Nine reasons why we should fire Congress
Americans’ disapproval of Congress is at its highest level EVER as an eye-popping 82 percent of Americans profess disdain for the job our national elected leaders are doing.
Given the economic mess the country finds itself in -- an embarrassing political debt-ceiling circus, the stock-market roller-coaster and the financial hit every American is taking to their savings -- one has to wonder whether those 14 percent who approve of the job Congress is doing are Rip Van Winkles!
Thousands of jobseekers attend a jobs fair put on by the Congressional Black Caucus at Wayne County Community College in Detroit on Tuesday, as the economy continues to falter.
AP Photo | Detroit Free Press, Susan Tusa
1) Overspent our budgets by the equivalent of $14 plus trillion dollars
2) Were unable to cooperate with our coworkers to develop a plan to fix the problem.
3) When asked by our bosses about the status of our efforts to fix the financial mess, simply pointed our fingers at our co-workers, blaming them for the inability to solve the problem.
4) Then devised a half-hearted plan that did not address the problems and in fact made them worse.
5) Lamely promised to form a committee to partially fix the problem in six months, then stacked the committee with 12 employees not known for getting along or for a history of fixing problems.
6) Collectively took a month's vacation while our company's status in the world's eye plummeted and credit agencies downgraded our debt, as we continued to lose market share.
7) Rather than calling employees back to work to salvage the company, the president of the company gave himself a birthday bash and then held political fund-raisers to help secure his job in the future before setting off to an exclusive vacation.
8) Collectively ignored the problems even as the company's stock value plummeted.
9) Sent out electronic postcards and media interviews blaming our colleagues for the problems while we scattered throughout the country on vacation.
Is it any wonder, according to a new McClatchy-Marist poll, Americans are more pessimistic about the economy than at any other time since the global economic plunge in 2008?
Pessimistically, 68 percent of adults surveyed about the economy said they felt the worst was yet to come. Not surprisingly, this is a 15 percentage-point spike from the number who felt that way a month ago in July.
American leadership is being questioned around the corner and around the world.
If we do not get serious about fixing the problems we face as a country, we will continue this economic slide.
We need our elected leaders to get back to work and get America working again --NOW!
For the next election, we need to seek more practical, pragmatic, problem solvers at all levels. Leaders who are principled, clear thinkers, who are grounded in fiscal and political realities, and motivated by their love of our country and concern for our collective futures.
Current occupants need not apply.
Tom Watkins is a U.S./China business and educational consultant. He served the citizens of Michigan as state superintendent of schools, 2001-05 and was president and CEO of the economic council of Palm Beach County Fl., 1996-2001. He can be reached at: tdwatkins88@gmail.com.
Comments
Bob Carlin
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 1:01 p.m.
Change isn't likely to come from the top down. Something we can do is to pay attention to our local government. We're going to need stronger local government because federal and state governments are going to be less able to provide services in the future. Right now, people in ward 2 can make an important contribution in the November election. Incumbent councilman Rapundalo is running against challenger Lumm. It would make sense for voters to look at Rapundalo's record and decide if they want more of the same big spending on wasteful projects. If voters defeat Rapundalo, it will send a message to the inner circle which runs the city that people want city government to provide services, not speculate on ill conceived developments like the failed conference center and the current push to build the Fuller parking garage.
Alan Goldsmith
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 10:38 a.m.
You want my nine reasons that Tom Watkins shouldn't be having his clueless opinion pieces published seemingly every other week? Lol.
David Wallner
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 9:37 a.m.
I agree with Tom - The situation in Washington (and likely many state capitals too) MUST CHANGE. Sometimes I just want to scream when I hear the ridiculous antics that go on.
Townie
Mon, Aug 22, 2011 : 4:34 p.m.
And your proposed solution is? Oh, just like Tom's...
G. Orwell
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 2:25 a.m.
