As children we are innocent. We have a natural trust for people and believe what they tell us. We have to be taught by our parents, teachers, clergymen and youth leaders that there are bad people in the world that are dangerous and can't be trusted. They will try to make us believe one thing while sneakily doing the opposite. Today the world is more confusing and complicated than ever before. It is hard to distinguish the truth from among all of the misinformation out there. This presents a new and unique opportunity to those who seek to confuse and obfuscate the truth. In an atmosphere of ideological extremism and political orthodoxy the dangers to Americans are great.
The vote in the House of Representatives last week on the repeal and replacement of the Affordable Care Act spoke volumes about what the Republican Party has become. The bill itself is a patchwork quilt of features to assuage concerns from the various factions of the party. The Republicans tried to convince us that this bill would provide cheaper and better health insurance to all Americans. They lied. All of those who voted for it acknowledged with their vote their lack of honesty, compassion and empathy for their fellow citizens. Basically, this bill changes health care once again from a right to a privilege. It places in jeopardy those with preexisting conditions, those who are on Medicaid and those who make too much money to qualify for Medicaid, but can't afford decent coverage for their families. The plan applauds the free-market system as if it were the true answer to equity and fairness in the marketplace. It highlights states rights in allowing individual states discretion regarding coverage for preexisting conditions. It further takes $890 billion out of the Medicaid fund to allow for a tax break for the wealthy. The end result will be more expensive insurance, for those who can afford it, with less coverage. Those who have preexisting conditions and those who can't afford insurance are left to the mercy of the state. The celebration held at the White House after the vote added vulgarity to heartlessness.
This is only the most recent example of the monstrousness of the Republican Party. While clinging to the importance of supporting the Constitution with regard to gun rights, they seem to forget the Amendments to the Constitution providing the right to vote. The blatant efforts in dozens of states controlled by Republican state houses and legislatures to infringe on this right is appalling. The President's most recent Executive Orders, applauded by his party, regarding religious liberty and environmental regulations are clearly contrary to the good of all Americans. These actions are designed to respond to the concerns of a narrow group and the interests of a greedy sector of the economy. The whole area of deregulation has been a battle cry of the Republican Party for a decade. They have complained that regulations are hurting business. The fact that those same regulations are protecting the environment, the consumer and the economy seems of little concern. We have always been a nation of immigrants. Our very first citizens were immigrants who fled to the New World to leave religious persecution. Yet the Republican Party has become an anti-immigrant voice. The accusation that immigrants are taking the jobs of Americans is demonstrably proven to be a fiction. The cry that immigrants are responsible for most crime in this country is demonstrably incorrect. The assertion that immigrants take our services and pay no taxes is clearly not true. The fact that xenophobia has overtaken the Republican Party is demonstrably true.
The Republican Party has become the party of hate, of greed and of hubris. There was a time when the Republican Party, as the Democratic Party, had its more extreme voices, but most often moved toward the center. The Republican Party has lost its way and this has never been more clear than last week when the mask came off and the monster was revealed.