Tell me again how a Democratic Congress is good for America?
With presidential impeachment "off the table" and calls for a renewed military draft back on, tell me again how a Democratic Congress is good for America?
The United States fired a shot across the political bow November 6th by shifting the balance of power to the Democratic Party. Tired of the skullduggery on Capitol Hill and enraged by war, we canned as many Republicans as possible to send a message that we will no longer re-elect those who do not serve our interest. Democrats are not the preferred party, they just happen to be the opposition to what we're used to.
The Democrats recognize we're not interested in their social programs or liberal attitude. And that's precisely why they're proceeding with business as usual.
Howard Dean, Nancy Pelosi, and John Conyers all oppose impeaching President Bush for illegal acts committed during his term in office. "It is a waste of time," Pelosi (D-CA) said in a recent 60 Minutes interview.
"I am in total agreement with her on this issue," added Conyers. "Impeachment is off the table."
Pelosi's comments are not surprising; she consistently voted for war, whether abroad in Iraq and Afghanistan or at home by authorizing Homeland Security and the PATRIOT Act. Pelosi also voted against a bill condemning prisoner torture. If she was going to investigate impeachment of the president, she'd find herself a willing accomplice to his crimes.
But Conyers? Last year he was the primary architect for impeachment. "The Constitution in Crisis," his 350-page report that chronicles Bush's forays into torture, rendition, illegal domestic surveillance, cover-ups, manipulation, and the Downing Street Minutes was seen by progressives as what to expect from strong Democratic leadership. If, as he said, the report "concludes that these charges clearly rise to the level of impeachable conduct," why toe the line now? What has happened to change Conyers' mind?
Likewise, with the Democrats in power because of an anti-war mandate from the masses, why are they now preparing a military draft that would make Edward Bernard Glick dizzy with pleasure? Charles Rangel (D-NY), said recently he would call for a revised draft when the new Congress convenes in January. "If we're going to challenge Iran and challenge North Korea and then, as some people have asked, to send more troops to Iraq, we can't do that without a draft," he said.
Aside from the problem of Rangel believing we ought to challenge Iran and North Korea, why does he think we need to send more troops to Iraq? Especially when the consensus among Americans is to pull troops out of the Middle East? Support for the war is at an all-time low; why not reduce troop strength or, better still, exit Iraq?
Rangel has been a vociferous opponent of the war for many years. To hear that same seasoned politician deliver a promise to send more young men and women to die is beyond disturbing. But what should we expect? The Democrats are just the flip side of the same coin.
Consider that ending the war and reforming the government were two guiding forces for voters this month. If those two things have already been scuttled by Democratic Party leaders, just weeks after an election that served as a referendum on the war, what is left to do?
Many people patted themselves on the back after the Republican ouster, as if that was all that was needed to heal our nation. It isn't. If we don't hold this new Congress accountable for the problems of its predecessor, it sends a message that we condone everything that has happened in the past six years. As Prison Planetnotes, "if George W. Bush, Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld are allowed to tear apart the very fabric of America without consequences then what is to stop a President Hillary Clinton or John McCain doing the same?" Nothing. And while both ruling parties would very much like to maintain the status quo, our nation will not be able to survive it.
Voting for change is not the end, it is merely the beginning. We need representatives that serve America and its people, not themselves or their pocketbooks. If that is no longer feasible, well, Thomas Jefferson said it best.
"A little revolution every now and again is a good thing."
Canon Fodder is a bi-weekly analysis of politics and society.
