October 2, 2014

Can It Happen Here?

Can it happen here? It *is* happening in Europe where French polls show that the National Front’s Marine Le Pen would win the election for president if elections were held tomorrow. Something like it *has* happened in Italy where an anarchist comedian, the happily named Beppe Grillo, garnered 25 percent of the vote last year. Most spectacularly, it *almost* happened in the United Kingdom last month. What am I talking about? An election in which the lowly voters overcome the professional pols and vote their minds. Now there is evidence that it can happen here. In the United Kingdom last month 45 percent of Scottish voters voted “yes” to break up their union with England, a union that has endured more than 300 years. Eight-five percent turned out to vote. Only a last minute rescue mission by the leadership of all London’s political parties saved the United Kingdom, but at a high price. Owing to London’s promises, the Scots have come very close to home rule. Can Northern Ireland and Wales be far behind? Moreover, the United Kingdom’s professional pols face another challenge in next year’s elections when its Euroskeptics again challenge them. The Conservative Party, Labour, and the Liberal Democrats, then will have to contend with their dynamic fourth party, UKIP, which already has 24 of Britain’s 73 seats in the European Parliament. UKIP is the broadly conservative and libertarian party to the right of the Conservative Party. It has a rough equivalent on this side of the Atlantic, the tea party!

Can it happen here? It is happening in Europe where French polls show that the National Front’s Marine Le Pen would win the election for president if elections were held tomorrow. Something like it has happened in Italy where an anarchist comedian, the happily named Beppe Grillo, garnered 25 percent of the vote last year. Most spectacularly, it almost happened in the United Kingdom last month. What am I talking about? An election in which the lowly voters overcome the professional pols and vote their minds. Now there is evidence that it can happen here.

In the United Kingdom last month 45 percent of Scottish voters voted “yes” to break up their union with England, a union that has endured more than 300 years. Eight-five percent turned out to vote. Only a last minute rescue mission by the leadership of all London’s political parties saved the United Kingdom, but at a high price. Owing to London’s promises, the Scots have come very close to home rule. Can Northern Ireland and Wales be far behind? Moreover, the United Kingdom’s professional pols face another challenge in next year’s elections when its Euroskeptics again challenge them. The Conservative Party, Labour, and the Liberal Democrats, then will have to contend with their dynamic fourth party, UKIP, which already has 24 of Britain’s 73 seats in the European Parliament. UKIP is the broadly conservative and libertarian party to the right of the Conservative Party. It has a rough equivalent on this side of the Atlantic, the tea party!

So the United Kingdom is already listening to its roots, the divisive “yes” vote in Scotland and UKIP with its 23 voices in the European Parliament. London’s professional pols have reason to fear for their livelihoods.

The Spectator of London argues that, “The Westminster system is broken, because it has been taken over by professional politicians who focus on their opposite numbers rather than on the people they’re supposed to represent.” And The Spectator counsels that the professional pols follow their roots.

Here in the United States there is grumbling at the base of both parties. Both Democrats and Republicans of a certain staunch rigorism complain that the professional politicians ignore their respective political bases, save perhaps at election time when they only inflame it with talk of the “war on women” by the Democrats and several different war cries by Republicans: immigration, a balanced budget, the war on terror. At the end of every election the professional politicians of both parties return to cutting their deals, securing their sinecures, and making money.

Right now the pacifist wing of President Barack Obama’s party has been thrust out in the cold as he adopts the plumage of the War Hawk and bombs the hell out of Syria and Iraq. Who doubts there will soon be boots on the ground? This despite all the protests he hurled at President George W. Bush. Obama’s war whoops even surprised me. What is more, his supporters on the tax-and-spend left are grumbling that he has caved on taxing and neglected to spend. They have a point. If he followed their policies national bankruptcy would be upon us sooner, but he promised them a socialist paradise and now he is scurrying to the political center.

As for the Republican leadership it has given the back of its hand to the libertarian right, so much so that even Senator Rand Paul is hunkering down. On social issues, immigration, even spending and balancing the budget, the Republicans have blended into the middle. As I say, the grumbling can be heard from both ends of the spectrum.

Is there something being missed here by the professional pols? London’s Spectator thinks so. “It is crucial to recognize,” the magazine editorializes, “that the current ‘anti-politics’ mood is not an anomaly or a cry of pain. It is the start of a new political order, one in which people want bold ideas to get out of what they see as a political and societal morass.” In the United Kingdom the 45 percent “yes” vote and UKIP are seen by some as “the start of a new political order.” Can it happen here? In both parties, we have the ingredients for that new order. Might the socialist left in the Democratic Party and the tea party in the Republican Party compose the voices of the future? The forthcoming elections should be followed with a jeweler’s eye.

COPYRIGHT 2014 CREATORS.COM

Who We Are

The Patriot Post is a highly acclaimed weekday digest of news analysis, policy and opinion written from the heartland — as opposed to the MSM’s ubiquitous Beltway echo chambers — for grassroots leaders nationwide. More

What We Offer

On the Web

We provide solid conservative perspective on the most important issues, including analysis, opinion columns, headline summaries, memes, cartoons and much more.

Via Email

Choose our full-length Digest or our quick-reading Snapshot for a summary of important news. We also offer Cartoons & Memes on Monday and Alexander’s column on Wednesday.

Our Mission

The Patriot Post is steadfast in our mission to extend the endowment of Liberty to the next generation by advocating for individual rights and responsibilities, supporting the restoration of constitutional limits on government and the judiciary, and promoting free enterprise, national defense and traditional American values. We are a rock-solid conservative touchstone for the expanding ranks of grassroots Americans Patriots from all walks of life. Our mission and operation budgets are not financed by any political or special interest groups, and to protect our editorial integrity, we accept no advertising. We are sustained solely by you. Please support The Patriot Fund today!


The Patriot Post and Patriot Foundation Trust, in keeping with our Military Mission of Service to our uniformed service members and veterans, are proud to support and promote the National Medal of Honor Heritage Center, the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, both the Honoring the Sacrifice and Warrior Freedom Service Dogs aiding wounded veterans, the National Veterans Entrepreneurship Program, the Folds of Honor outreach, and Officer Christian Fellowship, the Air University Foundation, and Naval War College Foundation, and the Naval Aviation Museum Foundation. "Greater love has no one than this, to lay down one's life for his friends." (John 15:13)

★ PUBLIUS ★

“Our cause is noble; it is the cause of mankind!” —George Washington

Please join us in prayer for our nation — that righteous leaders would rise and prevail and we would be united as Americans. Pray also for the protection of our Military Patriots, Veterans, First Responders, and their families. Please lift up your Patriot team and our mission to support and defend our Republic's Founding Principle of Liberty, that the fires of freedom would be ignited in the hearts and minds of our countrymen.

The Patriot Post is protected speech, as enumerated in the First Amendment and enforced by the Second Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America, in accordance with the endowed and unalienable Rights of All Mankind.

Copyright © 2024 The Patriot Post. All Rights Reserved.

The Patriot Post does not support Internet Explorer. We recommend installing the latest version of Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox, or Google Chrome.