Laws are like sausages, it is better to not see them being made.
German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck
Politics is messy and often disgusting. The word politics derives from the Greek word polis, referring to the city-state, and literally means the work and interactions of the people.
Last week, our broken polis found a way to defeat the Senate Democrats’ filibuster, and then the House passed the spending bill to reopen the government. Those battles are over, but the war for the soul of America continues.
There are many Biblical references to the number 40, usually suggesting an extended period of time, testing or preparation. For example, in Genesis, it rained for 40 days and nights to flood the earth. Or the Hebrews wandered for 40 years after their liberation from Egyptian slavery. And after his baptism, Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness being tested.
America was certainly tested by the government shutdown begun by Chuck Schumer, but engineered by the Democratic Socialist Party (DSP). This radical faction has taken over the historical Democratic Party, which now exists in name only. It took approximately 40 days to break the DSP’s Senate filibuster and then end the shutdown with the passage of the spending bill despite House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries stating his Democrats will vote against reopening of the government. And most of them did.
Americans are sick of Washington’s political charade and decry our broken government. But make no mistake, the recent mess was the work of radicals like AOC and her squad, Bernie Sanders and Mamdani types. Most Democrats are scared of these progressive socialist radicals who now control their party.
I’m not a big government person, but I am a federalist at heart. I believe in a central government that represents the entire country, controls the border and immigration, maintains national security, legislates interstate commerce and helps the less fortunate. However, our government is broken and has become more like an autonomously functioning AI system, which exists for its own benefit, rather than being an instrument of the people.
The DSP’s shutdown did not directly hurt me as it did the military, air traffic controllers, government employees or SNAP recipients. But it hurt our country’s image, endangered travelers and caused serious damage to the economy. However, I resent being used as “leverage” by the Democrats in their political battle with President Trump and Republicans. I am relieved that the government is again open, but the filibuster and spending battle were only segues to the next battle in late January with the annual budgetary food-fight nightmare. Our government is broken or, at the very least, dangerously dysfunctional.
President Trump is able to effectively run the executive branch while the legislative and judicial branches are a mess. And Trump seems to be a master of multitasking. He certainly has a talented administrative team, which allows him to formulate a strategy and manage the team that implements the game plan. As a result, “our favorite president” can attend NFL games and even give color commentary from the broadcast booth while the secretary of war interdicts narco-terrorists on the high seas. Other secretaries are busy negotiating treaties and America First trade deals, managing the economy and dealing with transportation challenges. These are just a few of the numerous balls Trump is juggling while battling the DSP and their loons with TDS, judicial activists and opposing Chinese hegemony. Seemingly, Trump works tirelessly and takes no salary. “We don’t deserve him.”
There are so many battles in this non-shooting civil war. Another big battle is looming at the Supreme Court, now deliberating the constitutionality of President Trump’s tariff policy, which is bringing vast amounts of money, industry and jobs back into our country. I have not studied the merits of the particular case before SCOTUS, but ruling against the president will cause serious harm to the economy and the country. I struggle to understand the legal mind, just as I suppose non-medical people struggle with medical concepts and doctor jargon. Let us hope that pockets of common sense still exist in Washington, D.C.
As an internist, I sought what was wrong with patients and made diagnoses. And frequently, I understood how a disease occurred. But the fundamental question of why tragedy struck was often elusive. In our broken government, I understand the what, how and why of our mess. The fundamental cause is summed up as everything radical liberalism touches it destroys.
You doubt me? Ask Chuck Schumer or just consider the radical liberal landscape of the DSP: it embraces defunding the police, activist judges and lawfare, open borders, socialism/communism, it is soft on crime, defies the science of two genders, promotes abortion on demand, gender reassignment for children, men in women’s sports, bathrooms and locker rooms, supports illegals, opposes Israel (the only democracy in the Middle East), adheres to the religion of climate change and the replacement of God by government. What could possibly go wrong by embracing the policies of the DSP?
It’s hard to know what to believe any longer, even if you attempt to research an issue thoroughly. We’re often left with intuition or our gut feeling, driven by common sense, observations and experience. The truth is not derived from one news source, one blog, a Google search, Grok or ChatGPT, etc.
Case in point, I heard the U.S. spends twice as much per capita on healthcare with much poorer outcomes than Europe. Could some of the difference be that Americans can’t afford medication? According to Dr. Oz, administrator of Medicare and Medicaid, we pay twice as much for prescription drugs as Europe does. Why? Well, one reason is that we haven’t had most favored nation status for the purchase of prescription drugs. Why? Shouldn’t our government have been advocating for its citizens? President Trump is on it. An example is his mandate for the equality pricing of GLP-1 injectables to treat obesity.
I’ll close with a positive slant on the shutdown. It has spurred federal investigation and has exposed massive fraud in SNAP benefits, far beyond feeding illegals. No one wants people to go hungry, but remember that the S in SNAP means “supplemental” food, not rations. Recall the resistance to DOGE, formed to evaluate waste and fraud in the federal government. Now, many blue states are refusing to send their SNAP records to the federal government. I wonder why?
