Stoogeland From Abroad

Being secluded in Baghdad, it was fascinating to observe events stateside. The madness only looks worse from abroad. The debt ceiling debate, when contrasted to the situation in Greece, looks absurd. I think Obama should just invoke the 14th Amendment and raise the debt ceiling by himself and force a constitutional crisis. The Republican positions around the country indicate that they have become the party of hostage taking. Take Minnesota, for instance, where GOP demands for a budget solution all of a sudden morphed into anti-abortion demands, stopping stem cell research at the Mayo Clinic and a new voter ID law to bring Minnesota in line with the national voter suppression campaign. In Washington, there has not been a sound explanation from the Republicans about what happens when the United States defaults on its debt. Finally, Alan Simpson, the co-chair of the Catfood Commission,in his cranky fashion called their position "absolute bullshit".

What's interesting from abroad is that it is transparently clear that the United States now only represents the interests of large corporations. My favorite felon governor, Rick Scott, tried to privatize parts of Florida's state parks without anyone knowing. This is the new model of political leadership for Republican governors, once elected you act like a CEO and don't have to account for your actions. Scott and Rick Perry both had state emergencies going on but managed to find time to attend the Koch Brothers' annual conspiracyfest of hate America firsters. But why not they believe they are in the same league as corporate heads.

While away, the incomes of our vaunted congesscritters were released. And it makes it transparent that our House members are simply legislating for their portfolios. Rep. Issa wants an investigation of the administration's actions against Goldman Sachs while he buys Goldman bonds the same day. Eric Cantor walkes out of the debt talks over a snit about ending the tax loopholes for corporate jets while it turns out he is invested in a fund that shorts Treasury Bonds and would make a pile if the United States defaulted. While this has gone on all my life, this naked and raw legislating for one's personal profit has taken off into a realm beyond anything I've seen before.

I watched on the internet as New York passed marriage equality and the state didn't turn into North Korea overnight as the Catholic Cardinal had proposed. The homophobia rampant in the country seems to me aimed more at the fact that something positive is actually happening to someone in the United States. Little noticed has been the DOJ urging the courts to rule that DOMA is unconstitutional. Instead, liberals are criticising President Obama for not coming out at the gay fundraiser for same sex marriage. Republican presidential candidates are saying that same sex marriage will be a litmus test for the judges they appoint to the Supreme Court. But no one from our media seems to examine this proposition.

The Clarence Thomas scandal--and it is a scandal--is worse when viewed from a distance. It makes the Abe Fortas incident look like child's play. The Texas real estate mogul, who is the Thomas' chief financial patron,had interests in 9 cases before the Court. In each case,even when all 8 judges agreed, Thomas was always on his benefactor's side even if casting the sole vote. The solution is obvious--the DOJ can indict a sitting Supreme Court justice as John Dean has noted. It will not be done.

The War against the Uteri makes the country look absolutely daffy. Planned Parenthood in Kansas had their clinic inspected and reported the inspectors said everything was fine. The following week the state ruled that no abortion clinics passed the inspection. Then when called out, they relented and allowed the one to remain open. The federal courts are ruling against all these efforts to restrict abortion rights and closing Planned Parenthood. But the toll has been enormous threatening Planned Parenthood around the country. Despite medical evidence to the contrary, Ohio passed the Heartbeat bill that further restricts abortion rights. A federal court ruled that South Dakota's new anti-abortion bill was insulting to the dignity of women by forcing them to attend a lecture at an anti-abortion clinic before proceeding to have the procedure.

The Republican race is now down to Romney versus Bachmann. Others throw in Rick Perry, who would lose Texas to Obama. While away Steve Benen kept up his fine criticism of Romney. Now Steve has floated the proposition that Ronald Reagan is to the right of Barack Obama. This to show how far gone the Republicans have gone. And he may actually be right.

Newt apparently had another Tiffany credit line for $1 million. But he's yesterday's news. Pawlenty can't seem to raise a dime and for optics he went back to Minnesota to applaud the GOP shutting down the state government. Put a fork in him. At least Thaddeus McCotter has thrown his hat in the ring. The 45-year old Michigan representative says he represents true conservatism. God helps us all.

Illegal immigrants caused the fires in Arizona. Senator McCain's statements reflects the nativism of the new Republican Party--the crackpot views of the wealthy. But the anti-immgeration laws showed a negative consequence as all of Georgia's harvest is rotting on the ground because of the lack of labor.

I have never seen in my lifetime the current Republican Party. The views--social, culturally and economic--predate Herbert Hoover, who was positively progressive compared to the current bunch. What was obvious from abroad was how quickly the Republicans have abandoned the messianism of the neoconservatives. The Party has made a hard right into isolationism. Yes, they will criticize Obama on policy but you can feel their heart isn't into it. Their great 9-11 moment--You are either for us or against us--is over. The Long War is no more.

Instead, the new GOP is back to culture wars, despite Washington pundits ignoring this, and feel the American people are now so vulnerable that they can roll back the New Deal. From abroad, this feels like a total war against the United States itself. We have met the enemy and it is now us.

If you want an experience, try watching Fox News in Baghdad. It's like watching science fiction about a remote parallel universe. Embassy personnel scrambled to find BBC or Al Jazeera so that they could get news about the real world.

Politically, the United States appears to have lost influence even though we are the 1,000lb gorilla in the room. No one can take the economic discussions here seriously. And it looks like the Democrats got suckered into the who can out-cut the other one the most. Lonely Paul Krugman keeps suggesting that we really need to focus on employment but the GOP wrecking crew is doing it's best to thwart the recovery. Unemployment created by Republican governors will hit in the next two months. While it's one thing to chalk this up to the desire to defeat President Obama, doesn't anyone really think that the GOP would then turn on a dime and actually try to create jobs if they won in 2012? There is virtually nothing in their current ideology to suggest they care.