Incidents on the Southern Border

The border twixt the USA and Mexico, as it is now known, is long and has been fluid since well before 1492. The definition of said border has been defined and observed since the late 19^th century. There are communities that have existed, and continue to function, astride the border for centuries. The Bracero Program (during WWII), NAFTA and now the SMCA have necessitated traffic, goods and people, travel back and forth between our countries in constant and enormous volumes.

Migrants, from multiple countries south of the border, have created a problem. The source of said problem, unfortunately, is ill will expressed by extremist, white supremacists north of the border. This ill will has been the key ingredient to a migration situation some have viewed as untenable.

The handling of the migrant situation on the southern border has been described politely as horribly insufficient for decades.  The 45 administration took a bad problem and created an international disgrace by attempting to pretend that the border could just be closed to migrants.  Then they terminated programs designed to help Central American countries deal with the issues that motivate their citizens to flee en masse, pretending that that would do anything but what it did; exacerbate the problem.

Multiple pundits are upset that their warnings to the incoming administration were not received and acted upon properly.  They, especially the various government officials, really should make helpful suggestions, introduce useful regulatory change, or STFU. 

President Biden was VP Biden when the Obama administration tried, while a destructively uncooperative Qpublican legislature helped not at all, to deal with what was already chaos at the southern, US border; he really is already aware that there's a rather enormous, ongoing problem.

The 45 administration did it's level worst to make the transition to the Biden administration as dysfunctional as possible; southern border included.

Yes, it's a mess and if these legislators were in congress as far back as the Obama administration, or before, and they've not developed constructive ideas, beyond warning the current President about the international disgrace on our border with Mexico (especially the Qpublicans whose efforts have been criminally negligent, at best), they are a very large part of the problem.

The Way Forward

The slight Democratic majorities in the US federal government are hamstrung by regulatory hurdles that have allowed Qpublican obstructionists, from Gingrich to McConnell, to impede the progress good government had been making.

Republicans openly adopted the perspective of, "government is the problem," in the Reagan administration.  This strategy became important as government had moved the nation closer to equal protection under the law, equal rights and voting rights for all Americans.  

This link provides an introduction to documentation, from multiple sources, that reveal government (especially during Democratic majorities) is a primary driver of good civil and economic results:

http://blueboomerhd.blogspot.com/2020/11/voting-in-your-own-best-interest.html

The Bracero program (started during WWII) and NAFTA added to what has been fluid movement of people and goods across the southern border of the United States.  Said ease of movement added to the minority-majority (northern European Americans, "white," people becoming the largest minority, no longer the majority, and the combination of all the folks of color are becoming the new majority) demographic trend happening across the United States; via all borders and points of entry.

The Republican's response was to make an extremely hard right turn, becoming the Qpublican party (the return to Civil War insurrectionism).  The obstructions to government function had been put in place already and the Qpublicans availed themselves of said ability to make, "government bad," into self-fulfilling prophecy.

An article laying bare the consequences Texas has faced after decades of electing politicians from the Republican/Qpublican, self-fulfilling bad government, party:

Texas Monthly, 04.21, page 42, News & Politics

In order to undo the damage being done by Qpublicans the Democrats must tear down impediments, including the filibuster in the US Senate, to good government then follow through with the programs designed to bring economic and civil benefits to as close to everybody as is possible.

Building Back Better has Begun!

It is said that, “We have to have bipartisan cooperation if we’re going to tackle these items,” said Rep. G.K. Butterfield (D-N.C.).

Wrong.

To Build Back Better we must work for bi-partisan constituents not legislators.  The US House and Senate spent multiple weeks in bi-partisan discussions of the Covid relief bill, that was essentially what the Democratic majority in the House had passed in May of 2020, for the bill to receive precisely 0 (ZERO) Qpublican votes in both House and Senate.

The Clinton administration finally picked up the mess made in the Reagan and HW Bush administrations, then we hemmed and hawed amongst ourselves while Republicans marketed their, largely fraudulent, message much better and we got a W Bush administration.

The Obama administration picked up the mess made by the W Bush administration, then we (Democrats), once again, began to second guess ourselves while the Republicans, again, marketed better and the orange menace's administration (along with the final stage of transformation from Republican to Qpublican) happened.

President Biden is a veteran of the machinations of the Q(Re)publicans in the US federal government and knows we not only must go big, we must market better than the Qpublicans or, once again, we'll fix what was broken only to be sent packing afterward.

