It seems to us . . .
Albany and Washington bicker, pork flies and golf rolls on
LEADERSHIP LAPSE: At last, bipartisanship in Albany. Both parties are dissing the governor.
We could understand that from the Republicans. But the Democrats supposedly leading the Senate seem to be leading it away from the presumptive leader of their own party, Democratic Gov. David A. Paterson. Their rebuff of his planned economic-crisis speech Monday to a rare joint session of the Legislature—they termed it a waste of money, as if that has ever been a consideration—is a slap they can only get away with because Paterson’s political power is so low.
The Dems later had a change of heart, and decided to attend. Still, their initial stance wasn’t leadership, it was abdication of leadership. Maybe these guys need to be told to go look for another job. Stay tuned.
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CONGRESSIONAL HEAT: Speaking of bipartisanship, if there was any doubt over ideological warfare in Congress— was that a redundancy?—it has been not just removed but obliterated by California Sen. Barbara Boxer’s fast-track push for climate change legislation in her Senate committee. She rammed it through because she wants the bill through all of Congress before the Dec. 7 climate conference in Copenhagen, torpedos—and Republicans—be damned.
Republican committee members demanding a cost analysis boycotted the hasty bill markup and likened Boxer’s tactics to a “blitzkrieg,” while Boxer told the committee there is “no room for bipartisanship” on this issue.
Hey, can’t we all just get along? Oh, wait, this is Congress.
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HEAVY LIFT: And speaking of Congress, there was indeed room for bipartisanship recently as lawmakers approved the purchase of 10 new Boeing C-17 “Globemaster” cargo aircraft for the military.
This, despite the fact that the Air Force says it already has enough of them, President Obama and Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates “strongly opposed” the measure and the planes are heavy lifters in more ways than one, costing $250,000 apiece.
The Air Force is getting them anyway. It will now have 215 of them. Why?
Because Boeing outflanked the politicians by spreading C-17 manufacturing and its 30,000 jobs across 43 states. Unions pushed, politicians felt the heat and the day has come when pork flies.
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FORE: OK, let’s not let the White House off the hook, either. Turns out President Obama’s last stimulus plan included incentives for the purchase of electric vehicles, and that includes . . . golf carts.
In some states with add-on incentives, that could make golf carts free. In others, it could cover half to two-thirds the cost. “Isn’t that the coolest thing you’ve ever heard?” gushed one Oklahoma dealer.
No.
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