Forgetting Nothing, Learning Nothing, GOP-Style
Of course, it’s not the level of spending that gets the most attention; it’s the manner in which the spending is allocated. The proliferation of earmarks is largely a product of the Gingrich-DeLay years, and it’s no surprise that some of the most ardent practitioners were earmarked by the voters for retirement yesterday. Few Americans will take seriously Republican speeches on limited government if we Republicans can’t wean ourselves from this insidious practice. But if we can go clean, it will offer a stark contrast to the Democrats, who, after two years in training, already have their own earmark favor factory running at full tilt. ~Rep. Jeff Flake
The frustrating thing about this earmark obsession is that Flake is reliably right on spending and I have nothing particularly against Flake, and I understand the impulse to give one’s own priorities more attention when talking about what needs to be done, but how on earth can you come away from the last two consecutive electoral defeats for the GOP and conclude that earmarks and spending are the main problems? In fairness to Flake, that’s not the entirety of his argument (he gives a nod to rolling back intervention in the financial sector), but glaringly absent is any mention of foreign affairs or national security, immigration policy or trade policy. It’s not that Flake has taken a mistaken position on any of them–they are simply not included in the discussion. It is as if the last two years never happened and Republicans are still confident, just as they were in 2006, that ”excessive and wasteful spending” did them in.
5 Responses to “Forgetting Nothing, Learning Nothing, GOP-Style”
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Daniel:
Mr. Flake is a good friend to our side, but he is not known for the breadth of his vision, is he?
Well, he is what he is. He’ll not change. We are rather better off having him in Congress than out of it, I think. Count me as unreservedly pro-Flake.
But I am not sure that we need fifty more Congressmen just like him.
Howard
Considering that earmarks are generally trivial in comparison to the entire budget, it is making a mountain out of a molehill.
Yes, we can do better and should do better about spending, and we need to evaluate earmarks carefully for their intrinsic worth. But centering around earmarks when you have concerns about healthcare, job creation and stimulation of the economy, as well as ending the Iraq war… priorities, people. The title of this entry is classic. You’re on fire, Daniel.
Indya and Daniel:
Indya wrote,
The title of this entry is classic. You’re on fire, Daniel.
Would you believe it? Having learned that pretty much all of Daniel’s articles are worth reading, I had actually gone straight to the text without bothering to glance at the title. Now I see it. Indya is right.
The title is rightly a chapter title for that book Daniel is secretly writing.
Howard
‘(he gives a nod to rolling back intervention in the financial sector)’
And only a nod. Then he spends oxygen rattling about irrelevant issues just like a good politician.
You want them to address what you see as the real problems in the GOP but you forget they blaze their own reality. They choose what issues are important to you and they address those. You’re job is to write that down and study it. Right now the reality they are ‘tuning’ is that everything that is wrong is the fault of the democrats. It’s not new but it works. Actually solving the problems is of course out of the question. Best to just scream socialist and hope the proles pull the lever with an R next to it next time.
I don’t think people vote out earmark spenders because, as my visiting Alaskan friend told me, “she’s done so much for us! we have a Target, a new Walmart – tons of new stuff and it’s a small town!” Also, look at how Ted Stevens is getting re-elected. Earmarking isn’t earmarking when it’s YOUR earmarking.