Who would make a better president? Who is the sane person and who is the psychopath? Both the left and the right establishments have demonized Ron Paul. Yet, he is the only anti-war candidate, a Constitutionalists, want sound money, and our rights and liberties protected. How are those bad things? Yet, the media has labeled him a right wing nut. Don't believe it. Ron Paul vs Barack Obama <a href="http://www.infowars.com/ron-paul-vs-barack-obama-2012/" rel='nofollow'>http://www.infowars.com/ron-paul-vs-barack-obama-2012/</a>
Edward R Murrow's Ghost
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 1:29 a.m.
"For the next election, we need to seek more practical, pragmatic, problem solvers at all levels. Leaders who are principled, clear thinkers, who are grounded in fiscal and political realities, and motivated by their love of our country and concern for our collective futures." No kidding. So, how to do it? 1) There are 435 seats in the House of Representatives. Only about 50 of them are competitive. The other 380 or so of them are solidly Democratic or solidly Republican. This means that those representatives are rewarded for being intransigent and extremist and punished for being moderate and willing to compromise (Joe Schwarz, formerly from the 7th District, is a great example--chased out of office by extremists in his own party) 2) The US Senate is slightly different, but the problem remains. Few people vote in primaries, and those who do are the party activists, most frequently at the extremes of their party. They frequently elect extremists in the primaries, and that is all there is to choose from in the general election. So, thank-you Mr. Watkins for stating the obvious. But, as is so true of much of the drivel you write that appears in this paper, I see no actual solutions to the problem. Still looking for a job in the Snyder administration? Good Night and Good Luck
Dilbert
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 1:15 a.m.
1) eliminate straight-party ticket voting 2) remove party affiliation from the ballot 3) repeal the 17th amendment (direct election of Senators)
snoopdog
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 1:01 a.m.
DonBee said: "Until we have 3 or 4 viable parties that compete for votes, nothing will change. Term limits would help too, but then no one in the Political Class wants either one." I could not agree more DonBee, that is why I call them "Republicrats". Both for big government but want to spend our money in different and mostly wasteful ways. I am sick and tired of plugging my nose and voting for Republicans, the far less evil party in my mind. The Libertarian party is looking better and better as I watch my 401k plummet once again. Good Day
Joe Kidd
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 12:31 a.m.
Another aspect about unemployment is that many jobs are gone due to technology. We use mechanized systems to perform functions previously done by people. I cannot recall the last time I bought music from a person. I use iTunes. No need for stores, people who produce CDs, do the photography and artwork, packaging, etc. And of course with illegal file sharing nobody gets paid (I don't do that). Every song I buy is bought by me on my computer connecting to another computer. It is fast and cheap, but no need to employ people to sell in stores anymore. I guess I should add online newspapers. No more paper printing, delivery trucks dropping off papers to kids who deliver papers. Part of the death of newspapers was the end of classified ads. Craigslist, etc. ended that. YouScan at grocery stores, you pump at gas stations, ATM machines (who needs a teller? I can direct deposit my check and do all my banking online and even on my phone. Don't even need a bank), bottle returns, robots in auto factories. And perhaps with Amazon, Kindle, iPad, etc we will not need books or bookstores. Netflix doomed DVD stores. Of course all those industries created new jobs but I am sure they ended a lot more jobs than they created. And I am sure that those devices are made, yup, overseas. That will end of course, when foreign workers start figuring out they deserve a large piece of the pie, just like we did 100 years ago, and start demanding more. That has already started. Good book on this: The Cult of the Amateur by Andrew Keen. So, it may not be all that simple to turn around the issues facing the country. I do admit I question a lot of moves made by the feds. I am not anti war, but I think that any new war should kick in an automatic increase in taxes. That will pay for it and force the Commander in Chief to make sure it is a very right thing to do. I think raising taxes is not too bad, as long as you trust the people who will be spending it.
snoopdog
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 1:04 a.m.
An excellent post Joe Kidd, I was all the way with you until your last paragraph about raising taxes ! Good Day
Joe Kidd
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 12:08 a.m.
