LIBERADIO(!)

Let’s leave aside for a moment the fact that the Tennessee Report doesn’t yet have “Elections” listed under the “Department” section of their website when clearly they should and instead focus on the little gem they uncovered about Rep. Debra Maggart.

From a story yesterday about the Juvenile Sex Offender Registry:

House lawmakers heard more than three hours of testimony last Tuesday on a piece of legislation introduced by Rep. Debra Maggart, R-Hendersonville, who says it is necessary both to protect the public as well as line Tennessee up to receive a bigger chunk of federal law enforcement subsidies.

From a story posted in December 2009 about Maggart as “State Sovereignty” supporter:

Earlier this year, Republican state Rep. Debra Young Maggart co-sponsored a resolution demanding that the federal government refrain from further burdening Tennessee with unwarranted and potentially unconstitutional policy mandates.

But earlier this month, Rep. Maggart and Sen. Diane Black, R-Gallatin, expressed their interest in legislatively obligating the State of Tennessee to embrace an as-yet unfulfilled federal mandate, signed by George W. Bush, that critics say violates just the sort of constitutional principles lawmakers like Maggart saw fit to reiterate in their state sovereignty resolution last session.

It’s not the hypocrisy that is so bothersome, it’s the hubris and the posturing and it goes back to this:

We’re finding more and more evidence that Republicans – on both the state and federal level – love to take credit with their constituents for all the good government can do while at the same time pandering to their base with language that is strikingly opposite.

Listen closely the next time a Republican talk about health insurance reform. Every health care discussion they have is prefaced with “We think there needs to be health care reform” or “We’re not saying there doesn’t need to be reform….”

Democrats can have these conversations with their constituents – one-on-one conversations or in town hall meetings – and take credit for the good that government does (and can do!) because their constituents value the exact same things Democrats value – good jobs, affordable health care, infrastructure development that creates good jobs, quality education, access to quality education, etc.. Democrats should really go to this place instead of trying to appeal to the people who would never vote for anyone with a “D” beside their name anyway.