Remember when Obama got his trillion-odd dollars of “stimulus money,” which he and the Democrats breathlessly said we needed for “shovel-ready” jobs to rebuild roads and infrastructure? Please email me if anything of the sort got built in your town. Nothing got built in the cities where I spend time.
Roads and water systems are bad in Atlanta. I recently drove though Buckhead with its bone-jarring potholes. Folks must have SUVs there to survive the roads and incoming gunfire. After the recent rains, some potholes are so big that you can bass fish in them.
When the “Infrastructure Bill” (or, as lobbyists for graft-grabbing special interests called it, “The Show”) was proposed, it was made to sound urgent. Politicians say it would bring “rigor” to the economy. If it is like the Obama “Stimulus Bill,” it will be more like mortis.
So where did all that sweet Obama stimulus money go? Of the money spent in swing state Wisconsin, we know that 80% went to public sector unions — those with already locked-in jobs. In fact, right-to-work states got $266 less per person in stimulus money than heavily unionized states received. Where Democrats had a vast majority of representatives, their states got $460 more per person.
The “stimulus package” was a huge political slush fund with little accountability. This will also be the case with this frantic “Human Infrastructure Bill,” unless the only two sane Democrats, Senators Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin, stand up to their insane party over this inflationary $3.5 trillion farce of a bill. Kyrsten Sinema, whom I like, is the first openly bisexual member of Congress. On this close vote she could go either way.
When Obama, Pelosi and Reid doled out all the stimulus money to their pet political friends without stimulating the economy (Obama is the only 2-term president to never have a year of 3% growth in GDP), they begged Congress for more money. Only in Washington does something not work and they get more money for it. Dems blamed others. It’s like burning down the hotel you got to stay in for free, and then disputing your mini-bar charge.
Rich Democrat donors also got payback. The farcical “green energy” company Solyndra defaulted on more than half a billion dollars of our money, while Obama mega-donor George Kaiser finagled his interest ahead of ours. Other beneficiaries of Obama’s largesse for dubious deals include Larry Page and Sergey Brin (if you Google them you will find they founded Google), NRG Solar owners Warren Buffet and Steve Cohen, and SIGA Tech owner Ronald Perelman. All told, more than 75% of stimulus grants and money for such “businesses” found their way to big Obama supporters.
Even creepy crony capitalist of the century Al Gore got his snout in the trough. His investment in Fisker Automotive scored a $528 million loan guarantee. Can you imagine the risks you could take if you were given $528 million for which you were not personally on the hook? Of course, all these businesses are tanking or have tanked already.
Al Gore said the stimulus plan worked. He also thinks his Weight Watchers plan is working.
Joe Biden is the “Weekend at Bernie’s” president, just strapped in for the leftist ride. His poll numbers have tanked with the botched pullout from Afghanistan, porous southern borders, inflation, deficit spending, out-to-lunch ideas like pushing critical race theory and sending in the DOJ to quell free speech at local school board meetings, and COVID. Chants at college football games tell you the nation’s view of Biden. “Jumping Joe” Biden is the type of leader you get when you order your president through the mail.
In the Senate’s disingenuous tone, they call this “human infrastructure” bill “savings.” On the bright side, there might be some savings. We won’t have to invade Afghanistan again for a while.
For all their self-aggrandizing rhetoric about “helping the needy” with stimulus money, the reality is that Democrats simply helped themselves. This was only a surprise if you were not paying attention. The next time Democrats give a speech about “shovel-ready jobs,” get your shovel ready. It will get deep.
In a rare feat of journalism, “The Atlantic” did a piece saying the spending and chaos in U.S. politics today can be compared to the 300 AD fall of the Roman Empire. I say you cannot compare ancient Rome to America today… Rome had great aqueducts and roads.
Ron Hart is a syndicated op-ed humorist, award-winning author, and TV/radio commentator; you can reach him at Ron@RonaldHart.com or Twitter @RonaldHart
