Apoplectic

That pretty much describes how I'm feeling about House Republicans these days. My friend Debra DeAngelo, who is the editor of the Winters Express just wrote a wonderful column which describes how I think so many of us are feeling:

Meanwhile, while we weren't looking,
our government has been overthrown

Congress, do you have ANY IDEA how much The American People hate you right now? I say “The American People” because you love to throw that phrase around when you’re making outrageous claims about what we want, what we think, and how we feel. You know what The American People want? For you to do your jobs, and end this outrageous government shutdown.

While none are innocent, Congressional Republicans are culpable for this federal fiasco, allowing that Tea Party buffoon Ted Cruz to be the tail wagging the dog. Meanwhile, people who need cancer treatments aren’t getting potentially lifesaving care, when moments matter. Single mothers aren’t getting milk and food for their children, and poison-laced imported food isn’t being screened.

More than two million federal workers aren’t getting paid, and may never get that money back. Small business financing is grinding to a halt. Head Start preschools face closure. Flu shots won’t be available, and those with weakened immune systems, the elderly and the very young will be at risk. Some may die. I ask you — is one beloved grandmother or tiny child worth this absurd, self-serving melodrama?

And why is this taking place? Because the party that lost this round refuses to obey the law of the land, the Constitution, and the Supreme Court? Didn’t we used to call this treason, or as my iPinion colleague Kelvin Wade so brilliantly summarized it, a coup d’état? Do any of the Congressional Republicans even remember how this country works? Majority rule? Hello? Ring a bell, anyone?
Respecting majority rule is the foundation of our country. If the minority refuses to obey the law and shuts down the government, that foundation is eroding. Those who don’t like the direction of the government or its decisions are supposed to work a little harder to convince voters to support their ideas. When you return to the polls, if you succeed, great. If not — better luck next time. That’s how it’s supposed to work, here in America.

Seriously, Congress! What the hell is going on here? If this were a terrorist group that invaded Capitol Hill and hijacked our government, you’d be deploying the National Guard to put a stop to it. Oh wait. You can’t do that — BECAUSE YOU SHUT DOWN THE GOVERMENT. The Nut Wing of the Right Wing has succeeded in doing what the 9/11 terrorists failed to do: destroy our government. And yet, we just sit here, stunned, wondering what happened and taking no action.

This tiny Tea Party Nut Wing, this nasty little barking Chihuahua, has managed to intimidate the entire Republican Congress. What are you so afraid of? Kick that yapping pipsqueak to the curb! You! John Boehner! Stop behaving like an obsequious, cowering wimp and inform the Nut Wing that this isn’t how government works. Sit their sorry asses down and give them a Civics 101 lesson. It’s really, really, really simple: Here in American, we respect the majority rule. Period. If we don’t like the majority’s decisions, we make change by persuading voters to agree with us. We do NOT hijack the government until we get our way.

And make sure Crusader Cruz writes “We respect majority rule” on the blackboard 100 times.
John Boehner, if only I could slap you, Moonstruck style, and scream, “Snap out of it!” Don’t you realize that you’re participating in the destruction of your own party? I, for one, do not want to see the Republican party dissolve. We need that yin-yang balance. We need the Republican party — not this current clown car of lunacy, but the real Republican party, that stood for fiscal responsibility and keeping taxes in check. Remember that? Are Republicans suffering from collective amnesia? Snap out of it!!!

Think, John, THINK. Your party stood for something once. Now? Your guess is as good as mine. I can tell you what it will stand for in the next election, however: epic landslide loss. Check the polls, dude. The majority of The American People place the blame for the government shutdown and the overall complete dysfunction of Congress on the Republicans.

And Democrats, before you get a little too giddy over that fact, consider this: A CNN poll on Oct. 1 revealed that 87 percent of The American People disapprove of the job their federal lawmakers are doing. Eighty-seven percent of the population is a huge, huge, huge majority. And it does not like you. Only 10 percent approve of our Congress right now. Who could possibly approve of this Congress? Their relatives, maybe? People too stoned to understand the poll questions? Disenfranchised Hipsters trying to be ironic?

Eight-seven percent disapproval rating. Holy cow. Congress, that whopping number stretches way across the aisle. It’s a mathematical way of saying “A pox on both your houses.” It’s notification that if you have “incumbent” under your name on the next ballot, The American People are going to toss your sorry asses out. We will vote for anyone other than you. Anyone! Chimpanzees! Chimpanzees could do a better job at running the country than this Congress! What a thorough and complete embarrassment you are.

As for this Affordable Care Act (and could we please stop calling it “Obamacare” because that’s just silly, transparent hyperbole), it is the law, validated by the Supreme Court, and here in America, we obey our laws. That’s the difference between democracy and anarchy. Don’t like the law? Work harder to change it. But don’t take the entire country hostage.

Back off, Republicans. End this shutdown now. Respect the Constitution you so glibly give lip service to, or else take those cheesy little American flags off your lapels. You don’t love America, let alone respect it. You’ve overthrown it. You’re terrorists. And you should be treated as such. You belong in Gitmo, every last one of you.

The American People want justice. And we’ll get it. Just wait until the next election. Congress, start packing your boxes. We want you out.