Back in the 1960's I was Chair of the Young Republicans chapter at a small Virginia men's college and a self-described "conservative" Goldwater supporter! I saw the beginnings of the flocking of racist Southern Democrats into the Republican Party, beginning during the Nixon Administration and the payoff of Nixon's "Southern Strategy" run by Harry Dent, Jr., a racist Republican operative from South Carolina. I was horrified to watch Republican Nixon recruiting and openly campaigning for incumbent racist Southern Dems against duly nominated Republican candidates in the 1970 congressional elections, and by the time of George McGovern's Democratic presidential nomination in 1972, the goose was pretty much cooked. Most of the Southern Dems (not all, though) had migrated to the Republican Party or were well on their way. McGovern's nomination was the last straw for many.
To be sure, not every Republican is a practicing racist, but practically all practicing racists and bigots are now proclaimed Republicans! Nixon welcomed the racists, and Ronald Reagan welcomed the homophobic bigots and religious bigots into the Republican Party. The Republican Party has become what it is today thanks to Nixon and Reagan and the trailer-trash "crackers" they welcomed into the Party.
I realized I could no longer co-exist in the Republican Party with those types, so I left, wandering in the political wilderness for about four to five years. I voted for Libertarian Roger MacBride in 1976; I could not bring myself to vote for the cretin (Ford) who stupidly pardoned Nixon before he admitted to anything, and I could not bring myself to vote for a shamelessly evangelical Christian (Carter). However, I later came to respect Jimmy Carter as the real deal and was an enthusiastic supporter for him in 1980, partly because Reagan scared the bejeezus out of me! As an independent, I had supported "convenient" Dem Chuck Robb for Virginia Lieutenant Governor in 1977, and I attended my first Virginia Democratic Convention as a Delegate in 1978. I became Chair of a county Democratic chapter in Virginia in early 1979, and I resigned Election Night in 1981 (before the results were announced) when (finally committed) Dem Robb was elected Governor. The wife of my successor as Chair had a bad stroke about a year later, and he was totally distracted with that thereafter, so I wound up effectively serving as "Chair pro-tem" for another few years. I willingly did most of the work and had no real title. I didn't care about the "title," though. The work had to be done. The "Reagan Years" were not popular times for Dems in Virginia, regardless.
I supported Bill Clinton (not my first choice for the nomination) in 1992, but I resigned from the Democratic Party (I was more or less asked to get out) in late 1995 because I knew I would not support Bill Clinton for re-election in 1996. I had been complaining vehemently about his "Wrong-Wing" triangulation tilt with fascist Republican Dick Morris. It seriously annoyed the True Believers in the Democratic Party who would brook no dissent within. I can't remember for whom I voted in 1996--it may have been the Libertarian candidate. I voted for Ralph Nader in 2000 because I could not stand nor trust Al Gore or Joe Lieberman. Contrary to the wishful thinking of excuse-mongering Dems, Nader did not cost Al Gore the Election! Gore lost that election all by himself!
In 2004, I mistakenly thought that John Kerry had a chance to take Virginia, so I voted for him, despite the fact that I have never liked or trusted him, either. He predictably lost. For me, getting rid of Bush that year was a high priority. He is arguably the most dangerous, evil President we've ever had. I never thought I would say so, but he was much worse than Nixon!
I gladly supported Barack Obama in 2008. The notion that Sarah Palin might be one of John McCain's feeble heartbeats away from the Presidency was frightening in its implications. The recently-shown HBO drama, "Game Change," only confirms my thinking. Sarah Palin is utterly unqualified to hold any elective office! She is a vapid, silly ditz! Unfortunately, I have come to refer to Obama as "Prez Origami," because he folds so easily and will assume any shape desired! It seems he has squandered almost his entire Presidency so far trying to validate George W. Bush's absurd policies. He has thrown "Hope 'n' Change" out the window! In fact, "Hope" has become "Nope."
As despicable as Osama bin Laden seemed, all we really know about him is what the government has told us! In 2011, bin Laden was summarily shot on Obama's orders, unarmed (probably in the back of his head, gangster-style, with his arms secured behind his back), and his body was conveniently dumped at sea (so there could be no autopsy showing how close the gun may have been to the back of his head). Instead, the Constitution requires that he should have been arrested, brought to trial in a civilian court with a lawyer, a jury, right of cross-exam, etc. in accordance with the Sixth Amendment. Now, I realize this procedure fails to satisfy the blood-lust for vengeance that stupidly infects many Americans' thinking. Because they rigidly believe the US is a "democracy" (George W. Bush said so), many seem to think that "due process" ought to be put to a vote. However, it is well to remember that the purest form of "democracy" is a lynch mob, because everyone in attendance agrees on the outcome, except for the victim!
Although the US Supreme Court has limited the reach of constitutional due process to US citizens or on US soil, there are no such limitations written into the Constitution. Had bin Laden been convicted in a civilian court (as I suspect he would have been), then he should have been punished in accordance with our Constitution, which Obama and everybody else has sworn to support and defend, without exceptions. The possibility that Obama had his fingers crossed behind his back when he took the oath of office does not count! The fact that I am outnumbered by those who angrily disagree with me does not mean that I am wrong!
War, especially all the undeclared "pseudo-wars" we've had since WWII, is never an excuse to evade the requirements of the Constitution. The Congress has not formally declared war any time since World War II, and the President does not have war-making powers specifically granted under Article II, regardless of what the Supreme Court has said. Unfortunately, the Supreme Court has mostly abdicated its proper oversight of military and foreign policy in rather cowardly fashion. There are no such exceptions in Article III of the Constitution, and "military tribunals" established and controlled under Article II are also not authorized under the Constitution! All of that seems to bother very few people, however.
Republicans and "tea-baggers" are raising complaints about Obama that are mostly silly and seemingly racist in their purpose and motive. There is plenty to legitimately criticize Obama about, such as Obama wrongfully continuing and escalating the pseudo-wars in central Asia, his renewal of the vile USA PATRIOT Act by autopen and, most reprehensibly, his recent signing of the Military Authorization Act that permits indefinite detention and even "rendering" of persons (including US citizens) "suspected" by SOMEBODY in the Executive Branch of "terrorism," all without lawyers or trials or other pesky "legal technicalities." That is blatantly unconstitutional, but Obama, being the chameleon that he is, signed it anyway while bleating about his reservations with it! WHAT "reservations"?
I had a front-row seat to the sad racist conversion of the Republican Party in the 1970's. I had no choice but to leave.
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