Compassionate Conservatives Do Not Exist

Posted on March 16th, 2010 by iwaller

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame, With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command, the air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she, with silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me; I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

Activists, advocates for social justice, defenders of freedom, and people of the United States have witnessed a tremendous cultural divide based on ignorance, fear and riotous rhetoric which denigrates the great Lady Liberty and the founding fathers of this great nation.In a ‘young republic’ country with less history than any other, people once stood up against slavery, championed civil rights for black Americans, voting rights for women, interracial marriage and the rights of women to chose.

Champions like Presidents Abraham Lincoln, John F Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson and leaders from Martin Luther King Jr., Ted Kennedy, Rosa Parks, and Eleanor Roosevelt took up the causes for the disabled, women, immigrants, labor and civil rights; many times being challenged from conservatives who were opposed to reform.

Truly the compassionate actions of these leaders impacted millions of Americans who now enjoy rights they otherwise would not have had. They sought to better the conditions of others bringing hope and confidence while imposing no threats to our established institutions.

Just over a year ago, President Barack Obama came to office as people of this nation overwhelmingly responded to his call for change. Arriving into an office left in tatters by Conservatives, his challenge was to address two wars started under the George W Bush Administration where troops were being deployed for third and fourth tours of duty in wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, detainees had been tortured and abused at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay military prisons deteriorating America’s reputation around the world, 45,000 Americans dying from lack or affordability of health care, women being paid less than men, America’s infrastructure crumbling, schools teaching to tests under the conservative ‘No Child Left Behind’ act, unregulated casino style capitalism in Wall Street tumbling into historic recession and jobs losses upwards of 10%,destroying lives of working class people all over the world while the income gap between the top 1% of wage earners outpaced Americans as the cost of living significantly continued to outpace working American income.

With this overwhelming task before him he began a vigorous effort to enact a social agenda to respond to the dire needs of Middle and Poor America, the exact same plans he campaigned on and was elected to accomplish.

Unfortunately, so-called compassionate conservatives, Republicans and their sub-Tea Party movement began a groundswell of obstruction, fear mongering and out-right hate for America’s first black President, challenging him on every turn as he addresses the massive problems facing taxpaying citizens.

With no ideas, no solutions, no plans, no ideas, no goals and no demonstrated leadership, conservatives and Republicans stand against Americans in their bid to prevent any solution or program designed to help struggling families, even as these same obstructionist created these problems for our families and children which could last for generations to come. In this time of great need in America conservatives and Republicans are missing in action to address these needs.

With disdain for Americans, compassionate conservatives platform is very clear, to continue to see the United States crumble as they create a country for only the wealthy and elite; driving working Americans back into a slavery civilization where all power and wealth are consolidated at the very top echelon of the elite class.

Affordable and accessible health care for no – compassionate conservatives say NO!

Enacting Wall Street Reform – compassionate conservatives say NO!

Rebuilding America’s infrastructure – compassionate conservatives say NO!

Closing down Guantanamo Bay Prison – compassionate conservatives say NO!

Giving equal pay to women – compassionate conservatives say NO!

Enacting a Jobs Bill – compassionate conservatives say NO!

It is important to note during the 110th Congress, the Republican Party set the record for obstructing legislation, more than any of the previous Congress’s in our history, in the 111^th Congress in 2010, Republicans will break their own record.

These are the same compassionate conservatives who caused the current national debt and deficit crisis. Ronald Reagan’s tax cuts for the rich and profligate military spending tripled the national debt. George W. Bush’s tax cuts for the rich and war spending doubled the national debt. In fact, nearly 80 percent of the current debt-about which conservatives now bitterly complain-was caused by the three most recent conservative presidents: Ronald Reagan, George Bush and George W Bush.

These are the same compassionate conservatives who proceeded with the largest expansion of federal spending since President Lyndon Johnson and decimated the 10 year budget surplus of $5.6 trillion neatly left for them by President Bill Clinton. And we should not forget the whopping record-setting $1.2 trillion budget deficit irresponsibly left by George W Bush and ‘compassionate conservatives’, not to mention the $700 billion bailout for Wall Street and banking institutions, which were NOT used to help average Americans. They are the most profligate spenders of taxpayer money in at last 40 years!

Additionally compassionate conservatives’ pork spending set historic records:

2001 Republicans pork spending $18.5 billion
2002 Republicans pork spending $20.1 billion
2003 Republicans pork spending $22.5 billion
2004 Republicans pork spending $22.9 billion
2005 Republicans pork spending $27.3 billion
2006 Republicans pork spending $29 billion

Americans would do well to remember compassionate conservatives do have goals; they want to eliminate Social Security and Medicare which are social programs just as are public schools, fire and police departments, public transportation; the list goes on and one. Socialism is not the dirty word compassionate conservatives would have Americans believe; we simply are a socialistic country.

The United States still faces the huge problems left by compassionate conservatives and the Republican Party. For some, change has not come fast enough and much delay is due to the obstruction by compassionate conservatives who are engaged in the failure of this great nation.

This writer has a different view of the term ‘compassionate’ in government; in caring deeply about the plight of the masses of poor and underprivileged Americans, providing high-quality healthcare for thousands of American citizens and creating jobs for the thousands of families who want to be a part of and contribute to society. I still believe in “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me; I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

Unfortunately, this staple of Americana no longer exists under compassionate conservatives and the Republican and Tea Party mantra.

I encourage Progressives, Independents, Activists, and Advocates for social justice, Democrats and Defenders of freedom to enact a groundswell of support for the social agenda that would respond to the needs of the people of the United States. Tens of thousands of people are needed to galvanize leaders into action against policies to support Americans and their families. If we want our American President for change to be successful, we must acknowledge he cannot accomplish this task alone, he needs our constant and continuing help. To elect President Obama into office and then abandon him when he needs support, in my opinion, would be unconscionable.

In the past, this nation has proven that people of great decency and great strength will rise up and take on the obstructionists, the fear-mongrels and those set to destroy our American way of life. It is time for those people to rise up and struggle with power again.

Resources:

Big Spender From Out West:

George Bush, Secret Socialist

George W Bush Has Left our Economy in Shambles

The Conservative Case Against George W Bush

Is Bush A Socialist; He’s Spending Like One

Bush is the Biggest Sender since LBJ