Bill Cosby, Tamir Rice, and Michael Vick's Dog

This has been a really emotional week for me, capped off by Bill Cosby's arrest yesterday in Philadelphia on criminal sexual assault charges.  When I look back at 2015, I will remember it as the year the American Criminal Justice system reminded black Americans that this system was not designed to protect you, and it still does not protect you.  

Let's be clear.  I think the women accusing Bill Cosby are telling the truth, and as much as I admire the work Bill Cosby has done, I have no problem with him being held accountable for his actions.  Wrong is wrong, and karma doesn't sleep.  But this article is about the American criminal justice system, not about Bill Cosby.  And my understanding of the American Criminal justice systems tells me in this particular case, Bill Cosby is getting screwed.   

Bill Cosby going to Court

Cosby entered into a settlement in a criminal case with the complainant in this matter that included a legally binding non disclosure agreement and an agreement that all depositions would be permanently sealed in 2006.  Those transcripts were never supposed to be seen by anybody not involved in that particular case.  But Judge Eduardo Robreno unsealed the transcripts because he said "The stark contrast between Bill Cosby, the public moralist and Bill Cosby, the subject of serious allegations concerning improper (and perhaps criminal) conduct is a matter as to which the AP — and by extension the public — has a significant interest".  I'm not a lawyer but I don't understand how a judge gets to make that call.  Maybe one of my lawyer friends can explain it to me.   Does sealed in a court of law not mean sealed forever?  Cosby was arrested for something that happened 11 years ago based solely on testimony from 2006.  His victim will get her shot at Justice.

Michael Vick

Michael Vick was prosecuted under the RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) for financing a dog fighting ring, participating in dog fights, and personally gambling on those dog fights.  The federal government said that made him part of an ongoing criminal organization (keep in mind no similar charges have been made against any of the bankers who nearly wrecked the world economy, but that's another post).   Dog lovers were outraged, and eventually Mike Vick went to prison for dog fighting.  Mike Vick's dog got Justice.

Which brings me to Tamir Rice.  The 12 year old boy was playing in the park in Cleveland with a toy gun when police responded to a dispatch call of a of "a male black sitting on a swing and pointing a gun at people".   The police car arrived at a park filled with children playing, pulled up right next to Tamir Rice and shot and killed him within 2 seconds of getting out of the car.    A grand jury decided not to indict the officer who killed Tamir Rice after the prosecutor played the role of attorney for the defense during the grand jury proceedings.  There will be no Justice for Tamir Rice.

Tamir Rice

Which brings me back to my emotional week.  I can't help but wonder how much more of this I can take, how much more this country can take before we explode.  Justice for Bill Cosby's victim, Justice for Michael Vick's dog, no Justice for the 12 year old black kid shot and killed while simply playing in the park.  The Supreme Court of the United States, the highest court in the land, has an inscription on the front of the building that says "Equal Justice Under The Law".   When???

Despite the Hooplah - Black Lives Still Don't Matter

Sandra Bland

I woke up in a great mood today.   My wife was in a good mood.  My kids are healthy and happy.  The house is decorated for Christmas.    Things are really good right now.   And then two posts on my Facebook page brought me straight to anger, frustration, and depression.   One was the news that a Texas grand jury is not going to indict anyone in the death of Sandra Bland, and the other is that Trayvon Martin's brother Jahvaris Fulton just graduated from college.  Two young black people who had their lives snatched from them over complete bullshit, and no one will be held accountable for either.

Jahvaris Fulton

Quick recap for those who live in a world where they can not know what happened to these two young people.  Sandra Bland, 28 years old,  was pulled over on July 10, 2015 for a minor traffic violation by Texas State Trooper Brian Encinia.  They had words and he arrested her, alleging that she assaulted him.  The video from his dashcam and a bystander's cell phones prove that those allegations were false.  Sandra Bland was found dead in her jail cell on July 13, 2015, the police say she hanged herself.  Travyon Martin, 17 years old, was fatally shot by George Zimmerman, a self appointed Neighborhood Watchman, on his way back to Martin's father's house after a run to a convenience store to buy Skittles and Iced tea.   No criminal charges will be filed in the Bland case, and none were filed initially in the Martin case.  After public outcry, Zimmerman was charged with second degree murder and manslaughter.  A jury acquitted him in July of 2013.

