National Bully of 2011 Nominee: Newt Gingrich

National Bully of 2011 Nominee Newt Gingrich

I am sure that no one will be surprised with our next National Bully of 2011 nominee.  This nominee recently failed to secure a spot on the ballot for the Virginia Republican Presidential Primary and likened that failure to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.  This nominee, when asked by a gay Iowa voter why that voter should vote for this nominee, said that the voter should vote for President Obama instead.  This nominee believes that child labor laws should be abolished so as poor children in poor neighborhoods could be janitors in their schools and replace union janitors.  And finally, this nominee, if elected president, would have no problem ordering the arrests of judges he felt made decisions that were “out of the mainstream”.

And this wonderful National Bully of 2011 Nominee is: Newt Gingrich!  Congratulations Newt for getting onto my list!

Celebrating the 18th Year of America's Only Concentration Camp

Maricopa County's Concentration Camp

The Arizona Republic today notes with glee that Sheriff Arpaio's "Tent City", the United State's only concentration camp, turns 18 years old.  This atrocity on our soil was built under the guise cheaply easing the over crowding of the Maricopa County jail system in the early 1990's.  Comprised of surplus military tents, with no amenities of a standard jail and a lone guard tower, "Tent City" sent Commandant Arpaio's reputation as the "toughest sheriff" into the stratosphere.

Commandant Arpaio became a rock star in conservative circles for doing what we had condemned others for after World War II.  While repeatedly showing Newt Gingrich's "educational tapes", Commadant Arpaio was celebrated for his "innovated" jail by none other than Bill Maher via "Politically Incorrect".  And although "Tent City" was only supposed to be for "convicted" inmates, recently Commandant Arpaio started housing those suspected of being in this country illegally.

Conditions inside the concentration camp are notoriously inhumane.  While inmates are required to suffer temperatures that can reach 145 degrees inside of the tents, Sheriff Arpaio famously houses his guard dogs in air conditioned kennels within easy view of the inmates.  Inmates contend with scorpions and rattle snakes all in order to keep Commandant Arpaio in the political spotlight.

Strangely enough, the only people who have done any real investigation into the conditions of "Tent City" are the reporters of the Phoenix New Times.  Neither the state nor the feds have done anything to close down America's concentration camp.  No candidate for Maricopa County Sheriff dare talk about closing down "Tent City" for fear of losing votes.

Yes, jail is not supposed to be a luxury, but it is supposed to be humane.  Yes, except those suspected of being in this nation illegally, these are convicted inmates, but where is the justice in housing them in such conditions?  Should we be celebrating America's only concentration camp?

And the 2012 Republican Presidential Nominee is...

As much as some very vocal people on the right would like, the 2012 Republican Presidential nominee will not be Sarah Palin, nor will it be Mike Huckabee, Newt Gingrich, John Kasich, Jim Demint nor Mitt Romney.  The nominee will be the scariest person that the Republicans can find, even scarier than former Vice President Dick Cheney.  The nominee will be known for his fiscal and social conservatism as a former governor.  His candidacy for the Republican nomination will suck all of the oxygen out of any pretense of a “race” and will dry up the coffers of Palin, Huckabee, Gingrich, et al.

He will be the only one of his siblings not to have failed miserably in business.  He will be the only candidate to have a Hispanic spouse.  He will have been intimately involved in the Terry Schiavo case.  He will be the son of the former director of the Central Intelligence Agency.  He will be John Ellis Bush.

Yes, I am calling Jeb Bush as the 2012 Republican Presidential nominee.  Once his name is announced, the other Republican contenders will fold up their tents and rally around their party’s best hope.  Jeb can solidify both the microwaved social conservative base now known as the “Tea Party”, the country club Republicans and the Grover Norquist wing of the Republican Party.  He will have access to untold amounts of monies to run his campaign and at this point in time, I don’t see a Democratic challenger (not even President Obama) that can beat him.

Let’s face it: Jeb has been groomed to be president for most of his life.  Everything in his adult life has led up to the moment he becomes the Republican Presidential nominee and the only person standing in the way is Jeb Bush himself.  Sarah is a joke.  Mike is nice enough, but I think the moderate Republicans would prefer someone who isn’t a former minister.  Newt, well, let’s just say that his past is his worst enemy.  Mitt flip flops so much that the party leadership never knows where he stands from moment to moment.  John I can see as Jeb’s running mate.  And Jim, well, he enjoys being the firebrand in the Senate too much and he would like to Majority Leader at some point.

There are very few things regarding politics that I have been wrong about, but in this, I honestly hope that I am.  We cannot afford a continuation of the Bush Family Dynasty.  Former President H.W. Bush wasn’t too bad, but former President W. Bush was a walking disaster.  If Jeb does run and wins the presidency, theocratic fascism will take a giant leap toward being the legitimate form of American government.

I never want to see a sign that reads: Jeb Bush for President, 2012.