As the Republicans who control Congress prepare to launch yet another attack on the less fortunate in America, you might be asking yourself what drives them.
Now that they’ve looted our nation’s Treasury to enrich the richest of the rich, why would they want to take away our Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid?
Are they sadistic sociopaths who delight in causing pain? Or are they expecting some reward that you and I know nothing about?
I think it might be both.
Paul Ryan (above, right), for example, obviously has a bitter streak. He has been pushing a punishing agenda for years, and his failed bid for the vice presidency hasn’t made him any mellower. Then there’s Mitch McConnell (above, left). Wouldn’t he be a perfect stand-in for the Grinch?
As for the rest of the GOP, I’m sure you’ve noticed the nasty things they do and say. I am not a psychologist but I often wonder about their sanity. Don’t you?
And their reward?
The Republicans are raking in massive donations from billionaires – the oil- rich Koch Brothers, casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, hedge fund mogul Robert Mercer and a host of others. The politicians made sure of continuing largesse by giving the billlionaires jaw-dropping breaks in the new tax law.
But why target Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid? Why take away the few pennies so many of us depend on for survival? Why deprive us of our health care? How does that benefit the Republican politicians?
I think they’re doing it to make their super-rich patrons happy.
Those patrons already have more money than they know what to do with. What they want now is our dignity. They want us to grovel at their feet, to come cap in hand begging for jobs and favors. They want to see codgers like me huddled on the frozen sidewalks, selling pencils.
Is America ready for this?
Isn’t that what the Colonists rebelled against? Isn’t that what the Founding Fathers tried to protect us from?
Surely we the people will not allow this savage depradation to continue? Surely, we will use the one weapon we have left – the precious vote – when we get the chance next November?
If we don’t, we will have only ourselves to blame.
