Bush's Base Betrayal

Source: wapo

We were told: Just wait till the second term. Then, the president, freed of concern over reelection and backed by a Republican Congress, would take off the gloves and fight for the conservative agenda. Just wait.

We're still waiting.

Sixty-five months into Bush's presidency, conservatives feel betrayed. After the "Bridge to Nowhere" transportation bill, the Harriet Miers Supreme Court nomination and the Dubai Ports World deal, the immigration crisis was the tipping point for us. Indeed, a Washington Post-ABC News poll found last week that Republican disapproval of Bush's presidency had increased from 16 percent to 30 percent in one month. It is largely the defection of conservatives that is driving the president's poll numbers to new lows.

Emboldened and interconnected as never before by alternative media, such as talk radio and Internet blogs, many conservatives have concluded that the benefits of unwavering support for the GOP simply do not, and will not, outweigh the costs.

Here's what I know to be true, both parties have shown themselves to be venal and base. Both parties have shown us they cannot be trusted with the public weal. Both parties have shown they are equally capable of becoming corrupt.

While I would like to see a change, my question is, to what? The amounts of money and prestige are clearly too great for any mere mortal to withstand. The temptations are clearly so enormous as to dwarf a normal persons morality.

As we enter another election cycle I'd like us all to be pondering this. Many are saying "Oh, if we could only elect Democrats they'd fix things up." And if not one of the current ones serving were elected I think that would be true, for a while. Up until they settled in and learned how the game is played in Washington, how the big boys and girls do things, then we'd be right back to where we are today. Awash in corruption and cronyism with no end in sight.

After all, the one of the reasons Republicans are in power was the out of control corruption of the Democrat party.

Here's my suggestion, I think we need to set up a serious non-partisan oversight committee with investigative powers to keep an eye on our elected officials. We need to couple this agency with harsh powers that would send representatives away for life for abusing their offices, or in the case of treasonous behavour, death.

This is a pipedream of course, I recognize that. It's simply not possible for something like that to exist without becoming political and ultimately it would be used and abused in the course of witchhunts against those in or out of power or favor.

I think at the end of the day what I need to realize is that these are mere mortals who are tested beyond all measure and found wanting. And while I can hope for change, I shouldn't expect it.

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