Two Americas
The distinctions (and doublespeak) were front and center in the GOP convention speeches
2008-09-04
By Eric Easter

John Edwards was right, there are indeed two Americas – the one that falls for the load of hypocrisies, half-truths and outright lies being flailed around at the Republican National Convention and the one that doesn’t.

Let’s review shall we:

Sarah Palin touts her husband’s proud membership in the Steelworker’s Union to a party that idolizes Ronald Reagan, the biggest union-buster in American history.

Sen. Joe Lieberman, weasel and turncoat, falsely accuses Barack Obama of partisanship and not reaching across the aisle to an audience that rejected Lieberman as a possible candidate for VP on the basis that such a choice would represent bipartisanship.

Speakers tout John McCain’s willingness to fight special interests and go against the grain, yet McCain caved in to his handlers on the conservative right and lacked the determination to go with his heart and choose the VP nominee that he actually wanted.

A party that promotes the power of the little guy and the failure of the government mocks Barack Obama’s experience as a community organizer, a job that  by definition means empowering the little guy – almost always against the abuses of government.

Peggy Noonan, Republican speechwriter turned pundit, spends the morning on MSNBC defending the qualifications of Sarah Palin, only to be heard during the commercial in a Jesse Jackson-style hot mic moment calling the Palin pick gimmicky “bullshit”.

Rudy Giuliani promotes Sarah Palin’s executive experience as superior to Barack Obama’s, neglecting to mention that John McCain, as a congressman and senator, also has no executive experience by his definition.

Washington-based Republicans like Fred Thompson denounce the failures of a broken Washington, neglecting to mention that for the last eight years Washington has been run by Republicans.

Mitt Romney, a multi-millionaire former CEO denounces Obama and his cadre of eastern elite.

A roomful of convention-goers who accuse the liberal media of being sexist toward Sarah Palin sport buttons supporting “Sarah Palin - the hottest chick.”

It all goes to prove that for the next several days and indeed for the next 61 days until the election, you can’t believe what you hear.

So forget what’s being said this week and watch the Republican National Convention with the sound down. The pictures will tell you all you need to know. Watch as the cameras pan the audience and notice that only once every 15 minutes or so do you see anyone who falls outside of a single, monochromatic demographic.

Contrast that with the Democratic Convention of last week where any direction you looked, the reality and the future of America  -every race, religion, ethnicity and gender was on view, and without orchestration.

The words don’t matter, but the visuals tell the tale. Which America do you want?

Eric Easter writes about politics, culture and technology for EbonyJet.com