Tickle-less

The acerbic wit of columnist Jerry Roberts sometimes fails to tickle my ribs, at least in part because the sneering often obscures serious consideration at to what the sneered-at personage stands for or represents.

Referring to the recent decision of the state Democratic Party to endorse Kevin de León for senator rather than current office-holder Dianne Feinstein, Roberts includes among de León’s supporters “hobby-horse Marxists,” about as vomitous a comment as those I witnessed daily from Senator Joseph McCarthy in the 1950s — a period I lived through but Jerry Roberts did not.

Roberts gave no attention to Senator Feinstein’s approval of the Iraq war or her enthusiastic approbation of the spying on Americans instituted by President Bush and enhanced under President Obama. He seems not to understand that her “influence” on matters like these have not been forgotten by those who want to see our government behave differently.

Roberts also chose to ignore de León’s admirable record of environmental support in this state, doing his best to ameliorate the corrupt regulatory/policy gifts Governor Brown has consistently proffered to oil/gas conglomerates.

It is obvious now to any knowledgeable observer that a struggle is underway for the soul of the Democratic Party: the supporters of Bernie Sanders vs. the supporters of Feinstein, Pelosi, and Schumer.

I’m happy that the California Democratic Party has stood for the values of the former.