What Does Reform Mean
Earlier today I was thinking about how I couldn’t help but admire Gov. Sarah Palin a little for breaking with Sen. Ted Stevens on his “bridge to nowhere.” Since then, plenty of people have disagreed with me on whether she actually did anything heroic, arguing she didn’t fight hard enough to kill the project or come out swinging early on. In another state I’d probably make that same argument. But in Palin’s case, I see the decision within the bizarre context of Alaska politics, where the bar for what is “reform” is pretty low.
But Palin’s outside of Alaska now. Presumably, voters in other places in the country won’t be impressed that she didn’t sign on to the legislature’s “Corrupt Bastards Club,” that walked the halls of the capitol wearing custom-made hats with their CBC logo — paid for by the oil services company for whom they did their shilling. I don’t think it will sell too well to say to the American public, hey, I didn’t get a 1,000 percent return on a sweet-heart investment in Utah like Uncle Ted did. Oh, and I didn’t try to move into a major campaign contributor’s back yard for half price like our state’s junior senator. I don’t think “my chief of staff wasn’t indicted like the last Alaska governor’s was” makes a great slogan. That’s the kind of reform some Alaskans were imagining when they went with her — a sad state of affairs, to be sure. I’m thinking now at the national level, this isn’t going to be enough. It’s a far cry from what 80,000 fans cheering for change at Invesco meant.
Related
Rep. Paul Ryan to deliver SOTU response
Chairman of the House Budget Committee Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) will deliver the Republican response to the State of the Union Tuesday, according to Mike Allen
Rep. Parker Griffith (R-Ala.)
One of the most conservative Democrats in the House -- a freshman who said he couldn’t support Nancy Pelosi again -- is going to switch over to the GOP. Josh
Rep. Patrick McHenry: Please, Conservatives, Fill Out Your Census Forms!
The conservative congressman from North Carolina, a constant critic of the census -- one of the people who sounded the alarm about politicization when the
Rep. Perlmutter criticizes House measure that would eliminate 800K federal jobs
Congressman Ed Perlmutter today issued a scathing statement criticizing the House of Representatives for passing a spending bill that could put nearly a million federal employees out of work. The Colorado delegation voted strictly on party lines, with all four Republicans voting in favor of the bill and the three Democrats voting in opposition. Perlmutter’s statement: “My number one priority is to get people back to work because that’s the best thing we can do to pay our debt and move forward toward economic stability
Rep. Paulsen touts balanced budget constitutional amendment
In a post for the conservative blog True North , U.S. Rep
Rep. Pete Hoekstra Bashes Global Currency
I was just talking to Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich.), who’s leaving Congress to run for governor of Michigan, about his proposed Parental Rights Amendment—a
Rep. Perlmutter to hold constituent meet-up in grocery store
Colorado Congressman Ed Perlmutter will hold a Government in the Grocery constituent meet-up this evening from 5-7 at the Safeway at 38th and Wadsworth in Wheat Ridge. The address is 3900 Wadsworth. The meeting, where Perlmutter typically sits at a folding table and talks to whomever shows up, is free and open to the public
Rep. Paulsen, Karl Rove the latest to get ‘glittered’
Rep. Erik Paulsen and former Bush staffer Karl Rove were both showered with glitter at the Midwest Leadership Conference Friday
Rep. Pete Hoekstra Surging in Michigan Gubernatorial Bid
The ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee -- you couldn’t flip on a TV without seeing him in the aftermath of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab’s botched
School of Hock
A growing number of college grads are defaulting on their student loans as the economy worsens.
