Goodbye
April 29th, 2009 | Editorial Cartoons | 21 Comments
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One of the last remaining moderate Republicans, Senator Arlen Specter finally called it quits and joined the other party. One could hardly blame him. Facing a strong conservative challenger, he was likely to lose in the primary to a man far to his right, who then most likely would have been defeated in a Democratic-leaning state. Specter has been increasingly isolated within his progressively more extremist party for his willingness to cross party lines, and finally found the Democrats more to his liking. Once Al Franken, the apparent winner in Minnesota, is finally seated, Specter will become the 60th Democrat. In his new position, he will wield immediate power, as his vote will be the one that makes any bill filibuster-proof. He never voted the strict party line as a Republican, and he is unlikely to as a Democrat. This gives him the ability to be a moderating influence on his new party. Ironically, by switching parties, he may actually be doing the Republicans a favor.
Topics: Arlen Specter, Democrats, GOP, plantation, Republicans, Rush Limbaugh, Senate
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Just when you think Ed couldn’t sink any lower in his attacks on the GOP he brings this to the table. Drawing the GOP as a bunch of Plantation owners. Keep trying to cook up the hate Ed.
Amazed??
You must be kidding. To say that this cartoon cooks up hate is laughable – derision maybe, but that’s what political cartoons are all about.
I think, though, that Massa Rush will actually be happy that a non true-believer is off the plantation.
Well, I think you missed the undertones that Ed meant to get across here, Jerry.
Painting the GOP as plantation owners definitely has more than enough meaning to cook up hate, his intention was not derision.
If anything the Repubs have become more and more left leaning, hence the ‘neocon’ term. Everyone knew that Specter was only a RINO and it does their party good to have some house cleaning done. Maybe then they wouldn’t have so many grass roots members fleeing to the libertarian, constitution parties and wherever else they are going.
However, as much as I disagree, I still enjoyed it. I’ll continue to check out Ed’s work even though I disagree with most of it, I think he does a great job. Even if his cartoons are leaning way left. Not to mention the commentary.
I think we should leave it to Ed to give us his intention.
However, I believe it is totally untrue that the Repubs have become more and more left leaning – it is in fact just the opposite.
The term “neocon” has been around for quite some time and has recently been used primarily to describe the Wolfowitz/Bolton/Feith crowd and an intervenionist foreign policy.
Stating that Spector was a RINO while at the same time describing Repubs as more left leaning is puzzling. RINOs have not moved left, the GOP has moved right.
Libertarians are to the left of the GOP and the Constitution Party is to the right so it’s not clear that explains anyhing about where it (the GOP) is going…..
While I am not a member of the Gop or the Dems, I am one of those silly Independents; I do find Specter’s defection as a clear example of what is wrong with out politics.
Specter, seeing the writing on the wall decides to jump ship so that he can still get elected rather than keep his principals is absolutely shameless to me.
He is clearly more concerned about staying in power, he even said so himself. I think Mr. Stein missed a great opportunity to show how shallow our leaders really are.
This is a sad day for America, for if honesty, integrity and honor mean nothing to our elected leaders than we are all but finished as a country and it doesent really matter what letter they put next to thier name, they are all crooks and liar’s who’s sole concern is thier own well being and power.
Wow John, a bit over the top, don’t you think?
There are certainly a lot of things wrong with politics – but that is how politics has always been. Why, in the world, would anyone get into politics; if not for the power? In a conversation about politics, bringing in honesty, integrity and honor is a joke at best. But before you finish off the country, read a little history and you will find that little has changed since our founding fathers’ day.
As for Spector, I would bet that he fully intends to keep his principals. In fact, he will likely get more of an opportunity to do that as a Dem than a Rep. I believe that Arlen (for a politician) is actually one of the more honest and principaled ones and far from being shallow. Unlike some, who want our current leadership to fail simply so that they can return to power, he is more interested in the success of the Country.
Like most Left Wing Moonbats, Ed gets his info on Rush from …. other Left Wing Moonbats!
Rush, like the rest of us conservatives, couldn’t be happier. This megalomaniac hack only became a Republican in ’66 so that he’d stand a chance of being elected.
