A New Day

Watch and be astounded as Tom Friedman snarks like a liberal blogger:

Every so often a quote comes out of the Bush administration that leaves you asking: Am I crazy or are they? I had one of those moments last week when Dana Perino, the White House press secretary, was asked about a proposal by some Congressional Democrats to levy a surtax to pay for the Iraq war, and she responded, “We’ve always known that Democrats seem to revert to type, and they are willing to raise taxes on just about anything.”

Yes, those silly Democrats. They’ll raise taxes for anything, even — get this — to pay for a war!

Heh. Indeed.

Comments

The tendency of liberal bloggers to seek rhetorical victories and to gloat over even at the intimation of one diminishes their capacity to win any battle on substantial issues.

Posted by gregor | October 7, 2007 4:51 PM

Wow gregor, I didn't realize how integral liberal bloggers were to the policymaking process. I guess if liberal bloggers stopped snarking then Bush would sign the SCHIP bill, end the war in Iraq, and shut gown Guantanamo.

Posted by Matthew Struhar | October 7, 2007 8:19 PM

In the previous war, counter-insurgency, occupation....whatever, both parties conspired to not pay the butcher's bill. Does anyone remember that the last balanced budget before Clinton's was Lyndon Johnson's? This 'balanced budget' was while we had over 500,000 GI's 'in-country'. I remember eating C-rations that had been canned (everything was cans--even the bread--exc the cigarettes and T.P.) in 1946. Of course, when the Repubs took the WH in '68 (alas--with my vote) they continued essentially the same plan.

The immense debt this incurred (well--it SEEMED immense--nothing compared to the present one) left the economy teetering on it's heels so that in '73 when the first 'oil shock' came along there was a horrible recession. Worst economic downturn since the GreatDepression.

Nixon became an economic czar. Froze wages and installed price controls. Which of course REALLY REALLY screwed the economy. As Ol'CaseySteigle used to say: You can check it. Google 'stagflation' or 'arab oil embargo'.

The Bush plan for his war is essentially putting the cost of the adventure on Uncle Sam's Visa Card. There are long-term problems with that approach. Unfortunately, there are more 'conservative' slogans and bullshit than there are people willing to actually think about this stuff. The true patriot weeps for his country at times like this.

Posted by JohnMcC | October 7, 2007 8:24 PM

Tax-and-spend liberals versus tax-your-grandkids-and-spend conservatives.

Posted by jk | October 7, 2007 9:18 PM

Nixon's over-reaction over three percent inflation and the imposition og wage and price controls, going off the gold standard, had more
to do with that. Greenspan, Rumsfeld, Cheney & co
were all veterans of that flawed intervention.

Posted by narciso | October 7, 2007 11:27 PM

Huh. Maybe Lil' Tommy was just a bit of a late bloomer when it comes to political reality. Would be nice . . .

Posted by Dan S. | October 8, 2007 12:15 AM