WRITTEN BY A.C. SMITH
I’d prefer to get away from the usual Republican vs. Democrat argument, but I cannot avoid it with this particular issue that’s really got me thinking. That is, what leadership suggestions have the Dems proposed since the Reagan era that ended up being successful? The following are some observations that I would like to address.
Take the 1990’s surplus, for example. Only with a Republican controlled congress were we able to finally balance the budget. You also have welfare reform. Although President Clinton takes credit, this was originally pushed by the Republicans. One thing I did not like was the quick closing of military bases and the reduction of our military personnel, which began when Democrats had a legislative majority. While this reduced costs, I believe we definitely weakened our military might and emboldened our adversaries and added more problems for us ever since.
What have the Republicans done? George W. Bush was handed a recession, for which I do not remember him spending much time blaming Clinton. He talked about how we could get out of it, made the changes, and got results. His second test with 9/11 was just as bad (I believe) as the financial crisis Obama had to deal with in January. Bush hit the ground running while Obama is feeling his way. 9/11’s hit on the financial system could have been disastrous if it wasn’t for Bush’s leadership. Did you see what happened with America when the Democrats knew it was a political nightmare if they didn’t listen to the American people (at that time)? The Dems waited for the best opportunity to tear down the president for political gains in the next election, and succeeded.
Nevertheless, Bush did set things in place to keep us safe for a long period of time, including this time now. The policy changes, attitudes, and naivety shown to other nations by Obama is now decreasing the time previously set up to keep us safe. Hopefully, we will make it through Obama’s first term without further incident.
You’ll excuse me, A.C., from spending time formulating a cogent response. I’m too lost in the murder of Dr. Tiller; I’m too lost in the “small government” hypocrisy your politics represents, given that it is willing to have the government completely invade the most private and personal decisions I might make. I’m too numb from the things the pundits representing your part of the political spectrum say when what they are really doing is fomenting violence and hate and anger. I’m tired of death being an acceptable sacrifice to the “pro life” agenda.
A.C.,
When you give credit to republicans for a balanced budget, are you overlooking the fact that the Clinton tax policies (mainly affecting the nation’s wealthiest) played a significant role, as did the “dot-com” bubble, which brought in large tax revenues? Let’s not forget that Ernest Hollings, a democrat, was a chief sponsor of the balanced budget amendment, along with Phil Gramm and Warren Rudman. But the surplus ended with Clinton’s administration. So how about all the spending that took place during the Bush years? Still good leadership?
When you talk about welfare reform, if you imply that is a success, do you forget Bill Clinton’s 1992 campaign pledge to “end welfare as we know it?” Although the republicans certainly drove the legislation, Clinton’s message to poor communities that out-of-wedlock births need to be reduced and that the government would no longer help people who didn’t deserve it was welcomed to a large degree. This shift of thinking certainly allowed the possibility for better results. If we measure success by how many former welfare recipients are now off the payroll, then it looks good. But if we want to know how many still live in poverty, or have gone from bad to worse, we better hold our praise for this reform until we look further.
Finally, I don’t see any fair comparison between a surprise attack and a complicated economic issue. Furthermore, we don’t yet know the outcome of Obama’s policies, and I doubt we will know for some time. We do know that he initiated a variety of stimulus and bailout packages from nearly the day he assumed office, so if he’s not hitting the ground running, I’m not sure what you’d call it. As for the previous administration’s reaction to 9/11, we’ll likewise need more time for history to reveal everything. However, we know already that we invaded a country on false pretenses (while giving the terrorist’s home base time to regroup), participated in acts of torture, and squandered the goodwill of a large part of the world. And yes, military bases were closed by republicans during that time. To be honest, I feel a heck of a lot safer now.
A few points need to be added.
First, economists peg March 2001 as the beginning of the recession. The “Bush was handed a recession” line was repeated ad nauseum by administration officials and right wing pundits. It’s unfortunate that blame took precedence over cause.
Second, in the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, it was Rudy Giuliani who emerged as the leader. Bush flitted around the country on Air Force One, while Cheney disappeared to an “undisclosed location.”
Third, it’s true that republicans got the welfare reform ball rolling and they did so by portraying black women as Cadillac-driving welfare queens. That’s not something I see as a point of pride for our nation. Moreover, welfare reform in the 1990s seems to represent the moment when the poor were driven out of the public discourse. Even during the most recent presidential campaign, it was as if no one existed below the middle class line (and, yes, I’m talking about Obama, too).
Fourth, I’m not sure what Democratic success A.C. is talking about. Republicans gained seats in Congress in 2002 and again in 2004 when Bush defeated Kerry.
Fifth, discussion about base closings requires context. The Soviet empire had fallen and our military was structured around the decades-long cold war. Treating the closings as a partisan sparring match is silly.
Finally, I don’t believe Bush’s policies made us safer. Too much of the Constitution was sacrificed under the guise of protection. Bush often said that his first duty was to keep the American people safe. Well, that just ain’t so. He swore to uphold and defend the Constitution. Sneak and peak searches, detentions without charge, sequestrations of citizins into “free speech zones,” Ari Fleischer telling the people they should “watch what they say” — none of these things made us safer, only less free.
Good points, Cady.
One more thing about the base closings. Since they have been underway since the late 1980’s, and continued during the tenures of both parties, we cannot place blame on anybody, nor should we (none is deserved). Just the opposite is true. Making our military more efficient and organized will only strengthen it.