Patriot Act vs. "limited government:" the state of the Tea Party revolution

[paedraggaidin.livejournal.com]

So, last week the U.S. House of Representatives voted not to suspend debate on extending certain provisions of the Patriot Act. The freshmen Republicans voted 78-9 for suspending debate. Now, the Act extensions will have to go through the messy debate and amendment process.

My question is, how do those 78 new freshmen Republican congressmen, many of whom ran on a platform of "the government is too bloated, too intrusive into the private lives and freedoms of Americans!," justify trying to ram through the Patriot Act extension without debate, when the Patriot Act is arguably as intrusive as Obama's healthcare reform that they despise so much? You can't even open a bank account without being subject to the Patriot Act's provisions. Sure, I get the whole "protect our country against international terrorism" argument (quoth Michelle Bachman), and I get that for many self-styled small-government types the words "shrink the size of the federal government" apply to everything but national defense, but seriously, how do they reconcile extending the Patriot Act with the promises that won them Congress, reducing the deficit, shrinking the government, and reversing the government's intrusion into private lives?

Because you can ask pretty much any American who is Muslim or of Middle Eastern descent about how the Patriot Act purports to fight terrorism while respecting their individual civil liberties.

Also last week, Republicans failed to get the necessary votes to suspend debate and pass the United Nations Tax Equalization Refund Act, which would demand the return of some $180 million the U.S. overpaid to the United Nations (funny, that, considering how many other UN members are always screaming about how mean and un-supportive the US is WRT the UN). In fact, only two Republicans voted for it! Now, y'all know I'm no fan of the Tea Party, but even I get fed up with the UN's general atmosphere of "Death to America/Israel!" and "We need to appease more cruel dictators!" and wouldn't mind seeing us get every penny of that $180 million back (and hey, let's send it all to Israel, just to piss off the U.N. Commission on Human Rights!). The UN has been one of the great bogeymen of the American right for decades; many conservatives wouldn't cry if we withdrew completely and kicked the UN's headquarters off US soil (I remember, back when I was a conservative myself, the common anti-UN rhetoric). So...why, Tea Partiers, why didn't you take the chance to give the UN a well-deserved black eye?

Comments

[fizzyland.livejournal.com]

You act like you expect these people to behave like something other than the radical fringe of the republican party.

[paedraggaidin.livejournal.com]

Well, not only that, but that they're already breaking promises, just like every other politician (hey Obama, is Gitmo closed yet? What about torturing prisoners?). It's not that I didn't expect it; I don't expect much from politicians of any stripe except hot air and bullshit. But the level of public anger at the government that drove this election was, admittedly, genuine and deep, and I figured the Tea Partiers in the House would at least try to keep up some semblance of fighting for "the little guy" and against wasteful spending ($180 million extra to the UN = wasteful). They were, after all, supposed to be "new" and "different" and "agents of the people who want real change."

One month into the 112th Congress and it's back to the status quo. I'm not surprised, but I am shaking my head a bit.

[telemann.livejournal.com]

White, and male. Go figure.

[underlankers.livejournal.com]

There's a radical fringe WRT the Republicans?

[bikinisquad3000.livejournal.com]

LOL, which article is that photo supposed to be accompanying, anyway?

[whoasksfinds.livejournal.com]

because the tea party movement is so radical.

[the-rukh.livejournal.com]

If it's free healthcare and the television told me to fear it, it's communism and wealth redistribution, if it's protecting me from people the television told me to fear, its justified.

[rasilio.livejournal.com]

This was really to be expected.

I mean anyone who seriously trusted a Republicrat Party who would elect an old guard establishment type like Boehner to be speaker to actually change their stripes needs to come see me because I have this great Arizona Beachfront real estate deal they have to get in on.

As I said before the election, the true test of the Tea Party is not what happened in 2010 but rather how they react when the Republicrat party inevitably fails to live up to what the Tea Parties expected of them in 2011 - 2012.

For another good example of the utter failure of the Republicrat party see here...

http://boortz.com/nealz_nuze/2011/02/so-far-disappointing.html

"They announce a figure in the neighborhood of $75 billion. Then some reporters, including our own. Jamie Dupree, point out that the Republicans are using the old baseline budgeting trick. That is, they're announcing the budget cut not from present spending levels but from projected increased spending levels in future years. Now that's partially budget cut and partially reductions in future spending increases. This is not the sort of gamesmanship that the tea party voters signed up for last November. The real figure for Republican budget cut proposals? That would be somewhere in the $35 billion range; about one half of what they were trying to pass off to the voters as their grandiose attempt at cutting the federal budget."

Inevitably 2012 will result in 1 of 2 outcomes. A complete overhaul of the Republicrat party establishment, or it's splintering into at least 2 separate parties because the Republicrats in Congress have shown absolutely no ability to live up to the smaller government ideals a huge part of the electorate demands. The only real question is whether it happens before or after the 2012 election.