Not a good article. Heard this so many times. Problem I have is the lack of solutions. It is easy to complain but offer up some solutions. Raise the taxes on the rich is a common solution, but it makes no sense to me. Nor to others: <a href="http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/8c48b5a4-c8cb-11e0-a2c8-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1VcHLhPh7" rel='nofollow'>http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/8c48b5a4-c8cb-11e0-a2c8-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1VcHLhPh7</a> Even CNN agrees with that, and some note there are not enough rich folks to tax more. If more taxes are needed, shouldn't they be raised on everybody? We are all in this mess so we should all help bail ourselves out. Picking on a segment of society to "save us all" seems a little discriminatory to me. I like the old, "ask what you can do for your country" as opposed to asking your country to do this that and the other thing on people other than me. And that, "the team, the team, the team" saying. Frankly I think congress isn't fixing the problem because they don't know how. IMHO the big problem is unemployment. More people working creates lots of tax revenue which makes it easier to pay for stuff. So why aren't more people working? Well a lot of goods are imported from overseas. Many think that should end, we should be making goods here. Problem with that thinking is that an item made here will cost 3x or more because US workers demand more pay and benefits than made overseas, even with shipping. That will resurrect complaints of inflation. Also over the decades congress has passed programs that just seemed like a good idea at the time, but have become big problems: Social security, Medicaid, Medicare all of which are underfunded: <a href="http://www.californiahealthline.org/articles/2010/10/21/medicaid-programs-in-24-states-to-receive-less-funding-than-expected.aspx" rel='nofollow'>http://www.californiahealthline.org/articles/2010/10/21/medicaid-programs-in-24-states-to-receive-less-funding-than-expected.aspx</a> <a href="http://azstarnet.com/article_364b021f-9422-5488-8ab6-61d18d0f08ee.html" rel='nofollow'>http://azstarnet.com/article_364b021f-9422-5488-8ab6-61d18d0f08ee.html</a> <a href="http://www.moneyandmarkets.com/the-incredible-shrinking-social-security-fund-42549" rel='nofollow'>http://www.moneyandmarkets.com/the-incredible-shrinking-social-security-fund-42549</a> And now we have added the "affordable care act." That name just leaves me in stitches so to speak.
snoopdog
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 1:07 a.m.
As far as taxes go Joe Kidd, I am with you. If taxes are to rise, they should rise for all. The fact is, the bottom 50% of income earners pay no federal tax at all which is not fair to the rest of us. Good Day
StrongFire
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 11:49 p.m.
Congress may need to be fired, but it is the electorate that votes them into office. We didn't like the way the Republicans were running things, so in 2008 the country overwhelmingly elected a Democrat president and Congress. Two years later, we didn't like the way the Democrats were responding to problems, so we threw them out and brought in a Republican House of Representatives and diminished the Democrats' power in the Senate. The electorate doesn't reward courage. Courage is what is needed to take the hard steps to solve the problems. We need look no further than our own governor and legislature. Did the electorate applaud when, for the first time in many years, the budget was passed months before the end of the fiscal year? No. We had people putting together petitions to recall the governor and legislators. Several years ago, when there were Republicans who courageously went along with a compromise to address Michigan's budget problems by instituting a tax increase; there were people waiting in the wings to recall them or target them for defeat come the next election. Hell, property tax reform didn't take place in this state until a crisis was caused by eliminating school funding and the Legislature was forced to come up with a solution that resulted in Proposal A. The federal stimuli failed and has left us all with a huge bill to pay. I sincerely believe President Obama did what he thought was right. Now we need to clean up the mess with some very difficult decisions. When I lost my job, burned through our savings, and lost any equity in our house; my family had to make some difficult, unpopular, and painful cuts. Congress is going to have to do the same. We should contact our legislators and tell them to have the courage to make the difficult decisions. They need to be told that they will be judged if they were part of the solution or part of the problem. That we will support them despite how difficult the solution may be.
Steven Harper Piziks
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 10:43 p.m.
Of course, the US government is not a company, nor can it be run like one.
Townie
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 9:39 p.m.
