Brooksie's Political Theater of the Absurd Starring Rick Santorum

David Brooks states:

"The bottom line is this: If serious antipoverty work is going to be done, it’s going to emerge from a coalition of liberals and religious conservatives. Without [Rick] Santorum, that’s less likely to happen. If senators are going to be honestly appraised, it’s going to require commentators who can look beyond the theater of public controversy and at least pretend to care about actual legislation."

My reply:

The bottom line is this: If serious antipoverty work is going to be done, it will only happen if the Democrats win control of House, Senate, or preferably, both. Otherwise, Rick Santorum doesn't have any more chance in Hell of getting meaningful legislation passed than Teddy Kennedy does. If the seriousness of this election is to be honestly appraised, it's going to require commentators who can look beyond their own short-sighted interests and at least pretend to care about protecting our system of democratic government from annihilation.

Aside from the fact that Santorum does NOT live up to Brooksie's glowing description, his column is an attempt to divert voters attention away from the real issue of this election: without Democratic oversight, the Bush agenda -- all of it, including doing away with all social programs -- will be a done deal, and American democracy will become a thing of the past.

Those are the real stakes. As Paul Krugman pointed out weeks ago, the decision in this election boils down to "D" or "R," and anyone who wants to see a change for the better in this country had best vote Democratic.

Without oversight of the Executive branch, which Republicans have for six years proved themselves incapable of doing, the gulf between the upper and lower classes in this country will grow ever wider -- and no individual candidate from either side of the aisle will be able to change it.

Links to Brooksie's Times op ed follow:

Political Theater and the Real Rick Santorum
By David Brooks
The New York Times

Non-subscribers, Michael J. West's blog has a reprint as well as a feisty response to Brooksie's skewed view of Santorum.

Photo credit: David Brooks. (The New York Times)

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