“Because each day we wait to begin the work of turning our economy around, more people lose their jobs, their savings and their homes. And if nothing is done, this recession might linger for years. Our economy will lose 5 million more jobs. Unemployment will approach double digits. Our nation will sink deeper into a crisis that, at some point, we may not be able to reverse” — Barack Obama, Op-ed piece in Washington Post, Feb. 5, 2009
Each day we wait…The most massive increase in government spending in the history of the Republic was passed on Friday night by the Senate, making it ready for President Obama’s signature. Even Senator Sherrod Brown, had a private plane take him from his mother’s wake to cast the deciding vote on Friday night.
No Time to Read the Bill
Despite the enormity of this deficit spending increase that will saddle our children and our children’s children with a huge debt burden, and despite promises from President Obama concerning transparency and time to adequately review legislation, no one had the time to read this bill before it was passed. You don’t believe me? Do the math. In 48 hours there are 2,880 minutes. The stimulus bill is over 1,100 pages long. So if you did nothing else for the 48 hours, you didn’t sleep, you didn’t eat, you didn’t go to the lavatory, you would have about 2 1/2 minutes to read and comprehend each page in the bill.
As President Obama said in the Post, we have no choice, this is URGENT! So naturally, President Obama was standing with pen ready as soon as the Senate passed the bill. It was raced up Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House to the waiting Chief Executive, or not.
- Friday night – President Obama does not sign the bill
- Saturday – President Obama does not sign the bill
- Sunday – President Obama does not sign the bill
- Monday – President Obama does not sign the bill
Pretty urgent, huh? “Each day we wait to begin the work of turning our economy around, more people lose their jobs.” So I guess the crisis has passed? I guess losing more jobs no longer matters?
Do you think it might have been prudent to give the members of Congress and the American people the extra four days to review the bill before signing it? Of course it would be prudent, but the more we examine this the more it becomes clear that this is not about stimulus. It is about rushing through a bevy of liberal spending programs under the guise of an emergency precisely so that it would not receive the scrutiny it deserves, because if it did, most Americans would be outraged.
The reason for delaying the signing for four days, is to get the most political mileage out of the signing. Signing it on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, the Monday holiday, would simply not have the news coverage for President Obama to bask in.
American’s Interest or Self Interest
So despite all the rhetoric, the American people get a massive debt burden, the Democrats in Congress get all the spending goodies that have been stored in the closet waiting for the right crisis opportunity, and President Obama gets just the right amount of limelight. Is that the change you were hoping for?
