The Impeachment Hearing Room

My Sanity Tour is over

and I return to

The Less Than Real World.

After an exhausting circuit of five days through CT, NY, OH and CO one comes away with conclusions at great variance from those spit out by America’s media outlets and the hopefulness of all the cyber space groups, .orgs, .nets, and .coms. One also comes back to this keyboard with one very hopeful and exciting item to report (in at least as complete a presentation as is security-wise prudent).

So let me start there. Having met with cyber security experts in NY, a meeting we had determined a forehand would not be conducted online or by land line, there are stunning developments that have taken place to monitor the government’s online spying and prying activities which will shortly produce a sufficient data base collection and records to launch legal actions of serious proportions. This is simply a matter of American genius silently and seriously at work. We are not as stupid as some would have us be!

On the other hand the general perception on campuses, in barrooms, grange hall meetings and among “blinders off” political analysts is that we have failed in our Impeachment efforts and that the short spike of “open press” we had enjoyed is over with the exception of small local battles that continue. The general impression and analysis is that we are preaching to the choir and feeding off one another for any hopeful shred of opportunity to open the flood gates of an Impeachment Pandora’s Box, looking in all the wrong places at the expense of ignoring potentially devastating social ferment that is growing daily.

That last observation is shared by the legal beagles that I had the pleasure of “brain picking” over the 5 day mission into the “reality region” of our land: the common everyday voter.

They do not perceive things as those/we cyber space warriors do. I think we need to step back for just a few minutes and take serious look at the facts.

1) While a record numbers 0f voters have participated in this prolonged 2008 Primary Electoral Cycle; that number constitutes a “serious minority” of almost obsessed partisans…non-the-less, a minority of the total electorate. The media and the engaged represent only the tip of the iceberg, an enthusiastic vocal minority riding high and loud on an America a drift. Below the surface we find the “rage voter” of this land, a significant population of independent voters. In short a huge number of unaccounted for voters who will not be moved into the electoral fray until post convention time, the largest majority of whom will not make a final decision until the traditional last two week pre-election zone.

The media knows this. Polling agencies know this, and they insist on pontificating with a sham vomiting of a depiction of the electoral status of America. It is a fiction; albeit, a temporary fiction as both will transition into new data analysis after the party Conventions. They will adjust their polling models and begin anew.

It should come as no surprise that there are several significant “unspoken”. Let us explore just a few of those matters. The vast sums, obscene sums of money that have poured into the process thus far have created an illusion of increased or massive participation. Again that money is the tip of the iceberg and the under berg of the Democrat Party, in particular, is mush!

The DNC and DCCC are woefully underfunded to the extent they are able to provide the substantial aid needed/required by many in state candidates. Obama has ten times the cash on hand of the DNC. The money has gone directly to the candidate’s campaign coffers, in part as a matter of real enthusiastic support, and as usual, a portion is positioning money buying potential future access.

There is a hardly a Democrat candidate beholden to the party apparatus. The mythology of the “Hillary Money” that “poured” in after Pennsylvania and Indiana was a pure campaign contrivance that the media bought into hook line and sinker. It was her money and that campaign is in serious financial straits and on the surface is attempting to continue the illusion of a popular demand to “Keep going”.

While that whole political theater drama is being media featured Clinton and Obama campaign staffs have been/are , engaged active discussions and negotiations about the Vice presidency, financial matters and other concerns, while America is being treated to the public feeding of Bullshit!

My beloved Anna works for a firm that deals exclusively with Democrat campaigns and candidates and DNC money has only been seen in the Mississippi Travis Childers (District #1) campaign. In Virginia; our candidate’s coffers are filled without a penny from national sources. I am not going to belabor this point with example adinfinitum/ adnauseam because the bottom line is the fact that at this moment the party is ineffectual and irrelevant in the eyes of the “common man/woman”.

I have said things not fit to publish here of Pelosi, Hoyer, Reid, Schumer and Emmanuel. Let me make it real clear that folks you would never expect hear utter their names, (real everyday folks, non-political junkies) you know (Southern Ohio Farmers, Connecticut Bar Tenders, Students, Drug Counter Cashiers, Taxi Drivers, Bus Drivers, folks hanging around in airport waiting areas…etc.) , speak of them in absolutely pornographic profanity that verges on creative assemblage of curse words.

