Cheneyús Foul Mouth and Republican Values
Cheneyús use of the nasty F-word (see Truthout.org) reflects some very deep problems in the values systems of many national leaders in the Republican Party. This value system problems was demonstrated this week regarding the sex scandal swirling around Illinois Republican Senate candidate Jack Ryan before his resignation.
Cheney used an obscenity toward Senator Patrick Leahy publicly in the U.S. Senate. Leahy has been very critical toward Haliburtonús war profiteering in Iraq and the White House role in steering ôno-bid¤ contracts to this company that Cheney headed just before assuming the Vice Presidency.
Cheneyús tenure as head of Haliburton was marred by many serious allegations including accounting irregularities similar to Enronús, foreign Haliburton entities trading with Saddam Hussein in violation of the UN embargo and paying hundreds of millions in bribes to Nigerian officials to secure contracts in violation of US law. Despite this litany of wrong-doing, Haliburton has been growing very fat on our tax dollars under the Bush Administration. Largely based on ôno-bid¤ Iraqi War contracts awarded by the Bush Administration (often with the close coordination of the Vice Presidentús Office), Haliburton has risen rapidly among the ranks of defense contractors. Before Bush, they were reported to rank 37th in receiving US tax dollars spent on defense. Now, they rank 7th!
For Cheney to use the F-word publicly in the Senate over Leahyús criticisms regarding Haliburton, he should have been asked to resign as Vice President. Instead, the Associated Press reported in two different stories that George W. Bush thinks it is not an issue and the Republican Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee is refusing to criticize Cheney for his obscene language. Cheney has refused to even apologize. In fact, he has publicly stated that he ôfelt better¤ after using the obscene word. Right wing talk radio has been militant in defending this obscene language. If Al Gore had used such language while Clinton was in office, they would have been trying to impeach him!
The Republicans claim to support ôfamily values¤ and Christian ideas look insincere based on this case and that of Jack Ryan in Illinois. Ryan, based on court papers arising from his divorce, pressured his former wife to publicly have sex with him in sex clubs. He was running for office as a ôfamily values¤ Bush Republican when these incidents became public (see Suntimes.com).
Republican leaders like Senator Rick Santorium of Pennsylvania strongly defended Ryan even after all the scandalous details were publicly reported. Santorium has based his entire political career on being a ôfamily values¤ Bush Republican. He has been scathing in his attacks on former President Clinton regarding Clintonús private sexual misconduct.
These are not isolated incidents. Anyone searching the Internet and visiting sites like Oped News.com, Buzzflash.com, Truthout.org, Democrats.com or any of the hundreds of non-Corporate Media news sources available there can find hundreds of other examples of Republican leaders making a mockery of ôfamily values¤ or Christian beliefs. Examples of these behaviors being criticized or condemned by Bush Republican leaders are extremely rare to non-existent. How sincere can the public expressions of these Republican leaders be if they do not match private behaviors and are not condemned when Republicans engage in them?
Written By Stephen Crockett and Al Lawrence (hosts of DemocraticTalkRadio.com ).
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