Politicians vs. Statesmen

My memory is becoming more and more unreliable, but I seem to recall that we once had such things as “statesmen”. These were people who placed what would be best for our country ahead of their and/or their party’s political ambitions. I recall such people as Daniel Patrick Moynihan, John Danforth, John F. Kennedy, Everett Dirkson, Barbara Jordan, Alan Simpson, and Sam Nunn often exhibiting such patriotic selflessness. Now, we have a new administration that, together with Congress, has placed before the American public an $800 billion package of government programs that is meant to stimulate job creation and insure economic recovery. It is called the “Economic Stimulus” package. It is, in fact, a wish list of liberal power grabs, special interest spending programs, and constituent payoffs that have only a passing semblance to job creation. What we need instead is a set of tax and regulatory incentives that lead to a re-awaking of the economic giant that is the United States.

What we also need are statesmen. What we have instead are Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid … unbridled by our new President who has promised change and is now trying to take advantage of our current economic problems to lock in four years of his leftist programs in one fell swoop. If this Economic Stimulus package gets implemented as it currently stands not only will it not bring us out of our current economic malaise, but it will surely sink us further … only to create the need for more shined-up Socialism within the following year.