Bogie - some facts would be nice instead of comments on your physical condition. Facts are that we gave away a tax cut to the rich ($1.7 trillion...) when we started two wars (paid also on the credit card), then gave the pharmacy companies a windfall with the Part D pharmacy benefit (on cooked numbers - and paid for it at retail prices!). Then we had an economic meltdown after we were assured time and time again there was no 'housing bubble' about to explode while banks became casinos and credit agencies (like S&P) vouched that junk was AAA (while paid by the banks to do so). And we have a deficit? Any surprise? Not here. So let's let the Bush tax cuts expire for one thing and stop throwing money that we don't have a companies for jobs they aren't going to create here.
David Briegel
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 9:26 p.m.
les miserables, you are right that both parties are to blame. Obama has been as centrist a Pres as one might imagine and he has been crucified for that. From the right for not being totally Norquist insane and from the left for caving on most every major issue. Kruschev said that they "would bury us with their goods". He was absolutely correct except that the Russians were like the TeaPublicans and too dogmatic. However, the Chinese found the formula right here in Bentonville Ark and Wall St! Both China and Russia were and still are as corrupt as we are! And we aren't the children but it will be our children who will live under the fascist combination of Wall St and China! And what will America, the bastion of freedom and democracy, do when there is a Chinese Spring? When the Chinese want the very civilization that America in now rejecting???
G. Orwell
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 2:15 a.m.
Obama is not a centist. He is another neo-con. Don't listen to what he says, watch what he does. He just started another war against a soverign nations, Libya, that was never a threat to the U.S. I forgot, Obama does not like to call it a war. It's "kinetic action." Obama's policies are just as or more draconian than Bush/Cheney. Please don't fall for the propanada. Wake up for god sake!
81wolverine
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 9:03 p.m.
Fire Congress? OK, I agree, they haven't done their jobs and have failed the American public. We can all agree on that. But, who will we replace them with? With a broken political process in this country (everyone also agrees on that) all we'll end up with is more of the same after the next election. Until we reform the political process and system of government we have, the kind of dysfunctional behavior we've observed from our so-called leaders will continue. For starters, there has to be massive campaign reform that levels the playing field and prevents incumbents like Obama from spending so much public resources campaigning and raising gargantuan amounts of money. This favors those already in power and the ones that cater to special interests. And there needs to be a cap on the amount any candidate can spend. Next huge problem is to greatly limit the influence and abilities of all lobbying groups, PAC's, special interest groups, etc. in Washington. Right now, it's THEY who possess much of the power and influence in Washington, not you or I. Right now, politicians have more loyalty to their party than their constituents. Their party supports them and helps them get re-elected (job security) - no matter how lousy of a job they do. But, cross the party and they're toast. Until this fundamental problem is solved, you will continue to see the infighting and bickering that is destroying this country's influence in the world (and economy). The days of the great statesmen who served the needs of the people first are over, which is a travesty. Unfortunately, the Tea Party people are not statesmen as they can not compromise and work out a solution. I'm pessimistic about the future of this country because I don't see how the above can be fixed given our corrupted and dysfunctional political system. The very people who would need to spearhead the reforms that are desperately needed would be the ones losing their special privledges. Not likely.
DonBee
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 9:02 p.m.
The funny thing is that people are MAD at CONGRESS, but they LIKE their own CONGRESSMAN. Figure that one out. So long as each congress person pleases their own voters, nothing is going to change. The war between the parties goes back to the Civil War and before, don't believe me, read some history (the history books are 60% off at Borders). Until we have 3 or 4 viable parties that compete for votes, nothing will change. Term limits would help too, but then no one in the Political Class wants either one.
Edward R Murrow's Ghost
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 3:08 p.m.
