alleged "moderate" Republicans from Maine, claim the mantle of this pioneering Senator, who was a true moderate Republican from Maine:
One of the current pair, Snowe, is running for re-election, claiming that she stands up to her big nasty GOP colleagues with good ol' Maine common sense. Funny then that she voted to confer war powers on Bush in 2002 and has continued to support the debacle in Iraq. Funny then that she voted to confirm Justices Roberts and Alito despite their cro-magnon views on women's rights. Funny then that she made loud noises about the Geneva Convention then voted for the Senate's "torture-light" bill. Funny then that she only seems to make a stand when an issue is of absolutely no importance whatsoever.
Funny then that for all her attempts to adopt the mantle of Margaret Chase Smith we have yet to hear anything like Smith's "Declaration of Conscience" speech of 6/1/1950 cross Snowe's lips on the Senate floor in the twelve years she has ineffectively and meekly held office. With every passing year the stakes are raised and Snowe's Northeastern style of Republicanism is evermore eclipsed by the "God, guns, and gays" ogres of her party and yet she sits meekly by, waiting for her Senate pension to kick in. Meanwhile, using the power and fundraising ability of incumbency, she cons Mainers into thinking she is their independent voice in the party of power. In reality all Snowe represents is a warm body helping to shore up the Republican majority; to be patronized by the leadership on matters pertaining to lobsters and lighthouses but otherwise just counted as another vote for the GOP.
I'm not sure what makes me madder; Snowe's continued attempts to sell down home hokum to the good folks o' Maine, or the fact that the good folks o' Maine keep buying her shinola. Tell a Mainer he's independent and he'll depend on you forever, it seems.
"I would like to speak briefly and simply about a serious national condition. It is a national feeling of fear and frustration that could result in national suicide and the end of everything that we Americans hold dear. It is a condition that comes from the lack of effective leadership in either the Legislative Branch or the Executive Branch of our Government." (Margaret Chase Smith condemns McCarthyism from the Senate floor, June 1, 1950)
1 comment:
Well done, Weasel. I have actually linked this at the Air Blog. One issue that I think could be fleshed out more (as I did there) is the impact of the Republican majority upon committee membership and directing the overall debate on the Senate floor. Even if Snowe were truly moderate, her presence in the senate allows the GOP to continue to push it's own agenda.
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