The debates are almost upon us, and I can’t wait to tune in. Talk about suspense! No, there’s not much suspense about the election itself; voting is already under way in many states, and the polls leave no doubt that everyone’s mind is pretty much made up. For me, the suspense surrounds the positions Mitt Romney will take.
Considering that the Republican candidate already has professed support for every conceivable position on every conceivable topic, I am left wondering just where he will finally make a stand. I imagine he will try to slip-slide around the issues, avoiding commitment to specific policies or the disclosure of detailed proposals. And it should be interesting to see whether the moderators succeed in pinning him down.
In one breath, Romney brags about his health care legislation as governor of Massachusetts; in another, he promises to repeal Obamacare – which was based on the Massachusetts law – on day one of his presidency. Speaking to big-money donors, he dismisses half the population as a pack of leeches unworthy of his attention; in a later TV commercial, he promises – with as sincere an expression as he can muster – to be just as “caring” as the president.
How will he manage double-takes like that in the debates?
I can’t wait to find out.
It should also be entertaining to watch Paul Ryan try to reconcile his hard-right voting record and policy pronouncements with the now-you-see-it-now-you-don’t Romney agenda.
One thing I know for sure – the Republican duo won’t dare to come right out and tell voters what they really plan to do.
They can deny it all they want but their agenda is obvious to most Americans by now. They want to get elected so they can cut taxes for the rich and shell out trillions for the military-industrial complex at the expense of the poor and middle class.The Ryan budget spells it out in black-and-white – that voucher program to replace Medicare, for example.
And there’s one thing Romney has not been ambivalent about – it’s war. If he gets the chance he is going to bomb Iran.
Furthermore, if they get the Congress they’re hoping for, Romney and Ryan are likely to impose some kind of theocracy on the nation.
For example, abortion rights are certain to come under attack if those two get in.
Not that Romney gives a damn about abortion; he has been on both sides of the issue from time to time. But Ryan does. He has introduced legislation in Congress to criminalize rape victims who have abortions and to outlaw the morning-after birth control pill. This is one Catholic that is serious about the church’s ban on birth control and abortion.
Romney will go along with Ryan’s extremism because it doesn’t make any difference to him one way or another. His motto is whatever works. As in whatever works best in promoting his personal ambitions.
So we can pretty much figure out what a Romney presidency would bring.
What remains in doubt is how these two will defend their outlandish positions in the debates.
If they man up and admit what they have in mind, it would be game over.
And if they sugar-coat their proposals with their usual lies and fantasies, the TV audience will probably laugh out loud. At least, I know I will.
Click here for the debate schedule.
