Elections and Reality Bites

Robert Samulenson wrote a really good column about why politicans love to talk about making tough choices but once in office never make them. The voters would never stand for it. People want better health care but lower health care costs. They want independence from foreign oil but lower gas prices. They want more government services but lower taxes. They want a solvent social security system but without cutting benefits or raising social security taxes. The list goes on. So nothing happens. On that score, neither Barack Obama nor John McCain has stuck his neck out on any of the really big problems coming down the pike in the next couple of decades. It's easier to talk about whether Obama is patriotic enough or whether McCain is too old. The old world of bipartisan consensus where both parties would agree, say, to raise the retirement age, cut social security benefits, and raise the $102,000 cap on social security taxes is gone. Each party hides in the bushes waiting for the other one to say something first and then jumps on it. This is why a recent Rasmussen poll showed that only 9% of Americans think Congress is doing an excellent or good job.