The Two Million Frog March (Why 9-12-2009 spells trouble for Republicans and Democrats alike)

There’s an old story about frogs in a pot. If you turn the heat up slowly enough you can cook them alive because by the time they notice that it’s too hot in the pot, the have lost their ability to jump out.

Think of the American people as the frogs. And Washington DC as the kitchen. Over the years (many many years, like since at least the 1930’s, perhaps since the teens of last century), both political parties have been advocates of cooking the frogs. The Republicans have advocated a slow simmer, because if you cook the frogs too quickly, they jump out of the pot. The Democrats favor a high, rolling boil.

In 2008, Democrats won big in the elections, and they looked at how much the Republicans had turned up the heat in the last ten years and figured the frogs are finally dead. So, they thought, “let’s put the burner up to high and finish cooking them.” To their surprise, the frogs started jumping out of the pot.

That’s what has happened this year, starting with the TEA parties, continuing through the summer town hall meetings, and reaching a crescendo at the 9-12-2009 march on Washington. The frogs are out of the pot now, and they are mad as hell.

Now, the newly freed frogs are looking around the kitchen, and recognizing the voices they heard while they were in the pot, they realize that the Republicans were the ones saying, “Go slow. Just simmer them for a good long time, they will be so tender that way.” And they recognize the Democrats as the ones that were saying, “Yes, but we’re hungry now. We have to boil them quickly, we need to eat soon.”

The problem is the frogs don’t want to be cooked. They are looking for someone who favors turning off the stove and setting the remaining frogs free. And they aren’t finding anyone taking that position.

The Republicans might think they can harness this passion, get in front and lead this movement. But, for most of them, they are really leading in the wrong direction. They have to turn around and run fast to get to the front of this movement. It’s going the other way.

And there are so many “history revisors” trying to convince you that not only is everything that Obama and the Democrats propose is bad, but they want you to believe that everything bad that has happened has been because of Democrats. They tell you Republicans have always been on your side. This just isn’t true, and most of the frogs know it.

Over the last few weeks, I’ve heard so much “news” about how we got to where we are. I call it “news” because it doesn“t match what I know to be true. It is an attempt by Republican supporters to convince you to support them. The want you to believe that the Republicans had nothing to do with how we got to this point, and that they are the only solution to get us out of the bad spot we find ourselves in. Here are a few examples:

Revised “News”	The Truth
Obama took over the auto companies.	George W. Bush, in December of 2008, started this takeover by authorizing funds from the TARP program to be loaned to GM and Chrysler. Obama just picked up where George Bush left off, continuing the takeover, firing the CEO of GM and “investing” even more taxpayer money into both GM and Chrysler.
ACORN gets all funding from Democrat initiatives	Again, the Bush Administration authorized and disbursed funds to ACORN for various programs. Much of the $53,000,000 plus in taxpayer funds that have been given to ACORN over the years have been paid by the Bush Administration. And I’m fairly certain that many Republican Congress Critters and Senators have voted in favor of bills containing funding for ACORN over the years.
Republicans are the party of “smaller government.”	This might have been true in the past, perhaps even as recently as 1994-1998, but since 2001, the Republicans have consistently favored growth of big government programs: 1998, after approving 100% of what the Clinton administration requested for the Department of Education, Bill Clinton decided that if the Republicans agreed, then he obviously didn’t ask for enough. So he threatened to veto the FY 1999 spending bill unless additional increases were included. The Republicans caved and gave him even more money. 2001, No Child Left Behind. George W. Bush and Ted Kennedy agreed to another major expansion of the Department of Education. Remember, this was one of the departments that the 1994 “Contract with America” proposed to eliminate. 2001, Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage. A new entitlement, created by Republicans, costing into the hundreds of billions in the years since it passed, and adding many trillions to the unfunded future commitments to all American retirees. I could go on, but the explosion of “discretionary non-defense spending” under George W. Bush and the Republican Congresses from 2001 through 2005 or 2006 is fairly well documented.

