Middle Class America's history 

Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher implemented their ideas of governance.  There are about a dozen specific steps, but the key ones are:

Downsize government which they have done with passage of 2005 Deficit Reduction Act

Cut the budgets and bureaucracies and rules they make; GATS, WTO, NAFTA & LOTIS (Liberalization of Trade in Services); The Best Democracy Money Can Buy, p.173

Privatize just about everything; One of the key aims of the GATS treaty is to turn publicly owned water services over to private enterprise, The Best Democracy  Money Can Buy, p. 176

Deregulate currency and capital markets which was partially done by legalizing predatory lending: Old Testament books condemn action that economically penalize poor and powerless persons, which makes their already marginal lives worse.  In addition to generally commanding "do not oppress"; in direct conflict with:

the Books of Exodus (21:2; 22:21-22, 1-5-27;23:9-11), Le viticus (19:9-10,13,33;25:8-16,23-28,35-43) and Deuteronomy (15:1-3,7-14;23:19;24:6,12-15,17,19-21) forbid numerous actions, such as taking a cloak or millstone (which were needed in the ancient world to survive and earn a living) as a pledge for debt, charging interest, holding back wages, selling food at a profit and using dishonest scales and measurements, as specific, but not only examples of economic oppression.

Free banks from Federal regulations legalizing them to speculate in currency and shift capital across borders. ....

Open every nation's industry to foreign ownership without limit, such as America's 2003 estimate of capitalization of U.S. federal government exceeding $2.85 trillion not counting state and local operations, like water systems and total invested in public enterprise eclipse the stock market; The Best Democracy Money Can Buy, p.231  

For example, satisfy their cash hungry supporters political by authorizing selling off of Government owned banks and water companies to U.S. private industries and other countries.

Wipe away national border barriers to commerce; WTO, GATS, LOTIS, NAFTA

Let the market set prices on everything from electricity to water defining 'market" according to Wolff; i.e., the gilded One Percent owning $2.9 trillion of the nation's stocks and bonds out of a total $3.5 trillion*

The Old Testament Books of Isaiah (1:23;5:22-23), Jeremiah (22:2-4,12-17), Ezekiel (22:25-29;34:2-4), and Micah 3:11;3:1-3)and the New Testament Gospels of Matthew (23:23-24) and Luke (12:48) impose even greater moral responsibilities on those who enjoy greater privileges because of their education, wealth, status or access to the power structures.

Let the arbitrageurs direct our investments.

Then haul those old government bureaucracies to the guillotine;

Cut public pensions which supports middle class workers

Cut welfare which supports those less fortunate challenging mandates of Christians Old and New Testament: Old Testament Books in Isaiah (1:17;5:8;10:1-4),  Amos (2:6-8;5:7,10-11,14-15;5:21-24;8:4-6) and Micah (2:1-2,9;6:8), and the New Testament Gospel of Matthew (25:45) strongly condemns those who claim to be the People of God yet  do nothing towards changing conditions that economically oppress the poorest and  neediest persons and deny them a minimum opportunity to improve their lives. Jesus made this clear when He said “whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me”. 

The Old Testament Books of Isaiah (1:23;5:22-23), Jeremiah (22:2-4,12-17), Ezekiel (22:25-29;34:2-4), and Micah 3:11;3:1-3)and the New Testament Gospels of Matthew (23:23-24) and Luke (12:48) impose even greater moral responsibilities on  those who enjoy greater privileges because of their education, wealth, status or access to the power structures.

Cut subsidies; The 2005 Deficit Reduction Act aids and abets

Let politic shrink by drastically reducing size of federal government:

The above republican plan was placed into effect by Grover Norquist in 1986 with advent of "No New Taxes" accompanied by threats of "funded political opposition" if went unheeded, that brought about "tax cuts frequency" without any consideration of state's tax income destruction to finance states' benefits and services funding! Republican "obstructionists" and Tea Party members were in lock-step frenzie!   

"AMERICA'S MILITARY/INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX" HAS CONSISTENTLY, FOR PROFIT SAKE, INTENTIONALLY MISDIRECTED AND MISLEAD AMERICAN TAXPAYERS BY PRODUCING ENEMIES EVERYWHERE SO FEDERAL TAX DOLLARS CONTINUE TO ENRICH THEIR COFFERS FOR FUNDING MILITARY/INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX 

If you drop a frog into boiling water he will leap right out.  If you slowly heat the water without frog in it he will be content until it's too late to get out. That is exactly how AMERICA'S MILITARY/INDUSTRIAL COMPLIX works. They slowly heat the water while federal taxpayers remain content.  AMI continually lobbies Congress and American people of America's enemies and continually builds up military contract profits making Americans feel falsely secure.  

