Maybe this is just me ranting a bit, but after watching the republicans talk for weeks about not rushing economic recovery legislation through and then hearing them yesterday after the dow went up nealry 500 points talking about "Why didn't the administration get the recovery plans out sooner." I just wanted to scream....
Lately there has been much debate from high profile members of the republican party including personalities such as Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, as well as ultra-conservative members of congress like John Boehner over the Presidents policies and actions for stimulating the economy. We have heard every argument from earmarks to fiscal responsibility to making America a socialist nation. We have heard about tax increases and nationalizing the banking industry. In short, we have heard nothing but stall tactics, scare-mongering, and " NO " from almost every Republican member of both houses of Congress and every "entertainer" of the far right.
The strategy of the right has become increasingly clear. Delay, stall, delay some more. If that doesn't work, scare tactics. Do anything to drag out any legislation that the new administration and the new Democrat majority try to pass for the nations economic recovery, and then blame them when it gets worse. Never mind the damage, full speed nowhere. These tactics are designed to weaken policy that may help the American economy and the American people, in the hopes of winning seats back in the congressional mid-term elections in 2010.
As a nation we heard for a decade how everything would be rosey and bright if only the government stayed out of American business interests and did not have a "stranglehold" via regulation and oversight on corperate america and wall street. Well for 8 long years the Neo-Conservatives held control of the White House and for 6 of those years held control of Congress. Banks, mega-corporations, and the oil industry where given pretty much free-reign in what they did and how they did it. After eight years we have an unemployment rate of 8.1 % with an adjusted rate ( counting workers who's unemployment benefits have run out, have given up on finding a job that doesn't exist, or working for a fraction of their former earnings at a part time job ) of around 12.5 %. That's over 36 million Americans thrown out of work on the Republicans watch.
The damage done by almost a decade of no oversight and no regulation has not even peaked yet. Most economists forecast the worst of it later this year. Some forcast an unemployment rate of 14 % and that as many as 17.5% of American families will have to declare bankruptcy by the end of 2010.
Republicans are banking on this. They see it as their only chance to get out of the electoral dog house anytime soon. Already we hear comments from FOX News Bill O'Rielly on how the stimulus package has done nothing yet. That the economy is getting worse by the day even though President Obama has been in office for 9 weeks now. It took nearly a decade for us to get into this mess, I find it difficult to see us getting ourselves out of it anytime soon, no matter how fast the recovery policies are put into place.
Another favorite argument is "Pork" in the bill, even though 40% of the "pork" was put into the bill by Republican members of congress. Also, the total so-called "pork" consists of less than 1.4% of the total cost of the stimulus package. Then there's the "Fiscal Responsibility" gripe by many in the neo-con ranks. Lets see..... tax cuts for the wealthiest among us, loans from China, $12,000,000,000.00 a month in Iraq ( for over 6 years ), no-bid contracts given to V.P. Cheney's Company ( Haliburton), and over a trillion dollar deficit waiting for the new President the second he takes office..... and these clowns want to whine about fiscal responsibility.
I hope people see the Republican stance of " No" for what it is, partisan politics with the future of the economy and the American People in the balance.