I was on my daily run last night, when it occurred to me that we may have witnessed the T.E.A. party's version of Pickett's charge during the government shutdown fight.
Pickett's charge is considered to be the high-water mark for the Confederacy, but it was also a disaster for their cause. The infamous charge happened on the last day of fighting at Gettysburg, when after attempts to flank the Union army on the previous two days failed, the Confederates went all-out with a massive but futile attack on the Union center.
It was the furthest advance into northern territory made by Gen. Robert E. Lee's army, but from that point on the Confederate cause was in decline.
Similarly, what we saw in the shutdown fight was a massive demonstration of T.E.A. party strength, aimed at bringing the federal government to a grinding halt. Indeed, the shutdown brought the Confederate battle flag to the gates of the White House itself, something I'll bet never happened during the Civil War.
They executed their initial plan flawlessly, but too late to realize that when they reached the enemy lines there would be no where to go but retreat and defeat.
In the aftermath, polls showing what the shutdown has cost the GOP and the T.E.A. party in particular. Most Americans now believe it is a bad thing that the GOP controls the House of Representatives. Standard & Poor’s reported that the U.S. economy suffered a loss of $24 billion, a number strongly disputed by Forbes, but the repercussions of this foolhardy strategy have been felt throughout the country.
It is my hope that most people now realize how poisonous T.E.A. party politics have been for this country. This is not a movement of fiscal conservancy. It is a movement of selfishness, distortion, lies and deceit, waged for the benefit of a privileged few.
When the T.E.A. party rose up in 2010, I shuddered. It seemed to me this was ignorance, disguising itself as patriotism. My hope is that after this disaster, the moderates in the GOP will take back control of their party so that government can function with an ongoing series of compromises between the left and right.
We need both liberal and conservative philosophies to make the legislative process work. They are the Yin and Yang of our government. The progressive philosophy is needed so that we do not destroy our country through short-sightedness and selfishness. The conservative philosophy is needed so that we remember we cannot spend money that we do not have, and that we should be wary of too much government control of our lives.
But I also keep on thinking about a montage I saw recently -- probably on The Colbert Report -- showing Congressmen complaining that "government should get off our backs."
I find it to be an ironic argument to be made by a Congressman. After all, they are our government. In fact, we are our government. We are a self-governed nation. The first words of the Constitution read: "We, the people ..." If we don't like the government, we can change it. But we do it through elections, and if you don't have the votes, then you need to work with what you have. Sometimes you can't get what you want. But if you don't get it, you need to earn it through the value of your arguments with the electorate, not by taking hostages and bringing the entire government to a grinding halt.
I will end with my favorite quote, from one of my favorite Republican presidents, Teddy Roosevelt: "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are."
Republicans, you didn't have the votes. That's why you don't get what you want. Ask yourselves why.
