When Republicans Attack the Republic

By: Mike Hersh

Republican right wingers - really wrong whiners - never stop. They shamelessly complain that Democrats treat them almost as bad as they treat Democrats. The nerve! But the truth is, no one treats Republicans the way Republicans treat everyone else. Take the judicial appointment controversy.

Republicans whine that Democrats "obstruct" Bush's choices for judgeships to the point of crisis. They never admit Bush's choices have been outside the mainstream, inexperienced, and otherwise unqualified. If that were the extent of this controversy, the Republicans would have a point. They don't.

Suddenly all these courtesies the Republicans demand for the far right wing choices of an un-elected "President" are constitutionally mandated. Three years ago, they refused to follow this mandate for moderate choices made by a duly elected President Clinton.

The Republicans blocked numerous Clinton appointments - often not even giving them a committee hearing, much less a committee vote, much less a floor vote. Suddenly majority rule is all the rage with the party that three years ago resorted to the judicial process to short-circuit and rig the electoral process itself. They're hypocrites. But it's even worse.

The fact show the "judicial crisis" Republicans scream about doesn't even exist. Here are the facts: Judicial vacancies are lower than any time in over 12 years. Republican complaints about Democratic "payback" - their admitted mistreatment of Democrats they claim provoked this alleged backlash - are lies.

Those "obstructionist" Democrats in the Senate allowed votes on nearly all Bush's choices, and approved more than 98% of them! More than 120 judges in all! (See: http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/135/oped/The_war_over_the_judiciary+.shtml)

Why are they so desperate to pack the judiciary with far right wing judges? So desperate that they rely on the most facile and transparent lies? That they eagerly risk their reputation?

The answer is simple. Right wing judges in Florida and on the U.S. Supreme Court overruled the voters to select Bush. Now, Bush is selecting more right wing judges who will then overrule more elections to put more right wingers in office over our objections.

Where does this vicious cycle leave the voters? In the famous words of AWOL Bush's father, this leaves us "out of the loop". These right wing Republicans aren't getting the "pay back" they deserve (and complain about). They're not just whiners. They're not just hypocrites. These whiny wrong wing Republicans are not just liars. They're enemies of the republic itself, and do not deserve the name Republican Party.