by Bill Koenig
Charlie Reese, a former columnist of The Orlando Sentinel wrote:
“One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president and nine Supreme Court justices — 545 human beings out of the 300 million — are directly, legally, morally and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.
“It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million cannot replace 545 people who stand convicted — by present facts — of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can’t think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people.”
Bush, Congress, Supreme Court near historical low approval
Thirty percent approve of job Bush is doing as president (Gallup Poll — June 16, 2008)
According to the June 9-12 Gallup Poll, 30 percent of Americans approve of the job George W. Bush is doing as president. That figure is two percentage points better than his personal low rating of 28 percent, which he has received four times in the past two months. The all-time low approval rating for any president in Gallup annals is 22 percent for Harry Truman in 1952.
Congress’ 19 percent approval rating is one point better than last month’s 18 percent, which matched the August 2007 and March 1992 readings as the worst Gallup has measured since it began tracking Congressional job approval in 1974.
Congress typically receives the lowest approval ratings of the three branches. Since the beginning of Bush’s presidency, Congress has averaged 39 percent approval, compared with 51 percent for Bush and 55 percent for the Supreme Court. The general pattern has held prior to Bush’s presidency as well.
Currently, 48 percent of Americans approve of the job the Supreme Court is doing. Gallup does not have the same long track record of measuring approval of the Supreme Court (first done in 2000) that it does for the president and Congress.
Congressional makeup
The U.S. Congress is made up of a few conscientious legislators who wants the very most for their districts while not jeopardizing what is best for the United States; and who are wise and make decisions based on sound principles; but there are many who lack discernment and common sense and are not prepared to handle the enormous responsibilities of the position.
There are those in Congress who are easily influenced by the big money lobbyists and special interest groups that have helped get them elected and stay in office; there are those who get things for their district by cutting deals with other people needing favors for their districts; and there are many who are so committed to their political party’s positions on issues that they vote the party line regardless of the legislation and the cost to America.
The United States is experiencing the consequences of years of bad federal legislation
The American people are personally experiencing the consequences of years of bad Congressional leadership and legislation, which for the most part was approved by the White House or, in a few cases, Congress overruled the President’s veto.
As history has shown us, many times bad legislation is followed by even worse legislation, and that cycle continues while seldom getting corrected or reversed, allowing the problems to grow in magnitude and complexity. Furthermore, the damage is due to so many special interests and political agendas attempt to protecting their interests and turf that the situation is many times all but impossible to reverse — and consequently gets worse.
As former President Ronald Reagan said, “Government does not solve problems; it subsidizes them.”
With most of America’s major national problems, you can all but guarantee that the root of that problem began with Congressional legislation and/or White House approval.
Look at our U.S. Middle East policy, the national energy policy, the immigration issue, the bloated federal government, excess government regulation, national security overlaps, the 9,000,000-word U.S. tax code, health insurance costs, the funding concerns for Social Security and Medicare, and earmarks … to name just a few.
Other examples include the usurping of states’ constitutional responsibilities by the federal government; the $3 trillion federal budget, the federal debt explosion from $5.7 trillion on 2001 to $9.35 trillion today, the subprime fiasco, and the diversion of money from Social Security payments to pay down portions of the annual federal deficit while dumping enormous debt responsibilities on future generations.
The U.S. Middle East policy has cost Americans over $1 trillion, empowered terrorist organizations while our safety and security in America is at risk, and has skyrocketed the price of oil while making us much more reliant on dangerous regimes.
One of the White House and Congress’ grand solutions to higher oil prices was corn-based ethanol, which has led to costlier fuel and much costlier food, not to forget the other issues and complications associated with it.
We had immigration legislation approved in 1988, when there were 3.5 million people in the U.S. illegally, but it was never implemented. Today, illegal immigrants number in the 12 million to 20 million range.
Congress failed to regulate futures trading, which has led to a huge price jump in fuel and food — benefiting the people who don’t produce the commodity and never take actual possession.
The price of retail gasoline could fall by half, to around $2 a gallon, within 30 days of passage of a law to limit speculation in energy futures markets, four energy analysts told Congress on Monday, June 23, according to The Associated Press.
Testifying before the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Michael Masters of Masters Capital Management said that the price of oil would quickly drop closer to its marginal cost of around $65 to $75 a barrel, about half the current $135.
Fadel Gheit of Oppenheimer & Co., Edward Krapels of Energy Security Analysis, and Roger Diwan of PFC Energy Consultants agreed with Masters’ assessment at a hearing on proposed legislation to limit speculation in futures markets.
