The Neo Liberals Win Again

Fair warning, I'm getting ready to slam the race card down on the table. Hard.

We already have two white women on the Supreme Court do we need three? I mean, really? Are there no African American women qualified, competent, and intelligent enough to sit on the Supreme Court? To paraphrase Sojourner Truth ain't we a woman?

And ain't I a woman? Look at me! Look at my arm! I have ploughed and planted, and gathered into barns, and no man could head me! And ain't I a woman? I could work as much and eat as much as a man - when I could get it - and bear the lash as well! And ain't I a woman? I have borne thirteen children, and seen most all sold off to slavery, and when I cried out with my mother's grief, none but Jesus heard me! And ain't I a woman?

Once again progressives/liberals/and African Americans are overlooked and our loyalty taken for granted. I don't care if Elana Kagen is a direct descendant of the late Thurgood Marshall, can't we have one progressive/liberal African American on the Supreme Court? And NO, Clarence Thomas doesn't count. In the words of the Langston Hughes poem Mother to Son, life for black women ain't been no crystal stair.

Well, son, I'll tell you:
Life for me ain't been no crystal stair.
It's had tacks in it,
And splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the floor --
Bare.
But all the time
I'se been a-climbin' on,
And reachin' landin's,
And turnin' corners,
And sometimes goin' in the dark
Where there ain't been no light.

Historically African American women have always been marginalized and minimized. In the days of slavery they watched helplessly when their children were snatched from their arms and sold down the river. Their bodies weren't their own and they endured rape and humiliation by their owners. African American men were powerless to protect and defend them from the horrors, brutality and disrespect.

The media is spinning Kagen as an ultra liberal because she attended Harvard, clerked for Thurgood Marshall, donated to Obama blah, blah, blah, but we really know very little about her because she doesn't "have a paper trail" or a track record. We do know as the Solicitor General she argued against former Governor Don Siegelman getting a new/fair trail.

Oh how I wish progressive/democrats could be organized in their opposition like the republicans. One of my friends writes:
One of the things that burns me up is that when Bush nominated Harriet Myers, the Conservative Republicans had no problem organizing opposition to the nomination, and they got the job done in record time (25 days). The one thing missing in the Liberal/Progressive base is the ability to effectively organize, when the President makes a mistake like Kagan and the "Mandatory Insurance" issue

Oh how I wish President Obama would stop pandering to the neo liberals at the expense of progressives/liberals.

Was President Obama afraid to nominate a qualified African American woman because he felt white Senators wouldn't vote for her?

If so, what does that say about the white Senators?

If so, what does it say about President Obama? I mean he has the power and the opportunity to validate African American women. African American women like his mother in law Marion Robinson. African American women like his wife Michelle. African American women like his daughters Sasha and Malia. He could have paved the way for his daughters and young black women all over this land, but he chose to play it safe.

Life for black women ain't no crystal stair because we ain't a woman. A woman with equal rights.

The Neo Liberals win again.

Sigh.

Redeye's Top Ten Ways You Know Your Campaign is in Deep Doo-Doo.

#10 Pander to the right at the expense of the traditional base i.e. women, minorities, LBGT's, Labor,public school teachers and administrators.

#9 Vote against the hate crimes bill in an attempt to get the haters to vote for you.

#8 Vote against the health care reform bill to pander to the Obama haters.

#8 Stop showing up for forums and debates because you don't want to answer questions.

#7 Diss African American Political organizations before they can diss you because you voted against the hate crimes bill and the health care reform bill and call yourself a new democrat.

#6 Recycle the Lilly Ledbetter endorsement in order to appeal to "working women" after you've thrown women under the health care reform bus by voting for the Stupid, I mean Stupak amendment.

#5 Release a poll to your supporters telling them everything is fine go back to sleep. Black voters are going to vote for you despite the fact you voted against the hate crimes bill and the health care reform bill because you're black, and white voters are going to vote for you despite the fact you are black because you voted against the health care reform bill and the hate crimes bill. Do you need some Dramamine to go with that spin?

#4 Start a controversy about your opponent's campaign bank loan because you can't talk about the issues or your agenda.

#3 Pretend like you don't understand why State Senator Hank Sanders and the UMWA endorse your opponent.

#2 Share some unfortunate news about your opponents campaign.

#1 When all else fails, play the race card and resort to race baiting. "Race tinged letter" my Donkey.

Random Roundup/Rant

Your campaign must be in trouble when you have to recycle endorsements and stage photo ops. The Artur Davis for Governor campaign must think the "traditional" democratic base (women,labor,minorities,teachers,working class) are stoopid. I mean, really.

Do Davis campaign handlers believe that trotting around with Lilly Ledbetter is going to make traditional democratic voters forget he voted against the health care reform bill and voted for the Stupak Amendment?

Does the Davis campaign believe traditional democratic voters are going to believe he's finally showing up to work by "co-sponsoring" a Johnny Come Lately, ineffective bill to raise oil clean up liability?