"The war between the parties goes back to the Civil War and before, don't believe me, read some history" Good advice, but what is happening today is almost unprecedented. The 1790s saw an ugly fight between Republicans (today's Democrats) and Federalists that ended with the collapse of the latter in 1815. The 1830s and 1840s saw an ugly fight between the Democrats and the Whigs that ended with the collapse of the latter in 1854. The political fights of the 1850s WERE NOT between parties but between sections of the country, a fight that led to the death of one party (the Whigs) and the near death of another (the Democrats), not to mention causing the Civil War. In the post Civil War era there is nothing like the political divisiveness we are experiencing now. In 1933 a conservative Republican stood on the HofR floor and supported FDR's emergency banking bill saying "The house is burning down and the president says this is what we need to put out the fire. I am supporting this bill." And that is fairly typical of how DC has responded to crises over the last 150 years--niggle over details, but agreement on the big picture. But what is going on today is different. Republicans have figured out that there is political hay to be made by hurting the American economy (precisely what the Republican legislature did for Granholm's 8 years--and it worked). And so they do. Finally, Madison, et. al., thought the Constitution would prevent the creation of political parties (Read Federalist #10). But, in fact, they created a system that is "winner take all". Such a system rewards two parties--no more. If you want more parties, revise the Constitution and create a parliamentary government. Good Night and Good Luck
DonBee
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 12:36 a.m.
Mr. Briegel - If you go back to President Washington, I think you will find he bought more beer campaigning than any other candidate and the beer was credited with some of his popularity. Money has been in the campaigns for ever. George Soros raised the bar for massive funding in 2004, and both sides raised more money to counter each other ever since. President Obama wants $1 billion dollars in funds for 2012, that is why he started running so early.
1bit
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 12:18 a.m.
David: The idea that 'money is free speech' is a very old one, not a recent invention. This has been argued about in the U.S. for at least 150 years.
David Briegel
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 9:31 p.m.
We have term limits, they are called elections. The problem is the abject corruption of "money is free speech". Until the TeaPublicans reject that lie we are doomed. I do like the multiple parties like a parliamentary system because the sickos MUST compromise! Did you vote for Grover? I sure didn't. Nor did I vote for the Cookie Monster!
Nephilim
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 8:47 p.m.
Probably would be a lot better if everyone that runs for house, senate or presidency didn't have a personal agenda and personal interest in self gain. Long gone are the days when people wanted to get in there to stick up and represent everyone. All you ever hear now is democrat this, republican that, tea party blah blah blah. Reminds of me of a bunch of 6th graders at recess fighting over who's going to play kick ball. I am ashamed of all you! Republicans, Democrats and Tea Partiers. You all will fight amongst yourselves and finger point at each other until we are ALL in total devastation then hold out your hands and see whats in them.... I'm starting a new party. It's called the party of realists and the reality is if we don't ALL unite as one and come together and change this mess, then everyone shut up and watch this train wreck unfold.
Mr Blue
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 7:37 p.m.
If Republican Tea Partiers s say they hate government why do they keep running for office? And if people say they want practical, smart and pragmatic people to be our political leaders, why do they keep voting for people who want to dismantle government? Tea Partiers are conflicted and contradictory which is why there is so much political noise and so little serious discussion.
Mr Blue
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 7:29 p.m.
Tea Partiers are willing to sacrifice the global economy and the livelihoods of middle class Americans in their quest for political purity. Republicans will let the Tea Partiers do whatever they want to make sure President Obama is a one term president even if it means sinking the entire global economy and the middle class. It seems to be working. No wonder people are pissed. Republicans will block anything to sink the middle class and make sure they don't vote for President Obama.
G. Orwell
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 2:12 a.m.
Mr. Blue, I do not think you understand what the true Tea Party stands for. They may not give handouts to the middle class but they want everyone to have an equal opportunity for success. Work hard and you will succeed. Whereas the Democrats and Republicans provide corporate welfare (to bail out corrupt banks and start wars for the military-industrial complex) in the tune of trillions of dollars. All the money that could be used for infrastructure, science, schools, etc. And, if there is money left over, reduce everyone's taxes so they will have money to save and spend as they wish.
Bogie
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 7:10 p.m.
@ Mr. Blue. As far as I'm concerned, the tea party is responsible for 2 trillion dollars of debt ( the amount they signed on for). Why do we not blame the Carl Levins, and John Dingells of our political world. I know Dingell, has to claim all 16 trillion on his watch. Isn't it time to try someone else? @Townie, when is it enough? For years, we have watched more and more of income being returned to washington. You know, I put on a pair of jeans today. I could barely squeeze into them. I thought, I am going to exercise more, and eat less. I guess your answer is for me to get a bigger pair of jeans! (until I'm so obesed, that I have a heart attack and die) @1bit. So, it's a detriment to a politician, to commit to something, and keep their word? WOW! In a world of "mush," it is refreshing to see these tea partiers stand up for what they believe in. I find it hiliarous, how people are in fear of that. If you don't agree, then don't vote for them, but atleast; you know who (what) they are.
