[Peace-discuss] Antiwar movement: now Republicans, not Democrats

Sat Jul 27 14:18:28 UTC 2013

I entirely agree. 

Five years ago, I wouldn't have thought Obama and the Democrats could have co-opted the US antiwar movement to the extent that they did - although it was clear that they were trying to do so. But it was an autocratic Illinois politician who pointed out that you can't fool all of the people all of the time: it was bound to emerge elsewhere. The diversion of opposition to the Bush/Obama wars among the political class (roughly, the 20% of Americans who went to 'good' colleges) is nevertheless remarkable. 

--CGE

"If there was hope, it must lie in the proles, because only there, in those swarming disregarded masses, eighty-five percent of the population of Oceania, could the force to destroy the Party ever be generated." --George Orwell, 1984

On Jul 27, 2013, at 8:59 AM, "E. Wayne Johnson 朱稳森" <ewj at pigsqq.org> wrote:

> I miss Kucinich more than I do Mr. Coffee or Paul Simon.
> 
> Chris Christie and a gaggle of neocons came out against the libertarian trend
> in the Republican party a couple of days ago.
> 
> It is refreshing to see McCain and Peter King labelled as the Nut Cases that
> they are.
> 
> The Democrat party is the War Party.
> 
> I havent been nearly as excited about Rand Paul as I am about the
> highly principled Old Man...
> 
> but it certainly is a fresh wind that blows against the Empire.
> 
> 
> On 07/27/13 14:32, C. G. Estabrook wrote:
>> [Antiwar sentiment in the US, formerly found among Democratic (paleo)liberals - now largely extinct ("Where have you gone, Dennis Kucinich? / A nation turns its lonely eyes to you...") - is now more likely to be found among Republican paleoconservatives (as contrasted with neoconservatives). The following comment is from a right-wing website that in fact deplores the development. Cf.<http://www.counterpunch.org/2012/11/08/an-anti-war-anti-wall-street-republican-party/>. --CGE]
>> 
>> 
>> Posted By W. James Antle III On 9:43 AM 07/26/2013
>> 
>> What a difference six years makes.
>> 
>> In June 2007, a Gallup/USA Today poll found that a 32 percent plurality of Republican voters preferred Rudy Giuliani for president. John McCain was in second place at 19 percent. Ron Paul was near the bottom of the pack with just 1 percent of the vote.
>> 
>> Near the end of George W. Bush’s presidency, the GOP was still very much the hawks’ party.
>> 
>> But in July 2013, Rand Paul leads among Republicans nationally, at least according to a Public Policy Polling survey. At 16 percent, he is narrowly ahead of Chris Christie, Jeb Bush and Paul Ryan. Marco Rubio is further behind.
>> 
>> Multiple polls have now found the younger Paul ahead in both Iowa and New Hampshire, the first two states in the 2016 Republican primary calendar. This time around, it is likely that the single-issue hawks — think John Bolton or Peter King — would hover around 1 percent if they were included in the polls.
>> 
>> Liz Cheney is running for the Republican senatorial nomination in Wyoming to solidify support for foreign policy views that were once almost universal in the party while her father was vice president.
>> 
>> Depending on which poll you believe, Cheney is trailing by either 28 points or 34 points.
>> 
>> A narrow majority of House Republicans who have served in Congress for less than five years voted for Michigan GOP Rep. Justin Amash’s amendment to defund the NSA’s national surveillance program. Wisconsin Republican Rep. James Sensenbrenner, a past chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and Patriot Act co-author, voted for it.
>> 
>> Even some Republicans who voted against it, like Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, voted with antiwar Democrats when President Barack Obama waged war in Libya without congressional approval. The Wall Street Journal editorial page called the 86 GOP lawmakers who joined her “Kucinich Republicans,” but maybe Robert Taft Republicans works better.
>> 
>> The party is changing on foreign policy and civil liberties, perhaps moving in the direction of the broader American public. An NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll found that only 15 percent of Americans favored military action in Syria. Just 11 percent are willing to even arm the rebels.
>> 
>> “Whether you voted for Romney or Obama, they have the same opinion on Syria,” said Republican pollster Bill McInturff.
>> 
>> The polling on Iran is more mixed, but a recent CBS News/New York Times poll found that 59 percent of Americans believe Tehran can be contained, 21 percent believe the regime is not a threat and only 15 percent believe immediate action is required...
>> 
>> [Full at<http://dailycaller.com/2013/07/26/lets-grow-up-paleoconservatives/?print=1>]
>> 
>> 
>> _______________________________________________
>> Peace-discuss mailing list
>> Peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net
>> https://lists.chambana.net/mailman/listinfo/peace-discuss
>> 
>> 
>>   
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> Peace-discuss mailing list
> Peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net
> https://lists.chambana.net/mailman/listinfo/peace-discuss