Skip to main content

Still clueless

Did you see the Romneys' television interview with Chris Wallace on Fox over the weekend? No, I didn't either, but I read reports of it today and it is clear to me that these two out-of-touch individuals, living in their own privileged world, still do not get it.

They were so sure that it was "their turn" to occupy the White House, that they were destined to win a huge victory last November. They just do not understand how it all could have gone so wrong. But they have their theories.

Mitt believes it was all those goodies that the dastardly Obama gave the country, particularly the Affordable Care Act which guaranteed health care to so many people who hadn't been able to afford it before. He said that he underestimated its popularity, but that it motivated all those poor people and the brown, black, and young people, to get out and vote. For Obama.

Of course, in Mitt's view, all the rich white people, who are totally altruistic and who had more concern for the country than for their own self-interest, voted for him, but he just couldn't attract enough of all those "others."

Ann knows why they lost. It was the media's fault. The damn media just wouldn't let Mitt's sterling quality of character shine through their filter. If only people could have seen what a truly caring guy her man is, he would have won in a walk.

In the view of this deluded couple, the policies that they ran on had nothing to do with their rejection by the voters. It was just all those gifts that an incumbent president was able to give to the voters, aided and abetted by the liberal media all the time.

So, here we are almost four months later and they still do not understand - and neither does their party - that the American public was simply not buying what they were selling. We do not approve of the policies that they were espousing.

We do not want Planned Parenthood defunded and abortion made illegal. We do not approve of the government interfering in women's personal health decisions, made in conjunction with their doctors and their families.

We do not believe in "self-deportation" of immigrants to this country, and we believe that people who take the risk to come here, even if they do it illegally, should be afforded respect and the protection of the law and that they should have an opportunity to redeem themselves.

We do not believe that elderly or disabled people who have worked their whole lives and paid into the social safety net system that is Medicare and Social Security are "moochers" and "takers" when they start receiving the benefits of that system.

We do not believe that millionaires and billionaires and multi-million dollar corporations should be subsidized by our government by allowing them to get away with paying little or no taxes while the rest of us ante up our fair share.

We believe that we should be doing everything possible to encourage children and young people to pursue education so that they will be prepared for the world of tomorrow. We should not be making it harder for them to get the training they need.

Well, I could go on, but surely one can see the problem here. Mitt and Ann Romney and their fellow Republicans were on the wrong side - i.e., the exclusionary side - of all these issues and American voters did not approve. That is why they lost. But it is unlikely they will ever be able to admit that, even to themselves.

 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Poetry Sunday: Don't Hesitate by Mary Oliver

How about we share another Mary Oliver poem? After all, you can never have too many of those. In this one, the poet seems to acknowledge that it is often hard to simply live in and enjoy the moment, perhaps because we are afraid it can't last. She urges us to give in to that moment and fully experience the joy. Although "much can never be redeemed, still, life has some possibility left." Don't Hesitate by Mary Oliver If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it. There are plenty of lives and whole towns destroyed or about to be. We are not wise, and not very often kind. And much can never be redeemed. Still, life has some possibility left. Perhaps this is its way of fighting back, that sometimes something happens better than all the riches or power in the world. It could be anything, but very likely you notice it in the instant when love begins. Anyway, that’s often the case. Anyway, whatever it is, don’t be afraid of its plenty. Joy is no...

Poetry Sunday: Blackberry-Picking by Seamus Heaney

My mother was a farm wife and a prodigious canner. She canned fruit and vegetables from the garden, even occasionally meat. But the best thing that she canned, in my opinion, was blackberry jam. Even as I type those words my mouth waters!  Of course, before she could make that jam, somebody had to pick the blackberries. And that somebody was quite often named Dorothy. I think Seamus Heaney might have spent some time among the briars plucking those delicious black fruits as well, so he would have known that "Once off the bush the fruit fermented, the sweet flesh would turn sour." They don't keep; you have to get that jam made in a hurry! Blackberry-Picking by Seamus Heaney Late August, given heavy rain and sun For a full week, the blackberries would ripen. At first, just one, a glossy purple clot Among others, red, green, hard as a knot. You ate that first one and its flesh was sweet Like thickened wine: summer's blood was in it Leaving stains upon the tongue and lust ...

Poetry Sunday: Hymn for the Hurting by Amanda Gorman

You probably remember poet Amanda Gorman from her appearance at the inauguration of President Biden. She read her poem "The Hill We Climb" on that occasion. After the senseless slaughter in Uvalde this week, she was inspired to write another poem which was published in The New York Times. It seemed perfect for the occasion and so I stole it in order to feature it here, just in case you didn't get a chance to read it in the Times . Hymn for the Hurting by Amanda Gorman Everything hurts, Our hearts shadowed and strange, Minds made muddied and mute. We carry tragedy, terrifying and true. And yet none of it is new; We knew it as home, As horror, As heritage. Even our children Cannot be children, Cannot be. Everything hurts. It’s a hard time to be alive, And even harder to stay that way. We’re burdened to live out these days, While at the same time, blessed to outlive them. This alarm is how we know We must be altered — That we must differ or die, That we must triumph or try. ...