Gee – just like the reason he became a Democrat this week!
No principles, no integrity, no loyalty!
The perfect Democrat!!!!
Hey, Jeremy, tone it down if you want to stay on this site. I appreciate serious discussion, but I prefer intelligent, civil discourse. The name-calling serves no purpose other than stoking anger, and it certainly doesn’t add any information to the discussion. If I called you a right-wing, knuckle-dragging troglodyte, I might delight the left-of-center readers, but I wouldn’t be adding one mote of wisdom to the conversation. The question is, are you capable of making a point without the invective? If you aren’t, find another place to vent.
Happy to oblige, Ed.
I’m only subjected to your own special brand of reverse racism – “Massa Rush” – on Friday’s when our local dying rag in MA replaces its resident Leftie with you.
Does prove a point Massa Rush often makes: you Lefties can dish it out, but you’re very thin-skinned yourselves.
Have a great life!
I’d really be interested in how “Massa Rush” is reverse racism (or even offensive to Rush). My guess is that Rush would be tickled pink to be portrayed as the GOP Plantation owner.
Oh yeah Jeremy, because calling Limbaugh “Massa Rush” is a direct ad hominem attack on YOU. Unlike calling ED, directly, a Leftwing Moonbat. Get a life!
fascinating. selective consciousness and awareness. While refuted, the statistics and numbers are irrefutable. The GOP voice has been moving right since Ronnie brought in the Pat Robertsons, Jerry Falwells, Ralph Reeds, and they have usurped the party slowly, steadily, intelligently since. Pat and Jerry tried to take over from the top. Ralph is outrageously bright and began the grassroots tactic when he was handed the reins. Lockstep support the leader shot to the top under georgie & dickie & karlie along with phobic divisiveness. Prior to Ronnie, the GOP owned the right and the middle. By king george I, the middle was handed on a platter to Billy (& Willie, & Hillie). The majority of fiscal conservatives have been left flapping the wind by the tectonic shift. Reagan, Bush (a bit), and Bush (a lot) bloated government by massive growth and massive spending as though they were on the left, according to them. Deficits were massive. The GOP became more wealthy old white guys running the corporations. The stalwarts of the party are a shrinking number. They have lost the ability to reason logically and realistically on a this planet.
Okay, Arlen wants to be re-elected and not remembered by failure to the extreme lunatic fringe. buzz. Sounds reasonable to me. So he made a party switch 43 years ago and, eventually, was elected. Good for him. His career has been a steady pace squarely in the middle. The GOP left him; well, the right wing nuts left him. Much of the party is more to the right of center than off the edge of the planet. Similarly Joe Lieberman has been a regular just left of center who seems to have gone right to run with John McCain. Really centrist guys and more independent guys not towing the party line. GOP does not accept that sort of action. Democrats can accept with an occasional grumble.
The present strength of the GOP is in the South, so, considering the make-up of the party, plantations owners is not too far off the mark.
This cartoon captures the problems with the GOP in one sentence and one image. The south has become the major stronghold of the Republican party (by design of the GOP itself) and plantations were a southern attribute, so those critical of the cartoon trying to infer that it is racist are just exhibiting a defense mechanism because their party was deservedly criticized. The GOP has become intolerant of people with moderate political viewpoints which is what most Americans have. Even in attempting to bring back moderates to the GOP, on Friday RNC chairman Steele invited moderates back to the GOP “table” and then finished by effectively saying “but we’re not going to change”. Steele and Rep. Phil Gingrey were forced to publicly kiss Limbaugh’s a** after mildly criticizing him which shows that the GOP is afraid to take a moderate course without upsetting it’s far right wing wack-a-loons like Limbaugh, Gleen Beck, Ann Coulter, etc. Stein captured all of that in an image you take in in 3 seconds. It’s brilliant. Ed, you’re my new favorite editorial cartoonist.
I can’t help but notice how this case shows how some people feel that the loyalty twoards a party comes before the loyalty twoards the senators constituency. As a senator he’s elected to serve the people and the peoples interests, not the interests of a party. If he feels that he can better do so in a different party, it is his liberty to do so. The voters have trusted him personally, not the Republican party, to represent them. If they reelect him, it shows they further do so. If he’s not reelected, the people obvioulsy don’t trust him anymore.