Remember how Republican business owners suppressed American workers before unions came along?  

Legalized labor unions leveled playing field between Republican business owners and American workers.

Unfortunately, over a long period of time, Republicans have quietly reduced political power of unions through congressional lobbying passing anti-union legislation swinging pendulum back to where American workers once again are subject to owners political power

Beginning in 1994 wealthy business entities lobbied Congress passing legislation making it legal to bankrupt Companies bringing them back under a new Company name legally eliminating responsibility for funding workers' pensions!  

Past republican experience did not heed World War II experience of building public opinion to favor attacking Iraq.

Compassionate conservatives of 2000 "spun" students questioning their American leaders as radicals that continually screamed until they got what they wanted!  Compassionate conservatives also partially convinced American public the media, and Hollywood were co-conspirators with students!  They argued these radicals hammered citizens with hate America themes and stories. Our service men, and women, were jeered, cursed, and spit on. The responsible parties were the American leaders that started Vietnam war without, first, getting public opinion behind this war effort!

Compassionate conservatives would like for you to think their "black hero" is The Reverend King.  Their spin is Reverend King, who was raised in the old school, peacefully changed the race issue and united the people. When he died the new breed of leaders like the Jesse Jackson's, Lewis Farakon,'s Al Sharpton's, and Rev. Wright's put a lid on his efforts and turned racism into a money making machine. don't let them fool you.  They're using the good name of Martin Luther King, who they hold in low esteem to try and convince you while Reverend King is their hero, those other "black leaders" Jackson, Farakon, Sharpton and Wright are somehow failures.

The public recoiled in fear of being called a racist. Something like public recoiling in fear after the Dixie Chicks spoke out against appointed republican president's Iraqi war policy?  They were chastised for standing up for their Country and we and America's press stood by and let America's first ever appointed President by U.S. Supreme Court) be chastised for exercising one of our basic American freedoms!

Most all politicians buckled to Republican pressure to attack Iraq.

 

Compassionate conservatives were furious the Florida legislature issued a formal apology for having slavery 200 years ago. They acquiesced with Janet H. Keels September 18, 2000 letter to Ed Kast, asst. Director of Florida Division of Elections saying written six weeks before presidential elections "requiring ex-felons to seek executive clemency from Governor Job Bush before they can vote."  However, 90 days after the Florida election and a week after the U.S. Civil rights Commission began to investigate the matter a letter writtn by Janet H. Keels Cordinator to Ed Kast stated "These voters need not apply for clemency.  The voters need not seek Governor Jeb Bush's "clemency."  How'd they do it?  See page 78, 79 & 80 of The Best Democracy Money Can Buy

America division from public discourse of issues was seen by compassionate conservatives and division of America.

Compassionate conservatives believe God has entrusted America to them!  Why else would a Tennessean compassionate conservative walk into a church during services and kill "those liberals"?  However, America is the land of all peoples with freedom ringing to the high heavens.  No one group, religion has title to America. Has God blessed this nation?  After all America represents only about 5% of world's population but uses over 60% of world's energy.  God would share America's wealth with the rest of the world and that would infuriate compassionate conservatives!  He took a few loaves of bread and two fish and fed 5,000.    

Compassionate conservatives love to hate George McGovern.  He was first Democratic Presidential candidate to test the waters with college students. His presidential candidacy revolutionized future politics.  His candidacy got the young involved because it involved ideas.  For many years after George McGovern's race the young dabbled a bit in politics changing it for the good.  However, over the past eight years those gains have been thwarted.

But in 2008 Presidential race the young are back and maybe they'll exact the needed changes to direct America back to caring for one individual at a time.  If compassionate conservatives have anything to do with it that will not happen! They only want their fair share----and that's all of it!

Jimmy Carter inherited the mess from Republican Nixon forced to resign and be succeeded by Gerald Ford through congressional hearings revealing criminal behaviors.  While Nixon fought by trying to cover up his misdeeds, he was not running the country.

The economy became entangled in a recession inherited by Democrat Jimmy Carter. This compassionate conservative President was described as the first President to demonstrate the leadership skills of the far left.  They blame him for Nixon's and Ford's weak military, high taxes, runaway inflation, 19% mortgage rates, and plain incompetence.

The Carter years were followed by Reagan years.  Living back then brings to memory of the debate between Democrat Presidential candidate Walter Mondale and Republican Presidential candidate Ronald Reagan.  One of the panelists asked Reagan if he would raise taxes and he emphatically replied "no".  Mondale looked into the camera and said "He (Reagan) want tell you he'll raise taxes, but I just did!  Mondale only carried one state in his lopsided loss to Reagan.  

