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This is the version I am mailing to Sen. Obama on Monday. FYI, I voted for Sen. Obama in CT's Feb. 5 primary but am not an enthusiastic supporter of his. My letter is about how angry I am at him for going on Faux News and stabbing Democrats and liberals in the back by caving into right wing frames.
Dear Senator Obama,
I am angry and offended that you would go onto the Fascist Propaganda Network, commonly known as Fox News, for an interview after Fox News shamelessly whined for weeks like a spoiled child that you would not go on any of their shows. Fox News is a fascist propaganda network whose sole purpose is to denigrate Democrats and liberals. They have taken Hermann Goering’s infamous quote about war and extreme nationalism
Naturally the common people don't want war …. That is understood. But after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine policy, and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. ...Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country.
And turned it into a business plan.
By going onto Fox News after they bullied you on the airwaves, you proved to America that you were weak and can easily be manipulated by the Right Wing. By regurgitating the right wing talking points about liberals and Democrats, you helped Fox News insult millions of Democrats and liberals past and present. Who do you think is volunteering and contributing to your campaign? It isn’t Faux News fans.
By following Hermann Goering’s philosophy, Fox News daily insults the memory and the honor of millions of Democrats and liberals, many of whom currently and in the past have served our country. They insult my late mother, a proud liberal and Democrat, who served in the US Army during World War II. They insult my late father , who was a long time Democratic activist and former Democratic chair in Wausau, Wisconsin.
My parents were not “Chablis drinking” liberals and neither am I. They drank coffee and I drink Pepsi and water. Your derogatory term and the other term – “latte drinking” liberal – are Right Wing frames of liberals. If you read Thomas Franks’ book “What’s the Matter with Kansas?” you will find a section where Frank shows that the derogatory vocabulary used against liberals today is almost identical word-for-word with the vocabulary used by the slave owners and slave owner wannabes against the 19th century abolitionists. Why are you parroting these bullies, Sen. Obama?
Both of my parents came from working class immigrant parents, who came to America for better economic opportunities, and grew up during the Great Depression. My parents’ difficult life experiences made their political views in line with the Democratic Party’s philosophy and they bestowed those philosophies upon my brothers and me.
Shame on you, Sen. Obama, for helping justify Fox News’ fascist agenda and helping them denigrate Democrats and liberals like my mother and father! How can you say you support unity when you willingly denigrate Democrats and liberals to pander to an ultraconservative audience who won’t support you ever?
Democrats and liberals are American citizens who promote our nation’s ideals as written in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. We are proud of our nation’s accomplishments but we are also disappointed and angry by our nation’s failures and wickedness. Liberals push our nation to live up to its ideals; whereas, economic royalists, like those who own Fox News, seek to exploit our democracy for the benefit of a few.
The people, who own, operate, and staff Fox News, are not interested in a serious discussion of the issues nor the truth. They are the economic royalists that President Franklin Roosevelt warned us about. Their mission is to implement Hermann Goering’s infamous quote about war and extreme nationalism into action by publicly mocking, insulting, and disparaging Democrats, liberals, and anyone else who opposes them and their benefactors so that they can install their corporatist (Mussolini would call it fascist) agenda upon America.
To honor and respect Democrats and liberals, past and present, and to really help change the political discourse in America you should NOT have gone on Fox News. Prior to going onto Fox News, your campaign assured us that you would “take on” Fox. Your weak performance showed the exact opposite. You didn’t “take on” Fox News. You “caved into” Fox News’ bullying. Your weak performance also exposed your campaign as a bunch of liars and hypocrites.
Your other choice after accepting Fox News’ invitation should have been to reframe the debate using progressive frames, but unfortunately for us all, you did not challenge the bullying tactics of Fox News. You were easily suckered into regurgitating right wing frames that disparage Democratic and liberal Americans. Why? To score negligible political points with Fox News’ ultraconservative audience? To make a shameful display that you were distancing yourself from your base who are volunteering and contributing to your campaign? Was it worth selling your political soul to Fox News for no gain with ultraconservatives and a loss in enthusiasm from the Democratic base?
Shame on you, Sen. Obama, for helping Fox News’ demonize Democrats and liberals!