The USA has made phenomenal things happen repeatedly when the government has provided around 30% (more when needed) of the money spent into the national economy.  We must do it again, market and take proper credit for, building back better such that we stay and keep the trajectory of the nation (and with us the rest of the world) onward and upward.

Qpublican/Republican Last Wrongs...

 The Qpublican party, that killed the Republican party, is in serious trouble.

Multiple state legislatures, with Qpublican majorities, are fashioning legislation to deal with imaginary voting irregularities.

These regulations, it turns out, make it harder for groups, assumed to be voting for Democrats, to exercise their right/responsibility to vote. These laws are being challenged in court. Qpublicans are expecting Judges, appointed to the bench by Qpublican administrations, are beholden to them and assume that quid pro quo will allow these laws to stand. Not necessarily a good bet.

When the Qpublicans can't win a fair election they have no qualms about cheating.

If the judges reject the voter suppression legislation from the states, with Qpublican majorities in the state legislatures, and the self-serving gerrymandering the Qpublican party's pulse gets weaker and weaker.

Then the charges of aiding and abetting insurrection/treason, that would not have been possible if the orange menace had been properly convicted in the first impeachment trial, are filed...

The Qpublicans, Republicans in the previous iteration, are truly, of their own volition, headed for history's trash can.

No sympathy may be found here.

Re-Establishing an Example of a Democratic Republic in the USA

The Democrats in the US Congress are trying to advance the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act (JLVRAA) while Republicans in states like Georgia and Texas are trying hard to stem loses by restricting access to voting...

We are not the model of Democracy we once strived to be.  We have only one party at all interested in promoting said Democracy; democratic republic.  

Democrats need to eliminate obstacles like the filibuster and deliver legislation, like the JLVRAA, for President Biden to sign into law.  We might also consider ratifying the treaty that established the International Criminal Court, so that crimes against humanity (like the international incident on the border twixt the USA and the United Mexican States (Estados Unidos Mexicanos)) might be pursued on the world stage.

Set an international example by allowing the Federal Communications Commission to, once again, treat broadband services (the Internet) as a utility; as a Title II, common-carrier service.  Free up the means to communicate when some  are seeking to hide potential crimes, including crimes against humanity, by suppressing the means and methods of modern telecommunications; enhances the communicating of other things (e.g., video conferencing for business, government, education, entertainment, etc...).

We need to re-establish, perhaps enhance, leading by example.  The, "do like I do, not like I say," example of Democracy; a democratic republic.

Simple Economics

When more people are able to purchase things, more than just food and shelter, the economy grows. 1986, 2008 and now are glaring examples of the failure of, “supply side,” economics.

In order to kick-start economic growth we need a $15 an hour minimum wage now. Student debt forgiven asap. The, “tipped, minimal, wage,” needs to end in favor of $15 an hour; tips can be shared, if they're still given, once formerly tipped employees are earning a living wage.

The naysayers argue that jobs will disappear, and some will, but they are the second and third jobs working folks need to live indoors and eat these days.

Regions of the USA, where wages have risen well above the current minimum, have experienced overarching economic growth.

By 2025 the minimum wage should grow to $25 an hour to support even greater economic participation and growth. The wage can be linked to productivity growth or inflation, which ever is greatest, afterward.

The ability of employers to use, “contract,” labor, to avoid the costs associated with employees, should be limited by a well enforced, regulatory environment.

If a business can not afford living wages and benefits for employees they should not have employees. The business that wants the growth associated with more customers, without the cost of employees, are destined to, and ultimately will, fail.

Consequences When Republicans - Who Don't Like Government - Are Our Elected Leaders

 Laissez-faire is everywhere! (Pun - from an old cartoon character - is attempted).

Texas Republicans' policy is not to regulate anything until someone does things our Texas Republicans don't like (e.g., Austin does it, Houston (and Harris county) elect multiple women of color to be judges, etc...).

The hands off approach killed dozens of Texans during this winter's polar vortex visit. That global climate change triggered event caused a week of constant subfreezing temperatures across the vast majority of the state of Texas.

This while Gov. Abbott, former Gov. Perry, and other current and former Republican leaders, flail round and round to find others to blame.

The investigation was done after a similar freeze in 2011 and the recommendations from the report, published in August of 2011, were discarded without any of said recommended, preventative measures being instituted.

Doing a similar investigation will only reveal the fatal lack of leadership a state gets when we keep electing Republican leaders, that don't like government, to lead the state's government.