Newspaper stories and breaking news releases on TV all praised the fact our elected officials had finally reached an agreement on the country’s debt crisis.
Once the votes were tallied, most of the congressional representatives were off to what they deemed their well deserved vacations. Many of them had expressed dismay when they had to give up summer breaks to finish the budget bill they had been fighting over since the first of the year. The reality of it was more time was spent buck-passing than doing constructive decision-making.
The sensitive subjects that were kicked back and forth between the donkeys and the elephants were simply set aside for more wrangling later. What appears to be a settlement was perhaps just a quick way to get out of town, and oh by the way, avoid disaster for our country at the 11th hour.
As I see it, the threats of cutting entitlements and setting aside tax increases finally allowed our elected officials to agree to vote on a “temporary” bill. All the posturing done by prospective presidential seekers, hoping to keep their names in the minds of constituents, and be deemed the one who saved our country, was what drove the issue to the last minute.
After watching a few interviews of those who voted, I’m not convinced all the badgering, name-calling and finger pointing actually produced a sound agreement. I even heard mention of re-hashing the bill just passed as early as when congress reconvenes.
The next six months will give our leaders (?) time to reconsider the debt ceiling because, believe it or not, we will revisit the entire issue again with perhaps a few new players.
The way our elected officials acted the past few weeks was not unlike kids on the playground who said, “If you don’t play my way, I’m going to take MY ball and go home.”
John Boehner, throughout the entire proceedings, acted like a spoiled child when he appeared on national TV, especially when he pouted and said he had presented the best proposal but no one would pass it. Poor John, it would have been great if he had taken “his bill” and gone home.
I actually don’t believe our government gained anything with the bill they passed. Nothing changed other than the debt ceiling increased. That action was inevitable because they had approved the spending and were really only deciding whether to pay the bills they created or look like total fools.
I believe they managed to do both.
Many political pundits, including myself, believe we have to find a way to completely change the way our country is governed. We cannot just sit around and wait until another country cuts off our credit, limits our access to oil or takes over our manufacturing. We can’t avoid tax restructuring if we are unable to pay our bills. If the top 400 richest people in our country pay no tax, or as some of them admit, pay the same amount as their gardeners, we cannot afford to give them federal funds to support their businesses.
It is time for our elected officials to take control of our country. If we can’t tax the richest surly we can restrict their access to entitlements. Were the entitlements not collected from those who paid taxes?
A headline I found amusing was: “Obama promises action on jobs now that the debt fight is over.” If he knew a way to create jobs and hasn’t done so, he should be replaced. After all, new jobs equal more tax revenue which lowers the need to increase the debt ceiling.
Why can’t we try this — equal taxation dollar for dollar. If you make $5,000, pay 10 percent. If you make $500,000, pay 10 percent. Everyone would be equal and there would be no dissention. If we put this in place we could perhaps live under our economy as we know it today.
We should also receive reports from our individual congressional representatives regarding bills they voted on and how they cast their votes. They should also tell us how many times they missed a vote or an important hearing on one. With these reports made public to each and every one of us, we would have a better knowledge of what to expect when we elect someone. This arrangement would make running for re-election less work and require less campaign time and expense because we would all be up to date on their activities.
With this reporting arrangement in place, all elected officials would be free to take care of the responsibilities they were elected to do.
BREAKING NEWS
WHILE MY COLUMN WAS BEING TYPED FOR SUBMISSION AND BEFORE IT WAS COMPLETED, I RECEIVED A REPORT FROM SENATOR CARL LEVIN VIA EMAIL. WITHIN MINUTES OF READING HIS REPORT, I RECEIVED AN EMAIL FROM SENATOR DEBBIE STABENOW’S OFFICE PROMISING A WEEKLY REPORT. THE SENATORS MUST HAVE MIND READERS ON THEIR STAFF.
I WAS VERY PLEASED TO HEAR FROM BOTH OF THEM AND LOOK TO THE FUTURE FOR THEIR ADDITIONAL COMMUNIQUES. WE CAN BE GRATEFUL FOR THE RESPONSIBLE REPRESENTATIVES IN OUR MICHIGAN SEATS.