I have a Modest Proposal that should make everyone happy:
Any State that has two Republican senators shall get their tax cuts. And no stimulus spending. In fact, we can stop sending them net federal money completely.
They voted their leaders. Let them have the courage of their convictions. If tax cuts are what it takes to bring economic nirvana, give it to them. Their states' citizens, awash in unprecedented prosperity, will surely reward their wisdom.
Here's how...
It shouldn't be hard. Issue South Carolina with tax tables that whack a couple of points off the top two bands. Abolish the death tax in Mississippi. Cut payroll taxes in Florida, where nobody cares about Social Security. Let the Texas senators lean on their governor to cut state income, sales, and property taxes, just to show how well it works. Let the recovery begin!
Here's the deal, though. There should be no net transfer of federal money. Sure, most red states have gotten more from Washington than they have remitted, but, after all, that's spending. No, it's pork.
We blue states could do with ending the subsidy. Enjoy, Utah. So long, Wyoming.
So there you have it. All those Republican senators who voted for the tax-cut-only bill, go back to your home states and prove that it works. If you're right, you'll be hailed as heroes, and the rest of us will only get our just desserts.
Sorry, Maine.
Probably the worst thing ever to happen to the US was winning the Civil War.