Teabaggers' understanding of the Constitution:Katy Abram (
a Glenn Beck fan) is one of those people that went to an Arlen Specter town hall and
said: (emp add)
"It's not about health care ... It's about the systematic dismantling of this country ... I don't want this country turning into Russia, turning into a socialized country. I want to restore this country to what it was under the Constitution."
People like Abram apparently believe that the Constitution mandates an economic system - free market capitalism or something like that.
It does not.
At the beginning there were some restrictions at the federal level (no income taxes, enumerated powers), but the states were always free to own the means of production. And from around 1900, federal activity expanded through amendments and Supreme Court rulings so that socialism is not precluded.
Teabaggers, at least those that get involved with this topic, should be considered part of the
Constitution in Exile crowd, which is dedicated to undoing the New Deal. That was what Bush wanted to do, most notably with his attempt to dismantle Social Security.
Teabaggers should be asked how they feel about FDR's New Deal. Rejection of the New Deal, and
many significant political/economic developments of the 20th century, is not a winning position, but it's motivating the protests at the town halls.
posted by Quiddity at 8/15/2009 07:12:00 AM
Dismantling the New Deal was my first thought too and I imagined asking a teabagger if they wanted to get rid of social security or medicare (I know Medicare is not New Deal). The third government program that I would put on my "Do you want to get rid of?" list is the Post Office. Then I remembered that that particular government progrma was started by, guess who, the founding fathers.
lawrence o'donnell, substitute hosting, did a very nice take down of her on hardball. little miss sound and fury is a political novice and didn't know a lot. she didn't even know how much she made a year. when asked if she advocated the dismantling of social security and medicare, since those weren't originally mentioned in the constitution either, she was flummoxed.
turns out she's not new to politics after all.
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/8/13/766517/-Katy-Abram-is-a-9-12-Organizer
shameless.
O'Donnell asked a Congressman, too. Paraphrasing - "Medicare is a socialist program. Do you want it abolished? Social Security is socialism. Should it be gone? Yes or no?"
Atrios titled it Larry O'Donnell Interviews Nathan Thurm "
