Today’s batch of news and essays about the current political situation in the US.
NYT, Paul Krugman, 27 Oct 2022: Republicans Have No Inflation Plan
Conclusion:
The bottom line is that while the G.O.P.’s election strategy is all about blaming the Biden administration for inflation, the Republican Party doesn’t actually have any plan to reduce inflation. To the extent it has an economic plan at all, it would make inflation worse.
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AlterNet, 24 Oct 2022: Republican senator flops when asked to specify how GOP would govern if it sweeps the midterms
United States Senator Roy Blunt (R-Missouri) was questioned by CNN on Sunday over how the GOP intends to govern if it wins control of the House of Representatives, the Senate, or both. Blunt is not seeking a third term.
“What exactly is the Republican plan, then? What should Republicans do differently? You know, it’s one thing to blame the Democrats and say yes, inflation is high, they’re raising prices. It’s another to say here’s the solution. What is that solution from Republicans?” host Pamela Brown asked Blunt.
Blunt’s response contained no plans or proposals and did the opposite of what CNN had requested – blaming Democrats without offering tangible alternatives…
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Salon, 24 Oct 2022: Criminology expert takes a sledgehammer to GOP claims “blaming Democrats for an increase in crime”, subtitled “Despite the apparently confident assertions of politicians, the crime rate isn’t as simple as Republicans claim”
Nothing is ever as simple as Republicans/conservatives claim it is.
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Slate, 26 Oct 2022: An Update on Gas Prices, the Only Number That Matters in Politics, Apparently, subtitled “They’re going down, and might keep going down!”
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Washington Post, Jennifer Rubin, 27 Oct 2022: Opinion | Republicans have shown who they are. Voters should believe them.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy has shown yet again that Republicans are no longer bothering to disguise their extremism and contempt for voters’ intelligence. He has indicated that if Republicans are put in charge, they would be willing to put aid to Ukraine on the chopping block and play a game of chicken with the full faith and credit of the United States.
McCarthy’s candor is not unique. MAGA candidates in debates, interviews and speeches have readily conceded their most extreme views and displayed their worst qualities. Here are six themes that keep popping up:
I’ll list just the headers.
1, Republicans want politicians to control women’s pregnancies
2, Republicans won’t hesitate to back former president Donald Trump
3, Republicans will instigate a constitutional crisis if they do not win in 2024
4, Republicans no longer pretend to support economic populism
5, Republicans have no plan to fight inflation
6, Republicans revel in cruelty
If the Republicans win the midterms, let’s check back on this set of predictions in six months.
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NY Times, front page, Sunday 23 Oct 2022: For Trump’s Backers in Congress, ‘Devil Terms’ Help Rally Voters, subtitled “In vilifying tweets and speeches, G.O.P. lawmakers who contested the election have far outpaced other Republicans and Democrats in fueling polarization.”
Long piece with many, many examples. True to Orwell.
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The Crazies.
AlterNet, 26 Oct 2022: Mike Pence declares that Americans have no right to ‘freedom from religion’
That is, “the First Amendment to the United States Constitution does not protect Americans from having other people’s faiths forced upon them.” It works for Pence since he follows America’s most popular religion.
Daily Beast, 24 Oct 2022: Florida Puts Raging MAGA Moms on Book-Banning Council, via Florida Creates Anti-LGBTQ Censorship Council
The Hill, 23 Oct 2022: Dominion CEO: Fox News ‘knew the truth’ about voter fraud claims, via Dominion CEO: Fox Knew They Were Lying About Us
Daily Beast, 27 Oct 2022: Georgia Voter Featured in Dinesh D’Souza’s Nutty Election-Denial Doc Is Furious, via D’Souza Sued By Man His Film Accused Of Being “Mule”