The #blacklivesmatter movement has gotten a lot of negative press.  It's critics say that All Lives Matter would be more appropriate, because black lives matter is by definition a racist term.   These two young black people epitomize the necessity of black lives matter.  To put it simply, the American criminal justice system is racist, especially in the South.   I know a lot of you don't want to admit it, but every single study that's done on the topic verifies the fact.   Blacks are arrested and convicted at much higher rates than whites for committing the same crimes.  That's a fact.  If you don't believe me Google it.   And the thing you might not know is it was designed to be that way.

Policing in the American South is a direct descendant of the "Slave Patrols" established in the Carolina colonies in 1704.  These slave patrols had 3 primary functions according to Dr. Gary Potter of Eastern Kentucky University:

1.  Chase down runaway slaves and return them to their owners.
2.  Provide an organized terror force to deter slave revolts.
3.  Maintain a form of discipline for slave-workers who were subject to summary justice, outside of the law, if they violated any plantation rules. (emphasis added)

According to Dr. Potter,  "Following the Civil War, these vigilante-style organizations evolved in modern Southern police departments primarily as a means of controlling freed slaves who were now laborers working in an agricultural caste system, and enforcing "Jim Crow" segregation laws, designed to deny freed slaves equal rights and access to the political system." You don't have to be Sherlock Holmes or Einstein to see the remnants of the Slave Patrols in today's police forces and their relationships to black people.  Today's police may not be officially called "Slave Patrols", but they too often act as "Black Patrols" with al almost identical mission.

So why do we say #blacklivesmatter instead of #alllivesmatter?  It's because, in the words of comedian Bill Maher, "saying "All Lives Matter" implies that all lives are equally at risk, and they are not."  Consider since April of 2014:

Dontre Hamilton

4/30/ 2014:   Dontre Hamilton (Milwaukee, WI 31) Shot 14 times by a police officer in a park because someone called from Starbucks and said he was disturbing the peace.  Officer wasn't charged.

6/17/14:  Eric Garner (New York, NY 43) Killed after being put in an illegal chokehold by a police officer for 15 seconds for selling loose cigarettes.  Officer wasn't charged.

8/5/14: John Crawford (Dayton, OH 22) Shot and killed by a police officer at a Walmart while shopping.  He was holding a toy BB gun sold by Wal Mart.  Officer wasn't charged. 

John Crawford

8/9/14: Michael Brown (Ferguson, MO 18) Shot and killed by a police officer after an altercation over what began as an admonishment for Brown to stop walking in the middle of the street.  Officer wasn't charged.

11/22/14:  Tamir Rice (Cleveland, OH 12) Shot and killed by police while playing in a park when police mistook his toy gun for a real weapon.  Officer wasn't charged. 

I think it's safe to say there is a pattern.  And I only stopped for the sake of brevity.  I could have added Ezell Ford (Florence, CA 25), Dante Parker (Victorville, CA 36), Tanisha Anderson, Cleveland, OH 37), Akai Gurley (Brooklyn, NY 28),  Eric Harris (Tulsa, OK 44), Walter Scott (Charleston, SC 50),  Freddie Gray (Baltimore, MD 25) and many others.   All killed by police officers while they were unarmed.  Can any of you seriously say that if this were a list of white names there would not be a national outcry?   And you ask why I don't say all lives matter?  The answer is because apparently to the American criminal justice system, all lives don't matter.

Tamir Rice

James Baldwin once said that "to be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time."  I used to doubt the accuracy of that statement but I've come to believe that it's true.  How can I be even relatively conscious and not be in a rage over the fact that Sandra Bland and Travyon Martin had their lives ended so prematurely, so senselessly, and the American criminal justice system can't find a way to hold somebody accountable?  

But this is my country.  My ancestors helped to build it.  Even though that I admittedly have that rage at the injustices that still go on, I won't surrender the right to experience all that this country has to offer.  So I'm going to to try to get back into my good mood and enjoy the day.  But to paraphrase Jules in Pulp Fiction, I'm trying.  I'm trying real hard.  

Confederate Monuments - What's the Big Deal?

