The Bad vs. the Evil

It is one thing for a libertarian to call for the cut of government on everything, and it's another to cut programs only for the poor and none for the rich.

That is why I agree with David Boelke here:

"At the same time, some of the cuts being made by the Bush Admin seem pretty hard-hearted. One cut that caught my attention was a substantial cut in Low Income Heating Assistance, known by the endearing acronym LIHEAP. You may recall that he mentioned his support for increasing LIHEAP funding in 2000; this was one of the 20,000 things that Gore agreed with him on in their second debate. So while low income people will face a harder time paying their heating bills, the numerous recipients of corporate welfare through myraid programs in the Dept of Commerce and other agencies will not feel a hit. Proposing cuts that are both harsh and tiny at the same time (and overtaken by unnecessary spending increases), and reducing civil liberties in all areas of life... the Republicans are no friend to people supporting smaller government."

It reminds me of a Simpsons episode from the 1996 Hallowe'en episode. At the Democratic National Convention, there were signs saying "We Hate Life and Ourselves" and "We Can't Govern." The Republican Convention signs said "We Want What Worst For Everyone" and "We're Just Plain Evil."

This describes our current situation better than 1996's. Not only do Democrats not only not govern, they can't get elected and hate themselves for it. Not only are Republicans evil, they are currently playing down to the worst concievable charicature of Republicanism: they cut the budget when it might aid the poor, but not when it aids the rich.

That's what I hate about the Bush Administration. In its style, the Clintons did nothing in good taste. The Bush Administration is the opposite: in substance, it does nothing in good taste.

When it comes to the better Presidency, here, style wins over substance. The Bush Administration is doing far more damage to America than the Clintons could have wanted or imagined.