| Why haven't Republicans Dave Camp, Peter Hoekstra, Joe Knollenberg, Thad McCotter, Mike Rogers, and Timothy Walberg spoken out against the vile smear attack directed at Graeme Frost and his family by right-wingers? Are they so desperate to defend Bush's SCHIP veto that they're willing to stand by while a child gets smeared?
(Graeme Frost is the 12-year-old boy who recently shared his story about being involved in a severe car accident and receiving medical care because of the Children's Health Insurance Program.)
It was bad enough when they turned Terri Schiavo's plight into a three ring circus, but this really steps over the boundary of everything decent and sacred. Ironically, as John Cole points out, its almost like they turned on one of their own. |
If you look through this family's dossier, it appears they are doing everything Republicans say they should be doing- hell, their story is almost what you would consider a checklist for good, red-blooded American Republican voters: they own their own business, they pay their taxes, they are still in a committed relationship and are raising their kids, they eschewed public education and are doing what they have to do to get them into Private schools, they are part of the American dream of home ownership that Republicans have been pointing to in the past two administrations as proof of the health of the economy, and so on.
In short, they are a white, lower-middle-class, committed family, who is doing EVERYTHING the GOP Kultur Kops would have you believe people should be doing. They aren't gay. They aren't divorced. They didn't abort their children. They aren't drug addicts or welfare queens. They are property owners, entrepeneurs, taxpayers, and hard-working Americans. I bet nine times out of ten in past elections, if you handed this resume to a pollster, they would think you were discussing the prototypical Republican voter. Hell, the only thing missing from this equation is membership to a church and an irrational fear of Muslims and you HAVE the prototypical Bush voter.
They are, however, not without fault. They are unable to afford insurance through normal means (and now that they have pre-existing conditions, probably couldn't get traditional insurance anyway), and managed to get several of their family members injured in a traumatic accident. And, it appears, those are the big blind spots for compassionate conservatism. That, and the real big sin- allowing themselves to advocate for a policy that the Decider was going to veto.
It's pretty obvious that average Americans will never be good enough, moral enough or work hard enough to please these Republicans who keep moving the bar higher and higher. That makes it clear what voters have to do to protect our kids - vote them all out of office. No insurance company CEO or politician is worth more than the health and well-being of our children.
In the meantime, as Wizardkitten said here, "Contact your congresscritter and tell them to override this veto. Of all the nasty things that Bush and the Republicans have done, this one is right up there." |
