In the era of
make-believe-President Donald Trump, any good news is a welcome event, so the
announcement by Paul Ryan that he’ll be retiring in January of 2019 is
fantastic! The phrase “Good riddance”
has rarely seemed more appropriate.
However,
listening to a few of the news reports and reading several opinion pieces has
been disconcerting. They paint the
picture of a guy who “struggled” to hold onto his principles while wrestling
with Donald Trump for the soul (?) of the Republican Party.
While it’s true
that Ryan occasionally objected to a few of Trump’s more outrageous comments
throughout the Republican primary season in 2016, and he called him out during
the fall campaign following the release of the infamous “Access Hollywood”
video (“I am not going to defend Donald Trump.
Not now, not ever”), he was quick to change his tune after Trump’s
Electoral College victory.
Paul Ryan saw a
golden opportunity to pursue his long-cherished agenda: destruction of Obamacare, privatization of so-called
entitlement programs, and re-shaping the tax code to benefit the wealthy and
corporations. In order to attain these
goals, he willingly sold his soul (?) to the Antichrist. He refrained from additional criticism, and
instead praised Trump’s “leadership” (???).
He enthusiastically embraced Trump’s use of identity politics--playing
on white privilege and resentment. It
became difficult to distinguish the lackey (Mike Pence would be the handmaiden)
from the Antichrist himself.
As he prepares
his slow departure, Ryan touts his accomplishments--in particular pointing to the tax
bill. Several days ago, the
Congressional Budget Office estimated that the deficit is expected to reach $1
trillion in 2019, courtesy of the Republican “tax cut”. That’s a nice legacy to leave the next
generation, Mr. Ryan. This piece of
legislation passed (last December) without a single Democratic vote. It locks in permanent tax cuts... to
corporations (down from 35% to 21%). By
contrast, middle class tax cuts were given an expiration date of 2026! And though most middle-class Americans were
projected to receive an average payout of $930 (tantamount to 1.6% of their
average income), the real bonanza will be enjoyed by the top 0.1%, who’ll
receive an after-tax gain of $193,380.
You’ve performed your duties for the privileged few well, Mr. Ryan, but
you’re leaving behind a country that has never been more polarized--economically
or politically. You should be ashamed of
your behavior--though given the fact that you were barely able to keep your
racism in check during the eight years of the Obama presidency, nothing you do
is all that surprising.
Yours is a sad
story, as well as a cautionary tale, though I’m certain you’ll be raking in
tons of cash by spinning it otherwise. Don’t
let the door hit you on the way out... see ya Paul!
