The 1% Deal

John Boehner is emblematic of Washington's culture.  Yes, the government shutdown averting deal on Friday does represent the "largest spending cut since World War II," but we've also had the largest run-up in spending in the last two years in our nation's history:

Soo, call me crazy, but 1% just seems a little paltry - if it was a sandwich, we got one piece of stale bread.  A celebrating Republican caucus acted like they got the 2 lb. turkey rueben from Noshville.  Besides, when you have the upper hand in a negotiation, why give in?  The upper hand?  Yes.  For Obama, the non-stop campaign has moved to a new level.  He's officially running for re-election, don't you know, and he has to appear "moderate" and "level headed."  He's not that crazy kid that said "we won," to the Republicans a mere two years ago - he's Mister Congenial!  He has a problem and he knows it - Boehner's people should know it too; it looks like this:

You don't get to send your wife and kids to Spain and Rio courtesy of the U.S. taxpayer for another four years with numbers like this.  So he has to claim wins on the moderate side where he can.  I suspect Boehner's biggest fear was that the shutdown, regardless of who caused it, would be blamed on him.  He  is not a fire-breathing revolutionary like Newt was in 1995.  But this is where he is emblematic of Washington: he doesn't trust the people!  The American people look at our first chart above and they worry about their children.  I have been in more than one social discussion with peers who are concerned that they are not going to turn over a country worth keeping to their own children - the upcoming generation will be the first in American history that will not come into its own in a better position than their parents.

Boehner should have realized the panic on the Democrat side - they pulled out all the usual memes about "cat food for Grandma" and "no breast exams for our daughters."  (Planned Parenthood is to breast exams as the U.S. Navy is to resort hotels.) It's a shame, really.  The budget proposal recently presented by Paul Ryan marks such a bold and dramatic departure from business as usual, that you hate to see it go right back to business-as-usual in such a short span of time.

There is a silver lining in this gloomy cloud.  The discussion has shifted away from "how can we increase the budget to provide goodies for my district" to "how much can we cut?"  If they can maintain that philosophic anthem and force the Liberals to walk the plank on every pet project, program, department, agency and sclerotic bureaucracy, much will have been gained.  If every new proposal that comes to the floor of the House has a cost/benefit analysis attached to it...a REAL cost/benefit, not some smarmy feel good "surely you wouldn't want to kill panda bears" nonsense...this might have been worth it.

The good news is that Obama, as early as this Wednesday, may yet give Boehner and the boys another opening.  My guess is that his little "talk" on budget and spending cuts will include the usual line that goes something like "if we have to sacrifice with spending cuts, the least we can do - let me be perfectly clear - is force those who have the most to sacrifice a little too and take away tax cuts for the wealthy."  If our silver-tonged telepromptesident pulls that rabbit out of his hat, it should put some juldee back into the Conservatives' step.  Ryan's proposed 25% caps on corporate and personal taxes are a breath of fresh air and demonstrate that at least one side understands how to create jobs and get the economy moving again.  Let the battle be joined here and let not Conservative hearts be timid.

In the end, this was a step forward, but it was a very tiny, tiny step at a time that we need strides.

Open Government?

So BO promised us the most open and ethical government in history...don't they all? Now the Bamster refuses to release the reality of the state of the budget until after O'Care gets passed. Gateway Pundit has got the details over here.

Oink Oink

Freshman year at the dear old Alma Mater had the custom of the reading of the "Pig Book." This was the book that featured pictures of all the Freshmen so you could get to know one another better. The real purpose it served, however, was to give post-pubescent boys an opportunity to identify potential dates. Now there's a much better version of the Pig Book - the one that outlines the horrifying waste being committed by our Politicians - there's even an index by state! Rumbler was happy to see his dear old Tennessee in the lower 30's in this category. The good folks over at Citizens Against Waste sponsor this information but it should be the responsibility of every American citizen to read this information and complain loudly to their officials...because somewhere between Alaska and Arizona, it has to stop...but say, that $1.9 Million for the "Pleasure Beach Water Taxi" up in Connecticut!

Budget Bashing at Brookings?

Holy Cow! Even the Brookings Institute says the budget is a clunker and O's "cuts" are a "drop in the bucket"...I guess you can't call yourself an "Institute" if you simply read the White House talking points. Not to worry, O, the Dems in Congress have you covered!

Why I am Worried...

What do you call someone who campaigns on the notion that the sitting President is irresponsible in piling up budget deficits "as far as the eye can see," who then produces a budget that makes a graph look like one of those Soviet era posters?
You know the kind - tank factories making more and more tanks and larger ones too!

Well, the word that comes to mind for me is "liar." There is no rhyme or reason for this in rational economics. It only makes sense if there is an ideology being fulfilled. We have studied the soup of communism and anti-Americanism that BHO was raised in. Perhaps he is just fulfilling his mission?