“I’m anti-spending and anti-government,” crows David, as scooter-bound Janice looks on. “The welfare state is out of control.”
“OK,” I say. “And what do you do for a living?”
“Me?” he says proudly. “Oh, I’m a property appraiser. Have been my whole life.”
I frown. “Are either of you on Medicare?”
Silence: Then Janice, a nice enough woman, it seems, slowly raises her hand, offering a faint smile, as if to say, You got me!
“Let me get this straight,” I say to David. “You’ve been picking up a check from the government for decades, as a tax assessor, and your wife is on Medicare. How can you complain about the welfare state?”
“Well,” he says, “there’s a lot of people on welfare who don’t deserve it. Too many people are living off the government.”
“But,” I protest, “you live off the government. And have been your whole life!”
“Yeah,” he says, “but I don’t make very much.” Vast forests have already been sacrificed to the public debate about the Tea Party: what it is, what it means, where it’s going. But after lengthy study of the phenomenon, I’ve concluded that the whole miserable narrative boils down to one stark fact: They’re full of shit. All of them. At the voter level, the Tea Party is a movement that purports to be furious about government spending — only the reality is that the vast majority of its members are former Bush supporters who yawned through two terms of record deficits and spent the past two electoral cycles frothing not about spending but about John Kerry’s medals and Barack Obama’s Sixties associations.
The average Tea Partier is sincerely against government spending — with the exception of the money spent on them. In fact, their lack of embarrassment when it comes to collecting government largesse is key to understanding what this movement is all about — and nowhere do we see that dynamic as clearly as here in Kentucky, where Rand Paul is barreling toward the Senate with the aid of conservative icons like Palin.
Month: September 2010
Reminder
Props
The administration gets something right!
Inspiration
How the music of Tori Amos inspired a pro wrestler to advocate for victims of sexual violence.
Mr. President, have pity on the working man…
Dear White House advisors,
There is a crazy assumption in recent comments from both Mr. Biden and the president that seem to indicate they think progressives want the Democrats to lose. I’d say that’s a pretty insignificant number in the online community.
Mostly, we get mad because we think the administration is blowing it.
The biggest problem with the base isn’t what they read on blogs. It’s that they’re out of work (and out of unemployment checks), they STILL can’t afford to see a doctor and that won’t change for another four years, and they don’t see anyone addressing their present circumstances — right here, right now.
The other day, I found a lump on my neck. I’m unemployed, no insurance, I live off donations from my readers. I’m not eligible for Medicaid or food stamps — because I have just enough donations in my bank account to cover next month’s rent and bills, making me ineligible. So I’m supposed to show up at the city clinic at 7 a.m. and wait in line with the junkies, hoping I’m one of the people without appointments who will get in that day. (I did get an appointment, but not until November.)
Does no one there get this? People are asking for help and instead they’re being told to shut up, sit down and be grateful. For what? For the person who has two degrees and is on food stamps for the first time in his 50s? For realizing we’ll probably never have real jobs, with real benefits, again?
And even worse, for knowing you can’t in good conscience urge your kids to go to college, since there’s a reasonable chance they won’t ever get a good enough job to cover the loan payments.
Why does no one in the administration seem to understand the despair of ordinary people? If you want them to have hope, give them something to hope for. Announce that the Democrats will add another retroactive tier of unemployment benefits. Figure out some sort of bridge program where people will be able to get medical care — let the 55s and older buy into Medicare until the new law kicks in. Something tangible, something that will offer them some immediate relief.
This “buck up” stuff? It’s just plain stupid. Who is it aimed at, and what do they think it will accomplish?
Sincerely,
Just Another DFH
UPDATE: Or maybe, as Jane says, this is really about protecting Obama from the blame for massive mid-term losses.
King of Photoshop
Huh
Looks like even Axelrod agrees with us.
The state of the mid-terms
Peter Daou blames bloggers, Jerome Armstrong points out that Obama’s not doing a very good job of motivating, Melissa McEwan says young voters aren’t indifferent, they feel betrayed, Athenae tells us that when Obama finds himself in a hole, he keeps digging, Duncan points out that mass unemployment isn’t the way to motivate people, Project Vote writes about the real forgotten base (and no, it’s not white Tea Partiers), and wouldn’t you know it, Philadelphia’s under a tornado watch today.
Net Neutrality
Henry Waxman sticks in the knife.
The Mighty Corrente Building
It’s time for their fund drive. Help keep the lights on and feed the hamsters!