Capitol Hill, Washington DC (Photo credit: KP Tripathi)
As I predicted a week ago, our politicians would be unable to prevent the sequestration cuts that went into effect on Friday, March 1st. I had hoped I was wrong but I was pretty certain of the outcome, especially since Congress had enjoyed a ten-day long President’s Day vacation and there had been absolutely NO talks between party leaders. In fact President Obama decided to meet up with House Republicans on Friday to discuss a bargain. Because you know, meeting up on the last day to deal with a problem that’s been ignored for the past 16 months is always a “great” idea.
John Avlon, senior writer for the Daily Beast and Newsweek, wrote a compelling article yesterday entitled: “Washington’s Sequester is Not a Poker Game.”
“The lack of urgency in Washington this week has been startling but not surprising. An aura of impotence has consumed the government, as deep, across-the-board cuts everyone says they oppose set in. The only action in town has been a public blame game that gives sandbox politics a bad name.”
One hour. That’s how long our politicians “tried” to reach an agreement. The funniest part of the “last-ditch” Friday meeting was that even if in some miracle (it truly would be a miracle if our politicians actually did their job) they agreed on even another staple of a short-term deal it wouldn’t matter. You know why? Well because the House and Senate had the weekend off.
Well isn’t that nice. I’ve been pretty swamped with work and my personal life as of late (hence why I haven’t been able to post as often) but I guess our Congressmen wouldn’t know what the word busy means. They probably know the cost of getting a spray tan more so than the cost of each day of impotence they produce.
In a recent and rare press conference President Obama told CNN’s Jessica Yellin that he isn’t “a dictator.” And that “most people know he is right” and that he has provided a “great” deal that for whatever reason Republicans won’t agree to. I assume by most people he means most people in his administration. Because most people I KNOW think both sides are to blame. What do I know? After all I don’t live in Obamaland; I live in the United States of America. You know that country rich with history of grand bargains. A country I used to know.
I’ll leave you with Avlon’s parting words in his article:
“So while our Washington “leaders” engage in their high-stakes game, citizens will pay the cost. It’s a pointed reminder that this isn’t a game at all. It’s our country.”
What do you think?
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Twitter: @adrakontaidis & @talkrealdebate