I cannot describe with words the depth of emotion behind the spewing of expletives beyond the faltering words of vicious, violent, venomous vitriol.

The rage and hate, no longer disgust, disappointment and contempt, was everywhere, and I did not have to stir the cauldron!

Our party is danger of becoming truly passé/irrelevant, important only to insider participants. The people are already speaking of a boring staged and scripted “love fest” in Denver and media hype of post-convention bumps that don’t, and I quote: “Don’t mean a damn thing because we hear the same shit every Presidential election!)

Let close this item with the oblique statement that our party is fading into meaningless oblivion and ineffectualness, and the mass of “Independent Voters and Rage Voters” are in large numbers the defectors from our party.

Like it or not; accept this or not; these are the facts and for those of you who cannot accept them; I will be around to say: “I told you so!”

The day of being an American Ostrich is just about over and a whole folk of asses are about to be kicked!

2) Now for we activists and advocates, bloggers, cyber groupies whatever; we are not held in great stead at the moment outside of our own fraternity. The people know who we are. There was a point in time when they held out great hopes for us and the likes of After Downing Street, World Can’t Wait, Code Pink, Move On.org, Online Groups and Meet up Groups, Vets Against The War Groups and about every online source I have ever consulted and/or sidebar linked/published. That is gone.

We all know that there have an impressive number of people who drop in on us, visit, read, comment on occasion and dutifully fill out petitions and do little else, and that does not make us happy. We want their full support, involvement and action. Well, that didn’t happen and it is not going to happen at the level or in the arena that we would have them act.

The fact of the matter is that those folks never had any real faith that we would succeed, but they hoped. I guess the best expression I heard of this population in my trip (CT) was: “You guys were up against an enemy with a Teflon Coated Kevlar Bullet Proof Jacket and a Congress taking it in the ass everyday with a smile! You didn’t have a chance.” That’s blunt enough don’t you think?

I have to tell you that some of the things people said to my face these past few days didn’t make me happy and too many times the invectives were hurled at me personally as I was the available target to criticize for “Our failure” to galvanize to public to uprising; yes they said uprising, and revolt and revolution and riots! Now does that give you an idea of what folks outside of our circle believe is going to be the ultimate solution/result?

Start a conversation about Gas prices anywhere, from station manager to farmer, from rent-a-car counter to return attendant, from grocery store cashiers and drug store cashiers. To people waiting for a bus train or subway and it gets forceful agitated and colorful quickly. It didn’t make a difference if I was in a Google Office, Attorney’s Office, Student Meeting, Consultants Meeting, Grange meeting, Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner; people are ready to condone ANY action that will cause change of vent their anger. They just don’t give a damn about consequences!

Bottom line: It is coming down to the basics, and I have warned that this time was coming!

I listened to farmers convinced that the Bush Polices were working their way to forcing small farmers to their knees are which facing bankruptcy they would be semi-rescued by a deal to plant “Shit Corn” for Ethanol and leave the real cash crops for the “Big Boys”. Everywhere there is distrust, hate, anger and rage, born of experience and suspicion.

3) On Bush/Cheney etal.: I’d like to say there were no surprises on this but indeed there was one that I will reserve for the conclusion of this discussion. There were the expected Bush Terror Support The troops mentality folks, but in lesser number than I had expected in the cross section of people I have interacted with in the past few days, and the greatest number were focused more on protecting our serviceman and woman than anything else. Despite that mentality, even among their ranks there was great dissatisfaction with the entire Bush Administration. The smallest segment, thankfully, were those who were American Supremacists and Anti Muslim Bigots.

I was taken aback by the majority articulation of our people that Bush and Cheney were indeed War Criminals and they should, (the expectation low), should be brought to justice on the torture issue if for no other reason. When one discussed Impeachment and dismissed the timing element and perusing them even after their exit from office there was almost unanimous support for the notion of OK, then get them! Those discussions I had to initiate and clarify. That was a surprise!

