Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Before or after the elections, the exact same threats demand citizen response
“One of the most important things is the central theme of my latest book, Beyond Outrage: Nothing good happens in Washington, or for that matter, in state capitals, unless good people outside Washington or those state capitals make it happen. Unless they push very hard. Unless they’re organized, mobilized, and energized to force the political system to respond. The rest of us have to do more than simply vote, pay our taxes, and respond to summonses to be on juries. Citizenship goes far beyond those three. We’ve got to insist on being heard.”–Robert Reich
by Larry Geller
See if you can find a copy of the Progressive magazine somewhere. The Robert Reich interview includes a good summary of what we can expect from Obama, now that the election is behind him. Unfortunately, magazines can’t give away all of their content on the Web or they would cease to exist. Reich describes Obama as a “Rockefeller Republican” and admonishes us, later on in the article, to get together, get organized, and take action:
…we don’t understand that the real fight
begins the day after Election Day.[The Progressive (Magazine) pp. 35-38, The Progressive Interview: Robert Reich, 11/2012]
Watching Democracy Now’s account this morning of Republican maneuvering as the lame duck Congress goes back into session supports Reich’s point of view. Obama is poised to cut Social Security and Medicare in response to Republican pressure. For those who thought he might change after the election, harsh reality will set in sooner or later. See: As Talks Begin on "Fiscal Cliff," Report Warns "Fix the Debt" a Front for More Corporate Bailouts (Democracy Now, 11/13/2012). From the Democracy Now segment:
Some of the largest corporations and advocacy groups are lobbying for wide-ranging cuts in government spending, including to programs like Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security. The group, which includes 80 of the country’s most powerful CEOs, is called the Campaign to Fix the Debt. It was co-founded by former Clinton White House Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles and former Republican Senator Alan Simpson. Bowles and Simpson previously co-chaired the bipartisan National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform under President Obama.
We don’t even have the hollow threat of our vote as leverage at this point.
Either we follow Reich’s advice in the pull-quote or we take what will be dished out to us. Your choice. My choice.
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