This week’s awards for truly diabolical public actions go to-
Senator Mitch McConnell, who gave into the temptation to filibuster once too many. He claims that Republicans have not had enough influence over the contents of the Wall Street Reform bill. It looks like the Republicans may have painted themselves into a corner this time. They have two choices: work with the damned Democrats or appear to oppose Wall Street Reform. Go ahead, we dare ya.
Consider Republican performance during the health care debate. They battled for influence over the health care bill, which they then voted against in a bloc. One wonders whether they were unhappy with the bill because they had destroyed it, or because they had not destroyed enough of it.
When talking about the Wall Street Reform bill, some like to claim that it will make future bailouts of big banks more likely; the opposite of what the bill is intended to do. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson, whose bid for the Texas statehouse failed claims that the bill will only make it easier to help Wall Street more. So if the Democrats say “yes,” the Republicans are willing to say “no” pretty much all the time. Only this time saying no might not look good back home.
Governor Jan Brewer gets an award for signing an illegal immigrant law that is itself probably illegal and unconstitutional, and which turns Arizona into the first police state in the union. Now peace officers in the state of Arizona can accost anyone and demand they prove their citizenship. Can’t wait until that law gets to Texas. Of course racial profiling will have no part in the enforcement of the law; neither will due process, reasonable cause, nor “secure in their persons.” It’s not easy being Brown in Arizona anymore.
Brewer also managed to derail a climate change bill in the process. Thanks to her grabbing the limelight, Republicans have decided that they can’t support the climate change bill. They were happy enough with the bill until its schedule had to be changed. The bill was dandy but they cannot support it if it doesn’t happen right now. Perhaps there was a time bomb built into it? They sing the same old Republican song, “My Way or the Highway,” simply a different verse. Kind of reminds you of an infant throwing a temper tantrum.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce gets props for campaigning against the Consumer Financial Protection Agency. Apparently laws that keep businesses from bankrupting people are bad for business-if that business is a bankruptcy lawyer. Everyone knows that bankrupt consumers spend cartloads of money. The Chamber also opposed health care reform. Perhaps healthy people are bad for business, too. The Chamber is one of those bellwethers-whichever side they take, progressives can count on being anti-people. As if people are unnecessary to business.
