Republicans Have Nothing to Offer But Fears and Smears

Hi all,

I've been following the Republican convention the last few days, and I'm dumbstruck by the lengths these people will go to in order to get John McCain elected and to continue the Bush years for another Presidential term.

THE SEXISM SMEAR

First off, Utah Senator Orrin Hatch accused Democrats and the media of sexism for even asking about Governor Palin's lack of experience:

When asked if he thought Palin was experienced enough to be president, Hatch responded that the question was sexist - even though gender was never mentioned.

OK, that's rich, even for Republicans - and especially for Hatch, a man whose own Mormon beliefs and history are rich in sexism and short on women's rights.

But let's take the argument the necessary next step, here - if questioning a female politician's experience, or lack thereof, is inherently sexist, then questioning a black candidate's experience has to also be inherently racist, and the GOP is doing that in spades.

THE EXPERIENCE SMEAR

Case in Point - Sarah Palin's VP acceptance speech last night in St. Paul.  Talk about the Pot calling the kettle black - the GOP VP pic has two years experience as a state Governor, and prior to that, she was the mayor of a town of 8,000 people.  Then she played the experience card - talk about gall.  An inexperienced politician picked for the VP slot for political expediency, to try to woo Hillary voters, and she complains about Obama's perceived lack of experience:

...in a reference to Obama's resume as a community organizer in Chicago - she said that a small-town mayor's work is the same "except that you have actual responsibilities."

And the GOP, as they always do, presented a unified front complete with talking points, even going so far as to complain about the media's "sexist" treatment of Hillary Clinton during the primaries, comparing it to the media's vetting of Sarah Palin:

Reagan speechwriter Noonan wrote in the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday that the mainstream press shouldn't "appear to be people not reporting the battle but engaged in the battle. If they allow themselves to be tagged by that old tag, which so tarnished them in the past," Noonan wrote, "they will do more to imperil their own future than the Internet has."

But here's the kicker - off camera, the whole unity thing fades a bit (from the same article):

But even Noonan has her doubts about Palin. During a Wednesday appearance on MSNBC, Noonan apparently thought the microphone was off when she began ridiculing Palin. "The most qualified? No," Noonan said off-mike. "I think they went for this, excuse me, political bull- about narratives."

Hmmm... sounds like Palin is - say it with me - sexist.

By the way, check here for a great true/false look at all the rumors about Palin.

THE CALL IT LIKE IT AIN'T SMEAR

Another favorite GOP ploy was on display last night - I call it the "misdirection ploy.  Republican candidates love to accuse others of the things they're doing, both taking the spotlight off themselves and casting a bad light on their opponents.  Watch them closely, and you'll see this tactic over and over again.

During Gov. Palin's speech last night, she laid claim to her own Maverick credentials:

"I've learned quickly, these past few days, that if you're not a member in good standing of the Washington elite, then some in the media consider a candidate unqualified for that reason alone," Palin told the delegates.

OK, Palin herself can make some reasonable claim to being a Washington outsider.  But she's running on the ticket of John McCain, who is the ultimate Washington insider, voting in lockstep with President Bush 95% of the time in 2007. And as for the elite label, remember that it's McCain who has seven houses - and doesn't even know how many he owns.

Also compare the McCain's net worth (between $36 and $53 million) to the Obama's $1.3 million the next time you hear the Republicans claim the Democratic nominee is the elite guy in the race.

THE MUSLIM FEAR

Finally, the fear of the other.  Newsmax.com, one of the right-wing faux-news outlets, emailled me a story today about how Obama has supposed ties to (gasp) an advisor to a Saudi billionaire.

OK, so we're supposed to forget those pics of President Bush hand in hand with Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah?  Or the recent confirmation that the Bush White House flew members of the Saudi Bin Laden family out of the US right after 9/11? Or the cozy relationship between the Bush Family and the Saudis that goes back decades?

In a word, yes.  Because the angle here is not that Obama is in league with the Saudis.  It's one more piece of phony "proof" that he's a closet Muslim, along with the false email rumors about his upbringing in a madrassa and the continual childish repetition of his middle name.

You can almost see them smirking as they throw out this nonsense.  Because they know this is how elections are won, or at least how they have been.  Lie enough times, consistently, and many folks will believe it's the truth.

Because that's all they've got.  They can't run on the issues - sure, the Iraq war is down to a simmer, but "more war" won't win them votes.  They can't run on the economy - it's their own president who got us down to the gutter where we are now.  All they have are fears and smears.

THE GAY ANGLE

What does all this have to do with gay marriage, the subject of this blog?  On the surface, not much.  But here's a little tidbit to tie it all together.  Our spineless brothers and sisters at the Log Cabin Republicans have just endorsed McCain/Palin:

In a statement today, Patrick Sammon, president of Log Cabin, said his organization is standing by McCain because the senator stood with Log Cabin in opposition to the Federal Marriage Amendment when it came before Congress.

Never mind the fact that McCain is enthusiastically supporting constitutional amendments against marriage in California, Arizona, and Florida on the November ballot.

Never mind the fact that on every issue, Obama is far better than McCain on gay rights, even marriage, where his measured support nonetheless includes opposition to all three proposed state amendments.

Never mind that Palin supported the 1998 anti-gay marriage amendment in Alaska, and that her sole claim to gay friendliness was to follow an Alaska Supreme Court order to provide benefits to families of glbt state employees via veto of an unconstitutional bill.

Republicans, sadly even the gay ones, will do what they've always done in this election, despite personal cost or rational thought - they will close ranks behind their candidate.  They will rationalize their way back to the Grand Old Party, telling themselves that this time it's different - this time the party will change.

It strikes me as a lot like the relationship between an abusive man and his spouse - no matter how many times he breaks his promises, raises spending, screws the middle and lower classes, starts another war, or enriches his rich fiends, they keep coming back to him again and again.

Maybe, this time, it will be different.  Maybe the American People will see through the smoke screen of lies and distortions and smears and fears.

If so, maybe our community will finally get the respect we deserve.  All we can do is shine the light on these despicable tactics, and hope.

--Scott