It is not sophomoric conduct it is the Republicans at their best. They have shown their true colors and they are worse than what should be expected from intelligent people. I wouldn’t even expect this from a 6th grader. The republicans have truly sunk to a new low.

What I cannot figure out is why seemingly other intelligent Republicans do not come out (no pun meant) and distance themselves from this type of lowly person.

In this country majority vote decides some things but not many. It decides who represents us but in many cases they need super majorities, filibuster or veto proof majorities or simply a feeling of consensus before leadership will put something to a majority vote.

However all this activity is done by our representatives. We do not in general allow the majority to decide on civil rights and many other things because of what you say: the average public is not enlightened at all.

now of course we witness this get derailed with crazy things like the constitution in California and Maine which seem to allow majority vote on civil rights (as interpreted by some…i don’t agree).

Giving into “let the people vote” legitimizes claims to the rights of the majority to control everything. Our founders knew this would be stupid and avoided it whenever they could. Unfortunatley some states have allowed it but it clearly was not intentional and needs to be corrected. Let’s not give up by conceding we’ve already lost!

James: thanks for pointing out the current Republicans are not conservative. As a conservative I don’t have a party. I’m too young to have ever had a good Republican party,(the southern baptists liberalized the party when I was a mere child and yes the religious right is LIBERAL not conservative for wanting to control everything we do) the libertarians seem to be infiltrated with the crazies you cite above (and they seem to carry the same bigotry baggage as current Republicans, not acting very libertarian at all w.r.t. rights) and all the other options just want to take my money and spend it on the lazy classes.

It is sad we don’t have a party that represents what I think a majority of Americans feel: stay out of our lives, quit being the morality police and stop expanding government so much that we can’t afford to do what we should be doing like providing better healthcare options.

Everyone talks about the “moderate center”…I think that “center” is actually quite libertarian and would take in moderate lefties and righties if expressed in the way I did.

But with religion erasing conservatism in the Republican party and rampant expansionist ideals invading the Democratic party, I think people have lost sight of the common ground many of us share.

I too am feeling a very, VERY deep sadness about all of this. It’s affected a few friendships of mine, disrupted at least one party, and resulted in me losing two nights of sleep over it. I’m glad I’m not the only one really saddened by the way the political discourse turned this past year (maybe “continued to turn” or “strengthened in its entrenchment” would be better phrases).

I’m coming to the conclusion that it’s useless to talk to people who are already on board with this anti-government thing, and I’d like to implore the anti-government cynics on the Left to ratchet down their own rhetoric, too. Instead, I think we should understand that politics today is about marketing and PR. It’s about the group that gets out there the earliest, the strongest, and with the most concise and catchy sound bites. Then, repeat frequently!

It’s a battle for the apathetic Middle. If the Left can ratchet up its PR and get it going much, MUCH earlier, and if we can concentrate on swaying the Middle, we’ll win.

Obama’s failing was not in the plan or the behind the scenes politics. It was in his oddly passive allowance of the Tea Baggers to get out strong for months this summer with no equally strong, coherent, catchy PR response in favor of health-care reform. (Was I the only one who wanted to take a 2×4 to Kathleen Sebelius as she stood stone faced, silent, and defeated in front of screaming tea baggers? We needed more Barney Frank style, “On what planet do you live?” types. How could the administration NOT have been prepared for this?!)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/15/tea-party-leader-melts-do_n_286933.html

He merely scratched the surface, and The Crazy came screaming out.

Man with a harsh and antagonistic “barking dog” accent. And antigay.

It’s just like an African American female member of Congress said, “You may not like the president and may not agree with him, but he is the guest of Congress and you treat your guest with respect. The president is not the president of the Republicans or is not the president of the Democrats, he is the president of the United States and when he addresses Congress, you at least respect the office of the president of the United States. There is a certain decorum that needs to observed.”

I thought good for her. What if there were no decorum and Democrat congressmen and congresswomen could just freely stand up and should insults when a Republican president addresses the Congress? You may revile the person and his or her message, but if you can’t respect the person, at least you should respect that your guest in Congress represents an office of president of United States. While president is there, you don’t stand up and call him or her insults. You grit you teeth and know that your will have plenty of opportunity later to challenge the logic of his or her message and of the bills she or he (meaning any president not just this particular one) support amongst your fellow senators or representatives. You can get mad and irate all you want and tell of how this or that bill will doom the economy or the country, but you don’t call your president a “liar”. You just punch his or her logic full of holes instead after his or her speech is over and she or he is gone from the chambers and you make your case to the American people and to the rest of Congress as to why you will not and can not support what a president wants. That way you preserve the dignity of Congress and of the office of the presidency of the US from you own mouth while stating you opposition regardless of the rest of the nation thinks.

As a Congressperson, you are allowed to object and disagree all you like while preserving a proper decorum and respect and a decent standard of behavior at the same time. It has been done and is possible to do that while speaking your mind freely at the same time.