I’m not overly optimistic about the outcome of the government shutdown fight. In part this is because our system of government, based on separation of powers, means it is very difficult to change the status quo.
This system, by the way, generally has been good for the country. It probably helps to explain why the United States has not traveled as rapidly in the wrong direction as other industrialized nations. Simply stated, the left didn’t have easy opportunities to impose bad policies such as a VAT or single-payer government-run healthcare.
But it also means it isn’t easy for supporters of small government to undo expensive policy mistakes such as Obamacare.
But I’m glad some people are trying to do the right thing, even though they not only have to fight Obama, but they also need to overcome a biased media that is serving as an echo chamber for the left’s talking points.
I deal with some of that bias in this interview on Canadian TV. The hosts were very polite and gave me plenty of time to make my points, but all their questions could have been written in the White House communications office.
Here are a few takeaways from that interview.
The fact that Obamacare is the law today does not mean it must be enshrined forever. A lot of folks in the media are regurgitating this White House talking point. I pointed out that the Continuing Resolution also is the law, but maybe I should have pointed out that politicians change the tax code all the time.
As hinted at above, this fight is not a sign of dysfunctional government, but rather is an example of how our Founding Fathers expected Washington to function.
Media bias is covering up angst and division on the Democratic side of the aisle. My Democrat friends on the Hill have told me they are worried about being forced to cast votes in favor of provisions such as the special Obamacare exemption for politicians. But as this Glenn McCoy cartoon implies, the press is pushing the left’s narrative rather than reporting the news.
Republicans won a policy victory as a result of the 1995 shutdown fight and they at least fought to a draw in the 1996 elections.
This is a fight to save America from turning into a bankrupt European-style welfare state. Even if that’s an uphill battle, that’s a fight worth having.
Using the example of corrupt agriculture subsidies, I explain that Obamacare won’t work very well, but that doesn’t mean it won’t lure more people into government dependency.
I like to think I did a decent job in this interview, but now it’s time to confess that this isn’t just a battle against Obama and the media.
If we want to shrink the size and scope of government, we also need to prevail against the lobbyist community. This is especially the case in the shutdown fight.
These excerpts from a Politico article reveal how Washington really works.
Though President Barack Obama often blames special interests and Washington lobbyists for the dysfunction and paralysis that plagues Beltway politics, most of the working K Street — and their clients — would like nothing better than for Congress to start working again on the routine business of drafting, debating and passing legislation. …“When Congress doesn’t do things and when Congress is not productive, people who are trying to influence Congress are not productive,” said Steve Elmendorf, a Democratic lobbyist who was a top adviser to former House Majority Leader Dick Gephardt. …Urban, who was a top staffer to former Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), said the latest fight over spending are throwing a wrench in K Street’s bread and butter work of tweaking legislation and attracting new client business. “The wide variety of client business — interests that come to Washington lobby — is now interrupted,” Urban said about the shutdown. …no major pieces of new legislation have moved since the takeover of the House by the GOP in 2010 —putting a big damper on new business development and existing client work. …”Not that we should be doing policymaking on K Street’s behalf,” Gold added. “But that’s the reality.”
In other words, the parasite class in DC wants “business as usual.” They want the government open so they can strike their backroom deals.
This is a perfect illustration of my “First Theorem of Government.” Washington insiders benefit from activist government. It means more money and power for the political class.
And notice how the lobbyists are complaining about less business ever since the 2010 elections. That’s because fewer laws mean fewer opportunities for graft and redistribution, so lobbyists suffer. Which is why I had to correct a massive typo when USA Today wrote that the Tea Party Congress was “unproductive.”
That “unproductive” Congress, by the way, reduced the burden of federal government spending from more than 24 percent of GDP to about 21.5 percent of economic output.
We should all be hoping that the current Congress is equally “unproductive” and we further shrink the burden of government spending and further curtail opportunities for political corruption.