Reviewing Reagan's tax policy economists Paul Krugman says "some say that [Reagan's] biggest budget deficit in history is justified even though the [Reagan] administration got us here with crooked numbers. Some point out Ronald Reagan ran even bigger deficits as a share of GDP.  Republicans hope people won't remember that fact along with his record deficits.  Reagan did cut taxes, but reversed part of his initial tax cut!  So Democrat Mondale told American people the truth and Republican Reagan reneged on part of his promise to American people!   

President Clinton legislated a significant reduction in social legislation reducing people welfare. 

President Clinton addressed a political issue in the military no other President had courage to face; i.e. gays in the military.  After much debate the military policy adopted Don't ask---Don't tell gay policy.  

The Best Democracy Money Can Buy, p. 100, 101, 102

However, President Clinton and Bush Jr had policy Americans were not aware of concerning "Islamic Bomb".  It had to do with Kahn laboratories, who created nuclear warheads for Pakistan's military.

Because investigators had been tracking the funding for this so-called "Islamic Bomb" back to Saudi Arabia, under Bush security restrictions, the inquiry was stymied.  However, Bush's actions were merely taking a Bill Clinton policy one step further.  After 1996 Khobar Towers bombing in Saudi Arabia, Clinton hunted Osama merely to protect the sheikdom sitting atop our oil lifeline.  

In 1994, a Saudi diplomat defected to the United states with 14,000 pages of documents from the Kingdom's sealed file cabinet.  This intelligence included evidence of plan for assassination of Saudi opponents living in the West and details of $7 billion Saudis gave Saddam Hussein for his nuclear program---the first attempt to build an "Islamic Bomb".  Saudi government, according to the defector, Mohammed Al Khilewi, slipped Saddam the nuclear loot during Reagan and Bush, Sr. years when our own government still thought Saddam too marvelous for words.  The thought was that he would only use the bomb to vaporize Iran."

Still, we are left with the question of why both Bush Jr. and Clinton would hold back disclosure of Saudi funding of terror. 

I got my the first glimpse of an answer from Michael Springmann, who headed up the U.S. State Department's visa bureau in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, during the Reagan--Bush Sr years.  "In Saudi Arabia I was repeatedly ordered by high-level State Department officials [under Reagan-Bush Sr administrations] to issue visas to unqualified applicants.  These were, essentially, people who had no ties either to Saudi Arabia or to their own country.  I complained bitterly."  That was Springmann's mistake.  He was one of those conscientious mid level bureaucrats who did not realize that when he filed reports about rules violations he was jeopardizing the cover for a huge multi continental intelligence operation aimed at the Soviets.  Springman assumed petty thievery: someone was taking bribes, selling visas; so he couldn't understand why his complaints about rule-breakers were "met with silence" at the Bureau of Diplomatic Security.

Springman complained himself right out of a job.  Now, a lawyer, he has obtained more information on the questionable "engineers" with no engineering knowledge whom he was ordered to permit into the United States.  "What I was protesting was, in reality, an effort to bring recruits, rounded up by Osama bin Laden, to the United States for terrorist training by the CIA.  They would then be returned to Afghanistan to fight against the then-Soviets."

President Clinton was impeached by the House with his irresponsible republican behavior with female intern---not During debate Republicans brought out his affair with a female intern.

However, after years of deception Republican Henry Hyde's committee chair was discovered to have secretly fathered an illegitimate child years ago paying participant to keep illegitimate affair secret!

 Another republican who divorced his wife while she lay in hospital bed suffering from cancer after having an affair was discovered and he lost his republican Speaker of the House position---Newt Gingrich.  The Louisiana republican primed to take speaker position was Bob Livingston.  He too had to admit to deceiving his voters for years by withholding fact he'd been involved in a sexual affair!  He stepped down and became a lobbyist.

Compassionate conservatives tried to deflect this information away from their "values" candidates by screaming about blaming Democratic Presidents Carter and Clinton for passing up three opportunities to take out Osama Bin Laden. Then they conclude this deflection eventually cost us the loss of our Twin Towers, thousands of American lives, and got us involved in a war with Iraq.

They conveniently deflect from the fact G.W. Bush deceived American people into invading a sovereign country on a deliberate fabrication.

The compassionate conservatives try to convince independent Americans, after Iran held American hostages for 444 days, this act translated into  embarrassing America.

