lot healthier for this Republic than the big money of Super Pacs and special interests who now control who has the money and ultimately who gets elected. Those interests are beholden only to themselves.
Parties worked historically. But now if you've got enough money, a good organization and pollster you can declare yourself whatever you say you are and run, and may get elected. To a large extent Obama is a case in point. So, the newly reelected President should preside over helping his party to rebuild a true national party.
The President needs to bang Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid on the head, repeatedly, until they are ready to put partisan politics behind national need. (I mean the head banging figuratively, at least for Pelosi)
The Democrats need to hear what millions of voters think. People don't like taxes. Some of us understand that taxes are in fact necessary, but with bullies and simple minded people like Howard Jarvis doing their stupid oath taking, there is a lot of work to be done before Americans understand the relationship between accountability, accounting, needs, revenue and strategic planning. This nation faces critical financial issues that need something more than we've seen in the past 12 years.
The first trick Obama needs to clear is how to move forward-truly building a structure that will embrace the House Republicans and bring them to cooperation, or to bulldoze over them. Here again, if his guru David Axlerod had been more forward thinking the campaign would have rolled in a flood of House Democrats. Instead he faces a Republican majority who spent the last two years doing a dance of insanity and obfuscation. This nation needs genuine problem solving. That would be problem solving ahead of political advantage.
So someone needs to take Mitch McConnell to a heavy metal funk bar, dose him on some mind altering elixir and turn him into a roadie for 50 Cent until he cries uncle. The Senate filibuster rule needs to change.
John Boehner should be chained to a stake like a dog and spend a week in a Mississippi shack eating gruel and watching how people in poverty struggle to stay alive.
I don't know how Obama is going to transverse the perils that led us to gridlock, but he is the Chief Executive and he needs to evince a leadership that will lead to a new way of doing the nation's business. But it takes the other side willing to help.
The 2014 mid term could/should be a Democratic priority. They need to find a way to win the house and hold the Senate.
THE DEMOGRAPHICS QUESTION
African American, Latino, women and young voters are the apparent alliance that put Obama back into the White House. Republicans-how does that picture jive with your party? Truth is Latino voters will continue to play a powerful role in American politics. There are pockets of the nation where the Asian voting patterns hold power.
Many women have made it abundantly clear that their bodies, their health and their well being are theirs and that politicians who don't understand may not get their vote. I am not implying that women vote only on such issues, but some do.
It is healthy for all Americans that more women will now serve in the Senate. Again it is matter of perspective.
Don't be surprised to see the 2016 field fill with Latino faces of both parties.
AND FINALLY VOTER SUPPRESSION IS WRONG
Voter fraud and cheating is as old as the Republic. Still is wrong and this year we saw evidence of voter suppression. A political operative pal sent this along to demonstrate. BEWARE-this might make you laugh. But it might also make you think. Now there's a good start for the next cycle. Thinking.
THE NEW AUDIENCE FOR ALL OF THOSE CAMPAIGN COMMERCIALS
Well done complements to John King of CNN and Chuck Todd of NBC for their masterful work with touch screens that help crunch and illustrate the returns in last night's coverage. It was a great blend of interpretative journalism and technology.
