It is a given that the party out of power picks up seats in the off year election.

Why is that? The logic would seem simple. American voters have the patience and vision of a nearsighted 3 year old. Every two years after they have decided that they want a particular party to run the country, they conclude, “Where’s the unicorn I wanted?” and decide that the other party might have a better unicorn ranch…even though the very reason they elected the current party was their dissatisfaction with the delivery of unicorns by the party that was previously in power.

So, first we have to begin with the concept that no matter what the American electorate orders from the menu of Democracy, when it arrives, they always want to send it back and just get the nachos instead.

As disappointing as that principle of American Democracy may be, it creates a paradox that is inescapable.

a. If a party wants to have power, it must win elections.

b. Once a party wins an election, it is held to an unrealistic standard by an impatient public.

c. The party in power, not being able to meet unrealistic expectations is eventually viewed negatively by the public.

d. In the following election, Americans vote for the party they last voted out because, since they are not currently in power, they provide an alternative to the party in power that has failed to meet unrealistic expectations.

e. Rinse and repeat.

What is kind of depressing is that Americans seem unable to commit to long term goals, too reliant on short term gratification to solve profound issues and build long term successes. Can you imagine if the American electorate was a building contractor? Every other month it would tear down the work that had been done all month and replace all the workers because it wanted the perfect house built in a month and that didn’t happen. This is the Sisyphus School of Construction.

This paradox does however necessarily trip up all that participate in it.

The Republicans, after having handed a near Depression to Obama, have executed a Party of No campaign since he was elected. Thanks to our thriving public education system and a fair and balanced MSM , the American Public instead blames Obama and the Dems for what the GOP has wrought. So, just one and a half years after recognizing how destructive the policies of the GOP are, their bi-annual amnesia has kicked in and they’re ready to proclaim to the Party of Destruction, “Thank you sir, may I have another?”

The Republicans will win many seats in Congress, perhaps enough to take over the House. What will that mean?

Well, Michelle Bachman and Darryl Issa have boasted loudly about spending the next two years in a Clinton-style witch hunt against Obama, times 100. Joe Barton, who apologized to BP for their being asked to compensate people for ruining their lives will be in charge of energy policy. And John Boehner who declared that HCR would bring the Apocolypse will be Majority Leader in the House.

Is there a way to give the American electorate an IQ test or at the very least, a consultation with a mental health professional?

But wait, remember the cycle described above? The silver lining to the Repubs possibly taking over the House is that…they will be in power. So now the unrealistic expectations will be projected on them by the Public. In 2012 they won’t be able to run as they are this year, as the outsiders who had no control over the last two years. Uh-oh!!! Yes, they will BS about how, “If only we had all the power in DC, we could bring you the unicorns you want!” but that’s a bit more complicated than just being able to say, “Blame them, we’re not in power, nothing’s our fault!”

And as we learned from a Repub House impeaching Clinton, not to mention the 8 years of Bush and 6 years of Repub control in Congress, give them a little power and they’ll hang themselves with it.

We should work as hard as we can this year to fend off Repub control of the House but if despite all of our best efforts, they win…it could be the big motivator for Dems to get out in 2012 and re-elect Obama and a Dem majority in Congress. We may have to give up two crucial years of gridlock for at least two more years of progress but that might be the best deal we can get.

It is nearly impossible for Obama and Dems to get credit for what they prevented from happening. If we had a President McCain, I think we would have plunged into a massive depression that would have set this nation back twenty years or more from where it is today (giving tax cuts to the wealthy instead of the stimulus spending would have been the nail in the coffin). But that concept is not concrete enough for many out there to appreciate. Nor are all of the other strides Obama has made.

And don’t get me started on the Purist Dems attacking Obama, I imagine many of them smugly watching Repubs win this year, pleased at how it harms Obama’s presidency. If there was a way to give a Wedgie of Mass Discomfort to all of them, I gladly would.

Ultimately, the pendulum that passes for the mass mindset of American Voters will have a chance to swing back to sanity by 2012 and while we can’t give an inch this year, if Repubs win back the House, I think there will be a silver lining to that sulfurous cloud that could descend on DC after this November.

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This spring, the Move to Amend is on the move. Read on for the latest resources, actions, and upcoming events . . .

