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A Modest Proposal: States Lose "Main Street Job Creation Act" Funding if Senators Vote Against It

Submitted by mark karlin on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 10:14am.

THE BUZZFLASH EDITOR'S BLOG

By Mark Karlin

I have a modest proposal: if a U.S. Senator votes against the "Main Street Job Creation Act" (BuzzFlash's name for the "stimulus" bill), their state should lose half the funding from the bill. If both U.S. Senators from one state vote against the bill, the state loses its entire allocation from the legislation.

This may sound Draconian, but it might induce the people out of work and with piles of bills to tar and feather the "economic kamikazee" Republican Senators who got America into this mess -- and to run them out of the country.

After all, most of the GOP Neo-Confederate opposition to the "Main Street Job Creation Act" comes from Senators who represent states that already receive more money from the federal government than they pay into the treasury.  With the exception of Florida, most of the Old South is still poorer than most of the rest of the nation, and needs massive federal aid to survive economically.

Stepford Republican Senators who believe that you can stop a house from burning down with a tax cut for the rich -- like Chatty Kathy dolls who just repeat the same line over and over again -- should suffer the political consequences of being so profoundly treacherous to the nation.  And nothing would get them off the nearly 30-year-old message point of tax cuts for the rich like a good tar and feathering.

So let Mitch McConnell and John McCain lead the Anti-job, Anti-economic recovery "Stonewall Jackson" brigade of GOP rebels who would do the Union harm. But let their states hold them responsible for not receiving any funds to help improve the employment and economic prospects that comes with the "Main Street Job Creation Act."

It's fair and just, because otherwise the Confederate holdouts and their co-horts in the GOP Senate caucus can claim that they are defending the legacy of Ronald Reagan (a cratered economy, in reality) without consequences.

Let's have some accountablity here. 

THE BUZZFLASH EDITOR'S BLOG

After Note:   As BuzzFlash has noted, we renamed the "stimulus" bill several days ago. We  have called it the "Main Street Job Creation Act" on BuzzFlash. One of the reasons polling for the "Main Street Job Creation Act" has gone down is because Americans feel that they were taken for a ride with the Wall Street bailout and stimulus, and so the very word now has a bad connotation.

Besides which, the Obama White House needs to learn from the Republicans that you name bills so that opposing them sounds unpatriotic, Anti-American, or against working Americans.  That is why we suggest the White House call the current "stimulus" legislation the "Main Street Job Creation Act."  Let the Republicans vote against job creation for Main Street Americans.  Once they do, you've already got a good set of campaign commercials for 2010.

Clarence Page of the Chicago Tribune -- who is a solid mainstream columnist -- must be reading BuzzFlash, because he picked up on our theme in his Sunday column.

(Among other uses of the "framing" concept on the "stimulus" bill, BuzzFlash posted this headline on 2/5: "BuzzFlash Suggestion: Why doesn't the White House call the stimulus legislation the "Main Street Job Creation" Bill? Will "Main Street" Stimulus Bill Come up for Vote in Senate Today, Friday?")




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Punish those who stay and fight

Submitted by mgrello on Mon, 02/09/2009 - 10:50am.
I almost don't have to say more. The mountain we are already pushing a boulder up in this state is phenomenal, but it is vital for the nation (as we can see by this issue and and others) that we succeed. Your solution is to cut our supply chain. In politics, image matters, We have two choices we can either do as you suggest and further embitter the south against "those arrogant northern liberals" (which really seems to be your goal sometimes) or, since the law will pass, work it to the good of all Americans and never give up an opportunity to hammer home what your Congressman wanted to blow for you, and all Americans; what he felt you did not deserve. The Democrats in Congress need to push back, HARD, to keep corporate welfare out of this package and then relentlessly point out that it resulted in a healthy economy in a way that pandering to the rich and powerful never could.
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cut off everything but education

Submitted by yurbud on Mon, 02/09/2009 - 10:33am.
As satisfying as it would be to cut off the retrograde red staters, the reality is those who vote for the right who aren't wealthy are victims of our gutted education system and non-stop right wing propaganda.

Maybe the one program we should have there is TEACH FOR AMERICA and send Peace Corps workers there to bring them up to speed with civilized world instead of letting them descend further into ignorance, fear, and hatred that is so easy to manipulate for the wealthy.