On open letter to my friends in New Orleans who are upset about the City Council's decision to remove the Robert E Lee Monument from Lee Circle:  

Dear Friends,

I'm not big on symbols.  Never have been.  I lived in New Orleans almost my entire adult life, and spent much of that time in and around Lee Circle.  I worked out at the Lee Circle YMCA 3 days a week until Katrina forced the facility to shut down, and then still passed it every day when I switched my workouts to the Jewish Community Center uptown after Katrina.  I honestly never gave one second of thought to the person that circle was named after.   Shame on me for that.  More on that later.

Let's get the elephant in the room out of the way.  I'm not calling you a racist.  If I thought you were a racist I wouldn't be your friend.  This discussion has absolutely nothing to do with you being racist.  A parallel I like to use to put these discussions in context is sexism.   I don't consider myself to be a sexist (although as a man I think the ultimate arbiters of that fact are the women who know me), but I have come to accept the fact that I have several firmly held convictions that are indeed sexist.  For instance, I don't think women should be professional boxers or mixed martial arts fighters.  I don't think women should be fighting in military combat on the front lines.  I don't think women should pay for dates, open their own car doors, or walk on the outside of the sidewalk.  I prefer women to wear shoes that look impossibly hard to walk in and surely must cause all sorts of pain.   All of these things I believe to the center of my core, and I've come to accept that they are all sexist.  In other words I have come to accept that even though I don't consider myself a sexist, I have a lot of the same beliefs that sexists have.   It's not something that I'm necessarily proud of but it is what it is.

Likewise you don't have to be a racist to have some of the same beliefs that racists have.  And having those beliefs doesn't make you a bad person any more than my having sexist beliefs make me a bad person.  But here is what I try to do because I don't want to be a sexist:  I listen when women talk.   When a woman tells me that a comment I make is sexist of course my first reaction is "no it's not", that's natural.  But that's not what I say, instead I ask "really?  Why is that statement sexist".    And every single time I've asked that question and listened to the answer, I've learned something.   I don't always change my opinion, but I learn something.   So please friends, just for the purposes of this letter, let's get past your natural reaction to be defensive and listen to me tell you why that statue is offensive.

For the sake of brevity, let's put aside the issue of slavery for the purposes of this discussion.   The fact is slavery was legal in this country during Lee's time and many of our founding fathers owned slaves.   I don't think Lee shouldn't be honored in our great city.  And yes, even though I live in Texas now I still consider it my city.  Anybody who wants to challenge my right to call it that is welcome to take a tour with me the next time I'm in town and I'll show you where I've left blood, sweat and tears in order to make New Orleans a better place.   To put it simply, Lee was a traitor who committed treason.  He declined Lincoln's offer to command the Union army before the war started, he resigned his commission to take up arms against an enemy of the United States and he is responsible for more American deaths than any other force in the history of our nation.   More than Bin Laden, more than ISIL, more than Al Queda, more than Hitler.   That's it.  That's why I think he doesn't deserve a monument.   Read those sentences again and then I challenge you to tell me why you think he does deserve a monument.

Deaths From the Battle of Gettysburg

Now I know a lot of you thing this is a black thing.   That African Americans want the statue removed because it's a constant reminder of the Civil War.  This is where I'll go back to me driving by Lee Circle 3 times a week without ever thinking about the significance.  All of you, because you are my friends, know that I'm an unapologetically proud black man.  I try to be socially conscious and aware of all things that affect black people.  I'm purposeful in that pursuit.  I read, I research, I listen to almost anything that impacts black people, positively or negatively.   Knowing that, consider what it says about the legacy of slavery and the Civil War that someone like me, who makes a concerted effort to be socially conscious on issues relating to my heritage, could pass by Lee Circle every day and not once think about how insulting it was to me as a black man in a predominately black city.    How could I not once think about who Jefferson Davis actually was when I was driving down Jeff Davis to get to Xavier University, the only predominantly black Catholic University in the country.  How could I enjoy the TV show "The Dukes of Hazzard" as a child and actually get my parents to buy a replica toy of the "General Lee" car in the show because all of my friends had one.   What kind of psychological damage has been done to my people that we don't even think for a second about monuments to people who took up arms against their country to keep us enslaved?

Some of you are Jewish.  Can you imagine driving past Hitler Circle every day on your way to work and not even once thinking about it?  Some of you are Christian.  How about driving past Satan Boulevard to get to your church every Sunday and not even thinking about it.  My white friends, how would you like your kids playground to be at The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan Park?   Can you imagine taking them their to play every day and not even thinking about it?  That's exactly what black New Orleanians have done since the day that statue went up.

