Do Republicans really care about their country at all?

As you may have heard, Republicans got their wish yesterday with a (small) tsunami in Congress that allowed them to retake the House of Representatives, though the Senate remains under Democratic control (for the little that’s worth, anyway). And, always eager to stick to tradition, they’re now playing the long-suffering victims and demanding that President Obama and Democrats “pivot in a different direction” and work with them to “stop the agenda Americans have rejected and turn the ship around” – in other words, as those fluent in GOP-speak have learned to recognize, that Democrats give in to Republicans’ every whim.

Of course, people who aren’t stricken with seasonal Alzheimer’s and who have been paying attention to all the antics the GOP has pulled in the last two-plus years (and for much longer still) can’t help but gag a little in rightful indignation in the face of such blatant and transparent hypocrisy. These are the people who have constantly and consistently voted against the will of the American people whilst projecting this betrayal unto Democrats, who have doggedly insisted on policies that have failed catastrophically every damn time they’ve been implemented, who have opposed some of the most righteous and sorely needed legislation imaginable, who have constantly fought against the rights of persecuted minorities (and even additionally demonized several of them to fit their political goals), and who have pulled so many dirty tactics and cheap shots that they’ve successfully turned the US political discourse into a long-running Jerry Springer episode, only without the educational quality.

And those are just some of my gripes with the modern incarnation of the GOP.

And so, seeing this latest bit of victim-playing on their part made me think. And thus, I take to this lonely little blog and ask you all, in all honesty:

What good have Republicans done in the last few years?

I’m serious. I cannot find one case where Republicans did anything that showed a serious interest in actually helping the United States. Not one bill introduced or overwhelmingly supported that would have done much good, and not one bill viciously opposed that wouldn’t have done so. Not one case where they rallied behind an effort to protect the rights of an oppressed or endangered group of people, and instead, too many attempts to count where they pinned some problem, real or imagined, on some already marginalized group who just wants to be left the hell alone and be treated equally, be it gays or Muslims or Blacks or whatever. Not one case, in any way, shape or form, where they did something that showed how their true allegiance was for their fellow countrymen, as opposed to themselves and their greedy plutocratic corporation overlords. And, most poignantly, not one instance where they ever took any share of responsibility or blame for the incredible amounts of damage they caused the United States, in all manners political, social and economic.

I’m not talking about times where Republicans got things done because they had no choice, or because it served their best interests, or because it didn’t really matter either way which way they voted. I’m talking about real issues, large and small, that affect the overall happiness, health and safety of Americans in large.

Name one. Just one.

’Cause I’ve looked, and I just can’t find any.

Tags: Republicans • GOP • US politics