Minnesota Report
At the start of the 2021 legislative session when House Speaker Melissa Hortman (DFL-36B, Brooklyn Park) decried the end result of the 2020 saying, “We won’t let is happen again,” she was being a bit Pollyannish. The want for the same not to occur is far different than assuring it. Republicans at their very core are antigovernment and the DFL jus the opposite. These structured opposition positions are fundamental.
Because the two different legislative majorities see the world in a far different fashion there is no incentive to change. They know they cultivate base-support by spouting specific beliefs and railing again the other side. Trump rhetoric remains the feast of the day and sour grapes the fruit of the moment.
The problem for Republicans is a global pandemic proves in large part the need for government and when the Trump Administration failed to provide the support necessary for the states to administer a vaccine program, apply and enforce a common-sense system of social distancing, mask wearing, no congregation, and more isolation it ran affront of Republican principles of freedom, liberty and self-determination. But, have these same values in different degrees and they also see the public health value, or the economic value. The short-term sacrifices are necessary when the person you interact with can be the one who threatens your life. Denial is not something people want to experience here in America.
When George H W Bush (R) and later George W Bush (R) declared wars without any domestic sacrifice, except for the lives of those who went to war, a poor standard was set. In World War II, everyone felt the war oversea, they sacrificed everything from cans, copper, nylons, new appliances, cars, ect in order to make sure the American production industry produced, ships, tanks, jeeps and ammunition. The domestic sacrifice was clear and the true patriots bought war bonds and willingly supported the effort.
As Republicans see all the things they are denied and who is denying it to them, they have a target, whether it be Governor Tim Walz (DFL-MN) or now President Joe Biden (D).
Same happened with the pandemic Trump made happy-talk trying to invoke the salad days when the endpoint was clearly unknown, he received a secret hidden vaccination, but he still contracted the virus and tried to buck people up when he left Walter Read Hospital, wheezy on the White House Balcony. The sham scam of his Presidency was merely self-promotion, hype, lies and betrayal. He betrayed the nation by putting himself first and not giving the nation the unvarnished truth of our situation. He inserted his opinion over those of the health experts when it clearly wasn’t his place and in turn, we all suffered.
Now, we deal with the aftermath, and while we are trying to catchup to the lost year of 2020, we see a dramatic difference in an administration willing to take a hands-on approach as for self-sacrifice and acknowledge the answer of passing through this pandemic are hard.