The Republican Party still doesn't get it. A group of GOP governors are making a big deal about rejecting the stimulus money for their states; money with which they could fund extended unemployment benefits for their citizens who are out of work. One such blowhard is the 36-year-old governor of Louisiana, Piyush "Bobby" Jindal. He has been highly visible lately, as the GOP handlers get him groomed to run for the Presidency. Jindal appeared on NBC's Meet the Press last weekend, and is slated to give the GOP response to the President's address to a joint session of Congress tonight.
That's fine, however Jindal knows that his rejection of the federal funds will not stand with both houses of the Louisiana legislature in Democratic hands. It is pure and simple, grandstanding for political purposes. Despite Senator John McCain's campaign of "Country First", the GOP still values political power over the welfare of their people. I heard on the radio today that Louisiana loses 480 jobs a day; yet the governor of that state thinks it is fine to reject funds to provide unemployment benefits to those people in his state who have lost their jobs in this god-awful economy.
Eight years of the GOP running a government bent on giving tax breaks to the wealthy and deregulating the corporations, has driven us to the point of total economic collapse. Even after that, the party of Lincoln has become the instrument of corporate control of the government. This is totally sickening.
President Obama is not perfect, and will definitely not get everything right. However, he is the hardest working man I have ever seen take on the office of the Presdent. He didn't miss a beat from election day on. Meanwhile the GOP plays hard ball politics, despite the Presidents strident efforts at bipartisanship. I say "screw 'em". Obama has tried and has seen nothing but obstructionist partisanship. Someone needs to tell the Republicans we voted for change. We tried it your way and you have nearly destroyed the nation. It's time to get on board or shut up!
