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Last week, the Democratic convention talked about change. But what do you think? Is Washington now, liberal or conservative? Let me ask you some questions.
Is a Supreme Court decision liberal or conservative that awards Guantanamo terrorists with constitutional rights? It's liberal.
Hold on dude. GW nominated two justices in last seven and a hal years. This is after the Supreme Court, in December of 2000 ordered Florida to stop counting ballots and made George Walker Bush the first Supreme Court chosen President in United States History, authorized torture (Chief Justice Scalia: “The torture of detainees does not violate the 8th Amendment’s ban on ‘cruel and unusual punishment’ because, torture is not used as punishment”), overturned a law restricting hand guns… I can go on… do you want me to?
Is a government liberal or conservative that puts the interests of the teachers union ahead of the needs of our children? It's liberal.
I was sixteen years old when I first witnessed a Republican take the stage at the 1992 National Convention and take a jab at teacher’s unions. I still stirs that same ire in me now that it did sixteen years ago. As a student then, I though to myself, “How can you stand on that stage in your neat suit and neat tie and neat hair and attack the humanitarians who help me everyday?” And - above all else - “My mother is a teacher. I’ve seen the work she does for the Teacher’s Union. How dare you.”
The unions these people belong to were formed and continue to exist in an effort to battle the institutions that wish to cut, disembowel and destroy public education as we know it. These teachers fight the battle on two front lines - defending public education from special interests and reactionary legislators, and most importantly, working every day to raise our children to become responsible adults and engaged citizens. They deserve respect and support, not politically convenient and arbitrary insults. Do these people really think that teachers join unions for the purpose of harming students?
Throughout my entire lifetime (almost thirty two years) Republicans have striven to end public education. They call themselves patriots as they push the dagger deeper and deeper into one of Thomas Jefferson’s greatest visions for the Republic. Fortunately for us, so far, they have failed to do so. We can thank Teacher’s Unions across the country for this. However, in the last eight years Republicans have succeeded in gutting public education as we know it. They have succeeded in cutting spending and installing crippling federal overheads on all public institutions across the country through “No Child Left Behind”.
Make no mistake about it: Republicans are the ones are the ones gutting the system. They are the one’s making it rain. And then they have the audacity to walk outside and say “Gee look at that, it's raining! Must be the teacher’s fault.”
Is a Congress liberal or conservative that stops nuclear power plants and off-shore drilling, making us more and more dependent on Middle Eastern tyrants? It's liberal.
Two things are terrifying about this statement. Let me start with what is not terrifying. Democrat or Republican in the White House, expanding Nuclear Energy is going to be a reality in the near future. Although I continue to have concerns about Nuclear Power, I recognize its necessity and recognize that our technology has improved dramatically since Three Mile Island and Chernobyl. But drilling is absolutely wrong. It is short sighted, detrimental to the land, detrimental to the air, detrimental to life on earth as we know it. That is a fact. But that is not, necessarily, what terrifies me about this particiular quote.
What terrifies me is – despite our greatest efforts to inform the public and develop new sources of energy - polls show that drilling is an issue for Republicans to boast. Americans want to drill. How can this be?! The tragic punchline: If we are dumb enough to think is a solution to our energy crisis, we are dumb enough to vote for Republican again.
Oh, and Mitt, regarding your point about liberals making us more dependent on Middle Eastern tyrants… some pictures for you buddy.
Is government spending, putting aside inflation, liberal or conservative if it doubles since 1980? It's liberal.
We need change all right: change from a liberal Washington to a conservative Washington.
You’ve got to be kidding me. Somebody tell this guy that White House has belonged to a Republican the last seven and half hears. Somebody tell him that Republicans have had control of the senate for four of the last eight years. Somebody tell him that Republicans have controlled the House of Representatives for twelve of the last fourteen years. Somebody tell him that Republican Presidents have made the majority of nominations on the Supreme Court. Somebody please tell him that it was Republican leadership that destroyed our surplus and created the largest deficit in United States History. Somebody tell him that Republicans sent us to war on a lie. Somebody tell him science is our friend. Somebody tell him that he has no argument. Somebody get this guy off the stage.
And you have the audacity to criticize Al Gore for travelling around the world to spread scientific awareness while you stand idle on stage uttering insipid and aged vitriol.