Mark Halperin, senior political analyst at Time magazine and no conservative, stares reality right square in the face and doesn’t much like what he sees:
Is it hyperbolic to say the Democratic Party is in the midst of a nervous breakdown? I have been covering national politics since 1988, and I don’t remember a situation quite like this. The signs of a crack-up are everywhere. Democrats still think they can somehow win a news cycle by demonizing John Boehner. Chuck Schumer goes on the Senate floor and suggests Democrats are getting the same political mileage out of “millionaires tax” that Republicans have gotten over the years from using “death tax.” Politico has a story with blind quotes from Hill Democrats who are furious that the White House isn’t using some sort of mythical leverage over Republicans to extract concessions in exchange for extending all the Bush tax cuts — including continuing to try to trade for DADT and the Dream Act (rather than things dealing with jobs). Two members in good standing of the Professional Left — moveon and the PCCC — are spending its members’ money on TV ads demanding that the president exercise this same mythical leverage to stand up to the GOP. Democrats are understandably — and largely justified in being — frustrated that they lost an election based on Republicans defending tax cuts for the wealthy that are only expiring because of a budget gimmick championed by George Bush — and based on criticism of their apparent lack of concern over the deficit, by a party that has shown no past or current seriousness about deficit reduction and the hard choices involved. Losing those political fights was as inexplicable as it was hard for the Democrats. Maybe that’s why Thursday seemed to have donkeys melting down all over the place.
We’re not sure it’s a nervous breakdown. Einstein said, “The definiton of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.”
Based on that, you may need a different diagnosis, Dr. Halperin.
Source: Time
This post was last modified on January 26, 2021
View Comments (5)
Who still reads Time magazine anymore?
Our illustrious Editor, obviously. Somebody's gotta keep an eye on the inmates.
Only online.
What is disgusting is how the house and senate has squandered, lied, cheated, manipulated through self serving deal making have taken the nation into 14 trillion dollars of debt, now like little bands of grade school punks who demand our lunch monies because they need it to spend more they put on their public demonstrations of righteous indignation because they are concerned about the American people? The republic would be better off just eliminating all of the current senate and house and have the governors’ manage their states until we could vote in new members that would not be receiving life long retirement for “public service” this of course would be with term limits, no more professional crooks in office: think of the money saved not having to support the influence peddlers or their myriad of staffs and office expenses. 100 new taxes since the turn of the century and the greedy, corrupt, thief’s of the night demand more so they can help the country get out of the debt they created..
So, I'm belatedly reading Neil Howe's "Fourth Turning" right now. Pretty good stuff. Its foretelling some sort of national crisis to start about right now. I'm guessing deficits and some sort of failed treasury auction will be the spark. Or maybe a series of IRS firebombings that start a police-state crackdown.
All this crap from our represenatives makes lots of sense in that context. Unfortunately, when the crisis starts the aging hippie liberal douches will still be in charge. When we get through the trial of fire, there will be a new power order. I'm guessing what emerges will incorporate term limits and axe congressional pensions. But it could just as easily bring in a new tyranny.
Something for everyone to think about when the shit really hits the fan. It won't be enough to just stand on one side or another philosophically.