The Big Difference

Watching both the Republican and Democratic debates along with the various candidate appearances across the country, one is struck by the vast differences in approach, style and content that is evident between the individuals, but also between the parties. I don’t think, as far back as I can remember, that such a vast chasm of difference, has ever been in evidence and believe me, that’s a long way.

People who have been reading this blog recently often ask me if I’m a Democrat. The answer is no. In fact, I’m a former Republican who is now an Independent, who, in a country where information and education is so easily available, just can’t abide uninformed people who act stupidly.

That is the reason that I have come down so hard on this year’s GOP slate of morally reprehensive candidates, making repulsive statements, aimed at an ignorant, totally uninformed voter base that doesn’t want truth; wants only balm for the bigoted, ignorant beliefs that they carry around with them like a loaded .45.

The Republican candidates, with the possible exception of John Kasich, who is of course, far behind in the polling, will say anything they think their audience wants to hear, will attack all other members of their own party and almost to a man provide no evidence that they have any concept of what they will do to solve the problems of this country, if by some disaster, they are elected.

The Democrats, to a man or woman, and especially since Webb and Chaffee have dropped out, seem to be presenting some kind of adult front where discussion shows respect, where debate involves concepts of governance and where all three candidates seem to have some sense of what is wrong with the country and some concept of how to go about fixing it.

All the Republican campaigns, led by the bigoted, bully, billionaire, have degenerated into name calling cat fights and when they aren’t attacking each other, they spend the rest of their time attacking Hillary Clinton, who they all see as the mountain blocking their path to the Presidency.

It’s too bad that the Republican candidates have sunk to this level. It would be much more beneficial to them and to those who want to select among them, if they had it in them to manufacture governing policies and to be able to explain those policies to the voters. Unfortunately we are left with, a Trump calling the others names and telling us how he will fix everything but giving us no reason to believe him. We have a Carson who speaks with the mouth of a Christian but the mind of a crackpot, a Fiorina who spends all her time attacking Hillary, a woman, which at this point, she doesn’t seem to understand, she will never get to run against. There’s Bush worrying about protecting his brother instead of telling the people what he would do to save the nation from a repeat of his brother’s mistakes; there’s Rubio, trying to be the fresh young right wing version of Barak Obama but showing only a propensity to embrace any bigoted position that he thinks his voters want to hear; there is Cruz, the snake from Texas, willing to betray even his own party if it serves his duplicitous ends and finally there is John Kasich, trying futilely to cobble together a platform of policy planning, who is overwhelmed by the senseless noise coming from the reality show candidates that surround him. It’s a pathetic show, so much so, that even party leaders like Paul Ryan understand what is happening and condemn their own party for the senseless mess they have made of this race.