The Sad Evolution of the Republican Party by John F. Mc Bride

As seen in "Comments" from the New York Times Wall Street Whitewash article of 12/17/10:


In response to the effects of The Great Depression in 1932 the nation increased the marginal tax rate on highest income earners from 25% to 63%. In 1936 it was raised to 79%. By the end of World War II, with Americans owing 117% of GDP, the marginal tax rate was raised to 91%. By the end of Jimmy Carter's single term in office, despite the costs of rebuilding Europe, building the United States, and fighting the Korean, Cold and Vietnam Wars, the nation had reduced our debt to 32.5% of GDP.




Pragmatic American politicians in those years of "The Greatest Generation," including Republicans, raised revenue to pay our nation's bills and created jobs for hundreds of thousands of unemployed and underemployed citizens during The Great Depression. They raised it again to pay for World War II and after that War our tax revenue paid for our network of interstate highways, water and hydro-electric projects and accompanying power grids, and other infrastructure. Nation loving Americans worked together, contributed together, sacrificed together, raised families together, and together, Democrats and Republicans sharing a single national narrative, built the greatest nation that went on to face down the bankrupt economy of the former Soviet Union and convert China and Vietnam to capitalist versions of socialism.



But Republican participation changed following the following the humiliating failure of Richard Nixon. To regain power Republicans re-invented their ideology, moving toward extremism. They attributed any tax regardless of how beneficial its affect for society to their negative portrayal of "tax and spend democrats." Not only did that negative marketing convince an increasingly comfortable middle class, the myth seduced. Ronald Reagan's Congresses dropped the marginal tax rate from 70% in 1981 to 50% in 1982. By 1987 it was 38% and in 1988 to 28%. All the while spending continued. Our deficits skyrocketed and national debt began to rise logarithmically. Republicans became the "borrow and spend" party. Holding the White House for 20 years to 10 for Democrats Republicans managed our national debt from 32.5% of GDP under Jimmy Carter to 84.4% of GDP by the time George Walker Bush turned the White House over to Barack Obama. Republicans segregated the nation into groups; foolish reality based Americans who, as Ron Suskind documented in 2004, are perceived by Republicans to ''believe that solutions emerge from your judicious study of discernible reality...'' and who foolishly and naively oppose Republicans, and Republicans who... "create our own reality. And while you're studying that reality -- judiciously, as you will -- we'll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that's how things will sort out. We're history's actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do.''



So now how do Republican's plan to pick up the pieces after the debacle of the collapse of their grand plans during the Bush years? Why, by reinventing reality of course. They'll balance the budget on the backs of the poor and middle class while our infrastructure fails and our nation's wealthy and corporations hoard trillions of dollars of wealth. Their plan is to reduce the common man further in the name of attaining an America that existed only in the age of Robber Baron Industrialists. Americans will learn to endure failing infrastructure, a failing education system nationwide, a failing health system rated one of the most expensive among western nations, a failing social safety net, and declining income and wealth.



The United States is still a very wealthy nation. Republicans just aren't interested in participating as they did for the 50 years from 1932 to 1982. They recast their past and their part in it like the characters of a psychology joke of the '60s that warned that neurotics build castles in the sky, but psychotics move into them. They and their supporters believe it's best to slash spending for our middle class and concentrate more and more wealth with the those that control the nation's assets and net worth. Come April's debate about our debt ceiling and the rending of garments and gnashing of teeth will begin in D.C. Republicans and their clients won't suffer as a result of them.



Republicans have arranged it to be this way.