Greenhut on Senator Webb’s Response to the SOTU

Stephen Greenhut’s blogged about Senator Jim Webb’s response to the State of the Union; and is doing so proves that even facts can’t get in the way of his own conservative (please don’t call it libertarian) conviction.

Here’s Steve’s post.

 

Greenhut objected to this statement from Senator Webb:

When one looks at the health of our economy, it’s almost as if we are living in two different countries. Some say that things have never been better. The stock market is at an all-time high, and so are corporate profits. But these benefits are not being fairly shared. When I graduated from college, the average corporate CEO made 20 times what the average worker did; today, it’s nearly 400 times. … Wages and salaries for our workers are at all-time lows as a percentage of national wealth, even though the productivity of American workers is the highest in the world. Medical costs have skyrocketed. College tuition rates are off the charts. Our manufacturing base is being dismantled and sent overseas. Good American jobs are being sent along with them. ”

Steve’s response was that Webb offered the same solution as other Democrats, which in Steve’s view is bigger government and bigger government programs.

I didn’t hear Webb say anything of the sort.  In fact, I posted a response to Steve asking him exactly what did Senator Webb say that was inaccurate.  My post didn’t make it because the Orange Punch blog can pick and choose what posts make it or not.   

Lost in this is the fact that the Government Expansion under George W. Bush has surpassed anything the Democrats have even done.  Steve ignores the REGO program under Clinton-Gore that reduced the size of the Federal Government to the lowest point sicne the Kennedy Administration.  In the reality-based community, the two political parties have certainly changed some stripes over the years.  The Republicans are now the party of Big Government, Borrow-and-Spend, and Massive Debt/Deficits.  But not in Steve’s world.  But no matter how bad Republicans are, Democrats will always be worse to him.

Webb had one of the most powerful and effective Democratic responses to the SOTU we’ve seen and heard in years.  But Steve didn’t hear that.  And with all the calls for bi-partsanship from the Right, now that they have lost power, make me laugh considering they had no use for it when they were in charge.  And Greenhut is not alone here.  Adam Problesky and Jon Fleischman regularly stick to the Right Wing positioning of the Left in their writings despite evidence to the contrary. 

Gentlemen, we get the government we deserve.