Does the Davis campaign expect traditional democratic voters to be distracted and bamboozled by his slick new TeeVee Ads? Are working women supposed to believe Artur Davis wants them to have a "fair shake" just because he stands next to Lilly Ledbetter?

Memo to the Davis campaign from this proud traditional democratic voter...I know you are using Lilly Ledbetter to try and make Artur look like he cares about women. Artur Davis and Lilly Ledbetter have access to quality, affordable health care reform, and so do I, but unlike Davis and his supporters (who also have access to health care, I care about the working women and other Alabamians who don't have access to quality, affordable health care reform. Get a clue. Strike that, buy a clue. You sir,are no Congressman Alan Grayson and traditional democratic voters aren't stoopid. You can't dazzle me with brilliance or baffle me with bullsh#t.

Something doe not compute in Neo Liberal Land all right. What part of voting against health care reform is a deal breaker for most progressive/liberal/democrats doesn't compute? If Artur Davis voted for the stimulus why didn't he vote for the health care reform bill?

What part of the only censorship I condone is condoning censorship doesn't compute? When you hide comments because trusted people find them offensive that's censorship. When you ban people from your blog because they disagree with your point of view that's censorship.

What a difference a year makes, this year it's Let the Rebel Ghost Rest , last year it was Today is Confederate Memorial Day. I'm all for letting the Rebel Ghost Rest but that's not going to happen as long as we commemorate Confederate Memorial Day, fly the the Confederate Flag on the grounds of the state capitol and have the "Heart of Dixie" on our license plates. I'm just saying....

Listen up Dems...Tuesday's elections demonstrated that the Republicans are succeeding on both counts and the Democrats are failing.

The Republicans are fueled by their unity in opposition, which keeps their base united and happy. If we can break down that unity on the financial and immigration reforms, and on the confirmation of the SCOTUS nominee, we will splinter and demoralize the Republican base, which will become disgusted with a good portion of their own party.

So, in this case, the best defense is a good offense, but the offense has to be concerned with breaking GOP unity, which means that steamrolling best outcomes isn't the best way to go politically.

Some say the word Teabagger is like using the n word???? I can only shake my head...

" The term "tea-bagger" is like uttering the "n" word, some say. Though he aspires to promote civility, evidence has surfaced that President Obama has added "tea-bagger" to his public lexicon, though it's considered a cheap and tawdry insult by "tea party" activists. Watchdogs at Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) barked when they saw the proof, tucked in a sneak peak of Newsweek columnist Jonathan Alter's new book, "The Promise: President Obama, Year One," to be released May 18. Indeed, it appears the president joined certain partisan critics and the liberal media, and took the tea-bag plunge.

"This remark is the equivalent of using the 'n' word. It shows contempt for middle America, expressed knowingly, contemptuously, on purpose, and with a smirk. It is indefensible to use this word.

We speak English in Alabama? Who knew?

Redeye Rant over and out....for now...

What If Wednesday

What if Bush and Dick had treated 911 like a crime instead of sending our sons and daughters to Iraq and Afghanistan to look for weapons of mass destruction that were not there?

What if all the votes had been counted in Florida in 2000?

What if the MSM exposed the Tea Party's race problem instead of enabling it?

What if Congressman Artur Davis had voted for the health care reform bill instead of against the health care reform bill ad were on the path to making history by being elected the first African American governor of Alabama?

What if progressive voices were encouraged instead of censored?

Edit~ Neoliberals/Neocons, what's the difference?

Absolutely nothing IMHO.

Who/What is a neo liberal you ask? 

They are blue dog/conservatives/moderates/former republicans posing as progressives/liberals/democrats.

They support non progressive candidates who pander to the right at the expense of the traditional democratic base (women minorities, labor, teachers, working class, poor) and the democratic agenda.

They are anti labor/teachers unions.

They support so called new school politicians over traditional, old school leaders and civil rights organizations.

The democratic party has been infiltrated by neo liberals just as the republican party has been infiltrated by neo conservatives.


Check out Neo-liberalism and the assault on public education. H/T JZ via The Black Commentator.com

Neo-Liberalism is an ideology that calls for
"limited government" and a market-driven economy. This
project is being carried out on the federal, state, and
local levels, while targeting publicly-financed K-12
schools and higher education.

Some of the objectives for restructuring public
education include:

1) shifting the cost of education on to students, while
increasing their debt burden to the benefit of banks;

2) promoting the expansion of privately-managed charter
schools;

3) deepening the access to public educational resources
for corporate-interests;

4) smashing teacher unions, thus weakening the
political power of those unions, and cutting the cost
of teachers; and,

5) eliminating multicultural, revisionist, inter-
nationalist, and critical perspectives from the school
curricula.

Speaking of neo liberals, I would like to take this opportunity to respond to some 0f the post over at my former sandbox, LeftinAlabama. For some strange reason I can't seem log on to comment but thank goodness I have my own sandbox. :) Funny how they are bragging about readers and contributors from around world but banning contributors right here in the USA but I digress.