Your habit of falling into right wing frames is why I am not inspired by you. A Democrat who does inspire me is Gov. Brian Schweitzer of Montana. Despite the fact that Montana had leaned Republican for the last 16-20 years, Brian Schweitzer won the governorship by attacking the poisonous neoconservative ideology and the corrupt leadership of President Bush on down to the Republican leaders in Montana and by extending a hand in partnership to moderate Republicans, who agreed with him about the toxic nature of the neoconservative policies. Schweitzer did not disparage Democrats or liberals but he did have scorn for the Washington Beltway Democrats, who refused to help his campaign because they didn’t think Montanans would support a Democrat for Governor. I too have scorn for the Washington Beltway Democratic caste because most of them have no idea what Democrats in the rest of the country feel and believe. You are a member of that caste Sen. Obama. Gov. Brian Schweitzer is the kind of leader I would follow into Hell and back because he is willing to fight for us ordinary Americans whether we are Democratic, Republican or Unaffiliated. After your weak performance on Faux News and your wiliness to disparage Democrats like myself with right wing frames, I would not follow you into battle because you would flee the scene and stab me in the back on your way out.
Right now you are on the path to the Democratic Party nomination. Assuming you still win it, Sen. Hillary Clinton will not be the only one who needs to help heal the deep wounds and fissures in the Democratic Party. You too will need to participate in the healing process. Calling Democrats and liberals Chablis drinkers and sneering at liberal bloggers just criticism of your Democratic peers who voted for John Roberts’ nomination to the Supreme Court only aggravates the divisions between you and those of us proud to be Democrats. The Democrats, who I know who support Sen. Hillary Clinton, are lifelong Democrats and are proud to be ones because they, like me, support the core principles of our Party.
Some call you the new John F. Kennedy. If you accept that comparison then you should also be a proud liberal like President John Kennedy was:
What do our opponents mean when they apply to us the label "Liberal?" … if … they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people -- their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties -- someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal."
That is the message you should have delivered during your interview on Fox News.
The main problem I have with your illusion of political transcendence or post-partisanship is that it blinds you to the shenanigans and corruption of the Right Wing and Republicans. During your interview with Chris Wallace you proudly said that you stood up to liberal bloggers, who were chastising your Democratic peers for voting for John Roberts to the Supreme Court. Have you analyzed the results of John Roberts Supreme Court lately and how his court is hurting ordinary Americans? Markos Moulitas, founder of DailyKos, highlights 5 cases in his rebuke of you <“Obama and Fox News” http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/4/28/113834/884/670/504797 >:
Gonzales v. Carhart: Upholds ban on late-term abortion procedure, because women who undergo abortion may suffer from "severe depression and loss of esteem." – This is a victory for Rev. Hagee and the anti-abortionist extremists and domestic terrorists.
Ledbetter v. Goodyear: Woman subject to discrimination in pay can't sue employer for back pay because she failed to sue within 180 days of the discriminatory action - even though she didn't discover it until years later. Most people don’t know what their co-workers make in the first place, so Sen. Obama, how do you propose helping us working class citizens find out if we are being discriminated against within 180 days of discriminatory action? – This is a victory for corporatists, male chauvinists and racists.
Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1: Quietly overturned Brown v. Board of Education, saying that school boards can't look at students' race in trying to integrate schools. How else can we try to integrate schools? Achieving racial balance is not a legitimate state interest, says John Roberts Supreme Court. -- This is a victory for racists.
Morse v. Frederick: School principal justified in suspending student for 10 days for holding up "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" banner during Olympic torch relay outside school grounds because banner "advocated the use of illegal drugs." -- Another victory for fascists who want to repeal the First Amendment.
Bowles v. Russell: District court said convicted criminal had 17 days to file appeal of habeas petition. Petition filed on 16th day. Holding: Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure only allow 14 days, so even though district court judge told petitioner (in the form of a court order) he had 17 days, that didn't matter. The petitioner is screwed by the judge's mistake. -- This is another victory for fascists who seek to destroy the ability of ordinary Americans to get justice from our legal system.