The US doesn’t have a lot of (real) options when it comes to finding a party to represent ones interests, being able to choose between the two should be the bare minimum
I had a clinger once, T.P. took care of it. Once again the looney left, who cannot come up with an original thought show their ignorance of the Right, and the Big One. One, it thrilled the Right to see Arlen take a hike. He is NOT a moderate Republican. The last moderate move I can recall is when he lambasted the left for their treatment of Justice Clarence Thomas during his confirmation hearings. Two, it would thrill us if he also took McCain, Snow, and a few other that consorted with the left to make the gang of 14. Three, your ignorance is revealed to be off the chart when you depict Rush as some kind of leader. A voice, yes. A clear, concise, and articulate voice, yes. A leader, no. Calling him a leader is tantamount to calling this cartoonist a leader. He is a voice. Like-minded people who appreciate his clear expression of what they already think or feel attracts them to look for more. Moderates, we can handle. Liberals, exit left and go to the Democrat Party where you’ll be at home. Quit diluting the Conservatism that made this country the great country it once was. Pure Conservatism beats Liberalism intellectually and morally every time there is a contest. Liberalism has to resort to the courts to impose their systems and beliefs on the masses. That’s true historical fact.
‘Three, your ignorance is revealed to be off the chart when you depict Rush as some kind of leader. voice, yes.’
Well obviously RNC Chairman Michael Steele shares that same ignorance, as he stated:
“I was maybe a little bit inarticulate. There was no attempt on my part to diminish his voice or his leadership.”
‘Pure Conservatism beats Liberalism intellectually and morally every time there is a contest. Liberalism has to resort to the courts to impose their systems and beliefs on the masses. That’s true historical fact.’
Or is it now? Such a statement screams for hard evidence. Any kind of nitwit can claim that, but without proof it’s just a load of baseless claims.
I would think that the progressive minds in our country have brought upon the changes, that have made this country great. It certainly wasn’t conservatives, who set out to found this great nation, it wasn’t conservatives, who lead us out of the dark age of slavery and segregation. So yeah, I’d love to see that evidence of yours.
No Spector, no McCain, no Snow (Collins, too?). So, the Plantation is getting mighty small – just those southern ex-democrats and Utah?
The GOP farmers/ranchers in the midwest/west can’t be considered true conservatives given their reliance on their farm bill/welfare program, right?
Your intent of putting down the republican party and Rush Limbaugh also put down a segment of the black race by using the term “Massa Rush”. I think you pulled a Joe biden with this one.
C’mon
So who else was “put down” by” “ain’t”, “gonna” and “mistah”?
And if he had thrown in a “y’all”, “y’at” “yup” “sho nuf” and maybe a “youse guys”, he could have really “put down” a bunch more people.
I’m sure it was “on accident”. Oops, I just put myelf down.
What’s so funny about this conversation is the folks who take such offense to the depiction of the GOP as plantation owners. How many times have I heard Democrats denounced for not wanting minorities to stray from the “liberal plantation?” In that odd construct, there actually is a racial overtone, one which implies that they accept only those minorities who agree with their philosophy–that their purported racial openness is dishonest. There’s nothing like that in this cartoon–it’s quite simply about how limited the GOP is philosophically, and how it fails to embrace a broader spectrum of views. It’s not about race in any way. As for Limbaugh–if he’s not the leader of the party, who is? We’ve just witnessed the disturbing spectacle of Mr. Steele, the purported head of the party, and others, grovel at Massa Rush’s feet after making the mistake of criticizing him.
On another subject, I find myself despairing over the inability of some to make an argument based on anything other than name-calling or bold assertions of philosophical superiority. Can anyone out there make a compelling case based on fact, on data? I challenge my readers to write a coherent critique of my cartoons or of the other comments on this blog without using the terms “liberal” or “conservative.” A derisive put-down is not an argument. Let’s make this a place for spirited discussion of the issues, not a place to spew epithets. Agreed?
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