Resident conservative OP wants to play the blame Obama game and say the Gulf Oil spill is President's Obama's Katrina.

There appears to me to be some eerie similarities between the oil spill and Katrina.

HELL to the NO. The loss of human life and suffering which occured in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina was much worse compared to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. President Obama didn't fly over the gulf coast and look down on thousands of people suffering and dying from his Presidential airplane then proceed to the White House and do nothing for five days. President Obama didn't ignore the warnings the levees would break. President Obama is not responsible for the oil leak any more than George W. Bush was responsible for Hurricane Katrina. There are some who say Dick Cheney's secret energy policy meetings are more to blame than President Obama. Maybe now the the concrete heads who are yelling drill baby drill will get the message. Maybe now President Obama will rethink his decision to open off shore drilling. But then again, maybe not.

In response to countrycat's disbelief any democrat would defend Parker Griffiths defection, I must say I find the double standard troubling. Should we have all sent Artur Griffith, I mean Davis flowers and campaign contributions after he voted against the Health care reform bill, the hate crimes bill, and other Democratic initiatives? What's the difference between Grimsley playing both sides of the aisle and Artur Davis voting with republicans against his party? Does Artur Davis really strike you as an asset to the democratic party?

mooncat continues to bash AEA and promote Artur Davis by asking what is the Alabama Education Associations 2010 strategy.

It seems to me that AEA is kind of like Bradley Byrne -- they know what they don't want, but they aren't sure what they do want. They know they don't want Byrne, who has been running against AEA for several years (news flash: Paul Hubbert and AEA won't be on the ballot, Bradley) but they don't want Artur Davis either because he's running on shaking up the Montgomery power structure. So the strategy is to attack Byrne directly and fund Davis' primary opponent, but why the money to Bill Johnson? That $87K looks like money down a rat hole any way you look at it, and the Sparks money doesn't look much better.

Artur Davis is running on shaking up the teachers union and privatizing public education by replacing public schools with charter schools. Artur Davis is the power structures candidate (see assualt on education post above). As you say, the people with the money make the rules and as you're fond of pointing out, Artur Davis has the most money.  Terri Sewell has the most money too.

piggieheart says he can't decide if Bishop E.W. Jackson is more homophobic or racist. I say he's more homophobic and prejudiced. There is a difference between being prejudiced and being a racist. Prejudice must have power to be racist. In other words prejudice without power is no nothing. Bishop E.W. Jackson doesn't have the power to deny our gay and lesbian sisters and bothers anything, all he can do is promote white,I mean right wing spin with a black face on right wing TeeVee.

What if Congressman Artur Davis had actually read the health care bill instead of counting the number of pages in the health care bill?  DrApston has an excellent series explaining the benefits and deficiencies of the health care reform bill. What if Congressman Davis had someone like this on his staff advising him instead of the Kool Aide kids? Would he have voted against the health care reform bill if he knew exactly what the benefits were to Alabamians?

“Regardless of whether you supported the health care reform bill or not, you cannot argue with the benefits for Alabamians and their families,”

Among the most important of these benefits, the health reform package will strengthen and improve the Medicare Program. Under the health insurance reform plan, the life of the Medicare Trust Fund will be extended by nearly a decade. Currently, 763,000 Alabamians depend on Medicare for health care.

The health reform package improves access to primary care doctors, and primary care doctors will receive bonuses for treating people covered by Medicare.

Beginning in 2010, preventive care, such as screenings for cancer and diabetes, is provided free of charge. You will no longer have to pay out of pocket for preventive care services.

The Health Reform Package will also help older Alabamians struggling with the high cost of prescription by closing the "doughnut hole" in prescription drug coverage.

ivan is upset with the leadership of the Alabama United Auto Workers and State Senator Hank Sanders  for their endorsement of Ron Sparks over Artur Davis for Governor. But I say what Hank Sanders said;

When Congressman Artur Davis, who is African American, announced his intentions to run for Governor of Alabama, I knew victory was a long, long shot. After all, Senator Barack Obama, now President Barack Obama, received just 39% of the vote in Alabama. The only state that gave him a lower percentage was Oklahoma. No African American statewide candidate has topped 46% in the last 15 years. Yet, I was open to his long shot. I am no longer open. I must say, “no” to him out of love for our children, our people, and for him. And it hurts me.

In response to herding old cats post about the 5th districts glorious past, let me say I don't believe the democratic candidates are running on the past as much as they are trying to define who they are and what they stand for. Remember that old saying about the apple not falling from the tree? Two of the candidates are relatively new to politics and none have run for public office before so they don't have a record to run on so to speak. They are asking voters to judge them by the records of the company they keep.

I may no longer be welcome in the LiA sandbox, but you are welcome to play in my sandbox anytime. We can debate/discuss/disagree about politics without being disagreeable. Don't be skeered. :)