Good vs. Bad Government

This piece in the New York Times shows how the initial hope of a real discussion on poverty in the wake of Hurricane Katrina has subsided, in favor of a series of the same old Republican policies, which include cutting workers' wages and making sure people don't have health insurance. Go read it and tell me how compassionate and conservative belong in the same sentence.

It's still amazing that this group can hold on to the idea that tax cuts are ALWAYS GOOD for the economy, and vice-versa. All I know is that in the Clinton years, marginal tax rates on the highest earners were raised, and the economy went through 7 straight years of unprecedented growth, and poverty went down every year. Recently, it's been almost the opposite, particularly for those on the lowest end of the scale. The number of citizens below the poverty line continues to grow (1 million more in the past year alone).

The choice between big government (thought to be liberal) and small government (thought to be conservative) is a false choice. The fact that the government under George Bush has undergone the largest government expansion in history is a testament to that. The real choice is between bad government and good government. Good government is not wasteful, is not corrupt, and uses its efficiencies to create policies that make a difference in people's lives. Good government is actually possible. Republicans don't think so. Therefore, when in power they don't take government seriously, because they think nothing good can come fron it. Therefore, they get bad government, which naturally expands as hangers-on and gladhanders take their piece of the action. This serves to PROVE THEIR POINT that all government is bad. The real base of the Republican Party, the rich corporate benefactors, are not served by government in any meaningful way. They don't get food stamps, they don't need Medicare, they view Social Security as just another check in the mail. They're not affected by the ravages of bad government. I'm not saying Republicans sabotage government purposefully, but certainly they have no stake in making it work well. They perceive no political risk in damaging government. Their only political risk is raising taxes.

I understand why the Democrats are running against the "culture of corruption" in 2006, but I wish they'd include the "culture of incompetence." To say nothing of the policies themselves, it does make a difference who runs them, who streamlines their offices, who is smart with the people's money. Republicans simply have no compelling reason to do so; in fact, if they don't it plays into their narrative. Grover Norquist, the field marshal of movement conservatism, once said that he'd like to see "government shrunk to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub." The purpose is to eliminate government. The purpose is to give ordinary citizens a raw deal. The purpose is to give 99% of America no return on their investment in America. I don't want big government. I want good government.