The Real War Behind #BundyRanch

So now, America has a better sense of who Cliven Bundy truly is. Not only has he broken the law, but he has some rather repulsive racist "ideas". And all the Republican politicians & pundits who have rushed to Bundy's defense must now defend their own shortsighted comments in support of Bundy.

And yes, they now have no choice but to face the cold, hard truth. Media Matters now has the video. And Cliven Bundy himself has doubled down on his outrageously racist remarks.



The Washington Post's Paul Waldman sees this as a wakeup call to America that racism still hasn't died just yet. Salon's Joan Walsh sees this as the result of "TEA" powered media outlets fanning the flames of "Culture War". And both Washington Monthly's Ed Kilgore & Maddow Blog's Steve Benen just see this as Republicans having to own their own beloved "Range War Folk Hero".

And really, they're all correct. Race still matters. "The Culture War" doesn't. And Republicans here in Nevada & elsewhere must now deal with the consequences of endorsing Cliven Bundy's "Range War".

However, there's another factor at play here. It's one that Digby pointed out at Salon earlier today. And it's one that we've explored here from time to time.

There's a reason why so many Republican politicians have become merry Culture Warriors. They're pandering to the 21st Century Know Nothings. They've been using these "Culture War" issues to pander to culturally conservative white voters since the 1960s, and they've been hoping they can continue using this trick to win elections.

After all, this trick had been helping them distract voters from the issue they'd rather not talk about: their ineffective & unpopular economic policies. Not only has austerity handicapped economic growth, but it's also proving to be a rather big loser among voters. With federal unemployment insurance (UI) left in tatters for nearly four months and overall federal investment only slightly above the severe austerity levels it's been forced into since 2011, the American people are finally fed up with "The Hunger Games: Real Life Edition".

And Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) gets it.



This is the reality behind #BundyRanch and all the other G-O-TEA attempts to prolong their "Culture War". It's not actually about "range warfare", at least not to the G-O-TEA political operatives who made this into a national story. It's just another "Culture War" campaign to direct anger away from the class warfare we've endured for over 30 years, and in particular from the G-O-TEA austerity regime we've had in place since 2011.

Cliven Bundy was supposed to be a convenient pawn for ambitious G-O-TEA politicians. Instead, he's become an inconvenient scandal. And the "Range War" he was supposed to win has only become another reminder of the "war" the G-O-TEA is losing.

Do or Die

Earlier today, we did our best to explain the mess we're now in. Here's the super short answer: Thanks to ongoing G-O-TEA intransigence, America's government is shut down. And if Congressional Republicans don't stop their game of Russian Roulette, the entire world economy will be in grave danger.

Republican "leaders" let their G-O-TEA gang set Washington on fire. Yet now that Washington is on fire and Americans are demanding it be put out yesterday, Republicans are fiddling. Or more specifically, they're playing political games while Americans are suffering.

But until this week, Republicans seemed impervious to the real world consequences of their insane actions. Now, that's changing. Constituents are angry, and Congresscritters like Joe Heck (R-Stupidi-TEA) can't hide from their decision to hurt the nation.



House Republican "leaders" have finally begun signaling an eventual end to their manufactured crisis. But even as they're saying that privately, they still publicly refuse to end it. So which is it? Do they want a functioning nation, or do they want economic ruin?

Yesterday, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) took to the Senate floor to describe what our government does, why it's needed, and how the G-O-TEA Shutdown undermines the foundation of this nation.



The G-O-TEA Shutdown has already been causing immense pain and suffering for many Americans. Yet despite this, we're left wondering when this will end. Is there an end in sight?

Maybe. As we mentioned above, Republican "leaders" are now privately discussing their end game. But now, Democratic leaders are stepping forward to demand an end to the insani-TEA. And if they don't end it themselves, House Democrats will put forward the plan that several Republicans have already endorsed.

So now, it's "do or die" time for Congressional Republicans. Deep down, most of them know that we need our full government running in order to keep our economy and society running. And they know debt default is anything but "responsible". So when will they step forward and end the crisis they manufactured?

Republicans are now worried about the damage being done to their party. And the rest of the world is worried about the damage being done to the economy. Reps. Joe Heck and Mark Amodei can bring this manufactured crisis to an end whenever they want. So when will they finally do it?

Obama, Obstruction, & Occupy

Today, on the heels of last night's buffet of crazy, President Obama is making a big power play.

The White House confirmed Wednesday morning that President Obama will announce a recess appointment for Richard Cordray to run the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau at a speech in Ohio later today. Cordray was a well-liked Ohio Attorney General until last year, after he was toppled by the GOP midterm wave in 2010.

Cordray’s an accidental victim of a brazen act of GOP obstruction. They’re refusing to allow an up-or-down vote on any CFPB nominee until the agency itself is fundamentally weakened — an extra-legal attempt to nullify a key portion of an act of law. [...]

Though the Obama administration has made a couple dozen recess appointments since 2009, only a tiny fraction have been for officials in truly crucial positions, and none have occurred in the past year. This has frustrated progressives and good government advocates who worry that the executive branch has become riddled through like Swiss cheese with vacancies and can’t function properly.

So what does this mean? Well, the CFPB can finally function more properly. We know the G-O-TEA faction in Congress kept filibustering Cordray in hopes of weakening CFPB and ultimately undoing financial regulatory reform. In addition, Richard Cordray himself really seemed to scare the Wall Street beholden G-O-TEA-nuts.

[...] Cordray has a clear pro-consumer record, and has not been afraid to challenge the banks, making him an ideal candidate to lead the bureau when it officially stands on its own this week.

He was at the forefront during the foreclosure fraud scandal, and was “the first to sue a mortgage lender over incidents of foreclosure fraud,” launching a suit against GMAC Financial. “What we’re talking about here is not just sloppy paperwork,” Cordray said at the time. “We’re talking about fraud in a court of law. The [foreclosure document signers] were lying under oath, to a judge.” He’s called the foreclosure practices of the nation’s biggest banks “a business model built on fraud.”

As attorney general, he supported efforts to rein in payday loans, one of the most pernicious financial products. Cordray backed legislation to cap the interest rate that payday lenders could charge and sought the ability for his office to prosecute unlicensed lenders.

The financial industry is already up in arms about his nomination, with one attorney who represents the industry saying that of all the bureau’s officials, Cordray “frightens me the most.” Another derided him as having “all the hard edge and ambition of Warren without the charm.” [Consumer watchdog and now US Senate candidate Elizabeth] Warren herself supports the choice of Cordray, writing in an op-ed today that “he will make a stellar director.”

So do we really need any more evidence as to who stands with the 99%? Seriously. Look at who's allowed Wall Street to turn into an unregulated casino. And look at who wants to clean up the mess there and restore confidence in the American economy. Look at who best serves the wants of the 1%. And look at who best looks out for the needs of the 99%.

Today, President Obama decided to finally make a move and take action to ensure the CFPB gets up and running. In other words, he again did something for the 99%. And the G-O-TEA? Well, even Republicans acknowledge their own "leaders" are nothing more than agents of the top 1%... And they're still crazy, too.