So far 2012 has proven to be a tough year for the US, both economically and politically. Sometimes it feels like we just get lost in the shuffle… especially those who don’t have Billionaires or campaign machines to speak for them.
But on this Recall Day for Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, we are finally reminded that Democracy can’t be killed. All the rights that people have fought so hard for are still alive. Even if the efforts of the Recall are unsuccessful, the citizens of Wisconsin still made their voices heard, and stood up to the forces that are constantly trying to drown them out.
Wisconsin, we’ve heard you, and we’re responding to the call. My hope is that we’re finally beginning to awake the sleeping giant of Democracy, and we will soon tell the Washington oligarchy that enough is enough.
Seeing the long lines to the voting booths, I’m inspired by one of my favorite songs by British phenoms James Morrison and Jessie J…
It’s never too late to turn it back around, yeah I know you can!
Don’t bury your demons deep in the ground.
When it all falls down, the only way is up.
For Wisconsin voters, and for everyone else, the only Way is UP.
For all of the craziness that has gone on within the national GOP, things have been pretty standard here in Texas. After all this is one constant in the world of American politics… Texas is reliably REPUBLICAN. Now the largest state to carry that title, and certainly the one with the most political clout.
But one thing you learn very quickly living in the “Patron State” of the GOP… things aren’t always how they appear to be. If you listen carefully, there’s a stampede happening down here in Texas. And it threatens not only the political structure of Austin, but the Republican Party as we know it.
Texas Republicans are losing the demographic race. With each year, the state of Texas loses white citizens, and gains in minorities (mainly Hispanic), who tend to vote Democrat. If projections are correct, 2010 was the last Census that Non-Hispanic whites will even be the majority in the state. Literally any minute now, the single largest racial group will be Hispanic.
Rather than embrace this new reality and try to engage the rapid growth and Conservative possibilities within the Hispanic community, the Texas GOP has chosen to fight it tooth and nail. With the 2010 Census the state was awarded a whopping 4 new seats to Congress. It’s a massive reflection of the population swell. But despite the fact 65% of the states population growh was Hispanic, Texas Republicans cooked up a Redistricting process that somehow produced 3 new “majority white” Congressional seats. Only one seat will go to a very new (and very convoluted) majority Hispanic district. After an aggressive and painful court battle, there is a temporary ruling in place through the November elections. Unlike years past, the Hispanic community definitely took notice in the redistricting brawl, resulting in a surge of Democratic voters.
Along with the racial and ethnic pendulum shift, it’s no secret that Texas is also rapidly becoming more urban. Of the more than 4 million people that Texas gained between 2000 and 2010, more than 1/3rd of them were in just six of the state’s 254 counties… Harris (Houston), Dallas, Tarrant (Ft. Worth), Bexar (San Antonio), Travis (Austin) and El Paso. The same 6 counties, along with their immediate suburbs, also grew rapidly more diverse.
In the 2008 election, five of these six counties voted for Obama. This is typical for most urban areas across the country, but it’s less typical for Texas. With the state’s population clearly shifting to urban areas, it does not bode well for GOP prospects. If the trends hold, the GOP may have already lost Texas’ major cities… for good. 2008 was also the first time in Texas history that more than 3 million votes were cast for a Democratic candidate. That’s an increase of almost 700,000 Democrats from the 2004 election, and the most significant increase among the Democratic electorate in Texas. It’s just an example of the massive potential there is to be harnassed in Texas.
So is anyone surprised by the growing efforts to purge Texas voters? These actions have been unprecedented in states like Florida and Pennsylvania this year, but Texas takes the cake. The Houston Chronicle reports that 1.5 million residents are in danger of losing their voting rights unless they provide additional documentation to the state to prove that they are legal Texans. Interesting that the state of Texas, already having cut 5 billion dollars from a very needy public education system, somehow finds the funding to ensure that its voters are who they say they are by shifting the burden of proof to them. Oh, and costing the taxpayers more money in postage, records checks and verification time.
Even beyond the natural demographic shifts, let’s not forget that Republicans continue to alienate potential voters thanks to social issues… especially on immigration reform, and GLBT equality. Rather than try to be leaders and recognize the shifts within our country, the GOP has decided to “double down” on backward policies like DOMA, self-deportation and being firmly against the DREAM Act. With anemic growth prospects among it’s own ranks, Republicans have now been forced to court and legitamize the Religious Right as their only hope of beating Obama and the Democrats. Think about it… if Mitt Romney were HALF the respectful politician that John McCain were, would he really need to continue to engage Donald Trump? 2010 was the year that this painful coalition between extremists and Republicans formed, and thanks to Mitt Romney, they have now walked the plank. If changes aren’t made within the party soon, the only GOP signs we’ll be seeing will be in History books.
Well there you have it folks. For the first time in many months, the US unemployment rate has climbed up to 8.2%. The net gain of the US economy was a measly 69,000 jobs during May. April’s job numbers were also revised downward. UGH.
For once, I have to agree with RNC Chairman Reince Priebus… No sense in demonizing the guy when he’s correct…
I couldn’t have said it better myself. A plurality of Obama’s jobs policies “simply are not working.” Funny thing about jobs policies though… they require a little something called ACTION, preferably by the Congress. The President can make plans, give speeches, and greet workers all he wants, but the true weight of the govenrnment lies in how Congress makes laws and applies financial resources of the United States.
If the Obama policies had been carried out, then we would be investing in our nation. All those bad roads and dangerous freeways that you drive on? President Obama’s policies would hire workers to fix them. Difficulties in our public schools? President Obama’s policies would hire more teachers and support staff to help our kids and make our schools better. Tired of having debit or credit card fraud? President Obama’s policies would empower agencies to protect consumers from an ever-growing crisis of electronic theft. Obama wants to create jobs, and he’s put for initiatives to do so since his first day in office. But Congressional Republicans have cried, whined, screamed and threw temper tantrums to stop his policies in their tracks. Yet now, they’re blaming HIM for the meager Recovery. As Steve Benen so eloquently points out, had the American Jobs Act been passed back in 2011, 1.3 million more people would be employed today. President Obama gave a rousing speech, only to have it killed by Congress. House Speaker John Boehner didn’t even bring the bill up for a vote, and it was filibustered by Senate Republicans.
Just so we’re clear, here’s a reminder of President Obama’s policies…
Mitt Romney loves to talk about “job creators”, it’s really one of his favorite phrases to cite. Though it’s odd to me that he NEVER mentions the nation’s largest job creator: the Government. Tens of millions of people work for federal, state and local government agencies. The government isn’t some evil villian just lurking around the corner to ciphon your money. It’s YOUR schools, YOUR policeman, YOUR firefighters, YOUR roads and bridges… I could go on and on. Yet Republicans have waged a war on the same government that they in fact work for. If they had their way, the government would slice and dice millions of jobs. According to the Economic Policy Institute, if the Ryan budget is enacted, it would eliminate 4.1 million jobs by 2014. If the current GOP plans go into place, it would be nothing more than economic genocide to our country. Romney’s “solution” to our job woes is to adopt this budget and decimate many American social programs that people depend on today more than ever. One thing is for sure… Democrats continue to lose the messaging war about government employment. If you want more of your friends and neighbors to lose their jobs, that’s what the Ryan budget seeks to do.
It’s easy for the GOP to talk tough when it comes to the economy, but they continue to flee from the truth of the matter. But on this tweet, Mr. Priebus and I do agree… Obama’s policies are not workng because they have not been applied. Think about it this way. You may buy a new treadmill and say “I’m going to get in shape.” You buy it, and put it in your room. But how are you going to get in shape if you don’t ever USE it?
