By
M.A. Tobin
Republicans
regularly point out that they are the Party of Lincoln. But the GOP has strayed
a long way from the days of Honest Abe.
The ease with
which 21st century
Republicans spread misinformation, deception and outright lies seems to be part
of a strategy aimed squarely at any voter dumb enough
to believe in the Bathroom Fairy.
If
facts don’t matter to you, the GOP will never disappoint.
But
if they do, then you have likely spent countless hours scratching your head and
wondering why America doesn’t transfer the entire military budget over to the
Department of Education, because it is truly amazing just how much
Americans don’t know.
Americans living
in a reality-based world still have to give Republicans credit for their
outstanding ability to sell bullshit by the truckload.
After
all, they have managed to convince thousands, if not millions of voters that
rape can be ‘legitimate’, the earth is only 7,000 years old, Jesus wrote the US
Constitution, transgender people are lurking in bathrooms waiting to attack
your children, and Donald Trump really does love Mexicans.
Lying On Steroids 2008-2016
Over the past 8
years, Republicans have really outdone themselves when it comes to making shit
up.
Let’s start with Barack Obama.
Our un-American President
Nearly 8 years
into the 2-term presidency of Barack Obama, a YouGov/Huffington
Post poll
showed that 50 percent of those surveyed either didn’t believe or weren’t sure
if the President of the United States was a natural born American.
If there were
any truth to such claims, one would think that the NSA, CIA, FBI, and/or other
investigative government agencies would have turned up some evidence to
discredit Obama’s Hawaiian birth certificate before handing over the nuclear
codes. No?
Considering the
fact that many Americans are ‘geography challenged,’ it is possible that
they think Hawaii is located in another country, or in the case of Barack
Obama, another solar system.
Death Panels
In an attempt to
frighten Americans into thinking that health care reform was
bad, Republicans crawled out from under their piles of mud and began slinging
claims that the government was going to create ‘Death Panels’ to kill grandma
if she got too sick.
PolitiFact called
it ‘The Lie of the Year’ in 2009.
Voter Fraud
Since it is much
easier to win an election if you cheat, Republicans invented the Voter Fraud
Epidemic.
This scourge on
our land was so horrible, they claimed, it had to be dealt with immediately by
purging voter rolls, closing down polling places, cutting back on early voting
days, and requiring Voter ID cards
— that are almost impossible to get — before being allowed access to a ballot.
Yet,
millions of people have fallen for this Great Republican Lie.
What
Republicans fear most are the changing demographics of America.
As
the number of white voters decreases, their chances of winning elections also
decreases, particularly if all eligible voters are
allowed access to the polls.
The real problem
with voting is that it is getting harder to do, especially in states
controlled by Republicans.
Coincidence?
Or well-planned deception?
But Wait, There’s More…
From gun control
to abortion, climate change to Social Security, and the real and/or imagined
threats of Wall Street and environmental regulations, Republicans have proven
that they are the best liars around.
Want more proof?
Check out PolitiFact’s ‘Pants on Fire‘
page, and Angie Drobnic Holan’s report in The New York
Times, ‘All Politicians Lie. Some More Than Others.’
M.A. Tobin is a political junkie, animal
rights advocate, and award-winning writer. She believes that if people can
stand on line to buy junk food, they should also be able to stand on line to
vote.
Maryann
Tobin is also the author of “Afterlife: The Journey Of A Dog’s Spirit” This
heartwarming story is told through the eyes of an animal spirit that has been
sent back to earth in the body of a small dog. His mission is to help a young woman
discover that their destinies are more connected
to the powers of the Spirit World than either of them ever imagined. If you’ve
ever shared your life with a dog or any other pet, you
will never look at them the same way again after reading this book. Afterlife: The
Journey of a Dog’s Spirit is available
now on Amazon.com.