There’s an NFL pre-game show that shines a light on foolish things players have done. The tomfoolery is punctuated by the show’s commentators with an enthusiastic, “C’mon man!” That this two-word imperative should be the motto of 21st century America has been fully demonstrated by the 2016 presidential campaign.
Recently, Colorado Republicans gave full delegate support to Ted Cruz. “C’mon man.” Another sign that the lummox, lout and churl wing of the GOP may not carry Donald Trump to the nomination.
In an April 3 Herald op-ed piece “Convoluted Caucuses,” Democrats Tom Givón and Steven Boos called for an end to the caucus system because of the exclusion of vast numbers of party members. “C’mon man.” The real concern should be the exclusion of vast numbers of independents.
Apparently, Givón, Boos and Donald Trump believe that choosing candidates for general elections is a fair and democratic process. “C’mon man.” 2016’s lessons in party politics indicates otherwise. Members of Congress used to choose presidential candidates, and then it went to party poohbahs, exalted cyclopses and other party nobles. Now we have primaries and caucuses and, oh yeah, super delegates. “C’mon man.” Democratic, fair?
Were he alive today, the loudest “C’mon man” would be coming from our first (an only unaffiliated) president, George Washington. In his farewell, Washington warned against the dangers of political parties:
“However (political parties) may now and then answer popular ends, they are likely in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government, destroying afterwards the very engines which have lifted them to unjust dominion.”
“Destroying afterwards?” Who was the last Republican to say something positive about government? First they (Cruz, McConnell, Reid, the Freedom Caucus) break it, and then they say it won’t work. “C’mon man.”
By the way, when Hillary says we need to get big money out of politics, or Sarah Palin says anything at all, then it’s, “C’mon ma’am.”
Kevin Devine
Durango
