Republicans in Congress are successfully leveraging the AIG crisis to critique and oppose Obama’s budget. Let’s remember that it was the Bush administration and Republican Congress of last session who gave the bailout to AIG (curious, some were allowed to fail, some were given bailouts) and DID NOT cancel the obscene bonuses as a condition of the bailout. This has been a stipulation in bailouts since then, and they could have chosen to do so. Must notta occurred to ‘em.
The unions are always asked to renegotiate their contracts in the best interests of all concerned; but when it’s the “talent” at the top, suddenly everyone’s invoking the rule of law.
I am a Democrat, but on the day after Sept. 11, 2001, I wanted nothing more than for the Bush administration to succeed. I was behind it. Though I disagree ideologically with Republicans, I had to go on faith that they would have the wisdom to respond effectively. And I was devastated as anyone to see, over the course of the next 7 years, every bit of this good will and political capital squandered. Massive incompetence, embarrassing flouting of the rule of law, blatant corruption, spectacular abuses of executive power and the obvious precedence of self interest over the interests of the people took away the Republican Party’s right to run this country. The people took it away officially on Nov. 4th, 2008. Now we all have to live with what the Democrats and Obama are going to try and do to get us out of this mess.
I don’t know how successful they’re going to be. I won’t claim that anything the Obama administration has done so far is perfect. I am saddened by the prevalence of “Clinton Democrats” because I don’t really think they’re agents for change. As far as the stimulus package is concerned, I’m sure it has many problems. However, I agree with the green initiatives and have high hopes that they will begin to undo the environmental damage done by the Bush administration, and create jobs in the process. I also agree with the general theory that a prosperous middle class stimulates the economy from the bottom up, so don’t even mention tax cuts to me as the “Only” stimulus there is.
This is how the Democratic Party differs from the Republican Party. It has always promoted dissension, and never really held loyalty up as much of a value — certainly not above truth. Because of this, the Democratic Party usually destroys itself. So don’t worry. You’ll have your government back in time. Also because of this I will never claim that my party does no wrong or is not corrupt — as the Far Right staunchly did no matter what kind of conduct came out of the Bush White House. When a member of my party — Rod Blagojevich, Roland Burris — stinks of corruption I’m going to be the loudest critic, because what I care about is the truth.
What I will not tolerate is a faction of the public rooting for and working for the current administration’s failure. Why? What can possibly be the benefit of them failing to anyone in the United States? What possibly was the benefit to anyone of the Bush administration failing miserably in Iraq? For the 8 years of the Bush administration I refrained from initiating arguments with conservatives which I knew could not be decided because of ideological entrenchment — no matter how hard it was to resist sniping. The Republican Party had their chance to run things and has lost it through their own doing. It’s not in anybody’s interest, except the bruised egos of the Far Right, to work for the failure of the Democratic Party this time around.
So, perhaps think twice before you send out your poisonous vitriole — or at least before sending it to me.
What a moron. The rush to judgment already happened, when the Democratic Congress wanted to avoid recrimination from the Black community and others who were behind Burris, because of his legacy, and hurriedly backed off from calls to refuse a seat to anyone appointed by Blagojevich. The rush to judgment was in Burris’ favor. It’s the slow, careful consideration of the facts that’s going to destroy him. What kind of a man trades a legacy like Burris has for this? He’s destroyed his own credibility, and it’s a greedy waste.
President Obama's First Day In Office
Obama to Close Foreign Prisons and Guantanamo
Scientists Satisfied With New Administration
I have just heard so little of it, at first I didn’t recognize it.
Goodbye! Good Riddance!
The tax cut silver bullet is a myth. Constant promotion of tax cuts as the cure for everything since 1980 has not avoided this economic disaster; it won’t get us out of it. It’s time to try something different, something the opposite, something that has nothing to do with the short term, tunnel vision interests of industries who can afford to pay lobbyists. It’s time to try something that can solve two problems at once for the people you in Congress really have to answer to, the voters. The future of our planet and infrastructure on the one hand and the laid off workers on the other can be brought together in one public works solution. DO IT. We demand it, or you are out of office.
– Me, signing the MoveOn.org petition. To add your name, http://pol.moveon.org/economy/o.pl?id=15353-4593819-qbLMmYx&t=3
At least Governor Ryan had some redeeming qualities (re. the moratorium on the death penalty, though you start to wonder if these politicians have self interest at heart when they start talking of the commutation of sentences of others.) And at least he and Richard Nixon seemed tragically flawed, rather than pure evil.
The Guv is not flawed, he’s all bad. He’s crass, self-serving and stupid. The only way his harebrained policy ideas throughout the last 6 years can begin to make sense is when perceived as fronts and red herrings for ever more preposterous self-enrichment schemes. And on top of all that, he’s embarrassingly goofy.
Illinois was looking pretty good for a minute there, now it’s embarrassed again. But never fear, for there’s the silver lining of Pat:
At a news conference, Patrick Fitzgerald, the prosecutor, said that Mr. Blagojevich had gone on a “political corruption crime spree,” and that his actions had “taken us to a truly new low.”
“The conduct would make Lincoln roll over in his grave,” Mr. Fitzgerald said.
From the Prosecuter’s Brief:
The Chicago Tribune had not been kind to Governor Blagojevich, had written editorials that called for his impeachment. And Governor Blagojevich … schemed to send a message to the Chicago Tribune that if the Tribune Company wanted to sell its ballfield, Wrigley Field, in order to complete a business venture, the price of doing so was to fire certain editors, including one editor by name.
In the governor words, quote, “Fire all those bleeping people. Get them the bleep out of there. And get us some editorial support,” close quote. And the bleeps are not really bleeps.
U.S. Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald – my hero!
Just don’t turn out to be Eliot Spitzer, okay?
