Dearest Hound,
I am writing in response to your call for unity. You state that we must all come together to vote for Barack Obama. You point out that we should unite behind Barack because his policy platform is virtually identical to Hillary Clinton’s, a xerox you might say… you know, if one were to be snarky… and that these issues are especially important at this point in time.
Regardless, please allow me to explain why your Hound won’t hunt with me.
First, your claim that Barack Obama’s platform is nearly exactly the same as Hillary Clinton’s is exactly right, and has become even more so since Barack has become the “presumptive” nominee. The thing that your Hound doesn’t seem to track is that this is not a reason to vote for Barack, but actually reinforces the reasons for which the PUMA’s are angry.
A new, unvetted, young, inexperienced male with more than questionable associations with speeches that lacked substance is selected by party and pundit over the experienced, vetted, tried and true, more than capable female with and a track record of success…
Was it because he had a remarkably better policy position? No.
As you clearly point out, their positions are virtually identical… xeroxes of each other one might say.
No, it wasn’t because of policy, but rather because of the very things that PUMA’s are upset about. Voter representation, sexism, media influence and party manipulation. And the fact that you keep pointing out the similarity of their policy positions only highlights these issues for PUMA’s. It is not an argument to vote FOR him, but rather to vote AGAINST him.
Let me go ahead and get this one out of the way very quickly… another common argument is that PUMA’s should get behind Barack because Hillary has gotten behind him. Ummm… no.
The PUMA movement is not about Hillary Clinton. It is more about the underlying issues that Hillary Clinton’s campaign and the treatment of her by party and pundit brought to the surface. It is about the very issues that are at the core of the foundation of this great country of ours… Democracy and Equality.
Oh, but healthcare! And Roe! And all the other issues that you keep repeating are so very important… these are not overwhelming arguments for two reasons…
First, it is not the job of the President to make domestic policy. That is the realm of the Congress. If the Democratic party is so dedicated and concerned about these issues that are so important and essential, then I am sure that the Democrats, who will have a very large majority in Congress, will have no problem taking care of these issues with or without a Democratic President.
Second, no issue is more important or more fundamental that the concepts of equality and one person, one vote.
The primary system is broken in more ways than can be counted, disenfranchising millions. The decision of the Rules and Bylaws Committee literally CHANGED THE VOTES of anywhere from hundreds of thousands to millions of voters. The caucus systems are inherently disenfranchising. The proportional delegate system is flawed. The delegate system is completely broken as evidence by one cadidate winning the vote in a state and the other ending up with more delegates. This system MUST be reformed.
The rampant sexism in the media and punditry is inexcusable, and the Demcratic Party did nothing. As I have said before, where was the outrage when Hillary was faced with a sign that said “Iron My Shirt”? Conversely, if Barack Obama had been confronted by a sign that said “Pick My Cotton” then every news channel would scream with outrage as all the leaders of the DNC lined up just to get their turn at the microphone to express their horror. This is to say nothing of the shrew wife imagry, the ballbusting nutcrackers, and the horrendous verbal references. Why doesn’t sexism get the same reaction? Why is sexism tolerated, accepted and even encouraged? Sexism is outrageous and should not be tolerated.
We will not be deterred… we want our country back. A country where everyone is equal and votes are counted.
NObama. Not Now. Not Ever.
I want MY party back!
Respectfully,
Texas Hill Country
A Proud Capital Hill Forum PUMA
[...] Beldar wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptYou point out that we should unite behind Barack because his policy platform is virtually identical to Hillary Clinton’s, a xerox you might say… you know, if one were to be snarky… and that these issues are especially important at this … Read the rest of this great post here [...]
[...] Beldar wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptYou point out that we should unite behind Barack because his policy platform is virtually identical to Hillary Clinton’s, a xerox you might say… you know, if one were to be snarky… and that these issues are especially important at this … [...]