[a-new-machine.livejournal.com]

This is not inevitable. If the tea party loses steam (and from what I've seen, it has) then it was a one-election movement, and business goes back to normal.

[meus-ovatio.livejournal.com]

Tea Partyiers weren't about issues- they were about feeling left out.

Now that they feel "in", everything is hunky-dory again. They wanted to be accepted into the nice, warm Republican fold and patted on the heads and otherwise integrated into their chosen homes. So the GOP did just that.

And they're behaving wonderfully.

[underlankers.livejournal.com]

Because just like with the War on Drugs this is a kosher means for government to extend its power beyond what is warranted. Full totalitarianism can destroy terrorism with impunity (at least by non-state organizations). Trying to have it both ways with a democratic system using totalitarian means only strengthens terrorism.

[paedraggaidin.livejournal.com]

Sadly, agreed.

[3fgburner.livejournal.com]

... Aaaaand THAT's why I'm not a DemoPublican.

[the-rukh.livejournal.com]

Neither are the tea partiers, amirite

[malasadas.livejournal.com]

My question is, how do those 78 new freshmen Republican congressmen, many of whom ran on a platform of "the government is too bloated, too intrusive into the private lives and freedoms of Americans!," justify trying to ram through the Patriot Act extension without debate, when the Patriot Act is arguably as intrusive as Obama's healthcare reform that they despise so much?

That *is* one narrative.

Another is that Boehner and the rest of the Republican leadership in the house got cockblocked thanks to those 9 defections in the vote from Tea Party backed Freshmen.

Just sayin'.

[sandwichwarrior.livejournal.com]

Funny, I clicked on this post intending to say the same thing. The fact that the bill did not pass in in its initial form and will now be pushed back into debate is (to me) a good thing.

[badlydrawnjeff.livejournal.com]

You're about a week behind with the Patriot Act: The Tea Party folks were significantly instrumental in joining with some Democrats to stop the extension (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/09/AR2011020904209.html). Unfortunately, this is only temporary because Boehner incorrectly thought that the vote could pass with 2/3rds support, but still.

[htpcl.livejournal.com]

Detail is a bitch. Or was it the devil?

I though libertarians knew not to believe everything you read in the WaPo

[mijopo.livejournal.com]

Yes, that's what the article states, but swing your mouse over to the right just a little where it says "Explore the vote", then click the "Tea Party endorsed" tab, there you'll see that a measly 12/111 voted against the extension. (http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/112/house/1/votes/26/) (some notes I made about this: http://mijopo.livejournal.com/388324.html)

(How do you figure "a week behind"?)

[eracerhead.livejournal.com]

It remains to be seen if the libertarian wing of the Republicans can find voice and influence over the big-government Reagan Republicans.

Here is a chance to really de-implement nanny government, but it doesn't bode well when the first several bills in the House deal with abortion.

[sandwichwarrior.livejournal.com]

"the big-government Reagan Republicans"

I find it depressing that one can say those words without a hint of irony.

[gunslnger.livejournal.com]

Suspending debate means taking a vote on the bill as it is. Voting to suspend debate =/= supporting the bill.

[reflaxion.livejournal.com]

Most of them did vote to extend the bill. Given the context, the OP's claims appear valid.

[tridus.livejournal.com]

They're politicians now. They have to act like it.

The real issue here is that "shrinking government" isn't something that most are serious about, and even among those that are many of them are scared off by the rampant paranoia that effectively rules US policy. The number of people willing to seriously take "shrinking government" seriously by shrinking it's most invasive manifestation is a small group. Those people will find it hard to get re-elected if they actually do it and then the media whips up a public hysteria over some new terrorist plot. Then we'll get "why didn't the government do anything!?" instead.

Ultimately the path to re-election is easier when you do nothing and yell about how evil the other guy is then it is if you try to enact serious policy. Both parties are guilty of that all the time.

[farchivist.livejournal.com]

From all the articles I've read, it seems the leadership expected the Republican froshes (of which there are many) to operate in unison with party desires like usual...and they didn't get it. Picking up the political gossip, it seems Boehner is fucking pissed. I found this article fairly amusing and informative. (http://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/49161;_ylt=AjS3CA.24dTsZo_VEa.XqbSyFz4D;_ylu=X3oDMTJnbXY5NXEwBGFzc2V0A3BvbGl0aWNvLzIwMTEwMjA5LzQ5MTYxBGNwb3MDNARwb3MDMQRzZWMDeW5faGVhZGxpbmVfbGlzdARzbGsDZ3Jvd2luZ3BhaW5z)

[http://users.livejournal.com/-wanderer-/]

I guess that answers the questions of whether the Tea Party will take over the Republican party or not. It's the other way around.

[dwer.livejournal.com]

I'm looking forward to the GOP shutting down the government. It worked SO WELL for Newt Gingrich.