Predictions, Prognostications, Skeptics and Politics

Being a humanist and a religious skeptic, among other more colorful epithets I've undoubtedly been called over the years, especially by my kids, I am rightfully reluctant to suddenly declare myself a Political Prognosticator.

My career with the Feds has prepared me to do any number of esoteric and sleep-inducing things, but being a PP is not one of them, so I will let that be my disclaimer for this piece.

However.

I have been a Republican, an Independent and now can fairly call myself a reluctant Democrat, so I can claim to have seen and understood the political spectrum from all three perspectives over the last forty years or so, and during those years, have watched all sorts of political shenanigans and heard all kinds of explanations for all of them.

But there has always been a kind of undercurrent to the political life of America for most of my life, and that was two things. First, partisan politics always ended at the water's edge, and second, even bitter political enemies have always taken for granted the assumption that his/her opponents were, at heart, Americans with the best interests of America at the core of their political agenda.

No more.

Both of these iron-clad guidelines of American Politics have fallen victim to the bitter partisan political fighting of recent elections, and since the 2010 election, I think the gloves have finally been removed.

But the brass knuckles were not.

By very publicly announcing the intentions of the Republican Party to "make Obama a one-term President", Eric Cantor has voiced the goal of the Republican Party in no uncertain terms.

You know all those jobs that over 60% of Americans want the Congress to focus on?

Fugedaboutit.

Since January of this year, Republicans nationwide have passed laws regarding Abortion, Campaign Fraud (restrictions of voter's rights), Union busting (restrictions on Democrats' ability to raise campaign funds), Removing Fluoride from our Water and just about any other subject they could use to elicit campaign funds from an excited base and avoid talking about the one thing this country needs: Jobs.

Why? Why would otherwise intelligent people avoid something so necessary to the economic health of this country? Two words:

President Obama.

It is more important to Republicans that Obama not win in 2012 than it is to fix the economy. It is so important to make him a single term President that they will deliberately avoid doing ANYTHING that may even appear to give him a win. Especially if it works.

So now I come to my prediction:

There will be no jobs bill.

There will be no major economic bills passed at all, unless they can, like in the debt ceiling crisis, make the Democrats cave.

They will continue to pass meaningless bills to show their constituencies that they are pursuing their conservative agenda, but are being stymied by those evil socialists in Congress and the White House who are trying so hard to destroy this country "unless you send a conservative back to Congress - preferably me."

All in the interests of preventing Obama from being re-elected.

Because nobody else in this town will say it, I will. They are mean spirited, low down, evil minded wealthy jerks who are only focused on getting what their masters want:

A Kleptocracy, well leavened with a theocratic yeast, blown to oversized proportions.

Good-bye middle class, it's been good knowing ya.

Robert Ahrens

Rockville, MD