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Hey, Tea Party, it’s my country, too; Stephen F. Kislock, III; Beaver County Times; April 27, 2010.
Most of Mr. Kislock’s 51+ letters over the last six years have been Republican-bashing exercises, though he sometimes goes after Democrats for his pet causes. Sometime during 2009 Mr. Kislock became an in-house commentator for Beaver County Blue.
Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.
“It seems strange to me that the Fox News-created Tea Party did nothing to control government spending during the reign of President G.W. Bush.”
[RWC] Once again Mr. Kislock has his facts wrong. Rick Santelli of CNBC is widely recognized as a father of the tea party movement after he called for a July 2009 Chicago tea party. Of course, that fact doesn’t fit Mr. Kislock’s narrative.
“For the first time since 2000, America has really elected a president, and he is black. The Fox News-created Tea Party is now demanding to take back the government. Strange.”
[RWC] As you will see from here on, Mr. Kislock is obsessed with skin color in this letter. Other than lefties like Mr. Kislock and wackos, who cares about a person’s skin color? We should remember the issue of skin color during the 2008 election was limited to the Democrat primaries. Of course, this is all about Mr. Kislock implying tea partiers are racists. I guess Mr. Kislock wants us to believe it was Democrats who voted for Republicans Lynn Swann, Bobby Jindal, Michael Steele, Ken Blackwell, and so on.
“For the first time since 2000 …” Geez, is Mr. Kislock still on the “selected not elected” bender? This is a hoot given the letter’s last paragraph.
“The white G.W. Bush could do no wrong, period. Illegal war(s), a second Great Depression and Fox News could not create the Tea Party for him?”
[RWC] “The white G.W. Bush could do no wrong, period?” Mr. Kislock is one of those guys who believes that if you didn’t oppose every Bush position, you were a “Bushie.” Mr. Kislock conveniently forgets quite a few of us on the right opposed the No Child Left Behind Act, Medicare Part D, McCain/Feingold, amnesty for illegal aliens, TARP, et cetera.
As far as “a second Great Depression,” Mr. Kislock has two problems. First, the current recession isn’t close to the Great Depression, though the same thing could happen if we follow FDR-like policies as Mr. Obama seems intent on doing. Second, shouldn’t this be the third Great Depression? After all, throughout Mr. Bush’s presidency the left kept trying to compare the economy to that of progressive Herbert Hoover, even when we were at “full employment.”
As for “Illegal war(s),” Mr. Kislock must know Mr. Obama is exactly following Mr. Bush’s plan for Iraq and escalated the war in Afghanistan. During the Bush administration, Mr. Kislock wrote numerous letters opposing our actions in Iraq and/or Afghanistan. Since Mr. Obama took office, Mr. Kislock hasn’t written a single letter citing his displeasure with these actions. Strange. <g>
As for why tea partiers now and not for Mr. Bush, Mr. Bush didn’t push for a government-run, taxpayer-funded healthcare monopoly (Obamacare), cap-and-tax, the government takeover of the student loan business, an $850 billion “stimulus” bill, tax increases, $500 billion in Medicare cuts (part of Obamacare), and so on. Also, Mr. Obama makes Mr. Bush look like an amateur when it comes to racking up deficits and debt.
“A black U.S. president wins a 10 million vote plurality, the largest in years. Suddenly, here is Fox News, giving birth to the Tea Baggers. I heard screaming coming from a Tea Baggers rally the other day that ‘We must take back our country.’”
[RWC] “[T]he largest in years?” President Nixon won his reelection in 1972 by 19 million votes (61% to 38%) and President Reagan won his 1984 reelection by 17 million votes (59% to 41%). Plurality? Mr. Obama won with a majority (53%). Of course that means if a hair over only 3% of voters had voted differently, Mr. Obama would not be President. That’s why Mr. Kislock cites the vote margin instead of the vote percentage; he wants us to believe Mr. Obama won in a landslide.
“Tea Baggers?” I wondered when Mr. Kislock would get around to name-calling.
“It’s my country, to, and we have a black president who won big time. Get used to it. The election is over.”
[RWC] As I noted above, Mr. Kislock appears obsessed with skin color. I wonder if he’s trying to atone for something in his personal past. Then again, perhaps Mr. Kislock is simply trying to provide cover for the left relative to the right regarding bigotry.
Mr. Kislock seems upset with tea partiers allegedly saying ‘We must take back our country’ because it’s his country too. Unless he objected when lefties chanted the same thing in 2006 and 2008, Mr. Kislock can’t complain now.
“Get used to it. The election is over?” This is funny coming from someone who appears to believe Al Gore won in 2000!
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