Allen Supporter Puts Blind Partisan Anger Before America and the Troops

From Style Weekly:

Blind Elephants - In the wake of Sen. George Allen’s defeat, the party of conservatives starts the healing process.
by Scott Bass

Had the election turned out differently, perhaps the party would have been livelier. As the Virginia Conservative Action PAC ends its annual convention downtown Nov. 11 — planned well before the Democrats took over — all the streamers, lights, giant speakers and television screens muster little enthusiasm.

Mostly there is somber disappointment — and anger.

"I’ll always remember November 7, 2006," spews a purse-lipped Rhonda Winfielda, Stuarts Draft mother whose son died in Iraq. "We have been attacked on our own soil. [The Democrats] have declared war on patriotism and the America I believe in.

"November 7 now will forever be a day, for me, when I lost my country," she says.

Let me be perfectly clear for those readers that will undoubtedly accuse me of lambasting people who have lost a child (or children) in this bloody, illegal, and atrocious war brought on by the Republican party in which Rhonda Winfield herself is a member and supporter.

I bear no ill will towards Rhonda Winfield. Like any other American, she is entitled to free speech and her own opinion. I also bear no ill will towards Cindy Sheehan, though I do not agree with her actions nor all of her stances. To me, Rhonda Winfield is the Cindy Sheehan of the right, and I think BOTH of them do more to politicize this war and polarize Americans than anyone in Congress.

Now, for the past 6 years, I have had to listen to one caller after another on Washington Journal (C-Span morning call-in show) whine about the "evil and unpatriotic Democrats" and their unwillingness to work with and support President Bush. I have heard people gleefully express that being part of the majority party means that others have to "fall in line" with their views. I have been called a communist, a pinko, a hippy liberal waste, a freedom hater, an America hater, a troop hater, and much more. I let it go. I knew that I was part of a minority party that was free to complain, bitch, moan, cry, scream, and lament the fact that my voice would not be heard, because "working together" with the Bush controlled Republican party meant falling in line with their RULES.

I believe that the new Democratic majority has made it BEYOND perfectly clear that they are looking forward to uniting the country as opposed to dividing it. I believe that when the majority of the country feels that the war needs to be closely examined and ended as soon as possible, the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches of government owe it to their constituents to govern the way THE MAJORITY sees fit. I believe that this is a time for healing, and I believe that we can do so if we all work together.

Rhonda Winfield, like Cindy Sheehan, put herself on the front line of war politicization when she a) wrote a book catering to the right wing's stance on Iraq and b) became former Senator George Allen's sidekick; dare I go so far as to call her a prop. She appeared at many events with him and for him, and she even went so far as to allow former Senator George Allen to appeal to voters in the last Virginia Senate debate by using her name and pointing her out to the crowd. Now, I have no idea whether or not she was there, but I still believe the move was calculating and polarizing, and begging for sympathy votes.

Need I remind anyone that Senator-elect Jim Webb (D-VA) flat out refused to use his son for political gains? I think not. Need I remind anyone that Senator-elect Jim Webb (D-VA) is a war hero who came out against this war before anyone else? I think not. And need I remind anyone that the weekend before the election, 4 major news sources that are read by all branches of the military urged America to vote AGAINST the Bush controlled Republican agenda?

I THINK NOT.

So, today I am calling on ALL partisan Republicans to accept the FACT that the Democratic party is now in the majority, and that we have pledged to work together with ALL members of Congress in order to move our country forward and to again rise to be the great country we know that we are. Please, for the sake of our troops and our international well-being, leave your partisan anger at the door and start supporting America as an AMERICAN, not a Republican.