anymore. He says politics are too partisan and the Senate isn't any fun. The Senator says
the system is broken and he can't see anyway to fix it; so he is calling it a day. Good riddance!
The weeping and gnashing of teeth among the punditocracy was heard across the fruited
plains. We are told this proves Washington is dysfunctional and dyspepsic. Bayh, who has
claimed to be a centrist and a moderate seems not to have found common ground with his
colleagues. Some say his retirement is proof the Democrats are too liberal, too inflexible,
and unable to build a governing coalition. In truth, Bayh was a DINO (Democrat in name
only). To quote Bill Maher "...he was a corporatist, not a centrist".
Bayh worked hard to kill healthcare reform and, in particular, any form of public option.
A public option would compete with private health insurance companies. And since his wife
sits on the board of one of the largest health insurance companies in the nation, it's no surprise
he has consistently been in opposition to healthcare reform. Bayh is more Republican than
Democrat. He loved spending money to go to war; but opposed spending it here at home to
help working Americans. Bayh's father, Birch, was a classic progressive Democrat of the
modern era, but his son traded on his father's good credit to support Wall Street, oppose new
regulations on banks, oppose a consumer protection agency for the financial world, oppose
gay marriage, oppose the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell", supported the Patriot Act, torture,
Guantanamo, and pushed for immunity for telecom companies who illegally spied on their
customers at the governments request. In his case, the apple fell far from the tree. In no way,
shape, or form was he a Democrat. So, Bayh is taking his ball and going home because the boys
and girls won't play according to his rules or that's the story he's telling. Retiring when he did,
he took one last shot at his Democratic colleagues by keeping his decision secret. By doing so,
no other Democrat will have the time to gather the signatures necessary to run for his vacant
office in the party's primary. Thus, the Democrats of Indiana will have to pick someone to run
for his seat, which will automatically disadvantage that candidate. The Republicans will say
that he or she doesn't have popular support. They'll be accused of being a tool of Democratic
"bosses"; and at a time of high anti-incumbent fervor, he will be tarred as the consummate
insider. This was no oversight on Bayh's part. Thanks for nothing, Evan.
One political observer I talked to thinks there is a method in Bayh's madness. Follow me
here: He quits for now. Maybe he becomes a lobbyist or a commentator for Fox or goes
around as a political Cassandra declaring the whole system corrupt and in need of an outsider
to come in and fix it. Eventually, claiming a piece of moral high ground by being an ex-
politician who quit rather than put up with the status quo, he announces a primary challenge
to President Obama. It's not as farfetched as it sounds. But at that point, who would Bayh
appeal to? Where would his base be? He's certainly not in favor of change. He opposed
almost all the changes Obama proposed. He's not fiscally conservative since he voted to
support two wars, massive defense spending, tax cuts for the rich, and a Medicare drug
prescription program; none of which had any formula for staying within the budget. He can't
run on national security grounds as he supported an unnecessary and immoral war in Iraq
and voted to continue to fund an anemic effort in Afghanistan. He certainly can't run as a
populist since he was a source of obstruction to the most popular aspects of the healthcare
reform bill. So, what is Bayh...really?
The problem in Washington is not too much partisanship. The problem is not enough
partisanship. Obama panders to the regressives while ignoring his own base; daring them
to go somewhere else politically. Democrats wilt like hothouse orchids when the heat begins
to rise. There is no price to pay by any Democratic member of Congress for going against
the party. Say what you will about the Republicans, they punish those who buck the system
and thus maintain strong unity.
The filibuster, a useful tool in the Senate has recently turned into a serious problem in
their caucus. According to the Congressional Quarterly, this last year has been the most
partisan in Congress since 1953. The problem has been Republicans marching together in
lockstep, while Democrats break ranks to join them. The filibuster is now applied even to
procedural votes (votes to pass daily agendas, to take up issues on the floor, or votes to agree
to vote), which is unprecedented. Either the filibuster must be disallowed completely or it
must be limited to final passage of legislation. If not, this abuse will certainly continue.
The retirement of Evan Bayh is good news. He is not a centrist and he never was a
productive factor in legislative compromise. He did not compromise. He sided with
Republicans when it was in he and his wife's interest to do so. He is not a senator who led
by the power of his rhetoric, because he had little of substance to say. Can you think of a
singular memorable utterance ever to emerge from his lips? He is not going to be missed by
democratically-oriented citizens because his loyalties lay with Wall Street and corporate
America. Not even his own gum-chewing Hoosiers benefitted. He says the system is broken,
but offers no solutions except to quit. Perhaps the figure in modern politics he most represents
or resembles is the "former" governor of Alaska. If they both end up employed by Fox, I won't
be surprised. If so, they will have found their true calling in the lucrative world of
entertainment and propaganda that's been redefined and marketed as "news". Neither of
them are "statesmen" and neither of them have anything of real value to offer our suffering
nation. What do you think? I welcome your comments and rebuttals. Please send them to
lionoftheleft@gmail.com
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