Friday, August 30, 2013

Congress "debates" Syria.

As stated before I dread the “debate” that will occur in Congress on the subject of Syria. Instead of doing its Constitutional mandated job, i.e. engaging the Executive’s policy and giving all due consideration to that policy. Instead of offering cogent criticism, or providing principled opposition based on serious and well reasoned, if heart-felt, values; instead of that we will get is a clown car.
It will be the old Blue Team / Red Team divide.

The Blue team will rally round the flag boys (and girls) shouting the battle cry of freedom. They will defend their President against all comers-- no matter what their doubts may be. They will trot out the party line like good little Bolsheviks, undeterred by any pesky facts that might intervene. They will be nauseating in their sycophancy, their fawning obsequiousness. “Our guy do or die,” will be their battle cry.

And what of the Red Team? They will, of course, be worse. It will be one long, pointless primal scream for the Red Team. One long temper tantrum about the president having the gall to be a Democrat, and worse yet, black. Every trope of the last six years will be trotted out, every last despicable dog whistle will be blown–at full volume. The usual bloviators of the right will make the usual talking points with all the usual thinly disguised racial venom.

There might be a few defections in the ranks, Senator McNasty, er McCain, will support the president; mainly because he never met a military action or war he did not like. Bernie Sanders will also play to type as a squishy Peace, Love and Granola Hippie Surrender Monkey. Rand Paul will go to great lengths to prove his Libertarian bona fides. But no real substantive debate will occur the hallowed halls of Congress. Most of the Senators will play to type and to party affiliation.

In the House, the whole thing will degrade into the mother of all food fights. I would not be the least bit surprised if the TEA Party crazies will demand cuts to social welfare spending as a condition of supporting the bombing. Check that, the TEA Party crazies will demand those cuts before they even consider discussing the matter in the first place. The debate in the House will be about as edifying as a Steel Cage Match on Pay Per View.

But in the end Obama will get his rubber stamp, no serious discussion will happen. Congress is quite happy to be a spectator, to toss peanuts at the Executive from the peanut gallery. Instead of advice and consent, Congress will go back to its real job; that of carving out more goodies for the 1% and their special interests.

1 comment:

Cujo359 said...

I doubt that Congress would want to stand up to the President on this, regardless of party. If they don't, then he'll go ahead and order air strikes anyway, and then Congress would either have to impeach him or finally admit that it has no power left on the question of whether we go to war or not.