Professorsmartass.com
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modest proposal

Submitted by sinners united on Mon, 02/09/2009 - 9:21am.
here is a modest propsal , that we all get real with what the parties are doing to this once great nation , you know the one ,that used to have good moral common sence leading it, the only way i know of in getting out of debt is to pay the bills, you cant spend your way out , unless the spending that your doing is on the bills the debt is still there and adding bills just adds debt and dont even try and say that iether side in the government is trying to do that with the wanna bee stimlus package , the only real stimulating going on here is in the minds of the crimminal polititions in our govenment and we have them on both sides ,the dems. are not any less criminal then the reps. and if you thinks they are you know little about the nature of beast wich the serve, primarily them selves first. cause you definetly dont see them serving God first.so what do you really expect?
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When was Buzzflash taken over by Freepers?

Submitted by Mike5000 on Mon, 02/09/2009 - 2:18am.
Seriously Mark, what would you be saying if a Freeper had proposed that only states whose senators had voted for a tax cut actually got it? Punishing citizens for their senators is a dumb idea whether it's posted on Free Republic or posted here.

This is not the time for monkeying around. There are some really bad things happening in DC, and that includes three-quarters of the CEO Stimulus Bill and 99% of the Billionaire Bailout Bill.

Freeper nuttiness won't help. Nor will calling a sow's ear a Main Street Job Creation Act. Because 75% of it is waste - tax cuts and corporate boondoggles. If they could get it down to 25% waste it might do us some good, but running up $800 billion more debt for $200 billion benefit is dumb dumb dumb.

Did I say dumb? Not just dumb. It will make the economy much much worse.

Which of course is the whole idea. A succession of Bush-Obama plans, each stealing a trillion from taxpayers, and each making the economy worse so we need another plan.

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I second the sentiment; and

Submitted by Barry Schwartz on Mon, 02/09/2009 - 10:53am.
I second the sentiment; and recent headlines on BuzzFlash have been revoltingly familiar, because they are like the Republicans' nonsense. There have been fantasies of Republicans snickering behind closed doors, in parallel to Republican concern with 'The Terrorists' snickering in their caves; there have been verbal fistpumps when Obama said something harsh about Republicans, in parallel to Joe Lieberman's fistpump in a movie theater; and on the process goes, here manifesting as verbal sadism against Republicans--tongue-in-cheek, but delighting in the fantasized infliction of pain.

I voted not to take over the country, but to restore our government. Our government has been restored; this is how it works. I'll take Mitch McConnell's crazy minority stunts over Republican-style government by Democrats, anyday.

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The Senate

Submitted by VettaKing on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 10:40pm.
The most undemocratic institution possible in a representative democracy. Only in America could a group outnumbered 58-41 destroy the nation. The repukelicans were absolutely destroyed in the last election, but they are still calling the shots. Absolutely amazing. Harry Reid should be tarred and feathered with the Repukelicans. He's a pathetic excuse for a leader. In prison he would be the one sitting down to pee.
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you got that right

Submitted by daphne on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 6:35pm.
my favorite Republican "name" was tax relief.
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A Better Plan

Submitted by PAT T. on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 4:44pm.
I say we adopt the truly bi-partisan Rush Limbaugh plan. The election was roughly 54% for Pres. Obama and 46% for Sen. McCain. How about the Dems direct 54% of the spending and Repubs 46%? This way only 54% of the funds will be wasted instead of almost the whole thing being flushed down the toilet. By the way, I would urge every Republican Governor to turn down the funds.
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Say's Law

Submitted by ardie on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 3:31pm.
The GOP Neo-Confederate are espoused to Say's Law (supply creates its own demand). In other words, they are supply-siders. Consider too that Jean-Baptiste Say lived in a barter economy from whence his law was derived which, I hasten to add, also assumed full employment. Now you can begin to get a clearer picture of where these Neo-Confederate antiquarians are coming from and why they oppose investing in a tangible and intangible (education) infrastructure since barter economies don't invest in infrastructure.
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What a great idea!

Submitted by alankdkd on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 2:54pm.
Accountability has been missing in action in our political system. This proposal would make these corrupt Republican congress members accountable to their constituents, not just to their super-rich supporters.
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I Took Action!

Submitted by hterrya on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 2:06pm.

I sent the following message to Democratic Senate Majority Leader Reid and Senators Boxer, Feingold, and Sanders:

I am asking you to find a way to use this idea so that those Senators who vote against this bill are held accountable for their unwillingness to act in a "bi-partisan" fashion:

...if a U.S. Senator votes against the "Main Street Job Creation Act" (BuzzFlash's name for the "stimulus" bill), their state should lose half the funding from the bill. If both U.S. Senators from one state vote against the bill, the state loses its entire allocation from the legislation.