Now I've heard several reasons for not removing the statue, the most common being that it's a part of our history and we shouldn't forget it.  That's what museums are for.   That statue isn't a reminder of our past, it's a celebration of it.   It's a monument, which the dictionary says is "erected to commemorate a famous or notable person or event".   The word commemorate means to "recall and show respect for someone or something, to celebrate by doing or building something".  Do we really want to celebrate a traitor who committed treason?   Some of you make the argument that we have bigger issues and this won't help us solve them.   I agree 100%, but having the statue up for all these years hasn't solved them either and it's offensive to more than half the population.  Doesn't it make more sense to remove it?   Some of you say your ancestors fought in the Civil War, and that statue represents their sacrifice for the Confederacy.   I'm sorry, but the truth is your ancestors were traitors to this country.  I understand and respect your wish to honor them, but we as a City should not.  Hitler is somebody's ancestor too.   And finally, my favorite reason is that it would change the city's landscape.   To those people I just say get over it, you will live.

So that's it Friends.   I'll be honest, I don't know why this issue is so important to you.   It concerns me that this bothers you.   I see this one as a no brainer.   I haven't even mentioned the fact that Lee has no ties whatsoever to New Orleans or the State of Louisiana, but I get the feeling that doesn't matter.  But I've got to tell you I'm looking forward to the day when I bring my kids back home and I can go to that circle and tell them the story of the statue that used to be there and why the Mayor and the City Council took it down.   And if you still need your Confederate fix, you can still go take a drive down Jeff Davis.  

Sincerely,


Guy Who Is Glad The Damn Thing Will Be Gone

Lie to Me Please!!! - Do Lies Matter any more?

I hate liars.   Nothing will get you on my "don't mess with this person any more" list than lying.   Once I figure out that you're a liar, we're done.   Just to be clear, I'm not talking about the "little white lies" to spare someone's feelings.   When your wife asks you does she look fat in a dress and you say no when the honest answer is yes.   Or when your mom asks how do you like the sweater she bought you for Christmas and you say you love it when it's actually hideous.   I put those in the category of "Mama didn't raise no fool" lies.   No real harm is done and the intent is not to hurt someone's feelings.  I'll make an exception for those.  Intent is the key.  The lies meant to intentionally mislead folks and hurt other people and especially the ones designed to cover your own ass, those are the ones that really get my goat.

I used to think that most Americans felt the same way.  Everybody says they hates liars.  Nothing gets a person's defenses up quicker than if someone accuses them of lying.   It's generally seen as one of the worst things you can be accused of because if you're a liar you are almost by definition also a cheat, con artist, phony etc.  In American politics, there has always been this strange dichotomy about lying.  There has always been the familiar refrain that "all politicians are liars", but actually being caught in a lie used to pretty much mean an end to your political career, ask President Nixon and Gary Hart.  

But I sense now things have changed.   I think somewhere along the way blatant lying has now become acceptable, so much so that I don't even think the American public makes any distinction between lying and just being wrong. I'm also not sure the American public cares any more, and that made me wonder when did we stop caring if politicians lied to us.   Like I said, we were so appalled that Richard Nixon lied to us that we forced him to resign from office.   It appears now like Tricky Dick was just a little ahead of his time.

Just thinking back on the Presidents in my lifetime, I think the last one the American public thought was honest was President Carter, and he's also the one that gets the most ridicule for his time in office.    When President Carter addressed the nation in 1979 and looked into the cameras and told the American people that the country was suffering from a "crisis of confidence" he was being honest.  He told the American people that our overconsumption was leading to an energy crisis.  That speech has since been dubbed the "malaise speech" and was one of the factors that led to President Carter being a one term President. 

He was beaten by President Reagan, a man who by profession was an actor.  His whole adult life he had been trained to convince people that he was someone other than himself.  He was followed by President George H.W. Bush, who was the head of the CIA, an agency whose main job is to lie and deceive in order to fulfill their mission.  But even after the Presidencies of Reagan and Bush, I think the American people still held on to this notion that it's just not okay for the President to lie to us. Even though many thought Reagan was lying during Iran Contra and Bush lied with his "no new taxes" pledge, there was enough gray area to give the POTUS the benefit of he doubt.

