Raucous, rabble-roused Republicans show a nasty streak
The long string of Republican debates have shown a Republican party exposed - not on the stage but in the audience.
Moderator Wolf Blitzer asked Ron Paul, "What do you tell a guy who is sick, goes into a coma and doesn't have health insurance? Who pays for his coverage? Are you saying society should just let him die?" The crowd yelled "Yeah!" and cheered.
"Your state has executed 234 death row inmates, more than any governor in modern times," NBC's Brian Williams told Rick Perry. The audience broke into cheers and applause.
Host Megyn Kelly played a YouTube video from Steven Hill, a gay soldier in Iraq. After Hill's video clip, in a shocking demonstration of disrespect for one of our American soldiers, audience members lustily booed him.
Herman Cain and Michelle Bachman both voiced their opinions in support of water boarding and torture. The Republican crowd cheered.
Newt Gingrich stood by his remarks where he said children from low-income households should be given the opportunity to be janitors in their own schools. Gingrich was asked by commentator Juan Williams, "Can't you see that this is viewed, at a minimum, as insulting to all Americans, but particularly to black Americans?" Gingrich responded, "No, I don't see that." The GOP audience whooped and cheered.
Boos at the suggestion that the federal government, not the states, should enforce immigration laws. Boos at anything less than a send-them-all-back immigration policy.
The format of these Republican debates leads to snappy sound bites designed to play to the crowd. The results are rowdy and revealing.
When considering solutions to serious and sensitive issues that impact our society, cheering for people with no health insurance to die, cheering executions and torture, cheering children working as janitors, and booing a soldier because he is gay are inappropriate, out-of-touch, and offensive responses. However at the Republican debates the mere mention of these matters gets the conservative crowd out of their seats and stirred into a mindless, emotional frenzy.
Richard O. Schwab was formerly associate head of school, and middle school head, Cincinnati Country Day School. He is currently neighborhood team leader, Glendale Organizing For America Community Team (www.gofact.blogspot.com)
