Joe Conason: ‘Dysfunctional’ Too Polite to Describe Tea Party Congress

[babylonsister]

http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/dysfunctional_too_polite_to_describe_tea_party_congress_20110720/

‘Dysfunctional’ Too Polite to Describe Tea Party Congress

Posted on Jul 20, 2011

By Joe Conason


As America lurches toward new and unfamiliar status as a nation that defaults on its debts, commentators around the world are wondering how the democratic government that was once the most admired in the world—for many reasons—is now so “dysfunctional,” to use the polite term. But the truth is that the entire U.S. government is not dysfunctional. Much of the government functions well enough or better, and even the members of the troubled U.S. Senate seem to be trying, a little late, to deal with the problem before us.

No, dysfunctional is the too-polite term for the House of Representatives, specifically its dominant tea party Republicans, who can be described in far less dainty psychological terms. Even the most extreme Republican partisans in the Senate seem to realize that their House colleagues, seized by some combination of ideology, madness and pig ignorance, are propelling the country and the world toward economic chaos.

Of course, the tea party Republicans insist that no such thing will ever happen—the warnings from economists, business leaders, financiers and public officials are merely so much “scare talk.”

snip//

Such outbursts prove that the tea party is not only against taxes and spending, but is also strictly opposed to arithmetic, which like climate science is probably just another socialist plot. They also prove the utter insincerity of these characters, who just voted this week for the “Cut, Cap and Balance” bill that would gut Social Security, along with Medicare, while erecting a constitutional wall around tax breaks for society’s wealthiest individuals and corporations. They want to pose as defenders of the middle class and the American dream, even as they promote legislation that would destroy the programs and institutions that are the foundation of that way of life.

There is no need to look too far to find the source of our discontent—our “dysfunction,” if you must. It is in the Congress, which the American people mistakenly turned over to fakers and fools last November. Every poll shows that most voters regret that error now, and wish that Congress would tax the wealthy and preserve social insurance. Now those voters had better make their remorse heard, and loudly, if they hope to avert catastrophe.

[ladjf]

1. "Bat sh,t crazy" seems about right. nt

[Armstead]

2. All branches have been dysfunctional for longer than that

I agree with Conason xcompletely.

Except I think it goes much deeper and broader than that. Congress was broken by the influence of Big Money and Big Corporate Power by both parties years ago. The Tea Party is just the most blatant manifestation of that.

And we have a President who has chosen the role of referee trying to mediate, rather than a real coach and leader of the Democrats and the liberal progressive half of the population.

And the Supreme Court is piloted by Corporate Puppets like Roberts and Thomas.

[thereismore]

3. I wish we had called it "social insurance", not "social security". If it's security, you don't think

it can be taken away. Social insurance is much more accurate anyway.

[treestar]

4. Turning Congress over to Republicans was such a great idea

:sarcasm: The average voter is at times an idiot.

[Bluenorthwest]

5. Well, clearly you mean 'the average voter not on the West Coast'

The entire West Coast elected Democrats in 2010. Elected Democratic Governors as well. So don't include us in your rationalizations for Blue Dog losses. We had nothing to do with the hand over foisted on us by some States. My State had a record voter turn out, by the way.
Wonder what it is we did right that so many did so wrong? We run Democrats who can be differentiated from Republicans. And so we win!