I think that changed with President William Jefferson Clinton and Monica.  I'll admit I like Bill Clinton, and I thought he was a very good President.   But after he looked into the camera facing the nation, wagging his finger no less, and just flat out lied to us, I never trusted him again.  

And when I found out that he repeated those lies under oath and the penalty of perjury, I have not believed a word that has come out of his mouth since.   But the American public by and large still loves Bill Clinton.  He is as popular as ever.  I think that finger wagging moment was the beginning of the slippery slope that has led us to where we are today.

In the year of our Lord 2016, politicians just lie.  They don't tell little lies, they tell whoppers.   And there are no repercussions.  I thought it couldn't get worse than Mitt Romney four years ago.  

I watched in speech after speech and debate after debate where Romney said things that he absolutely knew were not true, even about his own record.    Fact checker after fact checker would call him out on the lies and he would just repeat them or come up with new lies the next week.   And it didn't hurt him one bit with the voters.   In fact, just the opposite.  the more he lied, the better his numbers got.   

Which brings me to the GOP debate on Tuesday night.   I think we have finally gotten to the point where people running for President lie more than they tell the truth.  Politifact is a fact-checking website that rates the accuracy of claims by elected officials and others who speak up in American politics.   Here are some of their findings from the debate.

Ted Cruz:  The head of the FBI told Congress he couldn't vet Syrian refugees - Mostly False

Rand Paul:  Marco Rubio is for "open borders" - Pants on Fire

Carly Fiorina: Generals retired early because they told POTUS things he didn't like -Mostly False

Marco Rubio: Cruz supports legalizing people who are here illegally - Mostly False

If you go to the Politifact "Pants on Fire" page,  7 of the 20 lies cited on page 1 are by the Republican Frontruner, Donald Trump.  According to Politifact statistics here the fact checking stats for the leading candidates for President:

Republicans:  

Trump: True 0; Mostly True 7%; Half True 17%, Mostly false 16%, False 30% Pants on Fire 21%

Cruz: True 4%; Mostly True 16%; Half True 12%; Mostly false 29%; False 32%; Pants of Fire 6%

Rubio: True 14%; Mostly True 23%; Half True 23%; Mostly false 23%; False 15% Pants on Fire 2%

Clinton: True 28%; Mostly True 23%; Half True 21%; Mostly false 16%; False 11% Pants on fire 1%

Sanders: True 8%; Mostly True 35%; Half True 19%; Mostly False 14%; False 14%, Pants on fire 0

And just for comparison's sake, here are President Obama's numbers:

True 21%; Mostly true 27%; Half True 27%; Mostly False 12%, False 12% Pants on Fire 2%.

So back to my original question.   Do lies matter anymore when running for President.  Of the most likely candidates to be the next President, Politifact rates the statements of only 1 as True or Mostly True more than 50% of the time, and that candidate is only at 51% in those two categories.  The guy who is blowing away the rest of the Republican field says things that are True ZERO percent of the time,  Mostly True 7% of the time, and Mostly False, False, or just flat out Pants on Fire 67% of the time!   These numbers tell me that lying doesn't matter anymore, as long as you tell lies that the American people want to hear.   Evidently Mitt Romney was just 4 years too soon.

Dear Donald: 5 Reasons You Should Quit the Presidential Race Today

This is an open letter to Donald Trump.

Dear Donald:

I have to say congratulations.   What you've accomplished in this GOP Presidential Primary contest is amazing.  You've proven all the naysayers, myself included, wrong.  I never thought you would actually run, and when you actually did, I thought the voters were too smart to fall for your act.  I was wrong.   Not only have you led the race almost from day 1, you're blowing away the field.   You're leading in almost every national poll and almost every state poll that's been taken, and by very wide margins.   Not only are you trouncing the newcomers like Carly and Dr. Ben, you are killing the "legitimate guys"; Christie, Rubio, Jeb, and Cruz would kill for your numbers.   As of this date, the GOP nomination is yours for the taking.    Now is the perfect time for you to declare victory and walk away.  I know you're a businessman, and I've got 5 good business reasons why you should quit today.

