Day after day. Week after week. Month after month. Year after Year, we have all waited for the last 12 years for Congress and the Presidents to do something about the big issues. How many times have we watched gas prices go up and up and then when people complain the prices come down a little bit. But Congress and the President have not found a way to adopt a comprehensive energy policy that will address the long term needs of energy for this country without dependence on foreign oil. That is a big thing that has not happened.
How many years have we had all kinds of silly state pieces of legislature passed that tried to deal with immigration issues because Congress and Presidents have not been willing to find a way to have a comprehensive immigration policy adopted. There is no way that we can send more than 15 million people back to their “own” country. Many of those who are undocumented were brought here as babies and consider this their home. If we cannot send them all back, then we need to find a way to make them legal by some method. Allow them to plead guilty to some level and pay a fine and meet a number of other requirements. They are smart people. They could find a solution to the big thing if they worked on it. That is one of the big things.
Bowles-Simpson have shown what could be done to deal with the Deficit problem, but nobody wants to do the hard work. That is a really big thing and a really important thing, but no one will work on it.
Somehow all one party wants to do is work on sexual issues. Who is sleeping with whom. Who can do what with their own bodies? Who can decide how others will prevent having more children. The people who want less government and to get government out of their lives are trying very hard to get government very much into the private activities of people. Obviously that must be a big issue for them because they are spending so much time and effort on it. It seems to me that we may be making a big issue out of that to distract us from the big issues that are not being addressed.
My respect and appreciation for Congress would go up a hundred fold if they would work on one of the big three issues: Energy, Immigration or the Deficit.
Richard Brand
Chairman, Vance County Democrats
Excellent article. For people who don’t know and really aren’t fixiated on political parties, Erskin Bowles is one of the brightest lights this state has ever produced. Brilliant man.
As for the oil problem … both political parties are mired up to their eyeballs in special interests.
Immigration – Generally I see our Mexican brothers and sisters as blessings. They will work AND PAY TAXES if we’ll let them. And don’t forget, when social security was implemented, the first generation of recipients (our relatives) didn’t pay in a dime. Am I crazy, or do we wear our selfishness on our shoulder?
I thought that when the Energy Dept. was set up that they would come up with a solution. As to Bowles Simpson I do not know why Pres. Obama did not support their reccomendations . On immigration Rick I think you are headed in correct direction