One hell of a shopping spree passes the House

A $819 Billion (yes, that's with a "B") economic stimulus bill passed through the House today, 244-188. Not surprisingly, the vote went along Party lines, with all of the Republicans against it. 12 Democrats voted against it. Of course, it would have been nice if the Republicans had found this type of backbone last fall with the bailout package. Of course, this package will now go to the Senate, where they are planning an even bigger package. And it keeps getting awesomer...

Hey, we've already gone totally apeshit with the spending, what's another $800+ billion?

" 'We don't have a moment to spare,' Obama declared at the White House as congressional allies hastened to do his bidding in the face of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression."

Spare for what? Government intervention is primarily what caused this crisis to begin with. So what is Obamessiah's solution? Increase it dramatically. Awesome...let's just keep proudly marching towards Socialism, shall we? I especially enjoyed the part about congressional allies rushing to do his bidding. It conjures up a picture of an emperor ordering his lackey courtiers about. This is hardly a media-induced image, as House Speaker Nancy "Bimbette" Pelosi states a couple of paragraphs later:

"A mere eight days after Inauguration Day, Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Tuesday's events heralded a new era. 'The ship of state is difficult to turn,' said the California Democrat. 'But that is what we must do. That is what President Obama called us to do in his inaugural address.' "

First of all, what the fuck does this exactly mean, unless it's a clear implication that the Democrats are indeed hell-bent on turning this country into a Socialist "utopia?" The first statement issued by Speaker Bimbette is not what concerns me, although it just reinforces my view that she's a numbnut. No, the second part is far more intriguing, that this "is what we must do. That is what President Obama called us to do in his inaugural address."

I see... so essentially, Pelosi readily admits that the Democratic House of Representatives is nothing more than a friggin' rubber stamp for our mighty Messiah. I love it! You know, there was a time when Representatives were actually supposed to, well, represent their district. But not in this new Golden Age. No, now we're all mere extensions of our Dear Leader. We are all mere serfs to work for the glory of the One. Yes, I'm well aware that congresspeople are going to support their political party, but the particular phrases and wording by Democrats are pretty creepy. I don't recall ever hearing Republicans in Congress voting on something for the greater glory of George W. Bush.

"Rahm Emanuel, a former Illinois congressman who is Obama's chief of staff, invited nearly a dozen House Republicans to the White House late Tuesday for what one participant said was a soft sales job.
This lawmaker quoted Emanuel as telling the group that polling shows roughly 80 percent support for the legislation, and that Republicans oppose it at their political peril. The lawmaker spoke on condition of anonymity, saying there was no agreement to speak publicly about the session."

This is a soft sales job? Vote on this legislation, or else? Wow, some bipartisanship. Personally, I don't think the Republicans are in much peril at all. They are already in the minority, and the Democrats can pass pretty much whatever they want. If Republicans oppose it and if things go south economically speaking, then they'll come out smelling like a rose. If they go along with it and things go well (or bad), then they'll be even more marginalized than now. I think there are more benefits for them to fight this package every step of the way. The Democrats want the Republicans on board so that if this package falls apart, they have some cover, which seems, to me anyway, why they shouldn't accept.

At least one Republican, however, is asking the right question, and this is probably the most important question that all Americans should have:

"Rep. Randy Neugebauer, R-Texas, sought to strip out all the spending from the legislation before final passage, arguing that the entire cost of the bill would merely add to soaring federal deficits. 'Where are we going to get the money,' he asked, but his attempt failed overwhelmingly, 302-134."

One of the reasons why we got ourselves into this mess to begin with was due to runaway spending. This occurred naturally with the Democrats, since they can't wait to hike taxes through the roof so that they can get all of their giveaway programs. However, Republicans have to shoulder part of the blame as well. Their spending throughout 2000-06 bordered on reckless. So what's the current solution? Spend even more money. Although this might be hard to understand for some people, but money doesn't come out of thin air. The government can gain money two ways. They can tax people, which means that nothing the government provides is never really free or they can print more of it, which increases inflation and decreases the value of the dollar.

Make no mistake...for all of the nonsense spewed by the Left about bipartisanship and unity, the Democrats don't really need the Republicans. They have the Presidency, they have the House and they can probably garner a few milquetoast Republicans to help them in the Senate without too much trouble. This will be the state of affairs for the next two years. If this massive glut of a bill is an early sign of what the Democrats are planning, then the next couple of years are going to be very rough.