Your Democratic peers who voted for John Roberts deserve every bit of scorn and then some for ignoring Roberts and the Right Wing’s real goal in subverting America’s democratic institutions. America will be suffering from Roberts fascist Supreme Court for a long time.
You claim that your political philosophy is the belief that real divisions should not stand in the way of conversation. Did it ever occur to you that the Right Wing, which Fox News represents, is not interested in a conversation with their political opponents? They want to establish a dictatorship. President Bush captioned this mentality in a comment to CNN on December 18, 2000 -- “If this were a dictatorship, it would be a heck of a lot easier, just so long as I'm the dictator." Dictators are extreme bullies who will use every means in their power to destroy their enemies. Fox News is the propaganda arm of America’s Right Wing dictator wannabes. They practice what Hermann Goering preached.
Since you’ve appeared on Fox News for an interview, you have single handily destroyed a year-long battle by progressives to delegitimize Fox News as a credible news network for a possible and yet-to-be-determined short-term gain for your primary Presidential campaign. Will we be hearing you on Rush Limbaugh’s show soon? His audience is much larger than Fox News’.
Prior to your interview with Fox News, your campaign assured liberal bloggers that you would “take on” Fox News. As the leading candidate for the Democratic Presidential nomination, we were expecting you to challenge their right wing frames that demonize Democrats and liberals and reframe the debate with progressive ones. You failed to change the toxic frames of Fox News in your interview and instead you colluded with them to hurt Democrats and liberals. You owe every Democrat and liberal a public apology for going on Fox News and helping them continue their defamation of Democrats and liberals.
And should you become President of the United States, will you lead the effort to repeal the Telecommunications Act of 1996 or pass another bill to break the mega telecommunication monopolies that are feeding the American people gossip and innuendo as news? Or will you help economic royalists like Rupert Murdoch concentrate Media outlets in the hands of a few so they can have an easier time imposing their fascist ideology on all of us?
Senator, I was born in Chicago, IL in the early 1960’s and after you won the US Senate seat from my native state while opposing the immoral war against Iraq, I had high hopes for you, but the longer you were in the US Senate, the more rightward you drifted. Even if you don’t agree with Democrats and liberals, you do not have to denigrate us on the public airwaves in your attempt to court Republicans and right leaning Independents.
I voted for you in Connecticut’s February 5th Primary because this nation needs a new direction and you were the only viable candidate other than Senator Hillary Clinton at that time. I do not find you personally inspiring. I find your message of Change, Unity and Hope vacant and vague. What would inspire me is you standing up to Fox News and the corporate media and defending Democrats, liberals, and American democracy from the fascists who have hijacked our nation. We Democrats and liberals are American citizens too. You cannot call yourself the President of Unity when you denigrate Democrats and liberals on Fox News and elsewhere. Your poor debate performance on Fox News on Sunday, April 27, 2008 tells me that you will not change the direction of this country for the better and that you can easily be manipulated by the Right Wing media consortium of which Fox News is a major asset. You are just fortunate that Senator Hillary Clinton is a worse panderer to the Right Wing Media than yourself, but “more of the same” is not what I expected from you.
If you feel about Democrats and liberals the same way Fox News does, why didn’t you run for the Unity ’08 presidential nomination? Unity ’08 philosophy is closer to your post-partisan philosophy than the Democratic Party is.
Since you are running for and are close to winning the Democratic Party’s Presidential nomination, I suggest that you and your campaign heed Robert F. Kennedy’s advice
"The future does not belong to those who are content with today, apathetic toward common problems and their fellow man alike, timid and fearful in the face of bold projects and new ideas. Rather, it will belong to those who can blend passion, reason and courage in a personal commitment to the ideals of American society."
Robert F. Kennedy was a Democrat, not some make-believe post-partisan sprite.
Shame on you, Sen. Obama, for helping justify Fox News’ fascist agenda and helping them denigrate Democrats and liberals like my mother, father, brothers and myself! You owe all Democrats and liberals a public apology for helping Fox News denigrate us. And you need to lead Democratic leaders away from using Right Wing frames and talking points to using Democratic and Progressive ones. That is how change we can all believe in will begin in America.
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