patrick.net

I'm a Republican and I go to the local meetings here in Washington State.

Once you get inside, it's plainly obvious that all the way up the state level the Republicans are in no way rich. At best most are lower to middle class, although they may have nice houses and land...purchased 40 or 50 years ago!

We have no big budget...we have no budget at all except for what people donate. Many members are small businessmen -- and I mean very small, like enough for a couple of people to have a regular salary.

All the work like canvassing is done through voluntary effort by the members.

There are no free lunches. If you don't bring something, or pay for it yourself, you don't eat!

In the meetings I've never heard a racist or sexist remark. The balance of women and men is quite astounding (lots of women business owners in Washington). We have had guests to speak about black Republicans. I will admit that the overwhelming number of members are white, and old. But I have never seen anyone excluded, in fact, we go out of our way at local fairs to get people to join us.

Meanwhile when Obama flies in to Sea-Tac he immediately heads over to Medina -- an enclave of the super wealthy, for $50,000 a plate dinners. All Democrat donors. The number that gets kicked around is that in local races, the Democrats, because of organizational kickbacks, outspend us 10 to 1! We've had contests where a popular Republican state representative (a part time job, with a $35,000 a year salary) has had to face a national scale campaign because Democrats thought that even these small offices have to be contended for!!

Wow.

How embarrassing then: all these blue-collar lace curtain types who drive '82 Chevy Citations, are ringing doorbells and walking precincts in order to implement policies which will benefit all ordinary households grossing over $1.4 million per year.

In other words, they are epic suckers.

Iosef V HydroCabron says

How embarrassing then: all these blue-collar lace curtain types who drive '82 Chevy Citations, are ringing doorbells and walking precincts in order to implement policies which will benefit all ordinary households grossing over $1.4 million per year.

In other words, they are epic suckers

The only explanation I can think of is their deep terror at the prospect of same-sex couples having the equal protection of the laws. Republican legislators in Washington State voted against marriage equality at every opportunity. Now that they've lost, and all their dire warnings have been disproved, I don't know what they'll use to terrorize and drive their deluded base.

Meanwhile, back at the Democratic ranch, the cult of Obamneycare has become Gospel, and anybody who points out the many reasons it's a terrible policy is a heretic, or at the very least a racist who hates poor people. Nevermind then-Senator Obama campaigned against it in 2008, and mocked it, when it was called Hillary's Plan. Now that the Gospel has changed, he and all the Democrats who nominated him - and anybody who agrees with what they said at that time - are merely heretics and racists who hate poor people.

Not sure what a story like this has to do with the actions of our politicians. Time and again the GOP has been against countless pieces of legislation that would help their constituency actually become more wealthy by doing things like opposing and and all forms of minimum wage hikes, supporting a mis balanced tax structure, and bending over backwards to do whatever the millionaire/billionaires and the industries and lobbys they control wants them to do.

That last part is crucial: The GOP, while perhaps they as a group in congress or senate might not be as wealthy as their Democratic counterparts has become the party OF the rich simply because they have become so heavily manipulated by them. The GOP has also succeeded in convincing their constituents through unrelated narratives that what would actually be good for them and help them is bad for them. They do this by taking the orders of these aforementioned financial backers of the GOP and then turning whatever those backers don't like into yet another claim that its surely communist/socialist and that little trick seems to always do the trick.

So it really doesn't matter how rich the individual politicians are. It matters most what the party in question panders to, and the GOP these days panders to big money and that in turn in fact makes them the party of the rich because they are the party that does many favors for them.

zzyzzx says

Party of the rich: In Congress, it's the Democrats

Repeat a lie often enough and it becomes the truth. That's taught in propaganda 101.

Using government as a Robin Hood has NEVER worked. Of course it's been used multiple times throughout history to create long lasting voting blocs. And considering the overt racism used by Lyndon Johnson to make it so blacks would vote for Democrats in perpetuity, the Democrats also created a social class or permanent social and economic cripples...one that continually expands in size and is wholly dependent on the government dole.

There's the truth out there an is definitely not the propaganda spewed by either the Democrats nor the unethical, immoral, compromised main stream media.

Maybe it's the wanna be rich politicians that kiss up to the interests of the plutocrats and corporations the most. But also those less rich republicans (if true) maybe are in more desperate need of contributions from the rich.

There was a time when being a republican meant being "conservative" which at one time meant, for example, not lowering taxes too much lest we take on excessive debt.

Times change and the definition of conservative has changed a lot.

They had her number even back in 2002.

zzyzzx says

But in Congress, the wealthiest among us are more likely to be represented by a Democrat than a Republican. Of the 10 richest House districts, only two have Republican congressmen. Democrats claim the top six, sprinkled along the East and West coasts. Most are in overwhelmingly Democratic states like New York and California.

Wow were you born yesterday? You really believe congresscritters actually represent the people who vote for them? That's really funny. They represent the people who fund them. Look at who funds the parties to see who they really represent. Not just the public campaign contributions, all the off the books organizations also. Then tell me who the party of the rich is.

@zzyzzx,

Republican *voters* are misguided people who think that social conservatism and zero welfare will make their lives better. The male voters think their competition for hot mamas is Uncle Welfare, and if only there was no welfare check and no abortion, the mamas would come to them. They think this is more important than the fact that the richest 1% control 40-60% of the wealth in the country, and are driving blue collar workers into extinction. The female voters want to conserve their special position in marriage, and do not want their special privileges to be diluted by the existence of marriage between two sissies.

Republican *congressmen* are evil people who only care about low taxes for the rich and waging war.

Republican voters are also obsessed with ZZYZZX (Sissy Sex). It fascinates them to no end.

Anything else?

Who to vote for??
Party of the Rich or Party of the Stupid

jazz music says

starving the beast, blocking, sequestering, and acting like they are the adults in the room.

The remainder of this decade is going to be interesting, yes.

In the Chinese Curse sense.

http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/graph/?g=w7F

total gov't spending to GDP. But they've managed that only by adding $4T to the Fed's balance sheet.

http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/graph/?g=w7G

blue is same spending / GDP (right axis)

red is QE injections (left)

HEY YOU says

Who to vote for??

Party of the Rich or Party of the Stupid

Party of Stupid.

Intelligence isn't a virtue when it's being used against you.

Welfare pays $20.00/hr. A job pays only $10.00/hr. Enough said.

I love it when, like parasitic wasps, they turn on each other...
sbh says

Dan8267 says

HEY YOU says

Who to vote for??

Party of the Rich or Party of the Stupid

Party of Stupid.

Intelligence isn't a virtue when it's being used against you.

Thanks a lot, Dan. Every now and then you are a total fucking buzzkill.