Throw the Bums Out!

In one of my recent posts — Congress Sets a Record — I addressed how the public views the ethical behavior of our federal legislators: Congress earned an abysmal 8% rating. Given what’s happened in the past few days, our legislators just might find themselves a lot closer to zero.  

I begin by stating that the majority of the long-term members of Congress deserves as much respect as they have for the nation's citizens, and I include members of both parties, Democrats and Republicans. These men and women are apparently addicted to spending our money on frivolous things that reward those who fund their reelection campaigns. The recent pandemic relief bill was packed with legislative pork that had absolutely nothing to do with helping those whose health and finances have been jeopardized by the pandemic. Indeed, a huge amount of the funds included in this legislation was pure pork, with much of it heading overseas while far too many Americans are suffering. The president signed the bill, almost under duress, largely because he had little if any support from legislators of his own party. He then asked Congress to revisit the legislation, remove the pork, and increase the individual relief payment from $600 to $2,000. Congress might agree to raise the relief payment, because they love to spend our money, but there’s no way they would ever remove the pork. That’s just not something they do.

Following the lead of their Congressional mentors, too many governors and mayors, mostly Democrats but even a few Republicans, have shut down their economies, forcing millions of Americans out of their jobs and destroying tens of thousands of small businesses. (Note that these so-called public servants didn't close down the big businesses -- the Walmarts, Targets, Home Depots, supermarkets, and all the rest -- the corporations more than willing to provide the funds to finance election campaigns. Nor did they cut the pay or eliminate any jobs of government employees.) And they did all this despite the science that increasingly tells us that business shut-downs are largely ineffective when it comes to protecting folks from the virus but very effective at destroying the small businesses that keep our economy going. Testing has shown that less than 2% of infections come from restaurants while more than 70% begin at home. With everything else shut down, people tend to gather with others in their homes. Given the numbers, forcing folks to remain in their homes probably isn’t the wisest move. 

It’s a challenge to name the worst of the worst, but if forced to do so, I’d choose Speaker Nancy Pelosi. For months she delayed providing additional stimulus funds because she believed doing so before the election would increase President Trump’s approval ratings and ensure his re-election. a fact she admitted publicly. In other words, she willfully placed political expediency above the dire needs of the people she represents, those whose lives her policies have devastated.

Speaker Pelosi is, of course, not alone in her corruption. She is joined by all those legislators who supported the current pork-laden bill. Admittedly the legislation does some good things like providing additional weekly assistance to the unemployed. But the stimulus amount of $600 will do very little to help those who have been hammered by this pandemic and the government’s authoritarian response. The idea of universal relief might gain the support of voters who think only of themselves, but any relief should really focus on those who have been hurt most by the pandemic, those who have lost their jobs, their homes, their businesses. That, however, would require legislators and their staffs to do some work. It would also force them to explain why some deserve assistance while others don’t. And few legislators want to do that, to actually do the courageous thing.

A few years ago, on a visit to Savannah, Georgia, I came across a street corner with a unique juxtaposition of signs — Congress as a one-way street, pointing of course to the left. I couldn’t resist taking the photo.

Yes, indeed, Congress is broken. I suppose about the only thing to say — something which far too many voters will ignore — are the words I used to hear when I was a kid and the adult discussion got around to things political: Throw the bums out! And then hope you don’t just elect a new crop of bums.