-From: THE BUZZFLASH EDITOR'S BLOG By Mark Karlin (http://buzzflash.com/articles/node/7645)

The message above was sent to my two Senators (both of whom are Republicans) with this addition:

It is time for you to stop acting like a political hack.

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Reap What You Sow

Submitted by ChasDu on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 1:45pm.
I found Mark's article enlightened. It is neither Draconian nor un-American. It is simply another stimulus to encourage positive movement forward. I can see, however, that it might start a precedent which would be counter-productive without some limitations. How about, as in some board games which are far more fair-minded than the games played by our Congress, a condition agreed upon which would allow a limited use of this type of option. What comes immediately to mind is a set of 3 chances per year, per presidential term (or for whatever length agreed upon) for each of our current 2 parties ... to use this option only for the most serious and consequential votes. Once the 3 chances are used up, that's it. With this limitation or some other, the options for abusing this condition become limited and the positive results from it's limited use can become the stimulus for more rapid change. While there may not be time to hold this kind of vote prior to this particular Senate Bill it would still be possible to use this "encouragement" ad hoc and then work on some such proposal for the future to keep both sides happy.
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Great Idea: Let's Add This to It!

Submitted by Reasoner101 on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 1:16pm.
Great idea Mark; both renaming the bill (when will Dems learn to market their messages with the simplicity and patriotism that the Rethugs have been doing since Reagan??). How about adding this element to what you propose above: The state's whose Senators do NOT vote for the bill based on a belief that this is not something government should do will see the overall federal tax bill reduced by a pro rate proportion of their population's federal tax contribution MINUS any surplus federal funding that state receives from the federal government that exceeds tax revenues for that particular state. Let these hypocrites put their money where their mouths are; they'll get no jobs in their states and their unemployed people will get no beneifts from the bill (as they won't be forced to "pay" for it). This in effect will reduce the size of the bill by less than 1% rather than hundreds of billions for this ridiculous water down "compromise." That's because virtually all the big red states are freeloaders at the government trough. Then maybe we can get a government that takes care of its citizens, rather than its wealthiest politico funders and the shills that represent them in government and the media.
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Make this an amendment to the Senate bill

Submitted by cagey on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 12:15pm.
This idea or something similar needs to be introduced as an amendment to the Senate bill. Last I heard they will be voting on Tuesday. Of all the senators who might introduce such an amendment, Bernie Sanders seems the most likely. I say we forward this article and others to him and anyone else who would be willing to call out the DC swampdog millionaires in the GOP for what they are.
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Taxes

Submitted by cokids on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 11:58am.
You've probably read the data about the proportion of tax funds going to red states where they pay proportionately LESS in taxes...in other words they are getting more benefit from tax dollars while they scream and whine about them! Well, rather than refusing to give any state a share of the funds, why not reduce their allocation based on the proportion of 'overage' they already are getting in tax-funded programs!?? In other words if a state pays less in taxes than they GET, reduce their allocation by that percentage. Let those who hate taxes reap what they sow....LESS! Perhaps this is the only way to 'teach' people that we all are ONE and when you complain or reduce taxes; you get less as a result! That kind of learning is probably what it is going to take for some people to understand!
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punishing Senators...of either party, for voting NO

Submitted by marytheprez on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 11:42am.
Mary in Radioactive Tennessee I am in total agreement and we should also remind these dumb asses that it was 8 years of failed Bush policies and $8 billion poured into Iraq, (the same amount we need to get started fixing this GOP mess!)that Obama now has to plead with them to pass! And we need to remind these goofballs in denial...that if they vote 'no', they will be voting against their own constituents. Here in Radioactive TN, our unemployment figure is close to 12%, I mean the REAL figure, not the twisted State Government figure. We have a budget deficit in the millions, and our Dem Governor who has a great Repug following is now whining that he will need the stimulus money to save jobs in education, especially at our universities...like PROFESSORS! Our two Rethug Senators have been all over TV and Radio claiming that we need more tax cuts for Wall Street and billionaires. Meanwhile here at home, unemployment claims are bogged down because the State had to LAY OFF claims workers, food banks are almost empty, and more companies are folding every week. I have e-mailed these two losers 3 times this week (labor busting Corker and loony Alexander) telling them the same thing. They should just get on the plane McCain is taking tomorrow out of the country so he won't have to vote...can a 'didn't vote' count against them? I say any vote but YES should cause their loss in the next election...We DO need all that jobs money and food money and health insurance money. And Barack is being too nice to these dilberts. He should have realized that there is no such thing as bi-partisan cooperation with this bunch. Let's keep their feet to the fire, tell them to shut the hell up and pass this desparately need funding NOW.
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smile when you say that, partner

