RoR: Forum

This election is different in a couple of good ways (in addition to granting us the relief of gridlock). This wasn't an endorsement of Republicans - who are still properly distrusted and disliked. It wasn't just a change from one party to the other. It was like the absentee owner comes to the business and kicks out the old managers putting in a new group that he is going to watch closely swearing to be more hands-on with the business of managing.

It is also the first time we have seen anywhere near 30 new members of congress who won by declaring they would move towards a constitutionally limited government, a reduction in taxes, a reduction in spending, and pass a balanced budget amendment.

Yeah, I know. Promises, promises. But I no longer think the light at the end of the tunnel is another train coming this way. Another election or two ought to clear enough statists out of Washington, replacing them with people willing to cut 40% to 50% from spending, and to replace the income tax with something non-progressive and minimal.

There is a natural mechanism at work. The government has sprinted far to left of the majority of voters over the last few decades - this is a readjustment bringing the government back closer to where the majority live. The additional good news is that a fair amount of education of that majority has occurred, and continues to occur because of the dissonance that brought about that shift.

Post 1

Sunday, November 7, 2010 - 4:48pm

Steve,

The 2010 landslide was even more catastrophic for Democrats than it appears. This is a Census year and Republicans control the congressional redistricting process in the major states that gaining population: Florida, Texas and Utah. Republicans also control the redistricting process in the major states losing population: Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Redistricting could give Republicans a permanent 10-20 seat boost in every House election until 2020. Couple that with 23 Democratic Senate seats vs. 9 Republican seats up for election in the Senate in 2012 and you have the recipe for a lasting congressional GOP majority.

This was truly a transformational election.

Jim

Post 2

Sunday, November 7, 2010 - 5:39pm

Jim,

You are correct.

And there are other effects which have to do with direction and momentum. Before the election the Senate Democrats could muster their majority to overwhelm a united Republican opposition. Now, even if the numbers in the Senate were the same - they aren't, but if they were - there would be a much greater chance of Democrats defecting. It isn't just a matter of numbers but also of strength of will. Many of the Senators on both sides of the aisles will be up for election in 2012 and don't want to become unemployed. The whole world sees this move to the right. The media, the states, the parties, etc. Now it is the Tea Party agenda that is on the offensive, and doing so from within the government as well as from without. And the people that agree with Tea Party principles are more strongly empowered - and the Democrats and the media start finding themselves more on the defensive.

And now more people in the country are turning to libertarian sources for political information. Turninig to people like Stossel, Beck, Yaron Brooks, Ron Paul, etc., and they gain a little more credence than they had before. This furthers the needed education of the voters which is so essential.

Post 3

Monday, November 8, 2010 - 7:09am

My only concern is the reluctance by Republicans to even discuss reducing the scope of entitlements. The majority of the federal budget is taken up by social security, medicare, etc. and it seems like a political hot potato to even discuss ways of reducing those programs. It's certainly noble to attack "government waste" but that is just a drop in a bucket and would do almost nothing to address the debt problems.

Post 4

Monday, November 8, 2010 - 9:57am

John,

Agreed. This will be the measure of the Tea Party candidates - both their integrity and their ability to exercise the mandate they were given - which means asserting the mandate the voters gave them over both the democrats and the establishment republicans.

Entitlements may be sensitive but they need to reduced. The other sacred cow that must butchered is the government workers unions. They've got to go. No collective bargaining for taxpayer funded jobs. And lastly, the size of the total cuts has to be massive. If $0.42 of every dollar spent today is borrowed, then they need to cut spending 42% just to balance the budget and it doesn't address debt reduction and it doesn't address real stimulation (reduced tax burden).

They should take a page from the progressive strategy book: Start declaring an emergency... pending collapse of the economy, destruction of the American dollar, etc.

And all changes, like the tax cuts, need to be permanent - got to start building a sense of stability.

Post 5

Monday, November 8, 2010 - 4:01pm

Jim,

This was truly a transformational election.

It was like a fundamental transformation of the country, if you ask me.

:-)

Post 6

Monday, November 8, 2010 - 7:39pm

Here's a proposal:

Opt-out option for people to opt-out of social security, medicaid, and medicare. Opt-out means that you won't be taxed for it, but you also cannot receive benefits.

Furthermore, the federal government should separate the finances of social security, medicaid, and medicare, each from each other and the rest of the government. They are only financed by people who opt-in to them. No deficit spending allowed.

Lastly, if there isn't enough money to pay to people who the government said they would pay to, sorry, you loose, you shouldn't have trusted your finances/health/life in a government that practices ponzi schemes and deficit spending. Maybe some people will volunteer to help you.

Can try to promote this as the "Save our working families and our children's future" scheme to appeal to women. Working men will like it because they don't have to pay taxes to pay for lazy people. Old people will like it because... um, yea they got ripped off, but at least their families can be successful now. Lazy people... well, I don't care whether lazy people like it.

Cheers,
Dean

Post 7

Tuesday, November 23, 2010 - 12:48pm