I have written several pieces that discuss my concerns about my middle class colleagues, most of whom are public employees, and their support of the GOP or, even more strange, the tea party (note that the tea party is not in caps, since I don’t consider it to be a real party.) They are supporting people who, for the most part, do not have their interests at heart, and who will work to destroy much of what they enjoy as public employees. But, that’s not what this post is about.
I feel I must address the aspect of this campaign that troubles me more than any other – the failure, or refusal perhaps, of those same people to question certain things about their candidate that they should find very disconcerting.
Let’s start with Mr. Romney’s finances. I am not saying he has done anything illegal. I will admit that he is too smart for that, and that he recognizes that, in these days of 24/7 news, and often far to intrusive investigative reporting, he would get caught too easily. I do think that his unreleased returns, if we ever see them, will show that he pays income taxes at a rate far, far below the rate paid by most Americans. Romney realizes that such information will not help him in his quest to show that he’s just "one of the guys" (he’s not, by the way) so he’s keeping them under wraps. They would also show that he has made very good use of all – and I do mean all – the deductions, loopholes and tax havens that are available to those with lots of money and an army of accountants and tax lawyers. That information will not help his chances in November either.
He has released 2010 and says he will release 2011 when it’s ready. It’s not ready yet, since he obviously applied for an automatically approved six month extension. It is August, however, and Romney must employ more accountants than the average mid sized corporation. So, I have to ask, "what’s taking so long?" The longer he delays, the more suspicious I become, and the more suspicious my friends become – or at least should become – but they don’t apparently. So, I ask the question, why doesn’t this seem to be of concern to Mr. Romney’s middle class supporters? They are still harping on the President’s birth certificate, even after he supplied them with more information than required. But, the finances of a man who wants to be in charge of ours — that doesn’t seem to bother them at all. I am sure that impeachment would be demanded if Barak Obama was in the Situation Room at the White House fighting a war on April 15th and he forgot to "mail" or "e-file" his return by midnight. But Romney…….
Moving to the other aspect of Mr. Romney’s past and present that his minions accept without question, let’s address the fact that this man has not, and seemingly cannot, hold to a position on any important issue, if he thinks it may cost him the support of those super conservatives who have staged a coup d’état and stolen the Republican Party. I was watching a video put together by the Ron Paul campaign which chronicles those changes better than anything I’ve seen from the DNC. It demonstrates how Mr. Romney has changed his position on some of the most important issues in this campaign – more than changed, actually, but done a complete u-turn.
He went from being proud to be the creator of the Massachusetts health care system that President Obama used as the basis for Obamacare, to pledging to repeal Obamacare on January 21, 2013. He went from being opposed to assault rifles, and pledging to get them off the streets, to defending the right of all Americans to bear arms, regardless of what they are. He went from being a strong supporter of "every woman’s right to choose" to promising that he will work to overturn Roe vs. Wade. And. let’s not forget his position on same sex marriage – whatever it was – or is – or will be tomorrow. I am sure these are not the only "flip flops" in Mr. Romney’s platform, if you can call it a platform, since he still hasn’t told us how he is going to fix the economy and make America powerful again, and, and, and…just that he will.
What really bothers me – and frustrates me beyond belief – is the fact that these 180 degree reversals don’t seem to bother his supporters. Even if I agreed with ALL his new, or current, positions, as many folks do, wouldn’t I be somewhat worried about the fact that he openly supported the reverse positions just a couple of years ago – that he was a totally different man when he was the Governor of perhaps the most liberal leaning state in the Union – that he changed so completely when he decided it was time to run for President and his "middle of the road" positions would not fly with the right wing? Hell, it would really make me wonder about the strength of any and all his supposed convictions, beliefs and positions. But, how come it doesn’t worry them at all? Do they despise Barak Obama that much that they will vote for anyone who has the money and campaign organization to get the GOP nomination? I guess so. And that is really what worries me the most.
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