Biden matters because he is taking on the real problems that are wrecking America, the deep structural problems, created over decades, that benefit powerful people who will do anything to prevent change (the way fossil fuel companies do anything to block climate solutions that hurt profits). He is the first president since LBJ to take on problems that big.
. . .
A particularly admirable quality in the neo-Brandeisian anti-monopoly movement is its recognition that all these wonkish issues full of technicalities and economics have gut-level human effects (which is in the spirit of Louis Brandeis). Here is a passage from a recent post on BIG:
One of the key ingredients to American success, and one that is lacking today, is optimism.… This collapse is not just about a fall in living standards (we are richer than we were 50 years ago), but about the pervasive unfairness of modern life. There’s a concept in psychology called “learned helplessness” that may begin to explain this modern malaise. Learned helplessness is the result of experiencing repeated traumatic events without the ability to do anything about them. It is a key ingredient in depression. It turns out that suffering is bearable if the sufferer has agency, but even small amounts of suffering become intolerable if the victim feels they can’t make any changes to their situation.… It’s harder than ever for Americans to assert their rights, to have any agency in the face of unfairness, and the result is a habitual acceptance of suffering. We are becoming a land of learned helplessness.
That bitter helplessness, I believe, is the source of the rage that dominates American society today
Regardless of which party is in charge, the main challenge with making changes remains bipartisanship support. There’s just so many issues to tackle that—even if a bill makes it out of planning...
Regardless of which party is in charge, the main challenge with making changes remains bipartisanship support. There’s just so many issues to tackle that—even if a bill makes it out of planning phase—any attempts to fix it change something will get shut down at every level.
The author seems well informed on the presidents agenda but if I had to come here to find out, then the average voter isn’t even going to notice any of these changes until years after another president is in office.
On a bit of a side note: I do feel bad for those appointees. They’re going to look like Obama did after his two terms. Withered and exhausted. It wouldn’t surprise me if they leave.
While earmarks do generally more good than harm.... their banning wasn't the cause, but the symptom. That ship sailed in the 90s, as the rise of Fox News and the likes of Rush Limbaugh turned...
While earmarks do generally more good than harm.... their banning wasn't the cause, but the symptom.
That ship sailed in the 90s, as the rise of Fox News and the likes of Rush Limbaugh turned Democrats from neighbors into enemies. Also Newt Gingrich pioneering the weaponizing of government shutdowns to demand compromise from Democrats when they otherwise wouldn't. Can you believe that long government shutdowns used to never be a thing? We've had 3 that were longer than 2 weeks since 1995.
It got worse when Obama got elected, because racism. And then there was the whole 'gay marriage' thing which really drove the base into a fervor.
Now that the 50-year plan to revoke Roe v Wade has finished, you can well expect that revoking gay marriage is next on the agenda.
Bipartisian bills passing aren't out of the question; We've done it for the America Rescue Plan, Infrastructure, Chips Act, Inflation Reduction Act, etc. And I do understand that Trump has a good...
Bipartisian bills passing aren't out of the question; We've done it for the America Rescue Plan, Infrastructure, Chips Act, Inflation Reduction Act, etc.
And I do understand that Trump has a good strangle hold on the house, but even that is losing its effect. If the border bill were to be able to get voted on, it would pass; both house and senate. It's a very select few that have all the power that make bipartisian wins like that even more possible, but I think even that power is starting to wane.
. . .
Regardless of which party is in charge, the main challenge with making changes remains bipartisanship support. There’s just so many issues to tackle that—even if a bill makes it out of planning phase—any attempts to fix it change something will get shut down at every level.
The author seems well informed on the presidents agenda but if I had to come here to find out, then the average voter isn’t even going to notice any of these changes until years after another president is in office.
On a bit of a side note: I do feel bad for those appointees. They’re going to look like Obama did after his two terms. Withered and exhausted. It wouldn’t surprise me if they leave.
Removal of pork barrel spending has really decreased bipartisanship and compromise in our government
While earmarks do generally more good than harm.... their banning wasn't the cause, but the symptom.
That ship sailed in the 90s, as the rise of Fox News and the likes of Rush Limbaugh turned Democrats from neighbors into enemies. Also Newt Gingrich pioneering the weaponizing of government shutdowns to demand compromise from Democrats when they otherwise wouldn't. Can you believe that long government shutdowns used to never be a thing? We've had 3 that were longer than 2 weeks since 1995.
It got worse when Obama got elected, because racism. And then there was the whole 'gay marriage' thing which really drove the base into a fervor.
Now that the 50-year plan to revoke Roe v Wade has finished, you can well expect that revoking gay marriage is next on the agenda.
Bipartisian bills passing aren't out of the question; We've done it for the America Rescue Plan, Infrastructure, Chips Act, Inflation Reduction Act, etc.
And I do understand that Trump has a good strangle hold on the house, but even that is losing its effect. If the border bill were to be able to get voted on, it would pass; both house and senate. It's a very select few that have all the power that make bipartisian wins like that even more possible, but I think even that power is starting to wane.
The border bill did get a vote in the Senate, and it failed. They had to remove the border provisions to get enough GOP senators to pass it.