As you’re likely aware, last week during a tea party protest in Austin, Texas, Governor Rick Perry gave a speech. Addressing a crowd of people shouting "Secede! Secede," he did not explicitly agree with the angry mob’s hate for America, but he did express that independence was a possibility. Later he said to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, "I'm trying to make the Obama Administration pay attention to the 10th Amendment." The comments made headlines, drawing both praise and criticism from other politicians and pundits around the country.
One thing that the comments should not have drawn, though, was surprise. Since President Obama took office, the Republican Party has brought to new heights the tactic of plugging their ears and shouting "no" at everything the Democrats suggest, regardless of popular support. With this move by Governor Perry, they’ve taken another favorite tactic of theirs to new heights: arguing for states’ rights when they’ve lost the national debate.
The way Republicans argue for states’ rights, you may as well call it "sore losers’ rights".
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