5.  You are not going to win, and this contest has been bad for your image and your business.  We know that you're richer than Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and Oprah put together, but let's face it Donald, this Presidential thing has cost you some moolah.  NBC Universal pulled out of the Miss Universe pageant after you insulted Mexicans, the Dubai based Landmark Group has stopped selling your furniture in the Middle East, and Trump Turnberry, which you poured a bunch of money into renovating, lost the 2020 British Open.  I know you don't need the money and Warren Buffet calls you when he needs a loan, but money is how businessmen keep score isn't it?  Get back to building fantastic businesses.

4.  You are not going to win, and let's face it, being President would actually be a step down for you in terms of lifestyle.  The job is a hassle, that's why most rich guys won't do it.  Do you know that the Secret Service goes with you EVERYWHERE?  I'm just saying, Donald, read that sentence again, EVERYWHERE.  You don't need Air Force One, my bet is your plane is already nicer.   You can already get a meeting with anyone in the world, you're the most famous person on the planet, and do you really want to spend all that time away from your gorgeous wife Melania?

Remember, the Secret Service will go EVERYWHERE with her too.  Again, I'm just saying.  Being President is for poor people and the children of rich people.  You've got better things to do.  Which brings me to number 3.

3.  You are not going to win, and you have set the stage beautifully for Ivanka to be President one day.  Ivanka appears to be the total package.  

She's beautiful (you yourself said if she  wasn't your daughter you would probably date her.  Putting the creep factor of that statement aside, it's probably true), she's poised, and she's accomplished.   She's well known through The Apprentice and she seems to do great with people.   And you know how Republicans love beautiful blondes with long legs.  If you don't just turn on Fox News any time of day.    And she's actually smart.   Think about it Donald, you get all the benefits of the White House without any of the hassle, and you get the bonus of the parental pride of seeing your offspring leading the free world.

2.  You are not going to win, and if you drop out now, you OWN the Republican Party for the next decade.   You've proven your point.  You are the man.  None of them like you but they all suck up to you because they know you are their only hope.  Your supporters love YOU, not the GOP.  They are YOUR supporters.  The establishment is terrified that you will bolt the party and run as an independent because they know they have no chance of winning without your supporters.  You think the establishment Republicans suck up to you now?  Drop out today and every Presidential candidate that you've insulted will be shining floors in the Trump Tower lobby with a toothbrush to get your endorsement.   You can singlehandedly pick the next GOP nominee.  You're a dealmaker, cut the deal now.    I'm sure any of them will let you use the White House movie theater at any time or anything else you want.  A bill to rename the official residence the Trump White House would not be out of the question.   Just imagine the big Trump sign outside the front entrance every time they show the building.  Talk about branding!  You understand leverage Donald.  Right now, right before the first vote is cast, you have all the leverage.  Use it now because that brings me to the number 1 reason you should quit today.

1.  You are not going to win, you will never be President of the United States.  Donald I know your ego might not except this yet, and I get it.  That's part of why you are who you are.  But trust me on this one, you won't win.  You may win the GOP nomination,  because the GOP has set the stage over the last 8 years for somebody just like you to come along.  I know it's been fun, and I know somewhere along the way you've talked yourself into believing that you can win.   You're Teflon Don now.  You can lie and your supporters don't care.  You can say the most bigoted and outrageous things and your supporters won't care.  You are cruising to the nomination.    And I know you think that after you get the nomination you will just be able to tell the American people you didn't really mean any of those things; you were just doing what you had to do to win.   But you will never win a general election Donald, there are too many smart people who vote in Presidential elections.   The run will be over, the "liberal media" will turn on you, and you will go down in flames.  You don't really want to go out like Al Pacino in Scarface do you?

So those are my reasons Donald.  Quit today.  Say even that you know you would win,  you're withdrawing because this race was never about personal ambition, you're no Mitt Romney.  Say you've decided that you can help the country more as a private citizen and as an advisor to the next President.  Say you've decided that you can Make America Great Again by building more wonderful businesses and employing millions and millions more people.     Why take the chance on losing to Hillary??? If you quit today, you leave on top.   Isn't that what it's all about?

Sincerely,

Guy Who Bought Art of the Deal and Enjoyed It
But Still Thinks You're an Ass

The Republicans Are Right... The Rise of Trump is all President Obama's Fault

My personal hero Malcolm X made a controversial statement after the assassination of President Kennedy that pretty much ended his relationship with the Nation of Islam.  He said the assassination was a case of "chickens coming home to roost" because of the violence that America had put out in the world.   He went on to say that as a farmboy, "chickens coming home to roost never did make me sad; they always made me glad".  Likewise let me suggest that the incredible run of Donald Trump in this GOP Presidential nomination contest is also a case of the chickens coming home to roost.  And although I'm not exactly a farmboy those chickens coming home to roost don't make me sad.

