Author: Redactor

Arizona Governor Jane Hull doesn’t think the average voter is quite up to real decision-​making. So she’s pushing efforts to thwart citizen initiatives by doubling the number of petition signatures voters must collect to get a vote on an issue. Her view is simple: the legislature and the governor are pros who can do all this better than us.

Politicians are so smart that we just can’t live without them. But then oops! … we get a little peek at their handiwork, and up in a puff of smoke goes that particular fatal conceit. Governor Hull is blaming the legislature for one of the biggest, stupidest blunders SHE ever signed into law. See, these geniuses offered to pay make the taxpayers pay half the cost of a new car if the vehicle is rigged to run on both regular gas and propane or natural gas. No requirement that the car use the alternative fuel. And Arizona taxpayers must also subsidize luxury items like leather seats and CD players. So, the program costs a whopping $420 million a full seven percent of the state’s budget and is having zero impact on smog, according to environmentalists.

Don’t worry, Governor Hull, help is on the way. Arizona’s term limits law will now bring fresh faces and real world experience into state government to replace that insufferable know-​it-​all attitude. Term limits were brought by citizen initiative. Blowing over $420 million was the work of experienced politicians, working overtime.

This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.

Law breaking by those who make the laws destroys respect for the rule of law. That’s why President Clinton’s perjury hurt our country as have the congressional scandals of Dan Rostenkowski, Bob Packwood, Wilbur Mills and a long list of powerful career politicians. Rostenkowski spent time in prison, but too often elected officials get away with it. Congress regularly turns the other cheek to misconduct.

Take the case of Transportation Committee Chairman Bud Schuster. Schuster is the king of pork barrel. He’s grabbed our tax dollars to build a highway in his district and, with all the humility and class of our political aristocracy, he has named it after himself. And there’s his $40,000 portrait hanging in the Transportation Committee room. An ethics investigation into Schuster’s relationship with a lobbyist who both represents clients with business before Schuster’s committee and who works for Schuster’s campaign found that Schuster, “engaged in serious official misconduct.”

Voters in Schuster’s Pennsylvania district don’t have much choice. Usually Schuster has been unopposed, like this year, and in ’98, ’94, ’92, ’90, ’88, ’86, etc. In 1996, Schuster outspent a rare challenger by better than 10 to 1. So what happens to Schuster? Nothing. Oh, the ethics committee sent him a letter saying he undermined the credibility of Congress quite an achievement. But he remains a powerful member of that body. He gets away with it.

This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.

Sometimes you find out the hard way who’s your friend and who’s your enemy. In 1998, the people of Florida passed term limits for their state’s delegation to Congress, eight years in the House and 12 years in the Senate. The measure passed with a whopping 77 percent of the vote a landslide.

In keeping with the voters’ desire, Representatives Charles Canady and Tillie Fowler endorsed the term limits initiative and pledged if elected to serve no more than voters had stipulated. Those eight years are now up and both are keeping their commitment. But U.S. Senate candidate Bill McCollum, a 20-​year veteran of Congress, is different.

Though he regularly boasted of being the nation’s leading advocate of term limits, he refused to support the citizen initiative that would actually limit his terms. What’s more, McCollum bristled at the suggestion that he should personally abide by any limits whatsoever. To McCollum, term limits is a debating position, not something to live by. So, fearful that Florida’s term limits law might force him from office a full decade before any constitutional amendment, McCollum introduced legislation to overturn the vote of his own constituents.

McCollum’s arrogance and phony support of term limits helped hinder our movement. His real intention is clear: he wants to rule, not take turns. That’s why McCollum is no friend of term limits. As Phil Handy, the leader of Florida’s term limits effort said, McCollum is just “not one of us. He’s really in the way.”

This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.

Remember Mad Magazine and its fearless leader Alfred E. Neumann? His famous slogan, “What-​Me-​Worry?” increasingly seems to sum up our political elite from presidential candidates Bush and Gore to congressional leaders.

You see, when these career politicians act, thinking only about the next election and ignoring the long-​term health of our society, well, isn’t that a lot like the little kids who would spend every last dime for candy, or even a copy of Mad Magazine, without a thought about tomorrow? The presidential campaign has been about how to spend the surplus rolling into Washington these days, and taking credit for creating it.

But a new report from the Congressional Budget Office suggests the surplus exists not because of any change in policy Clinton and Congress long ago broke the promised spending caps but because of unexpected revenue increases from an innovative private sector. The CBO warns that as baby-​boomers retire the cost of Social Security, Medicare and other programs will shoot through the roof: “If the nation’s leaders do not change current policies … deficits are likely to reappear” and “drive debt to unsustainable levels.”

In other words, while Gore and Bush are telling us all they can do to spend this $5 trillion surplus well, it doesn’t exist. What are the career politicians in Congress doing? Spending money as fast as they can so they can take credit during their reelection campaigns. What-Me-Worry?

This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.

He nobly served the national interest, which he never defined as his own reelection,” so says National Review ‘s Kate O’Beirne about Rep. Mark Sanford. The South Carolina congressman is keeping his word to voters: stepping down after pledging to serve only three terms in Washington.

Sanford’s not a career politician. They equate the national interest with their political interest. The longer in power, the more they’ll do anything to stay in power. First the Lincoln bedroom becomes Motel 6, now ABC’s “20/​20” reports that big campaign contributors are being rewarded with lavish state dinners at taxpayer expense. Our First Lady defends the practice. When told how state dinners used to host folks “who’d contributed a lot to this country or the world,” Hillary was at no loss for words: “I think contributing to the Democratic Party is a contribution to the country.” So why shouldn’t she grab our hard-​earned tax dollars to reward the party faithful?

The Democrats are not alone. President Bush had fewer guests at state dinners, but a similar percentage of big donors. And now it’s okay for Republicans to throw around tax dollars in vulnerable districts in a blatant attempt to buy votes. “This is a battle,” says House GOP campaign head Tom Davis. “Both sides are using whatever assets they have … in a legal and dignified manner.” Perhaps in the no-​controlling-​legal-​authority world of career politicians, what they’re doing is “legal.” But spare us the spin about how “dignified” it all is.

This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.

Congressmen George Nethercutt and Mark Sanford both favor opening trade with Cuba. They oppose the totalitarian Castro regime. But they argue that engaging the Cuban people in trade has a better chance of rocking the regime than the embargo, which after four decades has not loosened Castro’s grip on power.

Now Congress has passed legislation allowing Americans to sell food and medicine to Cuba. So why does Mark Sanford say the GOP leadership acted [quote] “shamefully” while George Nethercutt hails the agreement as the greatest thing since sliced bread? Simple: term limits.

Nethercutt’s in trouble because he broke his word on term limits. He’s eager to show he’s “delivered” for wheat farmers in his district. The GOP leadership wants to hold onto his seat. As Appropriations Chairman Bill Young said, “We need to find a way to make Nethercutt look like a strong, powerful member of Congress.” But the leadership also wanted to derail other legislation that went much further in ending the embargo. So they gave Nethercutt the empty victory of authoring a watered-​down bill that won’t really increase trade with Cuba at all and won’t even allow travel to visit sick or dying relatives in Cuba.

Real citizen legislators, like Mark Sanford who’s stepping down under self-​imposed term limits, aren’t impressed by meaningless political charades designed to make politicians look good before an election. They want to do what’s right. Career politician Nethercutt likes the bill, because … well … it works for him. Or so he hopes.

This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.