Quick Comments on Bush and Some Dirty Politics Among the Democrats

by Norman Markowitz

Now we know what Bush considers "fiscal stimulus." Making his tax cuts permanent to revive an economy that he denies is in crisis. He said in Israel that he believes in miracles. This policy, given the more than 10 trillion dollar debt and the serious decline in working class living standards, would be a miracle if it did anything more than make the rich richer, encourage the capitalist class to continue to export capital from the U.S.m and intensify the consumer debt crisis.

But instead of challenging this destructive nonsense, the Democrats are challenging each other. First Senator Obama gave it to Senator Clinton, talking about her flip flops politically. Then he made the comment, that "it is fair to say that the Republicans have been the party of ideas for the last fifteen years," which in terms of two party politics is sadly true. He didn't say their ideas were good ideas. The Clinton campaign responded by citing examples of Obama's flip flops (fair in and of itself) but them Clinton herself responded by saying that if you think privatizing social security and providing tax cuts for the rich were good ideas, that was true(Obama never said the Republicans had good ideas, to repeat myself). Then Representative Barney Frank, a Clinton supporter, threw in Ronald Reagan (who wasn't president fifteen years ago, Bill Clinton was) and accused Obama of advocating style over substance (remember Bill Clinton) and, more importantly, "speaking favorably" about Reagan (which Obama, in what I have never did). Then Corrine Brown, an African-American Congresswoman from Florida and a Clinton supporter, chimed in accusing Obama of "misunderstanding" history, and made some eloquent points about the destructive policies of Ronald Reagan (which were entirely true, but have nothing to do with Senator Obama). She concluded that it was important for young people to understand history, which is very true, but it is also very important for young people not to let a bunch of commentators create the impression that Obama was identifying himself with Reagan and Reagan Republicanism, because that is old fashioned name calling which the Republicans historically have been champs at.

All of this is directly connected to the race in Nevada and all of it really detracts from a serious campaign that will be necessary to defeat the Republican right, even though, in this exchange, Senator Obama was the victim of name calling and guilt by association. Fairminded people, other things being equal, should gravitate to his
candidacy, even though other things of course are never equal and, unfortunately this sort of politics has traditionally worked all too well.