All of a sudden America's military/industrial complex was screaming how weak American military had become under Carter.  They did not want diplomacy to replace starting a war.  Such radical pressure pushed Carter Administration into making a secret attempt to retrieve detainees by stealth non-military means that failed, miserably. Compassionate conservatives "spun" this as Iran kicking sand in America's face.

However, it was a former Allied Supreme Military Commander and President of United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower who said upon leaving President's office in 1961 that America's enemy was the military/industrial complex.  He urged future leaders to abandon war as a means of settling disputes and use United Nations negotiation strength to settle disputes between countries.  If not, nuclear power will eliminate the world we now live in.  G.W. Bush did not heed this warning! 

Compassionate conservatives hailed their hero, G.W. Bush Presidency.  

They screamed about the endless stories broadcasting about our evil nation and its President.  According to these compassionate conservatives Top-secret plans were leaked to the press and printed for the entire world to see. Hollywood cranked out documentaries about the evil Bush administration and our evil military[their conclusions].

They laid the groundwork for the next election. The ACLU flooded the courts with lawsuits and Democrat party became a law firm. Almost every incumbent, or his or her spouse, is a lawyer.  Compassionate conservatives complain about "radicals" of the Democratic party even though their "radicals" believe in practice makes perfect.

In 2008 compassionate conservatives broadcast that Democrats have the perfect candidate because they can squash criticism by playing the race card, much like their Republican President G.W. Bush did to Dixie Chicks's criticism of Bush's invading sovereign Iraq.  He did this by using unfounded, undocumented weapons of massive destruction rhetoric.

Compare the known candidate, McCain to Obama, the unknown candidate.  

McCain favors keeping American in Iraq for 100 years and unknown candidate favors only 16 months, shifting military forces to Afghanistan.

McCain's people will  convince you Obama's association with professors, Rev. Pfleger, Bill Ayer and Lewis Farrakhan, and Rev. Wright "spun" as disqualifying Obama to be President.

Remember G.W. Bush---the "values candidate"---who championed compassionate conservative phrase who has led America to brink of bankruptcy first, by attacking sovereign nation 5 years ago costing American taxpayers $100,000 a minute in Iraq and $18,000 per minute in Afghanistan in 2006; allowed American financial industry to pass predatory legislation through Congress creating the sub-prime debacle of all times!  Both of these accomplishments were treasonous!

Americans were given a "red flag" if they had studied Bush's Texas Governance.  It was Governor Bush who sought “tort reforms” in Texas law in 1999, a favor to a business front headed by Enron’s then---CEO Ken Lay.  The Best Democraby Money Can Buy, p.171 ENRON became the icon for Corporate greed that perpetrated throughout America's Corporations under G.W. Bush leadership.

An example of this White House denying funding for enhancing safety of consumer products was abruptly changed after China "toys" had so many recalls!

The 2008 safety bill, which passed the Senate 89 to 3 and the House 424 to 1, would essentially ban lead in products for children under 12. It would also require testing of children’s products before they could be put up for sale. It is gratifying that even a White House that has spent years fighting worthy regulation now apparently recognizes that this bill is necessary to make today’s market safer for consumers and their children.

Without federal, state compliance American Corporations produce  harmful products to American consumers chasing profit.  Such irresponsible corporate behavior towards American consumers generates threats of protests, product boycotts, or  lawsuits.
 

If republicans defeat Obama McCain will continue Bush's illegal deficit spending, government overthrows,  corporate tax havens, sovereignty-shredding trade agreements, circumventing our courts and agencies, taking nuclear waste from other countries, and allowing advanced weaponry and data to be sold by companies to oppressive regimes.

Because the Bush administration’s campaign against victims’ rights later belly flopped in the U.S. Congress, their game changed to take over the debate on the right to sue away from U.S. courts and congress and twist it into a “trade issue”---with all powers handed to an offshore GATS “disputes panel.”  The sly shift aided NAFTA.  The Best Democracy Money Can Buy, p.171

Both parties are different.

Reagan and Bush Administration’s economic policy rewarding wealthy and American Corporations while systematically promoting legislation and policies to break unions, promoting class solidarity and fighting spirit of working middle class.  This behavior creates a self induced kind of  "depression" in America’s job market.  

In 2007 speculator-driven currency panic in international oil costs erupted driving a barrel of oil as high as $147 dollars per barrell.  Guess what?  It is slowly bankrupting United States of America!  Again, in 2013 the same kind of "greed" has raised it's head!

Democrats want to tax oil companies spending it on "bricks and milk" solutions.  Democrats want to increase investment in housing and infrastructure, exercise control over commodity export prices and make land available to poor to fight poverty.

Bill Huff
First written in 2003
Rewrote July, 2013