Submitted by Truffulaut on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 11:25am.
As a Texan, I would find that not merely Draconian but downright un-American. I have taken great comfort in knowing that I am a citizen of the United States of America and that the Republic of Texas exists only in history books. We currently have two Republican senators, but the latest Gallup polling shows the state nearly evenly split, 50/50, between the two parties. Beyond that, the urban centers have voted Democratic for several cycles now. There is a vast non-voting population in the Valley, and it and the urban centers are where job creation would have the most immediate effect. Incidentally, the man who just moved out of Our White House was born in Connecticut and, aside from a carefully cultivated accent, failed business ventures, and a disastrous term as governor, has no right to be called a "Texan."
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I was in the same situation as you...

Submitted by VettaKing on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 10:36pm.
about 10 years ago. I had lived in TX my whole life. You know what's great about being an American citizen? We're free to live in any state that we want. I moved. The reality is unless you are somehow physically unable (those people should be getting helped separately from the stimulus) anyone can.You can do the same. If it's too much of a sacrifice for you then the stimulus money coming to your state isn't important enough for you to worry about. I know this may sound harsh and unfair (I fully admit that it is), but this is serious business. Without accountability nothing will ever change.
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Running away accomplishes nothing -

Submitted by mckathiki on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 11:42pm.
- how can we work for the change we need and take Texas back from the carpetbaggers if we run, oops, move away? My husband and I barely make enough money to scrape a living and certainly don't have the funds to just up and move to another state. Besides that, I've made a commitment to the six year old boy I am nurse/nanny to: born with Pfeiffer's Syndrome and veteran of over 20 surgeries, mostly cranio-facial reconstruction, he brought amazing grace back into my life and I have promised him and his parents that I will stick around as long as he needs me. You also must admit that these are pretty tough times to leave a job and look for another. Your words are indeed harsh and unfair - I believe in accountability, too, but I don't believe this is the best way to make it happen.
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As leverage, it could work

Submitted by urthsong on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 2:16pm.
Of course, nobody wants to see the innocent victims of these Dittoheads suffer. But if there were such an amendment, the Dittoheads would be hardpressed to vote against the bill, wouldn't they? Calling the Republicans on it would be enormously instructive for everybody. Pat Williams
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"Right on!" to your comment about Bush...

Submitted by mckathiki on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 1:27pm.
...from this 5th generation Texan living in El Paso! I, too, am concerned about punishing the average, barely- making-a-living or unemployed American due to the votes of Republican senators who bought their positions. Hutchison voted for SCHIP (which is more than can be said about Cornyn) but I think her upcoming run for governor will quell any intelligent position she might have come up with on the "stimulus" bill. Penalizing the state and its citizens would come back to bite us in butt - we need jobs to empower us - we will be more inclined to get involved and vote the Rethugs and complicit Dems out of power once our basic needs are taken care of.
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Annoying

Submitted by Musing on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 11:39am.
I like the sentiment. Those who receive the greatest Federal largesse are currently pretending to have the greatest fiscal responsibility. Try this. We add all the money that the Federal Government pays to the states, add in the stimulus plan, divide the number by the population of the country. Now we have the average amount each citizen receives from the Federal Government. Now multiplying this by the number of people for each state, we have a "reasonable figure" that each state should receive. Being generous, we (threaten to - this is just added after reading the next post - it was not my intent be in anyway vindictive or change the current way that states receive Federal money) shove a clause into the stimulus bill which does not allow the "reasonable figure" that each state should receive to be exceeded by 50%. Some states would permanently lose a large part of their handouts - but those tend to be the ones arguing against the stimulus bill anyway. It would be interesting to see how much noise those Senators would now make. This does not seem vindictive - just responsible.
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One step further

Submitted by homerandivot on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 11:40am.
Declare it what it is, a Federal Emegency. Make it fifty seperate bills, one for each state. That will let the people know where their senators stand and who's interests they stand for.
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Constitutional Muster

Submitted by Stephen Fletcher on Sun, 02/08/2009 - 1:35pm.
This proposal is the only one that would stand a chance of passing constitutional muster.
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