Krapels said that it wouldn’t even take 30 days to drive prices lower, as fund managers quickly liquidated their positions in futures markets.
“Record oil prices are inflated by speculation and not justified by market fundamentals,” according to Gheit. “Based on supply and demand fundamentals, crude-oil prices should not be above $60 per barrel.”
Congress has greatly mismanaged its moral and fiduciary responsibilities
Congress has greatly mismanaged its moral and fiduciary responsibilities. If a person were to extrapolate the enormous after-effect cost of bad legislation in energy, housing, immigration, federal debt, Middle East policy, federal tax legislation, education, the size of the federal government, and obligations pushed on to future generations, it would be mind-boggling.
This is not to forget the U.S. Supreme Court decisions on prayer in school, abortion, sodomy, the posting of the Ten Commandments and other moral issues.
Americans have been greatly harmed by the leaders in Washington
Congressional and White House decisions repeatedly create hardship for the American people, affect their quality of life, impact their families, and rob them of their hard-earned income — thus destroying their hope, dividing families, turning ethnic groups against each other, and leaving massive debt and other problems to future generations.
Today only 17 percent of Americans believe the country is on the right track.
The influence of special interests
Today, there are 17,000 high-priced Washington, D.C., lobbyists who exert more influence in Washington than the American voters.
The biggest spenders among Washington lobbyists are the companies from the banking industry, health care, insurance, pharmaceuticals, Wall Street, energy, and national defense — including 37 of the 50 most profitable companies in America.
Highlighting areas of concern
Middle East policy
- There are major national security overlaps.
- According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Bush’s Iraq and Afghanistan wars have cost $787 billion through fiscal 2008.
- Sixty years of ill-advised U.S. Middle East policy have left the region in total chaos, Israel in greater danger, and a cost to American taxpayers of $1 trillion and climbing.
Oil, gas and food
- The U.S. has spent $1 trillion-plus in the Middle East while sitting on potentially the largest oil reserves in the world.
- Oil and natural gas development has been repeatedly stopped by the Democratic Party.
- New refinery construction has been repeatedly stopped by the Democratic Party.
- The ethanol boondoggle has raised the cost of food and fuel while leading to many other associated problems.
- There has been major commodity price manipulation by futures traders who now make up 70 percent of the futures trades.
- Due to pressure from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) for yield and cost reasons, 73 percent of seed in the U.S. is genetically modified. This is believed to be a main reason the bee population has dropped in half — and bees pollinate one-third of U.S. crops.
Federal Government
- The federal debt has gone from $5.7 trillion in 2001 to $9.372 trillion as of June 27, 2008.
- The federal government’s budget was $3 trillion in fiscal year 2008 — the highest in history. The federal government has become over 50 percent larger during George W. Bush’s seven and half years — even with a Republican majority in the Senate and the House in his first six years in office.
- According to the Cato Institute, 80 percent of federal government work should be at the state level according to the U.S. Constitution.
- It will take Americans 113 days of work in 2008 to pay federal, state and local taxes.
- The federal tax code does not benefit small- and medium-sized companies.
- The 9,000,000-word U.S. tax code written by accountants and lawyers costs Americans $250 billion a year and 25 hours of time to file their tax returns (per household).
- Congress will take approximately $200 billion in 2008 from Social Security revenue to go toward federal debt expense.
- Immigration legislation was passed in 1988 when there were 3.5 million illegal immigrants in the U.S. Today that total is estimated in the 12 million to 20 million range.
- We have a record low dollar, record high oil, record high gold, record federal deficit and record high foreign trade deficit — plus the largest wealth transfer from one region to another in world history due to oil prices.
Feeding frenzy on Americans’ finances
- There has been a major feeding frenzy on Americans’ finances by major banks, credit card issuers, mortgage lenders, health care providers, insurance companies, Wall Street Investment banks, hedge funds, futures traders, and oil companies.
- A massive wealth transfer has occurred from a majority of Americans to a small select group of people and companies.
- There is no federal interest rate limits (usury) on what banks can charge their customers.
- U.S. banks have made hundreds of billions of dollars in high-interest credit cards, late fees, over-the-limit fees and banking fees.
- Health insurance costs and deductibles have continued to increase while Americans are receiving less health coverage for their money.
- Health care expenditures costs now are $2.2 trillion a year or $7,000 per year for every man, woman and child in the U.S.
- The Federal Reserve’s record low discount rate helped lead to 2 million homes at risk of foreclosure due to the subprime fiasco — and helped lead the world into a major economic expansion and the increase in worldwide oil demand.
