I don’t have strong feelings about Sarah Palin, but I like her anti-establishment attitude.
And, in a case of strange bedfellows, so does the New York Times. Or at least one columnist is honest enough to admit when she makes a compelling argument.
Here’s an excerpt from a column published yesterday, in which the author reports on how Gov. Palin perfectly captures the reprehensible corruption that defines business-as-usual in Washington.
Along with her familiar and predictable swipes at President Barack Obama and the “far left,” she delivered a devastating indictment of the entire U.S. political establishment — left, right and center — and pointed toward a way of transcending the presently unbridgeable political divide. …She made three interlocking points. First, that the United States is now governed by a “permanent political class,” drawn from both parties, that is increasingly cut off from the concerns of regular people. Second, that these Republicans and Democrats have allied with big business to mutual advantage to create what she called “corporate crony capitalism.” Third, that the real political divide in the United States may no longer be between friends and foes of Big Government, but between friends and foes of vast, remote, unaccountable institutions (both public and private). In supporting her first point, about the permanent political class, she attacked both parties’ tendency to talk of spending cuts while spending more and more; to stoke public anxiety about a credit downgrade, but take a vacation anyway; to arrive in Washington of modest means and then somehow ride the gravy train to fabulous wealth. She observed that 7 of the 10 wealthiest counties in the United States happen to be suburbs of the nation’s capital. …Ms. Palin’s third point was more striking still: in contrast to the sweeping paeans to capitalism and the free market delivered by the Republican presidential candidates whose ranks she has yet to join, she sought to make a distinction between good capitalists and bad ones. The good ones, in her telling, are those small businesses that take risks and sink and swim in the churning market; the bad ones are well-connected megacorporations that live off bailouts, dodge taxes and profit terrifically while creating no jobs. …“This is not the capitalism of free men and free markets, of innovation and hard work and ethics, of sacrifice and of risk,” she said of the crony variety. She added: “It’s the collusion of big government and big business and big finance to the detriment of all the rest — to the little guys. It’s a slap in the face to our small business owners — the true entrepreneurs, the job creators accounting for 70 percent of the jobs in America.”
Think about the recent controversy about Solyndra, the “green” company that got lots of handouts from the Obama Administration and recently filed for bankruptcy (and got raided by the FBI).
Not that anyone should be surprised, but the money people at the company were big financial backers of Obama.
Let’s be blunt about what happened. They bribed the White House (not in a way that violates the law, we must assume, but does anybody doubt that’s what was happening?). In exchange, the Obama Administration used the coercive power of government to steer undeserved money to the corrupt company.
And we’re not talking about a couple of million dollars. We’re talking about more than one-half of one billion dollars. That’s $535,000,000.00.
And this is presumably just one example of what probably happens dozens of times every day in Washington.
But let me make one thing clear. I don’t think the Obama Administration is an outlier. The same thing happened every day, in all likelihood, during the Bush Administration. And in previous administrations.
Heck, this is almost certainly what happens in state capitals and city governments, and I doubt that it makes much difference what party is in charge.
Indeed, Republicans are probably even worse than Democrats.
The only way to control the festering sleaze is to make government smaller, as I explain in this video.
As I’ve explained before, I hate when rich people use big government to screw poor people.
Say what you want about Palin good or bad.Palins hit a nerve that’s being on the tip of everyones tongue out here ever since I can remember.How politicians help payback those who pay them through campaign donations.No cash no political help for you,or your buisness,no government contracts,or tax loopholes.It’s being an unfair situation and it stinks.I like her solution 0% federal corporate tax in exchange for no bailouts,no subsidies,no legislative loopholes,or waivers from laws.I bet it’s a wash if you add up the taxes collected,versus the funds spent and given in handouts.What it really does is level the playing field for everyone in buisness.It helps make politicians once again servents of the public,not the corporations.I like this idea,why isn’t it front and center and a major campaign issue?It scares the heck out of these corrupt politicians.Imagine they might actually have to have good ideas to get donations.Not just have lots of rich buddies looking for political favours.