New resources:

* Our Field, Action, and Education Committee is working on a set of questions for candidates, to help you decide where current and potential legislators stand on issues of corporate personhood, corporate power, democratic reform, and constitutional amendments. The committee is also preparing a flier detailing the various responses to the Citizens United decision that different groups and members of Congress have proposed.
* With the help of Change.org, our Online Communications Committee is working on a short video about the Move to Amend, and about our core principles. Thanks to the many of you who have chimed in on Facebook, we have a great lineup of potential spokespersons for this video message.
* A brochure on the Move to Amend campaign is now available online as a PDF file. Please email us to order full-color print copies.

New website features:

We have heard from new groups across the country that are discussing how they can build support for constitutional amendments. To help individuals connect with groups and with each other, the MovetoAmend.org website will be adding some new features, making it more user- and organizer-friendly. In addition to expanded “events” and “take action” features, look for state pages with contact links and info on actions and campaigns. As we bring these improvements online, you will notice service interruptions from time to time; these are the websites growing pains.

On the local level–pass a resolution!

Take a small group and visit with each elected official of your municipal council, town board, or county board. Ask their opinion of the Citizens United decision (if polls can be trusted, they’re likely going to be on your side!) and what they’re planning to do to respond to the ruling and to protect their community and elections against corporate power. Share their response with your friends, co-workers and your local newspaper – hold them accountable!

Urge your local elected officials to sponsor a Democracy Resolution for your local government for discussion and passage in response to the Citizens United ruling. Remember, today most local government meetings are seen live and rebroadcast on community cable tv, an excellent opportunity to present the issue to a wide viewing audience.

You can use this Model Resolution to Legalize Democracy in the United States and Abolish Corporate Personhood as a starting point.

Upcoming events:

Yes, we are everywhere. Here are some of the next series of events featuring organizers the with the Move to Amend:

* May 3, Wisconsin ~ Ben Manski ~ UW-Stevens Point, 8:00pm, DUC Theater, Dreyfus University Center.
* May 4, Washington ~ Riki Ott ~ Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA, 5:00p.m., in the AIC building, Room 210.
* May 4, Wisconsin ~ Ben Manski, Mike McCabe ~ Madison, 7:00pm, WilMar Community Center
* May 5, New Mexico ~ Kaitlin Sopoci-Belknap ~ Santa Fe, 7:00pm, Unitarian Church, 107 West Barcelona Road
* May 19, Massachusetts ~ Mary Zepernick, Sen. Eldridge, Rep. Atkins ~ First Parish in Concord, 20 Lexington Road, at 7:30pm
* May 22, Illinois ~ Riki Ott ~ United Church of Rogers Park, 1545 W. Morse Ave., Chicago, 1:00p.m.
* May 23, Illinois ~ Riki Ott ~ Chicago Green Festival, 3:00 p.m. in Room 319, Navy Pier, 600 E. Grand Ave., Chicago

First, props to SueInCa for her brilliant article,  The Next Credit Bust – 2012? which inspired me to post this as a kind of companion article.

For those who have expressed interest in GROW and/or focusing on addressing the SCOTUS decision giving corporations unlimited expenditures in elections, a bill is about to be presented in The Senate that would be a first step and it will no doubt need as much grass roots support, calling and emailing and writing Congresspeople, as possible. Here’s an article on it from The Hill:

Democrats prepare for election-year battle to craft Citizens United legislation

By Russell Berman
04/13/10 06:00 AM ET

Legislation that aims to counteract the landmark Supreme Court ruling allowing corporate and union campaign spending could be introduced by the end of the week.

Major provisions include strict disclosure and disclaimer requirements for corporate-funded campaign ads, including a mandate that CEOs and top donors appear on camera to “approve” messages, much as candidates are required to do now. The bill would also explicitly ban contributions from companies with a 20 percent or greater foreign ownership stake, as well as from government contractors or firms that have received and not repaid Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds.

“The heart of this legislation is going to ensure that the public is aware of who is actually putting up the money to finance these ads,” said Fred Wertheimer, president of Democracy 21.

