The Miasma Of Bipartisanship
By Niranjan Ramakrishnan
27 August,
2008
Countercurrents.org
As part of the pre-Convention
program on Monday, C-SPAN showed some footage from conventions past.
One of the speeches was from the 1988 Democratic Convention, the speaker
was Ann
Richards. It was a stark reminder of how far the Democratic
Party has fallen in 20 years.
With her languid manner, easy cadence, instinctive pauses at the right
times, Ann Richards made the audience yearn. She was withering in
her scorn. Having watched the original speech, the only line I remembered
was the one about poor George, he born with a silver foot in his mouth.
I had forgotten the rest of her speech, which drew blood with each
turn of phrase. She could have given the same speech this week without
change, with just the names of the characters updated, and it would
be just as relevant. Consider this: "They tell us that they're
fighting a war against terrorists. And then we find out that the White
House is selling arms to the Ayatollah". Or this, "And you
don't have to be from Waco to know that when the Pentagon makes crooks
rich and doesn't make America strong, that it's a bum deal."
But more striking than any particular punchline was her attitude of
disgust, anger, contempt, and scorn for all that had taken place during
the Reagan years, palpable in her every word.
It has been two days since the 2008 Democratic Convention started,
and not one speaker has come close to expressing the nausea one hopes
any decent person would have developed for this administration. Instead,
all we hear are hosannas to that persistent Democratic weasel word
of conventions past, 'bipartisanship'. Of the war in Iraq there has
been scarcely any mention (Dennis Kucinich was given a non-primetime
slot, where he through an
enthusiastic speech, too rushed and breathless for much
effect -- it bears mention that he never even mentioned his own impeachment
resolution).
Once again the Democrats have fallen into the Republican trap and
set about proving that they are patriotic. This time they feel saddled
with another burden of proof, to show that they are American. Election
consultants are to Democratic candidates what defense contractors
are to the country. Two days into the convention, the Democrats have
not come close to showing their anger for what has happened to this
country, how it has been terrorized by its own government, and how
its lives and wealth have been squandered to make money for a few,
the warmongering and the war profiteering, the serfdom that is in
store.
High-tech videos and soft-touch lifestories have never yet roused
a people, and will not this time. Without the kernel of anger and
indignation, all else is but a frill. With the kinds of speeches we
have heard so far, the Democrats could do worse than replay Ann Richards'
1988 address. But that would be partisan, divisive, and disruptive,
no? To paraphrase Robert Frost, Democrats have become too bipartisan
to make their own case.
Niranjan Ramakrishnan is a writer living on the West
Coast. He can be reached at [email protected]. Some
of his writings can be found on indogram.