1bit
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 12:16 a.m.
Bogie: There is no honor in committing to a point of view, to "keeping your word", when that point of view is shown to be flawed or false. To hobble oneself against changing one's opinion is a character flaw that is not deserving of public office. Your argument is akin to having someone smell spoilt milk - just so they can savor the acridity - and then saying, "Well at least you know it is bad before I throw it out." Yes, I personally avoid voting for those celebrating mediocrity. Yes, I cringe when the thoughts of demagogues and ideologues are given the same credence as those with facts. And no, I won't vote for them. And no, I don't respect them for being wrong. Not every Democrat, Republican or Tea Partier is guilty or worthy of derision. But those who fall in step, acting like lemmings or parrots, are the problem and not the solution. Everyone has an unconstitutional solution to the problem - mine would be to have every candidate run as an independent and not be afflicted by their party status. I wish we'd do this on a local level in Ann Arbor first.
1bit
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 8:07 p.m.
Bogie: You can believe in whatever you want, it doesn't make you right. Anyone, and particularly a politician, who thinks they are so right that they refuse to listen to reason, accept change in their own thoughts or ideas, or compromise with others is no one who deserves elected office. There is a very phony notion that it is honorable to stand by your decision, even when you know are wrong - even if confronted with facts to the contrary. That is not honor, that is idiocy. It is a celebration of mediocrity and small-mindedness. No, not everyone in the Tea Party merits derision and I share many of their spendthrift notions of government and have friends in the Tea Party. However, I see many lemmings and parrots among all political stripes and the Tea Party is part of the problem at this point.
Mr Blue
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 8 p.m.
If you're willing to assign 2 trillion in debt to congressional Tea Partiers then you must also make them take the responsibility for the loss of the US's credit rating and rising interest rates (causing inflation), the latest volatility and drop in the stock market, and the impending double dip recession because they signed silly no tax "contracts" and aren't willing to take a balanced approach to solving our economic crisis, meaning taxes as well as cuts. You must also put the cost of two off the budget book wars directly on George Bush's shoulders. Add the cost to the deficit by giving millionaire's tax cuts (that resulted in the fewest jobs under any president in modern history) and creating a disastrous unfunded trillion dollar donut hole in Medicare. All of this stuff added to the deficit as well. It's not as simple as Republicans and Tea Partiers want us to believe.
G. Orwell
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 6:12 p.m.
What can you expect when both parties and Obama are controlled by the banks and other corporate interests (the military-industrial-MSN-Big Pharma-Insurance-Monsanto-Oil-Complex)? Dems and the Repubs have sold us out. We will see endless Wars while our economy implodes. No wonder the Tea Party is gaining support from the right and the left.
eagleman
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 5:08 a.m.
Peter, have you ever heard of George Soros? You know he is a supporter of Neo-Marxists for Neo-Marxists ends don't you? Peter, you are the same as the Tea Partiers you condemn. The only difference is the means with which you would enslave the populace.
eagleman
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 5:06 a.m.
You mean the corporations that provide many Americans with jobs? You mean the wealthy who pay more half of the income tax? You mean the businesses that provide the jobs--and thus revenue--that pays for the academics and journalists on the Left who revile them? You THOSE businesses? Without corporations we do not have an economy, unless of course you want us to go back 150 years when our economy was based primarily on agriculture and our manufacturing industry was mainly local artisans. Then and only then could you fulfill your fantasy of a communist utopian where all are equal and none are free. ISorry, but your whining about corporations when you support something that is infinitely worse when it comes to the protection of rights--government--is laughable to me.I do not take seriously the complaints of supporters of big government when it comes..well, everything.
Peter
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 2:35 a.m.
You do know that the tea party is funded enormously by the Koch brothers, right? And it exists almost solely to further corporate goals, right?
