Media Glee Over Conservative "Rifts"

The Washington Post all excited today, folks because they've detected another conservative split. This not is on Terri Schiavo. This conservative split is in the debate on curbing illegal immigration. "Republican lawmakers are headed for a showdown over illegal immigration, an issue that exposes a deep and bitter rift within the GOP." You know, we do get stories, "What do the poor old Democrats have to do to regain their power?" but we seldom get stories about the "bitter rifts."

They do happen. I mean, we do hear about when MoveOn.org sends a letter to the DNC saying, "You guys are history; we're taking over," but that is presented most of the time by the media as an interesting development and they're casually observing and watching it to see how it plays out. Very seldom is it portrayed as a "bitter rift." You hardly ever see stories in the mainstream press about bitter rifts in the Democratic Party, where some of them are siding with Republicans. It did happen on Sunday in Washington in Congress. There was a bitter rift on the Democrat side. There are stories out there. They're just not too many of them, if any, in the mainstream press, but there are anonymous Democrat sources saying that, "We didn't want to take a stand on this in the Senate, and not too many Democrats wanted to show up and vote in the House on early Monday morning. Yeah, we don't want to take the chance of being wrong on the culture of death or culture of life question, so we sat it out." But you don't hear the story about "rift." You don't hear that this is tearing the party apart. This is the second such story this week.

First the "rift" among conservatives on Schiavo, and now the "rift" among conservatives on illegal immigration, "The immigration debate pits one core GOP constituency, law-and-order conservatives, against another core GOP constituency, business interests that rely on immigrant labor. One camp wants to tighten borders and deport people who are here illegally. The other seeks to bring illegal workers out of the shadows and acknowledge their growing economic importance. Bush does not support giving driver's licenses to illegal immigrants but he wants to address the problem of undocumented workers by expanding temporary worker programs for the millions who are already here. Critics of House restrictions such as driver's licenses for illegals, including many Senate Republicans, say that the curbs would trample states' rights and lead to more unlicensed drivers while ignoring what they believe to be the crux of the problem, the millions of undocumented people already entrenched in the workforce."

So it goes on cite a number of Republicans who are breaking away from the traditional conservative wing of the Republican Party. They are John McCain, Chuck Hagel, Larry Craig, and they are aligned with Senator Kennedy on one aspect of immigration legislation. So while the Schiavo case effervesces and rolls on out there, the mainstream media has got the conservative movement Republican Party in its cross-hairs and it senses it's falling apart out there and they cannot hide their glee on the front pages of the Washington Post today. New York Times earlier this week. Although, in fairness, I have to point out their lead editorial in the Washington Post today just excoriates Democrats for having no plan on Social Security.

This is from one of my previous posts.

"Seriously, what the hell have republicans done for the common man so far in this legislative term? They've passed a bankruptcy reform bill that allows more evasion by rich people and goes hard after the middle class. They've waited till the very last second on the Terri Schiavo ordeal and needlessly sensationalized it. The steroids hearing was a complete waste of time. Government is growing faster than ever. Government spending is out of control. The government is getting in the way of our lives more and more. Now they're stuck on Social Security with no compromise in sight. Medicare and Medicaid needs to be reformed more than Social Security. They are completely ignoring the border situation. Where the hell is our energy plan? How about them judges?"

But I guess they've only been in power for 2 1/2 months. If they don't get their heads on straight then the 2006 election is going to be a train wreck.

"Seriously, what the hell have republicans done for the common man so far in this legislative term? They've passed a bankruptcy reform bill that allows more evasion by rich people and goes hard after the middle class. They've waited till the very last second on the Terri Schiavo ordeal and needlessly sensationalized it. The steroids hearing was a complete waste of time. Government is growing faster than ever. Government spending is out of control. The government is getting in the way of our lives more and more. Now they're stuck on Social Security with no compromise in sight. Medicare and Medicaid needs to be reformed more than Social Security. They are completely ignoring the border situation. Where the hell is our energy plan? How about them judges?"

But I guess they've only been in power for 2 1/2 months. If they don't get their heads on straight then the 2006 election is going to be a train wreck.

Agreed, there are times I feel like a "political hobo," politically homeless. First the turkey of bankruptcy reform, you can kiss SS reform, medicare and medicaid reform goodbye whereas, I think before we had at least a 50% chance to get it, maybe a little better. If they still try it and reach out with their hands, they will get a bloody stump in return. Immigration reform is lukewarm at best and like a bandaid on a gunshot wound at worst. Terri, they mean well but are emasculated, they lack action, showing weakness to the judicial branch where they should show strength. Speaking of judges, they need to go nuclear to get some good judges, but that is grinding down. Baseball steroids, who cares, leave it to baseball to handle it. Energy plan, opening up ANWR is great but we need more atomic power plants too as well as refineries.

We are wasting what we have been fighting for since 1994 if nnot longer and as you said, if we don't get some act together, 2006 and even worse, 2008 will get "coyote ugly" and we will spend more time wandering around in the wilderness.

The Democrats, I'll never go to, 'nuff said, it's self explanitory, but the Republicans have gone flat and weak. So where is a body to go? Third party is not an option really unless we experience an economic crash, atomic war or some paradigm shift. I do like the Populists, Reform and Constitution partys but again, without that huge shift, they'll be lucky to get elected dog catcher. One thing, IMHO, a parlimentary system has over ours is at least all parties do get seats apportioned to the votes they get, maybe that's the way I dunno, but we have to amend the Constitution so that is just a pipe dream.

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