Revised “News”

The Truth

Obama took over the auto companies.

George W. Bush, in December of 2008, started this takeover by authorizing funds from the TARP program to be loaned to GM and Chrysler. Obama just picked up where George Bush left off, continuing the takeover, firing the CEO of GM and “investing” even more taxpayer money into both GM and Chrysler.

ACORN gets all funding from Democrat initiatives

Again, the Bush Administration authorized and disbursed funds to ACORN for various programs. Much of the $53,000,000 plus in taxpayer funds that have been given to ACORN over the years have been paid by the Bush Administration. And I’m fairly certain that many Republican Congress Critters and Senators have voted in favor of bills containing funding for ACORN over the years.

Republicans are the party of “smaller government.”

This might have been true in the past, perhaps even as recently as 1994-1998, but since 2001, the Republicans have consistently favored growth of big government programs:

1998, after approving 100% of what the Clinton administration requested for the Department of Education, Bill Clinton decided that if the Republicans agreed, then he obviously didn’t ask for enough. So he threatened to veto the FY 1999 spending bill unless additional increases were included. The Republicans caved and gave him even more money.
2001, No Child Left Behind. George W. Bush and Ted Kennedy agreed to another major expansion of the Department of Education. Remember, this was one of the departments that the 1994 “Contract with America” proposed to eliminate.
2001, Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage. A new entitlement, created by Republicans, costing into the hundreds of billions in the years since it passed, and adding many trillions to the unfunded future commitments to all American retirees.

I could go on, but the explosion of “discretionary non-defense spending” under George W. Bush and the Republican Congresses from 2001 through 2005 or 2006 is fairly well documented.

I’ll be writing more pieces shortly detailing some things we can do to move in the right direction. We do need to educate ourselves, and our neighbors about many things. The situation we are in now is complex, and it can’t be fixed entirely through federal elections and the Congress. I do think we have to rebuild this country to get it back, but it needs rebuilding from the bottom up. And we must be much more vigilant. I hope people have awakened to the point where they will not easily be lulled back to sleep.

I’m not sure whether the Republican party can become part of the solution, or if it is so damaged and such an integral part of the problem that it can’t be saved. One thing is certain, without major restructuring and a commitment to the kind of changes we really need, they will be irrelevant at best, and an obstacle to be overcome at worst.

nutmeg wrote:

I think my in-laws were there... that's a good turnout for such a small town, isn't it?

Yeah, It’s a town of under 4,000 people I think. The draw for the crowd was several speakers, including Congresswoman Ginny Brown-Waite.

She was generally well received. Perhaps not for the best reasons, though. But there were some surprises. I was surprised to see one thing. She went against the Obama administration on Cash for Clunkers, saying if they couldn’t run that, how could we expect them to run a national health care system. The problem there is Ginny Brown-Waite voted for Cash for Clunkers (twice, once to set it up, then again to give more funding to the program). Many of the people I spoke with were aware of her votes, though. And most think she didn’t represent them well on that.

The other problem is the biggest thing she has against the health care proposals is the cuts in Medicare. She’s trying to position herself (and the GOP to a large degree) as the ones defending and “saving” Medicare. In her defense, she represents more Medicare beneficiaries than any other Congressperson in the House, and it would be political suicide to say anything against that popular program at this time.

sourcery wrote:

Politicians are effects. Voters are the cause. Stop blaming the politicians, and start taking responsibility for yourself, your future and your country. If you expect "leaders" of any political party to save you, you will be disappointed.

We’re in agreement on this point.

And I do actually do much more than just sit at my computer. Not a week goes by that I don’t write at least one letter (often several) to my Congress Critter and to my Senators. They hear from me often.

I also talk to friends and neighbors about the situation, trying to spread the word about freedom, the constitution, and why we are where we are. I’m also seeing some things that we need to do to start to turn things around. That’s going to be the hard part. It will take more than just a conservative Congress in Washington, though. The problem is much deeper than that, and the solution will need to be broader.