Many reform advocates are hoping to add a provision that would require corporations to hold a shareholder vote for significant political expenditures.

http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/91797-dems-ready-for-election-year-battle-on-citizens-united-bill

The difficult issue is that, at least until the SCOTUS changes to have a more liberal majority, the only way federally to reverse their opening the floodgates to corporate spending on elections would be a constitutional amendment or a piecemeal state-by-state regulation of resident corporations.

During Vox Populi last week, there was discussion about the possibility of a coalition of organizations working together, in California as a start, to get a proposition on the ballot which would be sort of a Corporate Responsibility Act. What we discussed then was that it could require that corporate executives would be criminally liable for criminal acts perpetrated by the corporation they run. Additionally,  corporations could be required not only to provide the best profit for investors but since they are now classified as people, be required to balance that with the well being of their society (and employees). Campaign contributions by corporations could similarly be required to conform to the norm for “people”.

There are a variety of responsibilities that could be applied by a state to its corporations that could require them to act as good citizens of this society instead of mercenary sociopaths that have no responsibility to the society that allows them to prosper. Of course, all the possible responsibilities would have to be vetted for their viability and constitutionality so as much as some might be sought, there are legal limitations. 

So, there are two possible areas of direct action that could be pursued by those interested in confronting corporate domination. First and most immediate, being activist about getting your Congresspeople to support and vote for this bill. Second and longer term, exploring the possibility of using California’s proposition process to start a movement across the country for states to require that corporations which want to be treated as people, act as responsibly and socially constructive as other people are required to behave.

Appreciate your thoughts on this.

Oddly, that doesn’t diminish how anxious I am for it to be tomorrow at 2 pm EST.

In the meantime, here is a remarkable speech Pres. Obama delivered today. IMO, this is not the speech of a president who isn’t going to prevail:

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Unlike healthcare reform where I have spent many hours researching the issue, I know very little about the substance of financial reform.  My gut says it would be better to have an independent agency for Consumer Financial Protection but some make an argument that a financial protection agency would be better funded under the Fed.  The first question that comes to my mind is why then did the Fed miss the financial crisis?  I am not a Fed woo woo by a long shot I just think of it as another institution that needs to be improved but there is nothing inherently evil with it and going back to some kind of precious commodity type of backing is far from realistic.  So I’m open to the Fed having jurisdiction over financial protection I just hope it’s done right with proper legislation, oversight and execution.

I can’t give many more details about Senator Dodd’s legislation but it does contain some language Paul Volker has promoted to help and prevent the “too big to fail” from happening in future.  The debate is starting and I’m sure the legislation is not enough reform for progressives and too much for conservatives but at this point in our political discourse I personally don’t view those perceptions as reasons to be against this legislation right now.  Probably if the HCR push ends soon one way or another I’ll research the issue more intensely.  Like every issue I like to cut through the partisan bullshit and decide for myself.  I also realize that even my expectations like on healthcare reform are not going to be realized in the first step because of the influence of lobbyists and the corrosive nature of our political discourse.

Click here to read the full article which contains a copy of the proposed legislation.

Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) on Monday unveiled a sweeping financial regulatory reform bill designed to prevent future Wall Street bailouts and to protect borrowers with a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau housed at the Federal Reserve.

During a press conference at the Capitol, the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee emphasized the need for consumer protection, adding that the financial crisis and resulting recession were caused by predatory lending.

“The root cause of our economic crisis was a lack of consumer protection,” Dodd said, emphasizing that the current regulatory structure is “hopelessly inadequate.”

The consumer protection bureau would have authority to write rules governing all entities — banks and nonbanks — as well as the “authority to examine and enforce regulations for banks and credit unions with assets over $10 billion and all mortgage-related businesses,” according to a summary of the bill.

President Obama praised the proposed bill, calling it “a strong foundation to build a safer financial system” and saying that it provides the government with “essential tools to respond in a financial crisis, so that we can wind down and liquidate a large, interconnected failing financial firm. It allows us to protect the economy and taxpayers so that we can end the belief that any firm is “Too Big to Fail”.

Elizabeth Warren who proposed the CFP agency had this to say about Senator Dodd’s legislation.

Since bringing our economy to the brink of collapse, Wall Street has spent more than a year and hundreds of millions of dollars in an all-out effort to block financial reform. Despite the banks’ ferocious lobbying for business as usual, Chairman Dodd took an important step today by advancing new laws to prevent the next crisis. We’re now heading toward a series of votes in which the choice will be clear: families or banks.