I've heard one conservative pundit after another this week echo the premise that if President Obama had just been a better leader, then the American people would not be subjected to this year of Trump. So it's all the President's fault that Trump is leading virtually every Republican poll for President, and by very wide margins.   I think the Republicans are half right, it is the President's fault, but they are wrong on the reasoning.   The Republicans have fought the President at every turn on almost every issue for 8 years.  They have disrespected him; they have lied on him; they have made him Public Enemy Number One to the base of the party.  And he has beaten them at every turn.    And now those chickens are coming home to roost.

For the purposes of this discussion I won't even address the race issue.   Even though it's the 800 pound gorilla in every room in this country I've found it's a topic that few can discuss rationally or without getting too emotional so I'll save that topic for another day.

Republicans don't like to lose, and when they do lose, they want someone to pay.   And they also respect strength.  A golf buddy of mine once told me he voted for President Bush over Al Gore even though he thought Gore was the better candidate because he "doesn't vote for wimps".     The Republican establishment knows this, so when President Obama defeated John McCain they needed to make him pay and they needed to be strong in defeat.  They knew if they didn't their base would abandon them.   So they started sending the chickens out.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnel said in the National Journal on December 4th, 2010, "the single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president." That was the first post election chickens to leave the barn.  There were many others.

The President is a Muslim - that chicken went out
The President is a Socialist - that chicken went out
The President is always on vacation - that chicken went out
The President is the biggest spending President in history - that chicken went out
Gas Prices would soar under this President - that chicken went out
The President was born in Kenya - that chicken went out
The President wants to take your guns - that chicken went out
The Affordable Care Act would destroy the economy - that chicken went out
It would also have death panels to kill Grandma - that chicken went out
The ACA was unconstitutional - that chicken went out

This is not an all comprehensive list.   There were many other figurative chickens sent out to the base by the GOP leadership because they had to show the base that they were going to make this President pay for beating them at the ballot box and they had to show him that election results be damned, they were still in control.

The only problem is the President didn't play along.  He tried to compromise during his first term, especially on his signature legislative accomplishment, the Affordable Care Act.  It didn't get him one Republican vote.  He struck deals with Speaker of the House John Boehner only to have Boehner not be able to deliver the necessary Republican votes.  Republicans evidently didn't plan on the President being able to do his job without any Republican support, but that's exactly what he did.  He went ahead and saved the American auto industry.  He went ahead and killed Osama Bin Laden.  He went ahead and brought the unemployment rate down while the stock market went up.   He went ahead and let the tax cuts expire for the richest of the rich while keeping them in place for the rest of us.  He went ahead and cut the deficit.  He went ahead and passed the ACA and cut the number of uninsured Americans.   Of course he didn't singlehandedly do any of these things, but he accomplished them all with virtually no republican support.  In fact, he accomplished them all in the face of fierce GOP opposition.

So I agree with the Republicans, the rise of Trump is totally Obama's fault.  The GOP established promised their base they would crush him, embarrass him, and maybe even put him in jail.   They got the base fired up with those promises.   It's 7 years later and there he is, not only is he still standing but he's looking more and more like someone who knows that history will remember him very well.   The base sees this.  They hate the man because they've been told to hate him.   They've been told he is the evil one and the evil one isn't supposed to win but he's winning.  And then Trump comes along.

Trump's message to the base is you're right, the President is Public enemy number 1, none of those accomplishments are real.  The problem is you've had a bunch of losers fighting for you.   But I'm a winner (A divorced, filed four times for bankruptcy, born on 3rd base, built my fortune with public dollars winner but a winner nonetheless).   I'm your last chance to make the bastard pay.  So if the President had just played along with the narrative.  If the auto industry had failed, if unemployment was still 8%, if the ACA had been the disaster it was supposed to be (notice no Republicans talk about it anymore), if Osama Bin Laden was still terrorizing us....  There would be no need for Trump.

The GOP sent all those chickens out, but evidently they aren't farmboys either.   They didn't realize that sometimes those chickens come home to roost.