4th of July Message from the Chairman

by Steve Foreman

Takeaways

• Using propaganda that appeals to the lowest common intellectual denominator is nothing new.
• Proponents of propaganda understand it is effective because it motivates people based on their emotions.
• Trump's propaganda machine reinforces divisiveness through repetition of deceitful messaging and denial of observable truths.
• Although these tactics are formidable, we have seen a groundswell of resistance in the months since the inauguration that reaffirm the power of the people. We need those people at the ballot box supporting Jennifer Lewis and Tim Kaine.

Recently I had the opportunity to visit Nuremberg, Germany. While there, we toured the remnant sites of the Nazi’s Third Reich. The local guide read us the following passage as the bus drove to the site of the Nuremberg trials. I was chilled by the similarity to the thinking of our current national leadership.

All propaganda must be popular and its intellectual level must be adjusted to the most limited intelligence among those it is addressed to. Consequently, the greater the mass it is intended to reach, the lower its purely intellectual level will have to be.

But, as if, in propaganda for sticking out a war, the aim is to influence a whole people, we must avoid excessive intellectual demands on our public, and too much caution cannot be exerted in this direction.

The more modest its intellectual ballast, the more exclusively it takes into consideration the emotions of the masses the more effective it will be.

Mein Kampf-Adolf Hitler

Trump’s simplistic strategy is based on lies and hate. Its  purpose is to create an us-versus-them environment, widening the division of the American public. Using his considerable skills as an entertainer and salesman, he repeats his bold lies, and his uncritical followers accept them. The litany of fake news, alternative facts, and the outright denial of observable truths serve to undermine the public’s trust in government.  The Trump propaganda machine is replacing factual debate with a tribal following.

This July Fourth, the state of our union is perilous. A recent poll commissioned by the Democracy Project and published in The Washington Post, shows that half of Americans think we are in danger of becoming “a nondemocratic country”, 55 % see democracy as weak, and 68% think it is “getting weaker”. In our ongoing experiment in democracy, the will of the majority is thwarted by legislative tricks and gerrymandered districts. Wealthy donors have the ear of lawmakers and wield outsized influence on legislation.

Ultimately, the power lies in the hands of the people. We have seen hundreds of thousands of citizens taking to the streets to express their opinions. Here in our district and state we are fortunate to have candidates like Tim Kaine and Jennifer Lewis who recognize and will work to stop the downward spiral by advocating for all citizens. Even Republican voices are urging voters to vote Democratic. Virginia showed last fall that we have the numbers and enthusiasm to counteract the forces that would drag us down. We must work to continue the momentum: urge family and friends to register and vote!

Steve Foreman is a  is a writer, IT specialist, and Chairman of the Warren County Democratic Committee is a writer, IT specialist, and Chairman of the Warren County Democratic Committee.

 Learn more about the Warren County Democratic Committee at www.warrencodems.org

Commentary: The latest con job

by Steve Foreman
Originally published in the Northern Virginia Daily, January 12, 2018 

Takeaways

• The Trump administration's new tax bill falsely claims to be a boon for the middle class, but the biggest perks serve to quell increasing anger from Trump's demanding donor base.
  
• Republicans will use the resulting budget deficit as an excuse to shrink the scope of the government, particularly Social Security and Medicare.
  
• The GOP's economic priorities reveal no interest in addressing income inequality despite the fairy tale they push about a "rising tide floating all boats."
• Income inequality will continue because of the lobbying power money buys for the wealthy.
• The continuation of this inequality will have serious consequences for our country's infrastructure and progress.

I wonder how the people of Wall Street and the infamous swamp felt in 2016 when they heard Trump rail against lobbyists, hedge fund managers and CEO’s all taking advantage of the forgotten people. They are surely relieved by the Christmas present bestowed upon them now.

Disguised and promoted and promised as a middle-class gift, the new tax bill does nothing to close loopholes or ensure the Top 20 percent contribute their fair share. Their portion of tax relief is huge and is borrowed against the future. Trump’s declaration about the bill not helping him? It’s as trustworthy as the other thousand lies of his first year. Selling this as help to the middle class?  A completely cynical con job. Income inequality is a dangerous force damaging American society and is compounded by this tax law.

Behind the curtain, one long-held Republican goal is reducing the size of the government, aka “starving the beast.”  The ballooning of the deficit will erode revenue resources, setting up an attack on Social Security and Medicare next. Since less government means less oversight, expect to see reduced enforcement of basic protections for American consumers and citizens.

The second and more immediately pressing goal was the need for a legislative achievement in an unproductive year despite complete control of the government. Their benefactors have flatly expressed that no campaign money will be forthcoming without results, so Republicans cynically presented a bill that blatantly serves their donors first and the rest of the country a dismal second.

Republican theory assumes a rapidly expanding economy will fill the $1.5 trillion void in the budget. It is a cherished belief that reducing the corporate tax rate will suddenly prompt a corporate groundswell of concern for the American worker and lead to an expansion of the workforce and the creation of large numbers of new, well-paid jobs while swelling the tax rolls. This fantasy defies experience. Most businesses reject even raising the minimum wage.

Corporate profits have ballooned over recent years. CEOs earn on average 300 times what workers earn. Corporate wealth has not seen expansions or higher wages for workers, instead it finances mergers and stock buybacks that only serve to fatten the wallets of officers and shareholders. As that money flows upward, we see fewer research programs, fewer pay raises for workers, and higher prices as consolidation means less pressure on providers of services.

Repealing the estate tax, another Republican wish list item, works to keep fortunes intact for winners of the birth lottery.  The Walton family is roughly worth more than 40 percent of American citizens. Workers at their stores are often forced to collect welfare and other assistance due to the low wages paid by Wal-Mart.

Short of widespread wage increases creating more disposable income for a large swath of consumers and creating demand for more products, it is difficult to envision large increases in American jobs. Putting more money into the pockets of the majority of Americans translates to a need for more services and widgets. More demand means more workers to fill the need. Redistributing the money upward results in more savings for an already comfortable 20 percent. More money in fewer hands means less money circulates.

Republican orthodoxy says that money will overflow from private pockets at the top and ripple through the economy enriching everyone. The Reagan years made shirking the responsibility to contribute acceptable. As a result, we see the decay of infrastructure due to loss of revenue for improvements and maintenance and the bleeding of the lower classes, those powerless to pay for legislative favors or lobbying groups.

Estimates vary, but most sources show that the Top 20 percent own 84 percent of the wealth. Most average wage earners will get tax cuts with this bill, but the proportion claimed by the well-off far outdistance the effects for the rest of us. Income inequality is promoted by expanding the top earners share of wealth. Upward mobility in the U.S. has largely disappeared. Most don’t realize the wealth owned by the top earners.

Republicans count on voters believing that wealth at the top benefits all, but what it really buys is economic and tax favors. It didn’t work in the Gilded Age, or in the 1920s, and will not work now. Future generations will suffer from an expanded deficit. Income inequality will choke progress. Remember this tax bill the next time you vote. Hopefully it will not take another Great Recession to end this fantasy.

Steve Foreman is a writer, IT specialist, and Chairman of the Warren County Democratic Committee

Learn more about the Warren County Democratic Committee at www.warrencodems.org