The start of the Major League Baseball Pennant races reminded me of the sickening feeling I got seeing members of Congress parading ballplayers before them as the politicians feigned concern over steroids in baseball and held hearings on the subject AS IF THEY HAD NOTHING BETTER TO DO!
I have come to the conclusion that the real problem in this country is not steroids in baseball but the lack of steroids in Congress, as Congress fast becomes a haven for loud lazy and looting politicians with seemingly no energy focused on helping anyone but themselves.
It's kind of the fault of all of us regular Americans. We have been trained to simply assume that members of Congress really don't do much other than get money secured for libraries and courthouses, appear on Sunday talk shows, raise money, and trade us all out as they barter for pork on Capitol Hill. More recently this twisted species of politicians has been seen braying about Katrina stuff and acting like they have the brains to quiz Harriet Miers.
Americans have also trained themselves to accept mediocre, cowardly and clownish congressional leaders. Democratic Politicians like Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Charlie Rangel and Ted Kennedy are such cartoons they make Senator Hillary Clinton look like Eleanor Roosevelt. On the Republican side you have Tom DeLay, who may not be criminal but at the very least is ethically challenged, you have Bill Frist, the wishy washy would be could be leader, and you have Arlen Spector, a disloyal ingrate. That's not to mention John Mcain, who would win any microphone eating contest around based on his Attention Demand Disorder. It makes you want to hold a seance to trick Barry Goldwater into coming back.
Well, that's all personality stuff. Who cares?
You should care. Because while President Bush has taken the blame for everything but ants in our kitchens, members of Congress have been steadily doing more harm to this nation through action and inaction than any President can do.
Last spring the Wall Street Journal spanked the lazy Congress for being installed five months and achieving two things--a bankruptcy bill "ten years in the making" and some measly class action reform. Today we still have floating tax cuts and no Social Security Reform. We have no expanded Immigration reform, no alternative fuel or oil extraction initiatives, no action allowing small businesses to buy into interstate health policies (which would virtually solve a majority of the lack of health care in this country), and we'll still probably have lines for flu shots this year.
Congress did pass a transportation bill with all kinds of pork barrel goodies to assure reelection in their home districts. Isn't that funny? While we were told to be horrified by stories of massive looting in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina, Congress was busy looting the U.S. treasury.
And speaking of those laughable steroid hearings, have you ever wondered what it would be like to see hearings held on how to bring back manufacturing jobs, or how to make it easier for busineses to do businesses in the U.S., or how to best tap our own oil resources, or how to tackle illegal immigration? Those are all issues that have no political mileage for professional fundraisers who make up our Congress. Trouble is the chances are they'd agree on solutions. How do you raise money from PACs by negotiating with the other party for goodness sakes?!
While all eyes seem glued on who will run in 2008 for the Presidency, don't forget the 2006 Congressional elections. Congress members are hoping you will. That's why you are seeing an inordinate amount of attacks from BOTH parties on President Bush. That's why a year out from the big 2006 elections poor President Bush doesn't have a friend in the world except Dr. Dobson. It's why Pelosi and Kerry screech every other day, and it's why Mcain and Frist pretend they don't even know George. They are hoping you will forget that they have a job to do for you too and that they have succeeded mostly in helping themselves.
