Role Reversal
Despite anything else these last five years, it has been interesting watching the extreme role reversal between the two major parties.
There is no one alive or dead that could seriously argue that Bush is in any way shape or form a traditional fiscal conservative. His tax cut and spend has put the Democrats to shame. If Democrats were pigs at the trough, then Republicans are the trough.
No, the 'war' on terrorism or even Iraq both don't come close to covering the deficit, so don't even go there. The drug bill giveaway and the recent highway bill (which by the way no Republican (or Democrat) is offering to revisit in the wake of the Katrina disaster)being only the two most egregious examples, Bush has yet to meet a special interest he doesn't like.
Verbatem, copy and paste, it's been proven again and again that Bush has inserted industry lobbyist memo's into federal regulations. Our laws are being written, literaly, but industry lobbyists.
Anyway, Bush has proven that while they may have historicaly cursed the Democrats penchant for throwing money at a problem, Bush has taken it to new hights. No bid contracts abound. He just upped the limit on federal credit cards from $2,500 to $250,000. There's a reason there was a limit on them. In fact, they put the limit on them. Now in the name of national tragedy, Bush has opened them up for abuse again. Money, toss it that way.
The only thing Bush hasen't thrown money at is his 'signature' NCLB Act. That, sadly, stays horribly underfunded. Bah, who needs to pay for federal mandates on states anyway, eh?
Which takes us into a whole new area, states rights and federal authority. Let's just toss the Patriot Act out of the conversation, I won't even argue that point. The aforementioned unfunded NCLB, pushing for Constitutional amendments when they can't pass their morality plays. Buying off religion with the Faith Based initiative, more money to another special interest. Bush has been horrible on states rights.
Should we talk about entitlement spending increases? Nah, they speak for themselves.
And now we have Bush promising to throw hundreds of billions at Katrina. Administration officials are even bragging about how much they're going to spend. Strangly absent, as it has been since Bush took office, has been any discussion on how any of this will be paid for. OR how anything will be paid for for that matter.
Deficits no longer matter, didn't you hear? Reagan proved it. At least for getting re/elected anyway. Fiscal policy is a whole other matter.
Toss in fixin' the Congressional rules to marginalize the Democrats further then they ever marginalized the Republicans, and you get Bush the uniter being the greatest divider we've ever had. The country is more ideaologicaly divided then anytime since before the Civil War. The country is Nalkanizing along political lines, and political increasingly, thanks to Bush personaly, has become synonymous with ideology.
Bush ran an active campaign to tie morality into ideology and thus political affiliatoin. On purpose. He injected morality into the scene on purpose to get elected and reelected. That was the plan all along. Meh, who cares, that's just politics, right?
I'll tell you why the Republicans are still in the majority and why the Democrats aren't; The Republicans are willing to do what it takes to win and the Democrats aren't. That includes doing *anything* to win, not just the bare minimum necesary.
Bush bear out McCain in 2000 in no small part because he effectively questioned his sanity and ability to run the nation. Hell, he mighta been brainwashed? Far fetched? Sure, but you want to take the chance? *Brrr*
Politics of destruction, social spending on a scale not since, well, since when? Ever? Limiting states rights, unfunded federal mandates, massive entitlement spending, federal intrusion into family and personal matters, started a war based on wrong intelligence, and let's admit it, Iraq could be going better then it is.
When the rebels become the tyrants.
There is no one alive or dead that could seriously argue that Bush is in any way shape or form a traditional fiscal conservative. His tax cut and spend has put the Democrats to shame. If Democrats were pigs at the trough, then Republicans are the trough.
No, the 'war' on terrorism or even Iraq both don't come close to covering the deficit, so don't even go there. The drug bill giveaway and the recent highway bill (which by the way no Republican (or Democrat) is offering to revisit in the wake of the Katrina disaster)being only the two most egregious examples, Bush has yet to meet a special interest he doesn't like.
Verbatem, copy and paste, it's been proven again and again that Bush has inserted industry lobbyist memo's into federal regulations. Our laws are being written, literaly, but industry lobbyists.
Anyway, Bush has proven that while they may have historicaly cursed the Democrats penchant for throwing money at a problem, Bush has taken it to new hights. No bid contracts abound. He just upped the limit on federal credit cards from $2,500 to $250,000. There's a reason there was a limit on them. In fact, they put the limit on them. Now in the name of national tragedy, Bush has opened them up for abuse again. Money, toss it that way.
The only thing Bush hasen't thrown money at is his 'signature' NCLB Act. That, sadly, stays horribly underfunded. Bah, who needs to pay for federal mandates on states anyway, eh?
Which takes us into a whole new area, states rights and federal authority. Let's just toss the Patriot Act out of the conversation, I won't even argue that point. The aforementioned unfunded NCLB, pushing for Constitutional amendments when they can't pass their morality plays. Buying off religion with the Faith Based initiative, more money to another special interest. Bush has been horrible on states rights.
Should we talk about entitlement spending increases? Nah, they speak for themselves.
And now we have Bush promising to throw hundreds of billions at Katrina. Administration officials are even bragging about how much they're going to spend. Strangly absent, as it has been since Bush took office, has been any discussion on how any of this will be paid for. OR how anything will be paid for for that matter.
Deficits no longer matter, didn't you hear? Reagan proved it. At least for getting re/elected anyway. Fiscal policy is a whole other matter.
Toss in fixin' the Congressional rules to marginalize the Democrats further then they ever marginalized the Republicans, and you get Bush the uniter being the greatest divider we've ever had. The country is more ideaologicaly divided then anytime since before the Civil War. The country is Nalkanizing along political lines, and political increasingly, thanks to Bush personaly, has become synonymous with ideology.
Bush ran an active campaign to tie morality into ideology and thus political affiliatoin. On purpose. He injected morality into the scene on purpose to get elected and reelected. That was the plan all along. Meh, who cares, that's just politics, right?
I'll tell you why the Republicans are still in the majority and why the Democrats aren't; The Republicans are willing to do what it takes to win and the Democrats aren't. That includes doing *anything* to win, not just the bare minimum necesary.
Bush bear out McCain in 2000 in no small part because he effectively questioned his sanity and ability to run the nation. Hell, he mighta been brainwashed? Far fetched? Sure, but you want to take the chance? *Brrr*
Politics of destruction, social spending on a scale not since, well, since when? Ever? Limiting states rights, unfunded federal mandates, massive entitlement spending, federal intrusion into family and personal matters, started a war based on wrong intelligence, and let's admit it, Iraq could be going better then it is.
When the rebels become the tyrants.
posted by opus512 at 9:10 PM
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