The talking heads are in full force discussing the ins and outs of why the campaign went awry and the Republicans lost the election. With budget woes, and another impending financial crisis, they don’t understand how America wanted to keep the existing leadership. The fault they say lies with Romney’s Mormonism, the two debates, liberal media bias, and a storm off the east coast. But personally, I think what happened is that without even trying, the party showed its true color…white.
Republicans garnered the old white guy vote, hands down. In the area of redneck, retrospect, and regressive, they reigned king! Their quest for a return to the 1950s lost to hopes for the future. They pine for a time when women lived in the kitchen, children never spoke, and minorities had the good sense to keep out of sight. Their old, outdated, and unsupported ideas have taken their party to the brink of irrelevance.
Republicans try to call themselves the conservative party, and Democrats the socialist party. The problem is that the party is anything but conservative. Last year when the Republicans submitted their budget in response to the Democratic one, the only difference was where they wanted to spend their money. Republicans like the military industrial machine, and Democrats like social programs. Republicans want to cut taxes on the wealthy, and Democrats on the middle class. That pretty much sums it up.
The voting public is growing up. Either that or they are just growing annoyed with the same tired old rhetoric. They’ve learned terms terms like “job creator” are really nothing more than a description for the rich. Rich people don’t create jobs. Hungry people create jobs. Industries create jobs. The rich just consume. They create very little. Voters have learned when they use the term Socialism, it means programs that help people find jobs, get medical care, and obtain an education. When they speak of religious freedom, they’ve learned that it only means freedom for one religion. And when they talk of freedom of speech, they know that it only means speech for their ideas, and their agenda.
Republicans do love to fund the military. Well…that’s kind of true. They will fund it to the point that their cronies in business make billions on contracts. However, when it comes to funding benefits for soldiers and their families, they are less than giving. They even refused to vote for benefits for the heroes of 9/11 until they were embarrassed by a couple of comedians on comedy central. That’s just sad! Now they want to cut retirement, medical, and educational benefits for soldiers coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan. Eisenhower is turning over in his grave.
The Grand Old Party has lived up to their name, especially the OLD part. It’s time for them to move on. In the 1980s and 90s, the Republican party let themselves be taken over by the Christian right. In this decade, they let themselves be taken over by the Tea Party. In their effort to chase any vote, no matter the source, they’ve lost focus of their core values. Is it any wonder they actually picked Romney? It’s time they stood on their own. The party has a lot of good people, with great and wonderful ideas. It’s too bad they have let them be drowned out by right-wing extremists. Think I’m exaggerating? Where have I heard that we need to bring back corporal punishment, turn our lives back to the Bible, or to bring religion back into education? If you need to see an example of how that works, think Taliban.
So, since everyone has learned that Republicans have refused to negotiate with anyone outside their party, they have no choice than to vote for candidates of another party. The people have spoken: If politicians won’t break the stalemate, we will. The world is changing, and if you don’t change with it, you will be left in the dust. It’s time to take a stand. It’s time to make a change. Most people want this country to succeed. So either get on board, or get out of the way. We won’t be left in the dust.