If Republicans are Hypocrites, What are Democrats?

On February 19, 2010, in National Politics, State Politics, We're Right They're Wrong, by Mary Mancini

Vote for Lamar for Best HypocriteOK, so we know and have known for a while that Republicans are hypocrites. And, yes, Lamar Alexander does deserve to win the top prize in Keith’s “Hypocrisy Hall of Shame” (vote here!) for simultaneously voting “no” for the stimulus while applying to the federal government for stimulus dollars for a project that he crows would “create over 200 jobs in the first year and at least another 40 new jobs in the following years.”

So if Republicans are hypocrites, what are Democrats?

Democrats are right, of course.

We’re finding more and more evidence that Republicans – on both the state and federal level – are on the ground taking credit for all the good the stimulus dollars have done for their communities and constituents while at the same time pandering to their base with language that is strikingly opposite. (As an aside, if you don’t believe all politics is local then now would be a good time to take a second look.)

More important than the award-winning hypocrisy of the right (I mean, really, is anyone surprised?) is why Democrats aren’t on the ground talking to and engaging the constituents in their communities? Because the crazy thing is that Democrats can have one-on-one conversations or town hall meetings and take credit for the public structures that are meaningful to their constituents and that are strengthened by stimulus dollars, and then have the same conversations when they’re talking to larger groups – like the press or their brethren on the House and Senate floors – without even a trace of hypocrisy.

Why? Because their base and the people who Republicans are talking to when THEY are on the ground in their districts taking credit for creating jobs, etc. value the exact same things – good jobs, affordable health care, infrastructure development that creates good jobs. It’s a no brainer but for some reason Democrats refuse to go there. Instead, they go somewhere else to appeal to the people who would never vote for anyone with a “D” beside their name anyway.

Ironic, ain’t it?

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Liberadio(!) Podcast: November 16, 2009 with Judy Norsigian and Karl Frisch

On November 22, 2009, in Liberate Your Radio from The Right, Podcasts, by Mary Mancini

Summary: Featuring guests Judy Norsigian, Our Bodies Ourselves co-founder and Executive Director; and Karl Frisch of Media Matters for America.

Links: Our Bodies Ourselves, Public Responsibility in Medicine & Research, Media Matters for America

A Black Eye, Part 1 The intro, the end of the world on celluloid, recounts possibilities (or impossibilities), Republican hypocrisy in Sumner County, plus the Media Matters for American Smackdown with Karl Frisch, in which he packs a whole lot of Sarah Palin in a short time. [38.3MB download mp3]

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A Black Eye, Part 2 A really big “oopsie” followed by a whole lotta backpedaling by Tennessee’s U.S. Senators Alexander and Corker, political performance art by Palin and her friends insults truth, justice and the American way, more health insurances woes keep us from the American dream, and our interview with Judy Norsigian, a hero of the women’s movement. [36MB download mp3]

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TNGOP Continues to Inject Politics Into Elections

On July 8, 2009, in Liberate Your Radio from The Right, by Mary Mancini

The day after Karl Rove testified before lawyers for the House Judiciary committee about his role in the United States partisan Attorney firings, and three months after Tennessee Attorney General Bob Cooper said that politically motivated firings could be found unconstitutional, comes the news that several more lawsuits have been filed by Tennessee county election administrators who say they were fired from their jobs purely for partisan reasons.

The federal lawsuits, according to attorney Gary Blackburn, are based on the 1st & 14th amendments of the U.S. Constitution, and Article 1 Section 4, of the Tennessee State Constitution, which states that “no political or religious test, other than an oath to support the Constitution of the United States and of this State, shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under this State.”

Named defendants are Republican Party appointees to the county election commissions in Cannon, DeKalb, Henry, Loudon, Putnam, Rhea, Rutherford, and Weakley counties.

Click to download the full complaint and the press release [pdf].

The planning of election processes and the administration of elections should not be partisan yet as soon as Tennessee Republicans win control of the General Assembly they attempt to do way more than what the law allows.

By law, the party which controls the General Assembly can install a majority to the state and county election commissions. Republicans quickly moved to do just that and it is lawfully within their right to do so.

But, apparently, they’ve moved just as quickly to violate the law by firing county employees in non-policy-making positions for partisan reason.

And it would be bad enough if this attempt to circumvent the law was simple blatant patronage, but it’s so much more than that. It’s part of a “it’s-not-the-votin’-that’s-democracy-it’s-the-countin’” full court press on free and fair elections in Tennessee that includes:

1) An attempt to delay implementation of the Tennessee Voter Confidence Act (Paper Ballot Bill)
2) An attempt to require proof of citizenship to register to vote, a well-worn voter suppression tactic.
3) An attempt to require picture IDs to vote, another well-worn voter suppression tactic.
4) Forcing through legislation using some pretty suspect horse-trading which added two new Republican members to the State Election Commission thereby giving the GOP a majority two years earlier than they would have had otherwise.
5) Violating the state’s Sunshine Laws by banning the press from a county election commission meetings.
6) An attempt to intimidate an election integrity activist with a suspicious visit from the TBI.