Townie
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 5:56 p.m.
More empty rhetoric from Tom; restates the obvious. "For the next election, we need to seek more practical, pragmatic, problem solvers at all levels. Leaders who are principled, clear thinkers, who are grounded in fiscal and political realities, and motivated by their love of our country and concern for our collective futures." Well, yes. Once again Tom doesn't follow through. What we need are fact and reality based people who don't rely on ideology or myth ('tax cuts always increase revenues...'). In short supply among the Demos and virtually absent from the Republican party these days. All the Republican presidential candidates have signed on to not raise taxes 1 penny yet the Bush tax cuts are driving a significant part of our deficit and were done on credit ('don't worry the tax cuts will produce so many jobs and provide so much revenue that debt will be paid off easily'). We also need our news media to fact check and not play the old, lazy 'he says, she says' kind of reporting when one person is lying and the other is telling the truth. Really sad that Jon Stewart is the only commentator on TV telling the truth and he's a comedian!
eagleman
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 4:58 a.m.
Jon Stewart is just as bad those you condemn. What we need is cuts to programs and the raising of taxes. Doing one of the two is not enough. There was an article today on Drudge that noted that even if we taxed the wealthy at the rate of 100 percent that still would account for only 12 percent of our debt. To settle our debt it would take expropriating every single cent from those who make $200,000 or more a year. The idea that simply raising taxes is equally as foolish--and dogmatic--as the idea of only cutting programs. We need to do both. Any reasonable mind knows that.
1bit
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 5:48 p.m.
Throw the bums out? We've heard that time and again. That mantra last time gave us the intransigence of the Tea Party and of silly lawmakers who shackle themselves to "pledges" before even taking office. We are the problem, not our politicians, because we are the ones who elected them. I agree that we want practical, pragmatic, problem solvers. Also that we want principled, clear thinkers, grounded in fiscal and political reality. The problem is, that my idea of who that is may very well be the opposite candidate of who you think it is. The problem is that rather than living with the outcome of the last election and working together, candidates plan for the next election and try to re-hash the past one. Ultimately we need to take to heart the adage that united we stand and divided we fall.
Mr Blue
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 7:42 p.m.
AS usual people want someone else to figure it out for them. Indeed scott is an example if the frustrated and disenfranchised voter who hates the entire process. And this is the intent of Republican, to make politics so ugly that everyone hates it and nobody wants to take part. They are perfectly aware that those who are the last to stand will take control of what's left of our political system.
scott
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 6:05 p.m.
The election scapegoat is tired, there is not a good way to fix things for me myself through voting. Figure out another way already.....
Mr Blue
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 5:47 p.m.
Ask yourself what has changed in Congress over the last 2 years that has everyone mad? Two words, TEA and PARTY. So much noise, so little content.
eagleman
Sun, Aug 21, 2011 : 4:52 a.m.
Look where we are at? Um, this country has been a mess for decades. Our current sorry state is not due to Tea Partiers or Obama, but to decades of myopic partisans running this country according to theory. When a person like Paul "I have never ran a business in my life" Krugman and Ron "I am a Medical Doctor" Paul have credibility then you know things are a mess. Liberals and conservatives are believers in failed ideologies. If the history of the past 150 years have shown us anything, it is that countries in the hands of theorists/ideologues and monied oligarchies often fail. We need people who, like Lincoln, are pragmatic, not slaves to ideology. We need leaders who are willing to challenge their own party by enacting policies that do justice for ALL Americans.
David Briegel
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 9:47 p.m.
Come on Goober, Sarah Palin hasn't had a job in 2 years and she has been "partying" the whole time! She dares complain about Obama's vacation and she hasn't worked in years!!
Mr Blue
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 7:33 p.m.
You could not be any further from the truth. The roots of today's "Tea Party" began before the election of President Obama. It came to be a political organization during his first two years and resulted in the election of the Republic an Freshman class. They've been running the show since 2010 and look where we are.
Goober
Sat, Aug 20, 2011 : 6 p.m.
I do not believe that the tea party was around two years ago.