[…] de facto spending freeze from 2009-2014 (yes, those fights over debt limits, sequestration, and government shutdowns produced a big […]
[…] the GOP gets blamed when there’s an actual shutdown in Washington, and they obviously face unified hostility from the media and various interest groups whenever they hold […]
[…] in October, Obama claimed that the partial government shutdown “inflicted completely unnecessary damage on our economy” and also asserted that, […]
[…] Which explains why I’m glad some lawmakers are still fighting Obamacare, even though they face very difficult odds. […]
I keep hoping for gridlock. Gridlock seems to make for a stable economy- so long as there are not too many existing regulations, and perhaps Obama has taken us over that regulations versus productivity hump. It is possible that the average cost of compliance now exceeds the potential incomes for companies below certain thresholds of employees- thus leading to only bigger companies surviving this holocaust that is Obama.
[…] Which explains why I’m glad some lawmakers are still fighting Obamacare, even though they face very difficult odds. […]
[…] Which explains why I’m glad some lawmakers are still fighting Obamacare, even though they face very difficult odds. […]
the countries of the e.u. are profoundly economically interdependent… if the French and Italian economies collapse… no one.. will have the resources to bail them out… social unrest… sectarian and racial strife will follow.. if the Europeans choose to try and print their way out of chaos… it will bring back the days of the Weimar Republic… indeed… perhaps Europe’s future rests with subsistence agriculture and the growing of organic fruit………..
JB,
France has a huge debt and is surely headed for disaster. Holland and Belgium do better, but they are small countries, different factors come into play. Germany is very dependent on a few export industries and has an uncompetitive economy. All of them have massive welfare systems that hurt their economies.
While healthy eating is important, your completely misplaced inserion of green energy proves my theory: leftists don’t think logically, rather in feel good/feel bad mode. When writing about healthy eating – good – green energy is also mentioned – because it’s also good. Green energy has nothing to do with food, but that’s logic, and it’s useless.
[…] Obama Administration has shown zero willingness to negotiate, even though Republicans have made a series of offers to resolve the […]
I can’t say I believe you. European bankrupt welfare state is a lie. The only bancrupted states in Europe are Portugal, Ireland, Spain, partly Italy, and Greece. And Ireland as an only state from the northern part of Europe was well known for its laissez-faire policies.
They have nothing to do with the original welfare states. And taking into account the situation in US, where people live without being able to pay their health bills, I would not say US went in the good direction. Germany, France, Holand, or Belgium are still in a good shape and highly competitive. Some of them have already a 4 day long working week. So please don’t talk about Europe as a single bancrupted unit.
I don’t like Obamacare, because it is too politicized and does not focus on the persistent problems of the American healthcare. Increased costs of the health service and the possibility that it will be canceled by the next government make it a fragile agreement.
We all know the problem is more in our culture of consumption. People are drinking Coca-Cola instead of water, eat hamburgers everyday and don’t know anything about cooking. This culture has serious impact on our health. And even the most advanced healthcare system would not save us. Go to Europe and you will see campaigns focused on healthy lifestyle. Europeans are much more aware about the consequences of bad eating habits. In that sense, we are still twenty years behind. We need more green energy (as it is constantly promoted in Germany). Our food culture should teach people about the health benefits of eating raw fruits and veggies, for example by introducing more fresh fruit farms, focused on local production of foods.
Obamacare is focusing on symptoms, and its impact will be poor. We need to think about focusing on the causes. And it will help us lower healthcare costs for everyone while maintaing high standard for those who really need it.
There is good reason to be optimistic about the alleged “shutdown” during which a few government employees have been furloughed. As during the other alleged shutdown, the world continues to turn. The sun rises. The rains fall. Fruits and vegetables make their way to market.
The lesson won’t be lost on people who let theirselves imagine a world without the imperial government bequeathed by Washington, Hamilton, and the others.
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Let’s replace the 2nd amendment:
Free and independent Militias,
being useful to the Security of the free Individual and
to Safeguarding Arms and other property kept by lawful Individuals,
shall not be infringed.
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