The recent debacle in Congress over the economic stimulus bill has finally dashed the faint light of optimism and faith I had in our elected officials.
First, let's look at the Republicans. Despite having control of every branch of government for six of the past eight years where they have driven the country into economic collapse and have given us record-breaking deficit spending, they continue to maintain that they are the fiscally conservative party that has the right ideas when it comes to the economy. Really?
How about spending a projected $1 trillion on an utterly unnecessary war in Iraq that has done little besides make Halliburton investors rich? Sound fiscally conservative?
Yet when it comes to renovating and building new schools for needy districts, providing assistance for higher education and expanding health care access to over 500,000 people, who are losing their jobs every month - that's just being an un-American, tax-and-spend liberal. Never mind the fact that the largest single entity of Obama's plan (about a third) was made up of tax cuts for middle to low income Americans.
Then there are the Democrats, the most spineless group of people in power since, well, ever. Let's remember something: you won. The people wanted something different. A change in the way of thinking. Something bold.
Instead, what we got was an evisceration of progressive principles in favor of three Republican votes in the Senate. Three! Was it worth it? Because to me, it doesn't make sense to be bipartisan when members of the other party are made of a bunch of self-interested half-wits with a piss-poor track record on making decisions.
So, Democratic members of Congress, next time the people who have put this country in the worst position in decades tell you what to do, stop being such a wet blanket, give them the ol' one-finger salute, and do what is right for once.
