How could it happen? How could all the promises about Hope and Change get buried in the dust of politics-as-usual so quickly? Is it really impossible for our political leaders to do anything without covering it in political chicanery and ethical lapses. Can’t we stimulate the economy without a christmas tree bill that shovels money at every liberal special-interest gropup in the nation?
My answer is: What do you expect when the government is handing out $5.5 trillion a year in goodies? Here’s the gory details from usgovernmentspending.com.
United States Federal
State and Local Government Spending
Fiscal Year 2009
Amounts in $ billion
Pensions: $891.1
Health Care: $958.2
Education: $873.7
Defense: $806.1
Welfare: $467.7
Protection: $325.0
Transportation: $247.8
General Government: $193.3
Other Spending: $403.6
Interest: $361.7
Balance: $24.3
Total Spending: $5,552.4
Gross Public Debt: $12,969.0
This isn’t rocket science. When government is spending all that money then inevitably the people in politics want to use that money to build political support. If you don’t want them doing that, then you must give them a lot less money to play with.
Now the question is: Did President Obama know all this, but just told the American people what they wanted to know? Or is he just naive, and believed that by introducing new ethics rules he would really clean up government?
It really doesn’t matter. But with every cloud there is a silver lining. By creating ridiculously high expectations for hope and change President Obama has handed conservatives and Republicans a much-needed helping hand. So let’s get the word out to the American people. Do you want government and a governing class that are less corrupt? Then you must start voting for people who will reform government by dismantling the vast patronage system we call the welfare state.
Because the welfare state is cruel, corrupt, wasteful, unjust, and the people that believe in it are deluded.
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