Politics As Usual

When I heard about it I didn't believe it. When I found out that it was true I was in awe. As many by now know, congress has voted to open up debate on the healthcare bill, which is great. But the means by which they did so was not so great. In order to do so, all 60 Democratic votes in the Senate were needed in order to block a Republican filibuster, which they got from a price that will be paid by the American taxpayer.

One Democratic Senator, a Mrs. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, was originally opposed to voting with her Democratic colleagues to open up debate on the bill. In order to convince her otherwise, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, along with some other congressional Democrats, added a clause to the bill which promises to provide $300 million in aid to Landrieu's state of Louisiana in the form of a "Medicaid bonus."

Essentially, Landrieu's vote was bought by her colleagues. Is it just me, or is there something terribly wrong with this picture. Bribes are not the way voting on bills should be taking place. Unfortunately, there have been many instances on both sides of the aisle where congressional leaders were promised something in exchange for their vote, and it's perfectly legal.

During President Obama's campaign he promised to "clean up" Capital Hill. What happened to getting rid of "politics as usual." It is sickening that such a stunt can be pulled so openly in Washington D.C., with no shame what so ever. I am sure that Louisiana and the Katrina victims need the help, but this is certainly not the way to go about it. I am hopeful that President Obama has the courage to condemn his colleagues, and finally clean up Washington and put an end to this abomination.

Happy Thanksgiving

Real Talk Politic wishes all a happy and healthy Thanksgiving. Hopefully you are all with close friends and family on this turkey filled day. Along with celebrating Thanksgiving, Real Talk Politic is also celebrating its 1 year anniversary. Happy Birthday Real Talk!

Here are a few video clips of some memorable political turkey filled moments for your entertainment, from Barack Obama to Sarah Palin to George W. Bush. Enjoy.

Sorry

Why is it so hard for people to say that they are sorry? Perhaps it is because saying sorry draws attention to the fact that you made an error in judgement. It means that you have recognized that you made a mistake. Worst of all, it means that you have recognized that you were wrong.

We are all human, and as humans we all make mistakes. To deny that fact is to be out of out of touch with reality. It is hard enough to get family members or friends to say sorry to one another, and when talking about politicians, forget about it.

President Bush and The Bush Administration made a terrible mistake when they decided to invade Iraq in March of 2003. It has since cost hundreds of thousands of lives, well over 4,000 of which were American military men and women. Let's also not forget about the hundreds of thousands that have been injured and disabled for life as a result of the Iraq War.

The Bush Administration had originally invaded Iraq based on the primary belief that the Saddam Hussein regime had ties to al-Qaeda and were developing nuclear and biological weapons. We all remember the infamous address by U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell at the United Nations where he pinpointed exactly where the production of weapons of mass destruction was taking place, or so he thought.

Fact of the matter is, as we clearly know today, is that Saddam Hussein's regime was not developing WMD's, nor did they have relations with al-Qaeda. Sure the Hussein regime was extremely evil and corrupt, but that is no reason to invade a country. If the U.S. was to invade every country with an evil and corrupt government we would be at war in South America, Africa, Asia, and, well, all over the world. The Bush Administration clearly made a mistake by invading Iraq and has never, to this day, apologized and admitted that they were wrong for doing so.

Admitting one's wrongs holds no political barriers. President Obama and the Obama Administration also seem to be guilty of being unable to say sorry to the American people. During his campaign and early on in office, President Obama promised the American people that if the gargantuan stimulus package was passed the unemployment rate of this country would not exceed 8%.

Well, when President Obama took office the American unemployment rate was at 7.2%. Almost a year down the road and hundreds of billions of dollars later the unemployment rate has jumped to 10.2%. Not only does the Obama Administration refuse to apologize to the American people, but they insist that the stimulus has been working. A jobless recovery is not what the Obama Administration had intended back in January of this year when President Obama told us that the stimulus package would stop the unemployment rate from growing over 8%.

As we all know, saying sorry is a very difficult thing to do. It takes vulnerability and admitting one's wrongs. The Bush apologetics and Obama apologetics are diluted, and in complete denial. Not being able to recognize that we all make mistakes is to be out of touch with reality, even if that mistake was at the expense of human lives or billions of dollars of debt for subsequent generations to come. We need more honest apologetics in Washing D.C.