- 18 Sep 2018 08:21
#14947222
The Democrats are - like their conservative counterparts - gearing up for the midterm elections with ad buys and message crafting. However, as the party begins its bid for a ‘blue wave’ across the US, it is alienating parts of its progressive base.
That's according to Richard Becker, author of "Palestine, Israel and the US Empire." Becker joined Radio Sputnik's By Any Means Necessary to discuss a Democratic Super PAC's upcoming xenophobic political advertisements aimed at a "reactionary" member of the House of Representatives.
On Tuesday, Sputnik News reported on Red to Blue's purchase of two television ads and two mailers for a reported but unspecified six-figure sum.
One ad features a woman with a Russian accent announcing that its target, 30-year House of Representatives incumbent Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA), is proudly endorsed by the Russian Federation and is a "true Russian hero."
"The true absurdity of US politics now in regards to the two main parties: we have the Republicans pushing ahead with an agenda that is a horrific agenda, that is really designed to destroy, at a time when the climate is obviously deteriorating — as you can see from the latest storms — changing in ways that are very dangerous," Becker told By Any Means Necessary hosts Eugene Puryear and Sean Blackmon. "The Republicans are trying to get rid of more regulations every day. They're cutting all the social programs, and they want to cut them even more. They want to eliminate them all together; really, that's their dream. And defending racist, sexist, homophobic policies."
Becker highlighted the risk of confrontation between the United States and Russia, a confrontation which the Democrats seem to be angling for. "You hear the Democrats, on the other hand, [they] are attacking Republicans for being too friendly to Russia. Russia and the United States obviously are the two leading nuclear weapons powers in the world, and they're in close proximity to each other, like say in Syria right now, which could lead to — and I'm not predicting it — but it could lead to a confrontation that could rise to a global confrontation between nuclear weapons powers."
"Rohrabacher is a thorough-going reactionary, particularly on all domestic issues. He's certainly a friend, a promoter of the military industrial complex. Prop 187, back in in 1994… tried to criminalize immigrants and to say that immigrant children didn't have the right to go to school if the parents were undocumented, immigrants didn't have a right to access healthcare and so forth," Becker noted. Rohrabacher was "for that." He was also supportive of Proposition 209, Becker added, which tried to outlaw affirmative action.
"He's got this whole awful record, and yet the Democrats are now gonna attack him and go after his House seat on the basis of wanting to have better relations between the US and Russia," the author told By Any Means Necessary.
In advocating for such a confrontation, in which it would be the working class, not the Democratic elite, who would suffer the most, the "so-called party of the people" reveals itself.
"Why do we have the Democrats making their main thrust of their rhetoric against the Republicans be about being soft on Russia when there's all the rest of this?" Becker said, referring to the anti-worker, anti-LGBTQ and anti-immigrant rhetoric of Rohrabacher and fellow Republicans. "I think the answer to that question is, to address those issues, to address the real issues, means to address the system itself."
Becker noted that despite whatever US President Donald Trump and Rohrabacher say, the US' enemy number one is so-called "great power competition" from Russia and China. That's according to the US Department of Defense's 2018 National Security Strategy. "It once again comes back to seeking to be the single superpower in the world," Becker said.
"Apparently their focus groups tell them them that all the propaganda has persuaded a good part of the population that Russia is the problem, when in fact it's just a ridiculous assertion in the context of this election," Becker said.
"If the Democrats are gonna win the House, and I don't think they'll win the Senate, they're coming in, they're resurging, but they're resurging on the basis of calling for an even more hostile, militaristic policy," he commented.
"The blue wave," Becker said, promises "they'll be even harsher, they'll be even tougher on Russia, and it's dangerous."
That's according to Richard Becker, author of "Palestine, Israel and the US Empire." Becker joined Radio Sputnik's By Any Means Necessary to discuss a Democratic Super PAC's upcoming xenophobic political advertisements aimed at a "reactionary" member of the House of Representatives.
On Tuesday, Sputnik News reported on Red to Blue's purchase of two television ads and two mailers for a reported but unspecified six-figure sum.
One ad features a woman with a Russian accent announcing that its target, 30-year House of Representatives incumbent Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA), is proudly endorsed by the Russian Federation and is a "true Russian hero."
"The true absurdity of US politics now in regards to the two main parties: we have the Republicans pushing ahead with an agenda that is a horrific agenda, that is really designed to destroy, at a time when the climate is obviously deteriorating — as you can see from the latest storms — changing in ways that are very dangerous," Becker told By Any Means Necessary hosts Eugene Puryear and Sean Blackmon. "The Republicans are trying to get rid of more regulations every day. They're cutting all the social programs, and they want to cut them even more. They want to eliminate them all together; really, that's their dream. And defending racist, sexist, homophobic policies."
Becker highlighted the risk of confrontation between the United States and Russia, a confrontation which the Democrats seem to be angling for. "You hear the Democrats, on the other hand, [they] are attacking Republicans for being too friendly to Russia. Russia and the United States obviously are the two leading nuclear weapons powers in the world, and they're in close proximity to each other, like say in Syria right now, which could lead to — and I'm not predicting it — but it could lead to a confrontation that could rise to a global confrontation between nuclear weapons powers."
"Rohrabacher is a thorough-going reactionary, particularly on all domestic issues. He's certainly a friend, a promoter of the military industrial complex. Prop 187, back in in 1994… tried to criminalize immigrants and to say that immigrant children didn't have the right to go to school if the parents were undocumented, immigrants didn't have a right to access healthcare and so forth," Becker noted. Rohrabacher was "for that." He was also supportive of Proposition 209, Becker added, which tried to outlaw affirmative action.
"He's got this whole awful record, and yet the Democrats are now gonna attack him and go after his House seat on the basis of wanting to have better relations between the US and Russia," the author told By Any Means Necessary.
In advocating for such a confrontation, in which it would be the working class, not the Democratic elite, who would suffer the most, the "so-called party of the people" reveals itself.
"Why do we have the Democrats making their main thrust of their rhetoric against the Republicans be about being soft on Russia when there's all the rest of this?" Becker said, referring to the anti-worker, anti-LGBTQ and anti-immigrant rhetoric of Rohrabacher and fellow Republicans. "I think the answer to that question is, to address those issues, to address the real issues, means to address the system itself."
Becker noted that despite whatever US President Donald Trump and Rohrabacher say, the US' enemy number one is so-called "great power competition" from Russia and China. That's according to the US Department of Defense's 2018 National Security Strategy. "It once again comes back to seeking to be the single superpower in the world," Becker said.
"Apparently their focus groups tell them them that all the propaganda has persuaded a good part of the population that Russia is the problem, when in fact it's just a ridiculous assertion in the context of this election," Becker said.
"If the Democrats are gonna win the House, and I don't think they'll win the Senate, they're coming in, they're resurging, but they're resurging on the basis of calling for an even more hostile, militaristic policy," he commented.
"The blue wave," Becker said, promises "they'll be even harsher, they'll be even tougher on Russia, and it's dangerous."
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