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Dear Media: Hold the GOP Accountable

Though the New York Times polling operation has a historic ability to inaccurately predict elections, their recent poll (which was generally confirmed by the NBC/WSJ poll), provides two key findings: that there are a significant number of people who disapprove of Obama, but do not approve of Republicans and, more interestingly, only 50% of Republicans believe that Republicans in Congress would make the best economic decisions. How badly do you have to suck so that when given a choice between giving the ball to you or somebody else, your teammates think that somebody else can do just as good a job? The NBC/WSJ numbers confirm the same thing: a good number of Republicans/conservatives may disapprove of the Obama administration, but do not approve of the Republican Party or Congressional Republicans. In a far less scientific sampling, I've talked to a number of Republican friends and none believe that the party or Congressional Republicans are doing a good job. In fact, in many news sources, the fact that Republicans opposed Obama's budget was hailed as a victory. How bad is it when a "victory" for Republicans is getting Republicans to oppose Democrats?

Count me among the class of Republicans who disapprove of everyone. I expect Democrats to propose expanding the size and scope of the federal government. And I expect Republicans to oppose them. Meaning, when the size, scope and cost of the federal government balloons under a Republican President and Congress, the betrayal becomes personal. As someone under 50, the fact that all of this was paid for with money my generation will be required to pay back increases the ire.

However, every Republican should be enraged at the intellectual dishonesty being perpetrated by most Congressional Republicans and blithely ignored by the media. Annual budgetary shenanigans in Congress can tend to obfuscate the truth by hiding expenditures, using continuing resolutions to shift cost into out years, etc., so precisely determining who was in control of what budgetary controls --- and when the effects of those budgets materialized ---- can be inexact. However, what is undisputed is that the results of fiscal years 2003, 2004 and 2005 were completely within the control of a Republican Congress and Republican President. And those three years, all completely within Republican control, had the largest annual deficits in U.S. history.

So, my proposal is a simple one: Michael Steele and other leaders of the party should publicly ask news media members to ask any Republican wishing to discuss fiscal policy to begin the interview with the following series of questions: Did you vote for the 2003 budget, which led to the largest budget deficit in U.S. history? After that budget-buster, did you vote for the 2004 budget, which broke the record for the largest deficit in U.S. history? After running the two largest budget deficits in U.S. history, did you then vote for a budget that resulted in the third largest deficit in U.S. history? So, after personally approving of the three largest deficits in U.S. history, what would you like to discuss?

The goal of this exercise is not to silence the voices opposing Obama's budget --- they are right to do so, but rather to ensure that those who speak on behalf of Republicans are genuine and committed stewards of fiscal responsibility, not political opportunists whose only objection to government spending is that it's not they who decide how to allocate the money.

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