Christmas For The Last Responders

"And so this is Christmas, and what have you done?"--John Lennon

Post 9/11, no political group has made more hay out of that terrible event than the Republican Party.

They used it as justification for a war against a country that did not attack us.

They used it as justification to pass legislation that infringes upon our civil liberties.

They used it as justification for the torture and denial of due process of suspected terrorist combatants.

They used it for the justification of the denial of religious freedom.

And they used it as a justification to label anyone that would argue against their justifications as socialists, communists, un-American, and worse.

Hell, one Republican candidate for President (Giuliani) used it so much that then Democratic Presidential hopeful, Joe Biden, referred to Giuliani's method of speech as consisting of "A noun, a verb, and a 9/11."

To a large degree, the Republicans have owned this issue. They have pushed their agenda through propagating fear of a second attack. They speak of a "post 9/11" mindset whenever anyone objects to their methods.

And they speak of heroes. The heroes in our military and those that were on the ground in New York City on that awful, fateful day. And they speak of those who bravely and soberly sifted through rubble breathing in noxious fumes searching for survivors and the remains of victims. They did so tirelessly in spite of the increasingly grim work it became. They did so even though the risk to their own health was considerable. Now, for many, the tariff created by that exposure has come due.

These selfless citizens have begun to suffer from the effects of breathing while working on Ground Zero. Respiratory issues and Cancer afflictions abound among their number. Many of them have lost their health care due to their conditions and inability to hold jobs.

These people are heroes.

To help these poor souls, a bill named after first responder and former NYC Police Officer James Zadroga is before the Senate today. This bill will provide desperately needed funding to address the various maladies affecting those that walked upon that hallowed ground in an often in vain effort to save lives. One would think this bill would be a "slam dunk."

One would be wrong.

And irony of ironies, it's not the feckless Democrats in congress who are holding up the bill's passage. No. It's those same Republicans who have used 9/11 as a wedge issue in our politics who have withheld aid from the first responders.

Why, you might ask?

Well, the first argument was that it needed to be paid for. So, the Democrats closed a corporate tax loop hole to pay for the bill. Not good enough said the Republicans. Apparently, Republicans didn't like the idea of using a tax increase for funding. So, Democratic Senator from New York, Kirsten Gillibrand, has countered with a 2% procurement fee for corporate contracts with certain nations. Therefore, there should be nothing else standing in the way.

That is, except Christmas.

Yes, the holiest of holidays is all that seemingly stands between this bill and its passage. Senate Republicans, John Kyl (AZ), and Jim DeMint (SC), have complained that attempting to get all of this legislation through during the holiday season is an affront to Christians. In other words, there just isn't enough time to do the people's business before they take their Christmas vacations.

This has been the argument against ratifying the START Treaty with Russia, repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell, and even funding the government. It's also, the reason why we can't seem to get to this bill passed for the first responders. There simply aren't enough days left on the calendar.

So, how did it come to this? Priorities is the answer. During the so called "Lame Duck Congress," Republicans stated that they would block all legislation until a compromise on the Bush Tax Cuts was reached. The sticking point being they couldn't stomach the idea of taxes going up for the top 2% of earners and therefore would allow no other business to go forward.

They have placed the need for tax relief for the wealthy above national security, equality, and the health care of the heroes they are so often eager to invoke when it suits their needs.

It is a disgrace.

There is not a single Democrat opposing this legislation. Yet, the most recent vote to bring the bill to a final "up or down" vote was filibustered by 42 Senate Republicans, keeping it from the President's desk.

To be honest, Democrats are to be blamed as well. Not for where they stand on the issue, but for not hammering away at Republicans for their position. They should have beaten them over the head with this on a daily basis. Not that shame works with Republicans, but politics does. And it is not good politics to deny health care to first responders. As usual, the Democrats have not been very good at playing the game. My only guess is that they couldn't have possibly expected this issue to become a partisan one. To this I say, "Have you not been paying attention for the last two years?!?" They have made EVERYTHING into a partisan issue. Even this.

You see, the Republicans have become the last responders. Part of this is due to the reactive nature of being in the congressional minority. The other part is due to a sort of nastiness behind their "Just say no" philosophy. They believe by saying "no" to everything that they will reap a political benefit. And the sad truth is, they did. The mid-terms resulted in a clear routing of the Democrats, flipping the House and narrowing their margin in the Senate. "No" worked.

But I have a feeling that "no" may be running out of support. At least where clearly popular legislation is concerned. And the Zadroga Bill is certainly that.

So I would suggest to Republicans who are concerned about their holiday plans to consider not just the many people who are out of work who would be more than glad to have the problem of working up until Christmas, but to also reflect on what going home without passing a bill to address the health concerns of first responders would mean. They have already staked out a claim to the anti-gay, anti-immigrant, and anti-Obama vote, but do they want to scratch around under rocks to appeal to the anti-first responder vote? I don't think they will find much benefit courting that constituency.

I have no doubt that if--God forbid--we are attacked tomorrow, the police officers, fire fighters, EMTs, and volunteers will come to the site of the devastation without any regard for their own health or safety. And I also have no doubt that the Republicans in congress will proceed with no regard for the health and the safety of these brave individuals either. At least not until it becomes so feasibly untenable for them to put it off any longer.

Well, that time is now. While they have delayed and obstructed this bill for months, they do have one last chance to respond before Christmas. One last chance to set this right.

Last responders, it is time to respond. Give the gift that will keep on giving.

Pass the damn bill.

Sumo-Pop
December 20, 2010