Posts
Following up on my post on the incredible exploding governor,
the Wall Street Journal gives a
special prize to Chris Christie for his “unmoored political bluster.”
I’m not sure what “moored” political bluster would sound
like, but, no one is perfect.
Predictably, Christie’s rush to blame John Boehner for not taking up Sandy relief has
elicited positive reaction from the liberal media. Peter Beinart says that the
Christie rant augurs a bright new day for centrist Republicans.
Keep in mind, Beinart believes that Israel’s future can best
be assured by appeasing terrorists. If he not merely a surrender junkie, Beinart is an inept strategist.
The Journal, however, shines the light of reason on Christie’s
intemperate outburst:
We've
appreciated Mr. Christie's outspoken style, and he has to advocate for his
battered state. But he's also supposed to care about the public fisc. His
advocacy would have been more accurate, and more effective for New Jersey in
the long run, if he had also pointed out that Democrats from the rest of the
country have jeopardized the aid by cynically using the bill for their own
parochial interests. Mr. Christie is running for re-election in a Democratic
state, but that doesn't mean he has to compete to be the next Charlie Crist.
Look at
some of what was in the $60 billion bill: $150 million for Alaskan fisheries;
$2 million for roof repair at the Smithsonian in Washington; and about $17 billion for liberal activists
under the guise of "community development" funds and so-called social
service grants. Far from being must-pass legislation, this is a disgrace to the
memory of the victims and could taint legitimate efforts to deal with future
disasters.
Unfortunately, when these ginormous spending bills get
rammed through Congress, no one pays attention to how much of the money is
being funneled to liberal activists.
Thanks to the Journal for clarifying an issue that Chris
Christie has done his best to obscure:
Beyond
the recriminations is the larger problem that every disaster has become a
Washington political opportunity. The Federal Emergency Management Agency is fully
funded but does an incompetent job. Federal flood insurance encourages
overbuilding in storm zones, so taxpayers pay first to subsidize the insurance
and then to save the homeowners who overbuilt. And politicians use the public
sympathy after any disaster as an excuse to throw even more money not merely at
victims but for pent-up priorities they should be funding out of regular state
and local tax dollars.
Mr.
Boehner's sin was ensuring that the House had time to sort the pork from the
parochial. Mr. Christie should thank him on behalf of New Jersey taxpayers.
A real leader would not have rushed to the microphones in a fit of self-righteous outrage to demagogue the issue.
6 comments:
I agree that there was plenty of blame to go around, but Boehner, King and Christie all could have better clarified because all you heard from the MSM was that big meanie Republicans screwed Sandy victims.
The fact that we can't have a bill that's for disaster relief and disaster relief alone is a disgrace. It's why I loathe these politicians and it's what I would say to Schumer and Gillibrand in their face if I had the chance.
Sandy was a bigger disaster than Katrina, but it has been ignored by the media in comparison.
You're absolutely right about the media's failure to cover Sandy the same way it covered Katrina--- I fear that there is no real mystery and no cause for very much hope. The media made Katrina into an indictment of the Bush admin, a sign of its complete incompetence. It has made Sandy a sign of Obama's competence... no matter what has happened to the people.
I still like to believe that one day the lies are going to catch up with it... the only question is when?
Thanks for reminding us.
Just another nail (perhaps the final) in the coffin for Christie's 2016 hopes in the GOP. Sandy was an earlier nail.
Also, Obama was Christie's savior. He was "there" for NJ. Do you think the MSM would say to Obama, hey, where have you been on the relief you promised?
No, he will not be held accountable for anything. He is the Teflon President.
As many of us say, we wouldn't mind paying higher taxes (or tolls) if the things that the taxes are for ran/were managed well. FEMA stinks. The roads in NY are 3rd world, yet the tolls and the taxes are sky high. The taxes in Nassau County are the highest in the country, but they are broke!
Obama's not made of Teflon... let's be honest: he gets a free pass. The MSM genuflects to this guy. My model of a good journalist is the consummate cynic, a congenital skeptic... they don't believe what any public official says. They dig, they go after the story, they hold those in power accountable. Maybe I'm old-fashioned (or perhaps naive), but that's what I expect of the character and bearing of a journalist. Today's MSM is an embarrassment to the profession. We don't get any information... instead, we get parroting relay scripts of whatever these journalists get from the podium. It's wink-wink spin. They're in the pockets of he powerful. Our Fourth Estate has become a vast cabal of northeastern urban groupthink. Theres no courage! They are Lefty idol-worshippers. Obama would melt into a furious tantrum if he was questioned with any degree of meaningful skepticism. There's no Teflon there. He's the most thin-skinned leader we've ever seen. And yet the charades of press conferences, spin posing as interviews, and "in-depth" People magazine stories go on and on.
Tip
I still ask myself: At what point do people come to their senses and recognize what O has been doing? When do they see that they have been had. Does it ever happen?
Catherine does well to point out the bad state of New York State-- a lot of the public facilities are becoming third world-- and no one much cares, as far as I can tell.
Certainly, no one is holding the Blue State model accountable.
Post a Comment