It's almost always a good read...
SUCKERS
The Moose avers that the cultural war is just another way for the GOP to wage a class war.
<snip>
The dirty little secret of the Republican Party is that behind closed doors the establishment has contempt for the religious right. And the GOP illuminati certainly do not leave their homes in the morning with a passion to prevent Jim from marrying John or to save a fetus from an abortionist. For instance, many have loved ones who are gay, or they may be gay themselves. The powers that be in the GOP are far more concerned about eliminating the estate tax for multimillionaires than halting the death of the unborn. Here is a thought experiment - if you really believe that the sacred institution of marriage is in dire jeopardy, would you make private social security accounts your top priority?
The GOP big wigs pay obeisance to the religious right because they provide the foot soldiers for their campaigns. The Republican establishment cynically manipulates the cultural issues because they recognize that a party that is dedicated to redistributing wealth upward has little chance of majority status. Once elected, Republicans reward the religious right with some crumbs while the real goodies are handed out to their wealthy donors and their corporate cronies.
<snip>
more...
http://www.bullmooseblog.com/2005/01/suckers.html-----------------
GOP's ATM
The Moose notes that the Rovians have found a creative way to fund their political efforts.
Years ago, when the Moose was on the right, he was part of an effort that attempted to "defund the left." Essentially, the concept that was advanced legislatively by Congressman Ernest Istook and others (including current Maryland Governor Bob Ehrlich) was to forbid organizations that receive government funds from lobbying Congress. The idea behind the legislation was that all money was fungible - so government funds could be used by these organizations for advocacy purposes.
In a creative twist on the failed defund the left efforts, Karl Rove and his cronies have evidently launched a massive campaign to "fund the right." Example one is the faith based effort that funnels funds to conservative religious groups. Another example was "punditgate" and the payments to Armstrong Williams.
Now, we learn courtesy of today's New York Times that the Bushies are using your tax dollars to fund a privatization campaign through the Social Security Administration.
<snip>
more...
http://www.bullmooseblog.com/2005/01/gops-atm.html