I will not qualify her statements like some progressive pundits have so just present it and you can make your own opinions.

Most arsonists never pitched in major league baseball.

The last 3 years have been a primer on how broken the system is in Washington. The Dems took over Congress in 2006 promising an end to Iraq and accountability and promptly after winning, proclaimed that that impeachment was off the table. We soon watched as many more things, including taking any steps to end the Iraq War were off the table.

Thankfully, Pres. Obama was elected to end the Iraq War and has taken action to do so.

Still, as the Stimulus battle and the ugly process for HCR has reinforced, our government simply sucks when it comes to getting anything meaningful done in a timely way.

The fact that one sociopathic Senator can kill Medicare expansion as a public option or stall hundreds of presidential appointees and judges from working for our nation or  suspend salaries and unemployment compensation for millions of people, just screams out that our system of government has become terminally corrupt.

In a democracy, how is it that one person’s non-vote has more power than 99 people’s vote? How is that representative democracy?

It needs surgery.

The Founders’ structure for our democracy was based on reasonable assumptions. They assumed that people would naturally proceed in good will, whether they agree or disagree on issues. The Founders assumed that the system they were setting up would be a constructive dynamic, that each branch would work actively to move the nation forward but through checks and balances, prevent any one from becoming too powerful or going overboard.

Let’s be honest, it’s just not working anymore. The Presidency has become supremely powerful over Congress, against The Founders’ design. The Senate has become a tar pit. All the rules put in place to protect civility and responsibility have been corrupted into becoming weapons of mass disruption.

The filibuster was put in place as an emergency cord, to be pulled when legislation might head the nation into disaster. The GOP has destroyed this intent, they are on the train pulling the emergency cord whenever the train just tries to leave the station…making it nearly impossible to get anywhere.

Our government is corrupt and broken. A majority of Americans have come to or are coming to this conclusion.

What we really need is a new Constitutional Convention to reform our democracy into one that can function properly in the 21st Century. However, doing so in the 21st Century when corporations control politicians and legislation would likely be disastrous.

It’s a conundrum. The system is corrupt but the status quo wants nothing to change and controls all the levers that would need to be used to create profound change.

Add to that, any move to do something as radical as reconstitute the The Senate would be attacked by the Status Quo as if it was terrorism.

It still doesn’t change the fact that having two Senators from each state has become a failure of democracy. It is easy for corporations to buy Senators in low population states and doing so gives them a cheap and easy route to blocking ANY legislation they don’t like.

Additionally, how democratic is it for a small portion of the population of the U.S. to have as much representation as the vast majority?

If I had a magic genie who could grant my wish, I would like to see the makeup of The Senate changed so that it has some of the genuine representative democracy of The House.

My revision of The Senate would be:

a. One Senator minimum from each state with the remaining 50 distributed based on population of a state.

b. Either the removal of the filibuster or restrictions that limit how often it can be used.

c. For The Senate, House and Presidency, public funding of elections, no accepting of any lobbyist gifts, vacations or anything else.

d. A 10 year ban on being able to lobby the government once leaving office.

d. The ability for the people of all states to impeach their Senators and Congresspeople for cause (limitations to prevent corporations or ideologues from using this unfairly).

And overall, The Congress needs a therapist to resolve its feelings of inferiority so it can take power back from the Executive Branch and truly act like a responsible and equal branch of government again. This is not aimed at Obama, it is looking ahead to the day when  a Republican will be president again and recognizing that the concentration of power in the presidency, as evidenced by Bush’s destructive and anti-democratic reign, is a danger to our nation.

Meanwhile, Bunning has again today blocked passage of this bill and many Americans, who can’t get a job that doesn’t exist in our economy right now, won’t receive unemployment checks. Neither will tens of thousands of federal employees and all the people across the nation working on infrastructure projects this bill continues funding on, receive paychecks this week. Some of these people, now not able to pay for groceries or rent…all because of this one insane political arsonist.

This corruption of democracy needs to be extinguished.

Only you can prevent Jim Bunning.

The 6 hour gathering is today discussing the future of OUR health and lives.

If you are watching and want to add your thoughts, enter here.