A Fable for Our Time: On the Democratic-Republican Political Class War Against the People of the United States and an Addendum on Object Permancence

If someone were to write the definitive political fable of our time, it would likely tell the story of how farm animals formed alliances among themselves in support of the two competing factions from the management at the local slaughterhouse. The most tragic tale would be that of the creatures who should have known they were being fattened for a feast, but simply couldn't help themselves every time they were thrown a bone. This is the sad situation of both progressive Democrats and libertarian Republicans. As an example of the latter, consider a recent post at Charlie's Blog, entitled "The Libertarian Party Should Shut Down." He writes:

The greatest movement for freedom we have seen in some time has been within the GOP. Ron Paul and the Campaign for Liberty represents the spearhead for the libertarian movement. Dr. Paul's failed run for the presidency as a Republican has done more for freedom than anything the LP has done in almost 40 years. The LP served a function for a time including giving Ron Paul his first presidential run. But as it stands, libertarians would be better served getting behind pro-liberty Republicans and small government conservatives.

Of course, it borders on the absurd to argue that the Republican Party is a force for "liberty and small government." If anything, Ron Paul's Campaign for Liberty has been a success despite the fact that he is a member of the GOP. Indeed, the Republican Party is overtly hostile to his message and its messengers. Ron Paul's victory in the recent CPAC straw poll, for instance, was met with heckling an boos and this response was happily touted by conference organizers in interviews with the mainstream media. On Monday, the voice of the Republican Party, Rush Limbaugh, explained away the result:

All I'll tell you is that any organization that has a straw poll vote on who the party presidential candidate ought to be and comes up with Ron Paul is not an organization of conservatives. I just tell you. Something's haywire there. I know the Ron Paul people go in there, but they had been attendees to get in there. Ron Paul winning a straw poll at a conservative conference? . . . if the Conservative Political Action Conference that ends ups with a straw poll vote saying that Ron Paul is the nominee of the party for president, something's gone haywire there . . . This is the Conservative Political Action Committee. It's not some group of Libertarians.

Limbaugh then goes on to explain what he would have said were he to have delivered a speech at the conference and inadvertently provides us with a rhetorical template for any duopolist discourse:

I would have acknowledged the people in the Republican Party who are fighting from within to take it back . . . I would have promoted conservatism and I would have reminded people conservatism is the solution. . . . I certainly would not have ignored the other team on the field, the Democrats. They're the only reason we're in this mess. The Democrat Party is the only reason we are threatened with the things we're threatened with . . . I think I know what's going on and why various people are doing what they're doing and taking positions that they're taking. But the best way to insure that Obama succeeds is to think that we need a third party.

With the appropriate substitutions, any Democrat could deliver the very same speech. The formula: herald ideological victory; defend one faction of the Democratic-Republican Party while blaming the other; and argue against any potential opposition to the two-party state and duopoly system of government on the basis of the spoiler argument. The false premise underlying Limbaugh's imaginary speech is, of course, that the Republican Party is capable of representing anything other than the interests of the Democratic-Republican political class and their corporate benefactors. Ironically, Limbaugh's favorite ideological enemy – the dreaded liberal – shares the same delusion regarding the Democratic Party. Ahead of predicted gains by the GOP in the 2010 elections, the Washington Post reports:

Commercial banks and high-flying investment firms have shifted their political contributions toward Republicans in recent months . . . The wealthy securities and investment industry, for example, went from giving 2 to 1 to Democrats at the start of 2009 to providing almost half of its donations to Republicans by the end of the year.

The reason why the Republican and Democratic Parties cannot satisfy any ideological constituency of the American electorate – whether conservative, libertarian, moderate, liberal or progressive – is because Republicans and Democrats do not represent the American electorate but rather their paymasters in the corporate bi-poligarchy, whose interests are diametrically opposed to those of the people of the United States.

Addendum: Yesterday, Limbaugh continued his assault on third party and independent activists, challenging listeners to identify any worthy candidates for public office who are neither Republicans nor Democrats, with the implication, of course, that none exist:

Now, if you happen to think a third party is the best way to go, then go out there and form it. You think a third party is needed? You go form it. You people who think everybody sucks, go show us how not to suck! You form a third party! Find your candidate, name your party. Go out there and name your congressional candidates and your Senate candidates. Show me how you're going to put together a third party governing force. Show me. You sit out there and saying everybody else sucks, then you say that I suck because I don't realize everybody else sucks . . . Okay. So if you're the only ones that don't suck then you go show us who do suck how not to. Do it! You got all the answers. . . . I want to hear who your third-party leaders are.

Rush Limbaugh has obviously never visited Poli-Tea's list of third party and independent candidates for office in 2010. It is due for an update, given the many newly declared campaigns out there, but as of January 10th it linked to almost 250 candidates for governor, US House and Senate in 42 states! The immaturity of Democratic-Republican Party politics may well be best demonstrated by the fact that the ideologues of the two-party state have yet to achieve a state of object permanence. The fact that they ignore third party and independent alternatives to the representatives of the global warfare and corporate welfare state does not mean that none exist.