4) Once again I am convinced that the entire immigration Issue is more of a political opportunists issue set loose by the administration as a deflection, misdirection issue. I will not minimize my concern and position that the entire code has been corrupted by amendment to the extent that it has grown wild and serves no one but loop hole seeking lawyers. But I will say that among rank and file citizenry there is a sound and correct understanding that Congress and Corporate interests have permitted, paved the way for the stream of undocumented residents of these United States. Rationally oriented people know this and find the xenophobic exercised here and there that make it media feature to be foolish.

In discussions it was easy to bring these good folks to my position that the entire code ought to be scrapped and rewritten anew with fairness, simplicity and integrity, all cards face up on the table.

5) Most troubling: The Race Card/The Racial Divide: I have already made my position clear that Hillary Clinton should never be forgiven for having played the race card. Because she did it; she leant a level of credibility, and validation to it that otherwise would not have been there. The racial issue is clearly in play now and there is no restraint in conversations regarding this issue, to the extent that people are not reluctant to suggest that Hillary might take the VP position with a chance that some bigot might assassinate Obama if he is elected. That is a horrible commentary on just where we are at the moment. But it does not stop there.

Repeatedly it was expressed that people fully expect race riots should Obama be denied the nomination in any way that even has the appearance of a backroom deal. In Denver where Re-create 68 is an issue and is poised to exercise every right given by our Constitution, forcibly if need be, that issue is central, however, economic issues are being to play into the Denver Pre-Convention brew. Let’s just say the cauldron has a mix brewing of Justice for the administration, correction of The Democratic Party, Integrity of the nomination, a collapsing economy, an intransigent Congress, and a horrible misdiagnoses of the group, the issues and general malaise infecting this land and those who have so far played by the rules or been silently seething and now angry with everyone and everything.

I was for a few hours viewed with suspicion because I am from Alexandria/DC area…and we are “The Enemy” of America! That hurt!

6) And did I learn anything new the past few days? I would have to be fool not to have learned anything. I was reaffirmed in my faith that one has to get out of the DC beltway blinders area and listen to the voice of the street, the voices of the heartland, the voices of the people, not the voices of pundits and advocates, not the voices of the players and activists. We have elected to play by one set of rules; huge majorities are ready to play by their own rules. They have had enough. A truck stop sign in Colorado: “Riots before Rape!” In Ohio: “$4.00 is War!” And on a Colorado Campus someone had stolen my line and turned into a banner: “Those who live by the rules of War; Perish by the Rules of War…The Hague with Bush!”

7) Thomas "Tip" O'Neill—a longtime Speaker of the House in the U.S. Congress—once declared, "All politics is local." This one of the truism of life. There are few. Add up the number of people who have not been heard from in the primary process with those who have been in the mainstream of activist advocacy, add to that their inclinations as to how to affect change are far less legalistic and intellectual than most readers of this report, coupled with ready militant agitators, and economically ravaged rage voter base and you have the tinder box no longer hidden in the shadows.

And finally add those who believe it can’t happen and you have the final ingredient for any of the Great “R”s! It only takes one gunshot, one rough arrest or angry swing of a police baton, a couple of tear gas canisters, a show down on a protest line between advocates from the left and right and all hell will descend upon us. I have said repeatedly that such moments require a coalescing issues or movements…we have a peace movement, and anti-war movement, an Impeachment Movement, a disintegrating economy touching most Americans, Unions tasting a bit of the old days and having nothing to lose to rebellion, Racism on the Table, Political Turmoil, a Witch cauldron stirring media, misjudgments, the Fascism on advocate’s lips, Re-Create “68” in place, a long hot summer in the rarified air of Denver and an American Public that knows something has to give!

Even when one tries to explain the openings that have taken place with the Yoo revelations these everyday Americans, you know, “we the stupid people, peons” they are soundly grounded in the expectation that somehow an under the carpet sweeping deal will be cut….because: “ALMOST ALL THE CONGRESS SHOULD BE PUT ON TRIAL AND SENT TO PRISON RIGHT ALONG WITH BUSH AND HIS GANG!”

Stupid indeed! I Listened carefully and argued honestly. It was worth the time and effort.

End Post…food for your thought and consideration.