Good intentions, Bad results

There was a post on Yahoo! News asking the question: Has Obama kept all of his campaign promises? In the article it discusses various things that the Obama Administration has accomplished and what it hasn't. While candidates should be held accountable for what they promise on the campaign trail, this is also a perfect opportunity to change the tone of the entire debate.

Ever since FDR passed the New Deal in the 1930's, Americans have expected their politicians to do everything from getting them a job to helping them keep their homes. And while some of the expectations of the American public are reasonable (safe streets, competent schools, passable roads), the Obama Administration has taught us that putting all of your faith in the government often leads to disappointment.

Government is limited by political pressures from all angles. Everyone from senior citizens in Florida, to multi-billion dollar corporations want a piece of the government pie. And while politicians of both stripes continue to promise more and more to their constituents, we have found that government is capable of accomplishing less and less. With the exception of the Lame Duck session, Congress could hardly agree on any solid legislative goals, with Democrats in the House passing whatever they wanted, and Republicans in the Senate keeping anything that didn't have an (R) by the author's name from even being considered for a vote. Meanwhile, the American public grew more and more frustrated with the way that Congress was conducting business and decided to elect a new party into power in the House and even the score in the Senate. This, of course, came after they did the same thing in 2008. And in 2006. And in 2004.

See the pattern starting to develop? It is the same story every year. Democrats and Republicans both promise to do amazing things to their constituents, who are so burdened by debt, foreclosures, and feeding their families that they believe that government can help make their lives better. And when that party comes to power in Washington, it does start to accomplish some goals, only to have those accomplishments reversed when the other party comes to power on a wave of fear-mongering and doomsday language. So, the party that was just ousted decides that if the other party can win by doing that, then they will too. Pretty soon, both parties are hell-bent on reversing each-other's agenda, without any clear motive of helping the American Public.

The moral of the story? It is quite simple, government does not solve problems. Especially when you have a free and open democracy/republic. As more and more people ask whether Obama has kept all of his promises or not, they should really be asking whether continued faith in the government is worth it or not. And hopefully they realize that the time to shrink government and open up free markets is here. When solutions are finally able to escape the vicious cycle that has engulfed Washington politics, the American Public will finally have the relief that they have looked for the entire time.

Two Sides of the Same Coin

Someone commented on my posts and said that for a Libertarian, I seem to only target Republicans and not Democrats. They are partially correct, in that I target Republicans more often than Democrats, but this is the reason why. Democrats are the party of Big Government. They say so in their platform and don't shy away from it in their campaigns or literature. They believe in Big Government principles, and while I definitely do not share those principles with them, I respect the Democrats for at least honestly representing what they stand for to the American public.

The Republicans, however, are not that forward with what they actually stand for. If someone was to actually read their platform, or the infamous "Pledge to America", it would sound quite similar to Libertarian ideals. They claim to stand for smaller government, lower laxes, lower spending, less regulation, etc..... However, their actions do not match their words. In the new legislative rules that govern the House, the Republican majority passed regulations that essentially equaled to stricter Pay-As-You-Go rules, which force new House bills to secure funding before they are legally allowed to be passed. The new rules require that major entitlement bills can only be established with cuts or elimination of other entitlements. It also forbids a bill being passed that increases federal spending in one, five, or ten year windows. While that may sound like a good Small Government bill to pass, the exceptions listed in the bill make it a whole new ball game.

They allowed extending the Bush tax cuts, repealing the Health Care bill, cutting estate, small business, alternative minimum taxes, and trade agreements to be exempted from the new rules. Essentially, they have successfully exempted their entire legislative agenda from being tied down, while at the same time trying to gain political points for "battling the deficit and debt". They are telling the American people that they can sneak by them without any fear of consequence or repercussion.

What is even worse is that they have completely ignored the group that is qualified to accurately predict the financial impact of a bill, the CBO. The CBO, or Congressional Budget Office, is a non-partisan organization that reads legislation passed or considered in Congress and determines the financial implications of enacting that bill into law. They sent Speaker Boehner a letter that told him repealing the health care bill would add billions of dollars to the deficit over the next ten years. His response: "I don't think it will". Completely disregarding the most qualified experts in budget analysis by any member of any party is irresponsible. He refuses to acknowledge, or simply doesn't care about, the potential consequences to repealing that bill. Boehner honestly feels as though he knows better than the people who make it their career to accurately predict these things without bias or opinion drawn in.

The Republican Party is my main target of attack for this reason: they are a wolf in sheep's clothing. They have said time and again that they stand for reducing the deficit and battling the debt, all while recklessly increasing military spending and cutting taxes (which is how the government/military gets its money) and exempting themselves from rules that would otherwise battle a serious problem facing America today. Big Government policies are not the way to achieve stability and growth over the long term. And while Democrats push for these policies, they do so out of conviction and do not hide from that fact. It is time for Republicans to finally man-up and do the same. From the USA PATRIOT ACT, to the Cut-As-You-Go rules, the Republican Party doesn't stand for smaller government and more freedom. It is just the other side of the Big Government coin, and it is time that it is taken out of circulation.

All I Want for Christmas Is A Financial Collapse

Well, Christmas is behind us and it is back to work for Congress and the political community. While everyone is gearing up for what looks like one of the most explosive sessions in Congressional history, I feel a need to take a look back into what has transpired in the Lame-Duck session.

While Republicans in Congress threatened not to allow any work to be accomplished unless their agenda was passed, that attitude quickly changed as they worked toward comprehensive changes to American policy. Don't Ask Don't Tell, the controversial policy that banned Gay and Lesbian individuals from serving in the military, was repealed with sweeping Bi-Partisan support. Also enjoying Bi-Partisan support was the START Treaty, which created a new weapons deal with Russia, despite the continual objections by Republican Senator John Kyl of Arizona. Jobless benefits were extended for the long-term unemployed, giving people much needed cash during the Christmas season. Finally, 9-11 rescue workers will finally feel no need to worry about healthcare benefits, after Jon Stewart helped to fan anger over the bill's blockage by Republicans in Congress.

While all of these things were moves in a positive direction, there was one thing in particular that was a move in the other way. The Republicans in Congress threatened to block two key pieces of legislation, the 9-11 worker's bill and the Jobless benefits extension, because they would add to the deficit. The Republicans claimed that though they felt bad for both those groups, they could not justify passing those benefits until the National Debt and Budget Deficit is brought under control. That excuse would be understandable if they did not threaten to shut down the legislative process for extension of the Bush-era Tax Cuts.

Now for those that do not know, President George W. Bush, in an effort to spark the economy after the dot-com crash, cut the tax rates for all tax brackets. While they had temporary economic and political benefits, the worth of the tax cuts was negated by the upcoming wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Those two wars boosted government spending to heights not seen since World War II. With the government's income being reduced by the tax cuts just put into place, the deficit ballooned to levels not thought possible. Republicans that are serious about deficit reduction should shutter at any mention of putting these irresponsible tax cuts back into place. It is wrong for the country and wrong for its citizens.

Republicans in Congress used the guise of cutting taxes to gain cheap political points. They claim to want to fight the Debt and Deficit, the two poisons that are killing America's future. However, they seem to pick and choose which projects they want to fight and let pass. What they don't tell the public is that those tax cuts that sound so good to the people actually counter what the Republicans claim to stand for. While the cuts put more money into the pockets of Americans, they also cut the government's income without significantly cutting the government's spending. These cuts are irresponsible and will add to the significant budget deficit that continues to grow.

Ultimately, if the Republicans are going to continue to claim that they are fighting for fiscal responsibility, it is time for their actions to match their words.