[…] Second, lobbyists, contractors, and interest groups have figured out how to get lucrative positions at the federal trough. […]
[…] Bureaucrats are paid too much, getting twice as much compensation, on average, as people in the productive sector of the economy, and lobbyists, contractors, and interest groups have figured out how to get lucrative positions at the federal trough. […]
[…] Second, lobbyists, contractors, and interest groups have figured out how to get lucrative positions at the federal trough. […]
[…] The earmark is still there. Money is still being wasted. Delahunt is still a lobbyist. Government is still too big. And corruption is still rampant. […]
[…] The earmark is still there. Money is still being wasted. Delahunt is still a lobbyist. Government is still too big. And corruption is still rampant. […]
[…] the culture of legal corruption in Washington is so pervasive that even the New York Times had to give credit to Sarah Palin for making it an […]
http://thespeechatimeforchoosing.wordpress.com/2011/09/14/how-governor-palin-reformed-alaskas-ethics-laws-and-made-crony-capitalism-a-crime/
American Thinker Article – The Democrat’s 2012 Victory Plan
She’s the only candidate I know of who has put members of her own party in orange jumpsuits. That’ll do it for me.
Run, Sarah, run!
Sarah Palin –
“So, this is why we must remember that the challenge is not simply to replace Obama in 2012. The real challenge is who and what we will replace him with. It’s not enough to just change up the uniform. If we don’t change the team and the game plan, we won’t save our country..”
Sarah keeps getting better and better. It would indeed be a pleasure to vote for her.
Now i know why the political elites are afraid of this lady… she is the only one among the GOP contenders who has the spine to say what others cannot. She is indeed brilliant and smart.
Sarah Palin 2012
She has fought against the crony capitalism, she has won and she has seen the improvements brought about by bringing strong ethics reform to Alaska. Unfortunately, she has also suffered greatly by reform that did not also hold those responsible for bringing frivolous lawsuits against lawmakers, but that has since been corrected.
She has good governing ideas and she is willing to point out the flaws, not only in her opposition and his party, but in her party as well. We desperately need someone to force this kind of honesty, this adult type conversation, with the American voter or we risk losing our country to the takers…Whether they be our citizens or our big businesses or our establishment political parties.
Sarah Palin is the only politician on the national stage right now with a record of defeating the sort of crony capitalism that lies at the heart of much of what ills us as a nation. I really hope she throws her hat in the ring!
Where are the other Republican candidates? What are their thoughts? Have you heard them lately? I am impressed of the ideas of Ms. Palin. I might consider her, if she runs.
Sarah Palin has the most impressive record among the GOP contenders. Hope she will run, i will surely support and vote for her.
Impressive content for the New York Times!
All consistent with America’s Europeanization…
The American right is converging to the ideas of the statist European right, the left is converging to the inherently statist ideas of the European left – and both continents are in the deadly embrace of decline.
The core issue is the (albeit partial) awakening of 3 billion emerging world people from the stupor of zero incentives to produce into a position where competition with the west is now possible – a challenge to which the west, at its very core, is reacting to in textbook suicidal fashion — by shooting itself in the foot – by reneging the very principles of individualism that propelled western civilization to the top in the first place.
So prepare yourselves for a very different world – because a world where the average BRIC country citizen produces merely ½ of what his western counterpart produces, is a world where America and Europe have been relegated to being minor players.
And since the Sep 11 anniversary is coming up, the irony is corrosive: Sep 11 was the catalyst that propelled American collectivism to majoritarian status and set the country into the irreversible vortex of decline. More Hope N Change are on the way from both left and right. The terrorists win, 2008 was the decisive election year where Americans crossed the event horizon – the year of the Mitchell Law – the year where Americans elected Obama to correct Bush’s mistakes..
Sarah Palin, in her rise to Alaska governor, is well-versed in taking on crony capitalism and winning.