Stay tuned for caging, voter-roll purging, election day voter challenges, the demonization of voter registration drives,voter intimidation, and other known voter-suppression tactics coming to a county election precinct near you!

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Oh, Well, If Rep. Mumpower Says It’s Fair

On May 28, 2009, in Liberate Your Radio from The Right, by Mary Mancini

Today, Tennessee House Republicans won another round in their assault on free and fair elections in Tennessee. Take it away, Knoxville News Sentinel Nashville bureau chief Tom Humphrey:

The House’s 50 Republicans, including Speaker Kent Williams, united today to give their party control of the State Election Commission.

SB547, which has already passed the Senate, would add two Republicans to the commission, which now has a 3-2 Democratic majority. With the 50-45 approval of the House today, the bill now goes to the governor.

Democrats roundly criticized the bill. For example, Rep. Henry Fincher, D-Cookeville, said it was part of a Republican “assault” on the election process.

House Republican Leader Jason Mumpower, however, said the bill is fair. Republicans now have a majority of legislative seats and control all 95 county election commissions.

Why did they feel the need to change the makeup of the election commission, you ask? Well, because they can. And because they had the “leverage” to do so. Here’s a video of two State Senators threatening the House – either give us two more members and the majority on the State Election Commission or we will let the Election Commission die:

Senator Norris: Correct. It’s moved out of committee. I think it’s on the desk of the floor of the House. And that’s where it met it’s potential demise and I just think everybody should realize if it meets its demise there then the State Election Commission will meet its demise here [Senate Government Operations Committee].

Senator Jack Johnson (Senate Government Operations Committee Chairman): And so what I wanted Senator Norris to address in this committee is, uh, we will roll this for one more week – we hope that next week will be our last committee meeting for Senate Government Operations, so they essentially have 7 days to either deal with this issue or we will be more or less forced to allow the State Election Commission to sunset.

For those keeping score at home, here are the other weapons of mass election destruction in their arsenal this year:
1) The delay of implementation of the Tennessee Voter Confidence Act (HB0614 / SB0872) State Election Coordinator Mark Goins is leading the fight to keep the paperless touch-screen voting machines we use now in 93 out of 95 counties because they a) can be easily manipulated to change vote totals and flip votes from one candidate to another, b) provide no mechanism for a meaningful recount in the case of close elections, and c) increase the length of time it takes for each voter to cast a ballot thereby suppressing the vote by allocating too few machines in certain areas and creating long lines and long waits.

2) The replacement of all county Election Administrators with partisan Republicans.

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Rewriting the Last Eight Years, Tennessee Republican-Style

On December 7, 2008, in Liberate Your Radio from The Right, by Mary Mancini

Today’s Tennessean has a doozy: “Tennessee Republicans commend Bush’s legacy.”

I thought it was a typo. Surely they must have meant, “Tennessee Republicans condemn Bush’s legacy,” right? But no, there they are – U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, former Tennessee Sen. Howard Baker, Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, Tennessee Republican Party chairwoman Robin Smith, and U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn – paying homage, making excuses, and blaming others.

At a time when the vast majority of Americans see the presidency of George W. Bush for what it is – disastrous for the country – Tennessee’s elected Republicans see it quite differently. They have chosen to rewrite history and fault not the President for his failed policies but the White House communications department (a group of people who have no real responsibility for making actual decisions vital to well-being of the nation) for how they presented them. As a group, they seem to be part of a minority who will cling to ideology and rhetoric and Rovian “attack, don’t defend” tactics.

Here’s a particular gem from Rep. Wamp:

The way they communicated the response to Hurricane Katrina left everyone puzzled and wondering if they could even respond. What they communicated was much worse, just showing the president flying over the damage. This is a man who would relish getting into the water and getting people out of the water. But the way they handled it made it look like he wasn’t engaged. They didn’t make him look like the compassionate leader he is. This is a man who loves to cut wood and sweat, and it didn’t come through. People lost confidence.

As much as President Bush would “relish getting into the water and getting people out of the water,” he didn’t, you know, get into the water. He did, however, fly over the damage. So which is perception and which is reality? And which is more important to the well-being of the people of the nation?

At a time when most of the country, and its elected leaders, have acknowledged the need for a change from not only the last eight years of President Bush, but also the kind of politics that have divided us for so long, it’s just more of the same from Tennessee Republicans.

It’s going to be a long two years.

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