The HAT People

I, for on, am ecstatic that the Democrats have gone after Gonzales and the Bush Administration over the firings of 8 federal prosecutors. Oh, another Bush hater, you say. Nope, not in the least. As a matter of fact, I voted for Bush, twice, and believed him to be a great president up until he decided to give illegals amnesty. Which marked the beginning of the end of his popularity, a little noted fact. But I digress.

So, why do I revel at the sight of Democrats with their shorts up their cracks like geeks with wedgies? Because it is the visible evidence of what many of us understood the moment they took power in Congress; they are impotent. You heard me, impotent. They’re like a man who’s had the big V, loud in the sack but shooting blanks.

Behind closed doors they may admit the truth to each other but, publicly, they are trying to show the American voter that they can get things done except, they can’t. Over the years the Democrat big tent approach to politics, they take all comers so long as they are liberal and willing to toe the line, has produced a party of special interest groups who care little for anything other than, you guessed it, their special interest. Hence, every legislative attempt must respond to the demands of a majority of the special interest groups who run the party if it is to pass. Herein lies the problem. It is impossible to accomplish. It might even make an interesting movie, Mission Impossible 4, hero Tom Cruise tries to pass a bill in Congress in its original form. Start the music, light the fuse annnnnnnd it fizzles out. Bill dies a withering mass on the floors of the corridors of power, or lack thereof.

So, rejoice, taxpayers. The Democrats have nothing, zip, nada to offer in the way of a serious initiative. Baring stupidity on the Bush Administration’s side, and it is a possibility, you are safe for the next two years from major government intrusion. President Bush will be forced to endure two years of worthless investigation after useless investigation but, hey, that’s the price of freedom, our freedom. God Bless America. God Bless Our Troops!!

So you think the definition of a Democrat is someone who never found a tax that could not be raised? Well, Tennessee Democrat Legislators break the mold by resisting efforts to raise taxes. And are they doing it to protect the poor? How about saving businesses from additional burdens to their profits? Nooooo! These bastions of morality, who want to take everything people have so they can redistribute the funds to those they think deserve or need it, are balking on their governor’s plans to raise one particular tax, the cigarette tax.

A bit of background, first. Tennessee ranks at the bottom or near bottom of taxes on alcohol and tobacco. Also, there was a major battle 5 or so years ago when average citizens had to force back an attempt by, if you can imagine, Democrats to institute a state income tax. Tennessee’s sales tax is about as high as it can ever get without all commerce stopping in the state. Add to these realities, Democrat Governor Phil Bredesen is incapable of controlling the urge to spend more money the state does not have. Despite the fact that TennCare continues to suck the coffers of the state dry, the governor has been unable to make any major reductions in spending. Just the opposite, he managed to push through another healthcare program which will cost the state millions long after the governor has moved on to ruining some other institution. But that has not stopped Gov. Bredesen from proposing yet another program the state cannot afford. His solution, raise cigarette taxes.

But tobacco, like alcohol, is a major industry in Tennessee and protected by heavy-hitting lobbyists. The bottom line, the governor is forced to twist arms in his own party for the tax increase against the might of the lobbyist dollars. So, with Republicans now in charge in the state senate, Bredesen has an uphill battle raising taxes and it is Democrats stuck in his way.

Has the world shifted on its axis or am I in an alternate universe?

In Tennessee, our brave and valiant governor, having won re-election as a moderate consevative, suddenly discovered the capital punishment procedures needed inspected. Hence, he stopped all executions while a committee looks into the matter. After all, we cannot be putting murders to death in a manner that might harm them, can we? Then, he starts twisting arms to have our taxes increased. You see, Tennessee has laws which force the legislature to pass a balanced budget but the governor wants to spend, spend, spend. A number of weeks ago, I sent a letter to Gov. Bredesen asking him what percentage he believed the average Tennessee taxpayer should be willing to turn over in taxes, since he obviously doesn’t think we have reached that level. Strangely, I have not yet received a response. I wonder why? Obviously, the governor feels the election gave him the vote of confidence by Tenneseans to stick his hand deeper into their pockets and make sure the most violent of criminals have a chance to live to kill another day.

It’s going to be a long two years. Having to watch the sniveling cowards debating their Surrender and Run Away bill in the Senate was sickening. Here’s a thought, let’s send the Congress, as a whole, over to Iraq and have them meet there. If this bunch had been leading the nation during the Second World War, we would all be learning how to speak German instead of Spanish as our second language and PC speech would center around not angering the Nazi party for fear they might attack us instead of Mexico for fear they might...well who knows. I have no idea how the fickle opinion of the average American will be affected by the next terrorist attack on this country but I do know right after the it the Democrats will claim the whole thing is Bush’s fault for provoking the terrorist. President Bush’s mistake in Iraq was turning it into a PC war after winning the initial battle to depose Sadam. He was so concerned about world opinion that he forgot the history of the country. He should have gone in with a plan to set up a government able to administer the country as three separate states within one state. But I digress. If the current crop of cowards controlling Congress is a fair representation of the American people, we will deserve the next terrorist attack. I just hope they pick their next target in Nancy Pelosi’s district.