August 8, 2015
Reality Check
Notes on the first Republican Party “Debate”
By A. Peter Bailey
(TriceEdneyWire.com) - It’s very revealing that the subject of race was only mentioned near the end of the initial, two-hour long “debate.” And when it was mentioned, it was mainly as an attack on race relations during President Obama’s Administration. Furthermore, the question on race was directed to Dr. Ben Carson, one of only two persons of color on the stage (the other being Sen. Marco Rubio). Carson, by the way, was all but ignored throughout the process.
Equally revealing was the total lack of commentary about the real reasons that Latino immigrants are allowed to enter this country. They are a major source of cheap labor, especially for the agricultural and construction industries. Their labor is not only cheap but also under threat of deportation if they complain too publicly about salaries and working conditions. There is no way to convince me that the U.S. government could not block the entry of so-called “illegal immigrants” if it really wanted to. The “illegal immigrants” are for practical purposes allowed to cross the borders.
Then there’s the very revealing circumstance in which the moderators and the “debaters” spoke as though Iran is trying to introduce nuclear weapons into that region of the world. I’ll bet that every single one of them is well aware that Israel introduced nuclear weapons into the region years ago. Yet, no one dared to state this well-known fact. Whatever else Iran can be accused of it will not be the first nuclear power in the Middle East.
Finally, the “debaters” were all in step with what they consider the need for the U.S. to build up its military for the possibility of having enough boots on the ground to send into the Middle East or anywhere else they believe is a threat to “the National Security of the U.S.” Yet again, neither the moderators nor the “debaters” were willing to say that the quickest way to get the necessary boots on the ground is to reinstate the draft. I personally will believe they are sincere about this country’s National Security being at stake when they begin a draft that requires their sons and daughters to possibly face combat duty as defenders of “freedom.” Right now they basically use the children of low income and working class families as cannon fodder.
Because such issues were not “debated,” I found the two hours to be predictable and basically boring.
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A. Peter Bailey, whose latest book is Witnessing Brother Malcolm X, the Master Teacher, can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..