Excellent opinion piece here
from The Hill with this headline:
“The Republican Party is in
full melt-down mode.”
Under ordinary circumstances, Democrats would look at this
as an advantage, but they also must heed the old adage (slightly modified): “Never
interfere with an enemy when they are in the process of destroying themselves.”
We are not in ordinary circumstances, however, and this is
not simply a political party that is making poor political decisions.
That party is the Republican Party (the Grand Old Party) that
is putting our country and our democracy in danger by choosing Trump lies and
others lying over any valid and proven truth and of course, their fealty to
Trump over loyalty to the Constitution.
Nowadays, we see more and more Republicans in the House and
many in the Senate as well who firmly believe they need to genuflect at the
altar of Trump in order to have a political future (namely in 2022 as they seek
to regain that which they lost in last year).
That is why so many of them voted against the House bill to set up a 9/11 type independent
commission to get the bottom the January 6 insurrection – that even as
Democrats acquiesced and gave in to many of their demands (e.g., about the
nature of the commission and a few rules, etc.). That didn’t matter – they still
voted against the bill while falsely calling it the “Pelosi commission.”
Now that along with more lies and corruption in the name of
short-term electoral success have won out over the previous values-driven
conservative principles that would revive the GOP's long-term viability.
Democrats are concerned because this country cannot
fulfill its promise without two healthy and robust political parties.
That is historically needed to debate policies, effectively govern,
and decide what and how that is best to give Americans the tools to succeed. That
is not what is happening now – the division runs deep.
Instead we have the GOP’s members fastening themselves more tightly to Trump, twisting themselves into rhetorical knots to uphold his “Big Lie”(the 2020 election was stolen from him).
Now some Republicans are even denying that January 6 was a traitorous attack on the Capitol by Trump supporters emboldened by him.
Thus far, only Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), a staunch
conservative who voted with Trump 92% of time in fact lose her #3 leadership
position in the GOP’s House caucus to Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), who has voted
with Trump only 43% of the time, who has now been chosen to deceive the country,
support Trump and his falsehoods, by having risen to that #3 leadership slot.
But in no way should Democrats be gleeful about any of this.
Democrats - and the country - need a healthy Republican Party in order to push
for the policies they believe will best serve Americans. Democrats need
Republicans to debate the merits of the policies President Biden is putting
forward, so that they can come to a bipartisan compromise and agree on how to
move forward in the best interests of the country.
Yes, this sounds naïve, but that is how political parties are supposed to work. Right now, the focus of many Republicans seems to be not how to offer good faith arguments about how best to govern but how to whitewash history, support Trump's “Big Lie,” and push for legislation that makes it harder for many Americans, especially Americans of color, seniors, and many young voters to exercise their right to vote fairly, safely, and securely GOP-led state legislatures are using the election fraud guise to push draconian new voting laws and are spinning them as measures designed to enhance election security.
All the while, some Republican officials have acknowledged that this past election was the most
secure elections ever and fraud was not a factor in the out that showed Joe
Biden beating Trump by over 7 million votes.
What is puzzling is that this fealty to Trump does not seem
to be a smart political strategy designed to help Republicans win majorities.
Elections are all about addition, not subtraction, and what Republicans are
doing is designed to keep more people from voting.
It seems they have given up trying to convince more
Americans that they have the right governing philosophy for the country.
It is true that Democrats have a very difficult task ahead
of the 2022 election cycle if they are going to keep or expand their House
majority. History is against them, and Trump voters are highly
motivated.
But Trump is unpopular in swing districts across the country, many of
which Republicans need to win in order to take back the House. So much so
that failure and reality was something the NRCC hid – that is Trump's falling polling numbers
in recent meetings. In short, they lied about his popularity which is still
falling.
Moreover, it will be very
difficult to win the White House in 2024 if the GOP does not try to win over
suburban women and independent voters, who abandoned the GOP and Trump in 2020.
Holding on to lies, pledging unflinching loyalty to Trump,
denying history, and accepting leaders who adhere to QAnon conspiracy theories and such does not seem like
a smart political strategy to gain and expand Republican support among important
voter groups.
That is why we will keep seeing Republicans who want to save
their party from this meltdown speaking out against those who are putting
American values aside for a chance to win Trump's blessing.
That is also why Liz Cheney, even as she was chased from the
ranks of GOP leadership, will have an outsized role in calling out Trump's and
GOP’s lies, while trying to prevent the destruction of one of America's two
great parties.
Democrats should help. They should not adhere to the adage
of not interfering. They should assist their Republican counterparts in getting
their party back by continuing to seek and speak the truth.
That will be the only way to course-correct a dangerous and
destructive trend too many in the GOP are embracing. The destruction of the
Republican Party does not bode well for the future of our democracy.
My 2 cents: I note this
that the author of this fine piece (my editing to fit the blog), Maria Cardona,
The Hill’s Opinion Contributor, is quite excellent. She concludes with this
statement: “As a Democrat, I am concerned. As an American, I am terrified.”
I agree totally with her assessment. Now we wait to see if the DEMS follow any of her good advice – I hope they to – maybe not all of it, but the heart of this article is clear: Don’t let the GOP get away with the lies and such – but keep on message by underscoring their exact language and sustained division tactics, and rely on the voters – always keep them foremost in everything from now until the midterms and then of course in 2024.
The momentum is on the DEM side – don’t
waste it
Thanks for stopping by.
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