Democrat Sweep? — It’s really not funny!

This morning I read with amusement State Sen. Kate Brown’s comments in the Oregonian article by reporter Janie Har regarding the possibility that Democrats will control the legislature. She said “This is going to be a very pragmatic and basic progressive agenda”. I know Kate is trying very hard to not put forward the true agenda of the Democrat party, yet any thinking person has to recall some of the ideas advanced by Kate and her fellow Democrats in the last session. My amusement has now turned to outright chuckles as I remember their ideas such as higher taxes, gay marriage in the disguise of civil unions, keeping the kicker refunds because government doesn’t have enough money ect..Most of these concepts are what the Democrats have tried to accomplish in nearly every legislative session in which I served as a legislator. I vaguely remember something like “Leopards don’t change spots” as I now break into open laughter.

Who are my Democratic friends trying to kid? Everything in their past actions points to the opposite of the direction they are talking up now. Fool me once, and you know the rest right?

They also assert in the article that if some of their more rural, fiscally conservative candidates win, that in and of itself will hold the liberal agenda in check. This is now so funny that I begin uncontrollable belly guffaw’s and have hold on to my desk.

Let me tell you how this really works. As a freshman legislator you pretty much tow the line with whatever your leadership tells you to do for a number of reasons and the idea that truly independent minded conservative Democrats would buck their leadership is just not historically realistic. I have seen them try, but ultimately their leadership lowers the hammer after a couple of visits by the lobbyists for the public employee unions and they take the tough vote for the team. (Happens less often on our side) The idea that they would protect that freshman Democrat legislator from a swing district has not been born out in the votes on contentious issues in my experience. The unions and the liberal agenda come first no matter what!

Additionally, the idea that they couldn’t get a majority of votes to steal the kicker is also hilarious (as I now am rolling on the floor holding my sides laughing with tears in my eyes). Remember eleven Republicans that voted to increase your taxes in 2003? If you think that some of my well meaning moderate Republican colleagues wouldn’t vote with the Democrats on a number of their liberal, activist agenda ideas, then you are just not paying attention to history.

So now I have regained my composure and have returned to my keyboard to finish these thoughts. As the dark reality once again sinks into to my thick, compassionate conservative head I say this to you all. If you want to have higher taxes, less freedom, less money in your pocket, continue to pay for illegal aliens receiving state benefits, bigger government with less accountability, gay marriage disguised as civil unions, see MZ 37 gutted, universal heath care and the rest of the failed ideas of the left, then by all means believe what my friends Kate and Jeff Merkley are trying to sell you and vote for Democrats.

If you want the opposite, vote for Republicans.

I guess it really isn’t funny after all, is it?

Jeff Kropf
The Common Conservative