BY ANTHONY BARNES
When Republicans gripe about what they perceive as the Obama Administration's failures, for example, its inability in little over a year to completely revive the economy, Democrats often respond by citing the severity of the economic catastrophe left behind by the previous administration.
What generally follow is more Republican caterwaul about the Democrats' constant finger-pointing back to the bygone Bush era. Blaming Bush for the nation's present economic condition, insists Republicans, amounts to little more than a whiny cop-out -- something akin to a sour grapes attitude coming from within, of all places, the ranks of the winners. In dealing with similar matters, the Republicans' position is: "Let's not talk about the past; the Bush era is over," followed by charges that Democrats now controlling all branches of government would rather avoid responsibility for failing to resolve one of America's major problems by insisting that at least for now, the buck halts at the cowboy booted feet of George W. Bush.
Recently, amidst the uptick in acts of political terrorism linked to the Tea Party Patriots, a movement which has apparently discovered a way to be both anti-government and pro-GOP, many Democrats began complaining about the Republicans' tepidly-conveyed effort to encourage an end to these acts, some of them having occurred during March's anti-health care reform demonstrations on Capitol Hill, and which in general have included death threats; smashed windows; severed gas lines; brandishing nooses; threats of violence; spitting at members of Congress; racial epithets; and engaging in anti-gay behavior. Ultimately, Republicans simply brushed aside the Democrats' complaints by not surprisingly -- talking about the past.
"There was all kinds of very threatening tones and language used (against Bush during his terms)," equivocated Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele during a March interview with Sean Hannity. "So, you know, I think people just need to understand it and put it in context."
Steele's artless circumvention of the issue offers a great illustration of the GOP's prevaricatory modus operandi. It's the sustained practice of the politics of expediency by the GOP that for some, conjures thoughts about the potential for danger ahead, not just for the Republican Party, but for the nation as a whole. At issue is the Republicans' unwillingness, obviously out of sheer political expediency, to directly and forthrightly address important matters, combined with their willingness to shamelessly toggle between support for opposing legislative positions based on pure self-interest. It is a disposition that has helped generate from the GOP, a steady stream of knee-jerk reactions and approaches to virtually every issue of major importance going back to the Clinton Administration.
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