We won’t get anywhere voting for the party of “simmer” though. There has to be a party of “turn it off,” a party of smaller government, more states rights and individual rights, and more liberty and freedom for the people.

I hate to post and run, but I have errands this afternoon. I will be checking back this evening, and expect many more posts from me, not just explaining the current situation, but outlining some steps to get things moving in the direction of freedom and smaller government.

SunTzuWu wrote:

I see, it's all Bush's Fault. Now where have I heard that before?

You haven’t heard that from me. Ultimately it is our own fault as voters. We have chosen the wrong Presidents, the wrong Congress Critters, the wrong Senators. But we’ve also chosen weak State Legislatures, Governors, county commissioners and all the way down to the local level. Our representatives and executives at the lower levels should also have been standing up and rigorously defending their own powers, instead of allowing Washington DC to usurp many of those powers.

As for Presidents, Bush gave us his share of problems. A fairly large increase in total dollars flowing to Washington DC, A large increase in discretionary spending. A new entitlement. But that certainly wasn’t the start of our problems.

Bill Clinton — deregulated banks, blurred the lines between investment banks and commercial banks, expanded “fair housing” setting the stage for the sub-prime meltdown of 2007.
George H.W. Bush — Tried to increase revenues by raising taxes, though that didn’t work and that flip-flop, combined with the economic consequences it caused got him out of office after a single term.
Ronald W. Reagan — Nearly doubled (though less if you adjust for inflation) federal revenues under the color of “tax cuts.” Presided over massive spending increases in all areas. Tried to “save” and thereby perpetuate the Ponzi scheme known as Social Security.
James E. Carter — <Bandwidth restrictions exceeded.>
Richard M. Nixon — Many transgressions, most notable, he thought he could dictate the price of everything and everyone’s wages
Lyndon B. Johnson — Promoted (in a big way) the involvement of the Federal Government in Health Care.
John F. Kennedy — Again, dramatically increased federal revenues under the color of tax cuts, enabling massive spending growth.

I’ve reached the limit of what I personally have observed (actually exceeded it slightly as I was born during Kennedy's time).

AmericanVictory wrote:

Did the frogs who were being cooked go out and send gun and ammo sales through the roof? There is a difference between frogs and patriots.

Actually, the frogs simmering in the pot haven’t done that so much. Those sales are to the frogs who have jumped out of the pot. And don’t ascribe a negative connotation to the term “frog” as used in this story. It was chosen only to fit with the story of the pot, and raising the temperature slowly.

sourcery wrote:

The only way to get such a party is by a) converting your friends and neighbors from couch potatoes into informed voters who know and understand the political philosophy of our nation's Founders, and b) voting for the right people in the primaries, and then the general election. Don't expect such candidates to magically appear on the ballot, though. Getting them there is hard work, and it's our responsibility.

I'm in total agreement with you on this. See my post today, “Term Limits from the Grass Roots.”

oneamericanvoice wrote:

What is your prognosis for the Democrats? Change can only happen if people stay in the (Republican)Party and take action to "steer the ship" back on course. No excuses of not having the time, etc. I was a Democrat and a liberal. Briefly, I was Declined to State until I realized that DTS, Independents, and Libertarians are only "feel good" measures. They have no weight and never will.

I’m not sure about the Dems. In theory, they could return to recognizing Constitutional limits and returning powers to the states and the people. But it would take a lot to convince me that any individual candidate would actually stand up for Constitutional principles. And I don’t have much hope that the party as a whole ever will. Any Congressional candidate who wanted my support would have to pledge full support to Constitutional limits, vote in accordance with that pledge (or no re-election, and possibly even a recall campaign), and they would have to tell me who they would vote for as Speaker of the House. No votes for Pelosi or any other liberal usurpers in that position.

ReagansShinyHair wrote:

I thought the general message is that this is an opportunity for the Republicans...to become a party of smaller government, etc. I suspect that part of the reason the Dems won is because Republicans are angry about all the out of control spending of the last XX years. The frogs already started to jump out of the pot, and they didn’t vote Republican.

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