Jeff Mullen

	Politics

Politically, I'm a moderate with liberal leanings.  I think that this country is headed in the wrong direction.  I think that conservatives have come to power because of a system of lies and half-truths, which I call "The Conservative Crock of Crap," and that liberals who should have taken the fight to them--who should have let the truth be heard--have been backing down from the right-wingers' attacks for over twenty years.  I'm not going to back down.  I'm going to tell the truth.

As I write this, Liberalism and the causes that are associated with it are less popular than they've been at any point in my life.  Yet, this has very, very little to do with Liberalism itself or any message that Liberals have broadcast.  It is because of a vicious smear campaign--loaded with claims of mind-reading, double-standards and just plain out-and-out lies--that conservatives have been waging for as long as I can remember, and more than likely a LOT longer. 

For example, in President Clinton's first televised address before congress, he mentioned the fact that he was going to use the budget figures of the Office of Management and the Budget to guide him in coming up with his first budget.  The congress he made that statement to is sometimes referred to as "The Limbaugh Congress," owing to the key role that conservative wonk and radio show host Rush Limbaugh played in getting many of its members elected.  Though he had the audacity to refer to himself as "Truth Man," Limbaugh never let the truth get in the way of one of his stories.  One of his stories was how the budget figures that right-wing presidents of the Reagan and Bush administrations were better than the OMB figures, which he referred to as "liberal."  When President Clinton made that statement, a mocking chatter rose up from the congress. It was so loud that the President had to pause a moment.  When things did not quiet down, he pointed out that he was using the OMB figures because the OMB had been more accurate than any president in the last twelve years--Reagan and Bush.  A cheer rose up from the Congress, overtaking the right-wingers' chatter!  At last, some semblance of reality had gotten through against the lies of the Limbaugh Loonies!