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Yep, fill the halls of government with elected officials who have taken a sworn oath to de-fund and decimate government, give them a few decades of control during which time they pursue everything within their power to accomplish precisely that, then nod in agreement when they point to their handiwork as evidence of government's inability to function. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Seems to me the declining popularity of the Federal Government is due to anger at the Bush administration's foreign wars and ineptitude after Katrina, followed by the Obama administration's failure to live up to its lofty campaign rhetoric and the recent Congressional impasse, and surely aggravated by the sense (rightly or wrongly) that DC-area residents are largely immune from the economic challenges people in other parts of the country face. Suggesting that the current unpopularity is due to some agenda orchestrated by Grover Norquist and his pledgees is perhaps a bit simplistic, though I'm sure it plays well in certain quarters.
Suggesting that the current unpopularity is due to some agenda orchestrated by Grover Norquist and his pledgees is perhaps a bit simplistic, though I'm sure it plays well in certain quarters.
I disagree. In fact, I'd argue the opposite: that assigning the root of anti-government resentment to specific events and issues such as the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and recent debt ceiling impasse is assigning blame to the symptoms, not the cause. One of the nation's two major political parties has based their entire platform on preaching of the evils and threat of government, and has behaved and voted in a correspondingly reckless fashion. The recent debt ceiling debacle is but the latest example of the results of the rabidly anti-"Washington" fervor that the likes of Gorver Norquist, the Tea Party and their ilk have sewn. So after decades spent telling the American public that the government is a fundamentally inept and suspicious institution that must be "contained", a la a disease, we are surprised that the message sinks in and reflects itself in polls such as these? I'm not.
Actually, the more I thought about it, I'm probably not as much in disagreement with what JEB wrote above as my response probably sounds. There's certainly a great deal of resentment of Washington coming from both sides of the political spectrum, for various reasons--wars, rights/civil liberties infringements, repeated budget impasses, etc. There seems to be an undercurrent of resentment of "Washington" across the country for its perceived dysfunction and general incompetence.
But what I find irksome is the inability of some to distinguish between elected officials and the federal workforce. I find myself frequently exasperated at our elected officials, but I retain a generally positive view of the federal workforce, largely stemming from my own friends and family members who have worked in the government, or my personal interactions with government employees. But I also think there is a sizeable portion of the population for whom that distinction is immaterial, with everyone who works for or in "Washington" getting lumped together as inept, incompetent, distrustful, corrupt, etc. That's what bothers me.
So wait - another poster's policy prescription to burn down Logan Circle and U Street (again) because some mid-level federal workers live there will not, actually, alter the way government operates? That, sir, is crazy talk. Next you're going to say a gunman shooting up an island of people isn't going to change multiculturalism.
San Francisco and NYC are the only booming metros. They have real economies unlike DC, which produces nothing but put money in special interests' pockets,
San Francisco and NYC are the only booming metros. They have real economies unlike DC, which produces nothing but put money in special interests' pockets,
It's the seat of the government for the most powerful country in the history of the world. It does slightly more than simply put money in special interests' pockets. Thanks for playing though.
It's the seat of the government for the most powerful country in the history of the world. It does slightly more than simply put money in special interests' pockets. Thanks for playing though.
Yeah, like producing military weapons, passing legislation to start wars, using tax payers' dollars for wasteful spending, and increasing the deficit.
As much as you wouldn't like to admit it, federal money fuels the DC economy. All industries in the region may not be directly tied to the government, but most industries are connected to the government some how.
Yeah, like producing military weapons, passing legislation to start wars, using tax payers' dollars for wasteful spending, and increasing the deficit.
As much as you wouldn't like to admit it, federal money fuels the DC economy. All industries in the region may not be directly tied to the government, but most industries are connected to the government some how.
So you're saying that the city built for the sole purpose of housing and running a federal government has an economy that is fueled by ... federal money?!?
This is truly a brilliant insight. You've altered my entire view of the world. Here I thought we had an underground textile sweatshop industry that kept us afloat.
So you're saying that the city built for the sole purpose of housing and running a federal government has an economy that is fueled by ... federal money?!?
And never mind that hundreds of billions of dollars of that money went to bail out the economy of NYC. Damn federal money!
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