The New Nobility

No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States

US Constitution, Article I, Section 9

 

Among those running for the Presidency are Hillary Clinton, the wife of former President Bill Clinton and Jeb Bush, son and sibling of two presidents (George Bush and George W. Bush).  There is also Rand Paul, the son of long-serving Congressman Ron Paul and Lincoln Chafee, the son of life-long politician John Chafee.  Lincoln actually inherited his father's Senate seat when the elder Chafee died.  Oh, sure, the governor of Rhode Island 'appointed' him but that's pretty blatant.  The United States should not have family dynasties in politics, especially at the national level.

 

To an extent, this is unavoidable.  For millennia, most men found themselves in the same profession as their father.  A farmer's son became a farmer, blacksmith's son a blacksmith, a cobbler's son a cobbler, and so forth.  Even today, it is natural that a parent would impart knowledge of their chosen profession to their children.  Many kids want to be like mom or dad.  In most cases, that is fine.  However, in politics, it is troublesome.  With all the sway that former politicians accumulate (witness how many become lobbyists of their former colleagues), it creates dynastic families that are not so much elected as anointed.  Would JEB Bush have done so well on fundraising if he wasn't related to two former presidents?  Would Hillary have been elected Senator in New York if she wasn't married to the sitting president?  Would either George W or Jeb have been elected governors of Texas and Florida if their father had not been president?  For that matter, would George Bush have won a seat in congress in 1967 if not for his father, Senator Prescott Bush.

Family dynasties are incompatible with representative republics.  When Jeb Bush announced his candidacy, he let it be known that he would seek the nomination without appealing to the Republican base.  The base opposes Amnesty and Common Core; Bush favors both.  If not for his family connections, he would already be toast.  What of Hillary?  Her campaign, such as it is, survives thanks to Bill's charm and popularity.  Without Bill, Hillary would have had no political career at all.

Sadly, there is no legal fix for this.  It would be inappropriate to deny people to run for public office because a parent, sibling, or spouse had done so.  The only solution is for the public to refuse to vote for them.  I have not yet voted for a Bush or a Clinton and have no plans to ever do so.  Please join me.

Trump is a Sympton of Republican Spinelessness

Trump is Republican spinelessness come home to roost.  Sure, he's not conservative and is only opportunistically a Republican but the man has spine.  Both Republicans and Democrats have been telling the electorate how Amnesty/Path to Citizenship/Legal Status for those who broke the law to get into the country is a must.  Trump has thrown the BS Flag and he is suddenly in the lead for the Republican nomination.  Gee, you think maybe he has a better handle on the voters than the Washington elites?  What is astonishing is that none of the other Republicans has tried to steal some of those voters by taking similar, if more nuanced, positions on illegal immigration.  No, it isn't astonishing because they are spineless.  Where most Republicans would apologize for having had the temerity to voice such a position and then slink away to obscurity, Trump added an exclamation point by having Jorge Ramos (a pro-illegal immigration propagandist from Univision) kicked out of a news conference.  Trump is trying to win over voters, the rest of the Republican field is trying to win over a hostile media.  Trump, like Gingrich in 2012, is thrilling primary voters by treating the media thusly.  Trump is winning because he fights.

 

Let's contrast.  The voters were clearly upset with Obama in 2010 and the Democrats were 'shellacked' in Obama's words.  The Republicans took over the House, the part of the legislature with the power of the purse.  Not one dime can be spent unless the House allows it.  Obamacare was dead if only they had the spine to not fund it.  Nope.  No spine.  Oh, they claimed that without the Senate, they were powerless.  That's not what they said before the 2010 election.  Fine.  In the 2014 election, the Republicans won the Senate.  No change.  Now they claim that without the presidency, they can't do anything.  Pathetic.

 

I'm no Trump fan but I wouldn't call him pathetic.  I'd bet that if Trump had only one branch of the legislature, he would have accomplished vastly more than the 'professional' politicians.  Of course, it might not be anything I want but he wouldn't be offering endless excuses as to why he wasn't delivering what he promised.

Crime? It Depends on Your Party-Affiliation

Remember the Valerie Plame fiasco during the Bush Administration?  Richard Armitage had revealed Ms. Plame's name to Robert Novak.  Novak mentioned it in a column and scandal ensued.  Eventually, we had a Special Prosecutor to investigate this non-crime.  Armitage was never charged with releasing Plame's name because she wasn't a covert agent: no crime.  Still, it was a big deal and Scooter Libby - who did not reveal Plame's name to anyone - was convicted of a felony and fined $250,000.

 

Today, it is becoming increasingly clear that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had classified and top secret data on a private server located in a restroom closet in Denver.  Some of these emails had to be copied from secure servers and transferred to Ms. Clinton's far less secure server.  If someone of lesser status (or a Republican) had done this, there would be an immediate revocation of all security clearances and criminal charges filed.  Thus far, nothing.  Unlike Plame-Gate, crimes were clearly committed.  Where is the Special Prosecutor?

 

Former Governor Rick Perry of Texas is currently under indictment (by a Democrat Prosecutor) for using his veto when he was governor.  Apparently, using his veto - an integral power of his office - was a crime.  This has surely contributed to his failing presidential campaign, which was the point.

 

Lois Lerner of the IRS somehow only allowed one conservative group to get tax-exempt status in the 3 years leading up to the 2012 election.  When Congress sought to look into this anomaly, her emails from that window were reportedly destroyed in a hard drive crash.  When asked to testify on the matter, she invoked her 5th Amendment privilege against self-incrimination.  No charges have been brought against her or anyone at the IRS.

 

Tom DeLay, former Republican Congressman and very effective Majority Leader, was indicted (by a Democrat) for violating election laws.  Because Republicans have standards, DeLay had to step down as majority leader while under indictment (Democrats have no such rules).  He was eventually acquitted in the appeals court (8 - 1 ruling) but his political career was long over by then (again, that was the point).

 

Vice President Al Gore attended a fundraiser at a Buddhist Temple in California where thousands of dollars were funneled from China to the Clinton-Gore reelection campaign (that's a violation of election laws, by the way).  Though some of the foreign fundraisers were charged and convicted, Janet Reno declined to appoint a Special Prosecutor to investigate the Clinton Administration's part in the crime.

 

A mere whiff of impropriety can torpedo a Republican but a city dump stench of scandal has little impact on Democrats.  This double-standard probably explains the spinelessness that I constantly attribute to Republicans.  However, this is also why - even as a Libertarian - I prefer Republicans.  The press will hammer them and the Democrats will oppose them tooth and nail.  When Democrats are in office, the press cheers them and the Republicans are too scared to oppose them lest they be called racists, sexists, homophobes. or whatnot.

Dew Shine

It is well-known among my work colleagues that I drink Mountain Dew.  My boss saw Dew Shine on a shelf and, not surprisingly, thought of me.  I do like the presentation.  My first thought was that it might be alcoholic.  Apparently that is a common mistake; the label specifically states that it is not.

I found it to be more citrusy than standard Mountain Dew and possessed of an aftertaste almost as bad as Diet Mountain Dew.  I'll keep the bottle as a souvenir but no more Dew Shine for me.