As I\u2019ve mentioned before in these pages, I frequently talk to my dogs. They are always around and make good sounding boards for thoughts and observations that strike me as brilliant, if not seminal. Perhaps, they are best when it comes to venting my spleen about politics, saying things that I would never put to paper, certainly not in the Potlatch Tertulia.<\/p>\n
This morning they were both present during my morning ritual of reading the news. And they got an earful. Like many old duffers, I talk to myself plenty and when writing, I sometimes play both sides in crafting arguments. This morning was particularly rich.<\/p>\n
Shelby and Rucker* got excited when I went on and on about Texas, how that state has seemed to go off the deep end with its clearly unconstitutional attempt to outlaw abortion in the state and the more recent actions by Greg Abbott the governor. Why I asked them, would a conservative Republican tell private businesses that they couldn\u2019t mandate vaccines as a matter of employment? Apparently, conservatism is only conservative when it sanctions conservative behavior and actions, the Constitution be damned.<\/p>\n
The big story the last two mornings has been the defection of loyal Republicans from the party of Trump. Christine Todd Whitman, Republican governor of New Jersey, 1994-2001, and former Homeland Security official, Miles Taylor, have both urged \u201crational\u201d Republicans to vote for Democrats until sanity returns to their party. They express fear that if the current Trumpers win the House of Representatives in 2022 and possibly the White House in 2024 that it will mean the end of American democracy. The same theme was trumpeted by Max Boot, a Russian-American specialist in foreign affairs, who urged fellow conservatives to vote for Democrats until the GOP no longer posed an existential threat to American freedom. In calling out fellow Republicans, Whitman, Taylor and Boot** were appealing to a higher loyalty, a patriotic, unconditional loyalty to the Constitution and our democratic republic as Americans. Unconditional loyalty is something that Shelby and Rucker understand.<\/p>\n
About this time, both Shelby and Rucker had dozed off to sleep by my desk; like many Americans they simply did not want to hear or talk about politics anymore. I can\u2019t say I blame them. Just the same, we must realize that the noise and continued disruption by Republican extremists helps them undermine democratic and constitutional government.<\/p>\n
Shelby and Rucker like most of us have short attention spans when it comes to the infighting and caterwauling of politics. Like us they prefer their routines, where everyday is predictable with time to enjoy life.<\/p>\n
*Shelby and Rucker are black Labs.<\/p>\n
**Christine Todd Whitman and Miles Taylor, \u201cWe Are Republicans With a Plea: Elect Democrats in 2022,\u201d New York Times<\/em>, October 11, 2021. Max Boot, \u201cI\u2019m No Democrat\u2014But I\u2019m Voting Exclusively for Democrats to Save Our Country,\u201d Washington Post<\/em>, October 11, 2021.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" As I\u2019ve mentioned before in these pages, I frequently talk to my dogs. They are always around and make good sounding boards for thoughts and observations that strike me as brilliant, if not seminal. Perhaps, they are best when it comes to venting my spleen about politics, saying things that I would never put to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-919","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-by-robert-fischer"],"yoast_head":"\n