Part II

Those who are elected and go to DC with the intent of shrinking government, whether they are members of Congress, or a President, have a serious problem.  When a leviathan has been created, it is next to impossible to shrink.  Why?  The American people themselves are conflicted.  Right now, the vast majority of Americans think that the government is the problem.  But if you were to suggest to eliminate this piece, or that piece, an immense howling will begin, even before you actually act.  We will hear about how essential they are, and how, without them, the nation collapses.

Tax reform is an extremely popular policy stance.  Tens of thousands of pages of law, regulation, and tables.  All GOP candidates have proposed some form or other of fixing the tax code.  People hate the IRS.  Right?  How hard can it be?  Tax preparation, planning, etc, is a hundreds of billions of dollars industry.  Can you imagine the talk of jobs lost?  Can you imagine the stories of how "the rich" will make out like bandits?  Never mind that now the super rich and connected businesses can get set asides, tax credits, exemptions, etc, just by picking up the phone.  The unions of the IRS will scream, and politicians listen to public unions.  What are the odds of fixing the tax code?  Very low.  

So why did I mention some legislators  by name?  They all went to DC with great talk, and ready to dissemble the bureaucracy. I would have cut Senator Hatch a little slack, as he has been there for decades, and fought the fight for much of that time.  Why don't I?  When his peer, Senator Bennett, R-UT, lost in a primary battle to Tea Party Candidate Mike Lee, Hatch went hardcore tea party. in speeches, not actions.  The rest, including Senator Manchin, (we want to be bipartisan here) found a way to work into the system, either forgetting their promises, or more likely, would go through motions of trying, only to settle into the DC culture.  What happens if you don't play along?  Ask Senator Cruz, who stood on principle, who fought his own party establishment, to fulfill his promises.  He is blackballed by the establishment.  They hate him.  Rand Paul is in the same boat, but he is not the firebrand that Cruz is.

Personally, I would love to see Cruz appointed to the Supreme Court, rather than President.  

You have to play along, to get along in congress.  

I think that the last truly "constitutional" presidency we had was Calvin Coolidge.  He was a regular guy, who was sworn in by his father, a Notary Public, in the family home in Vermont, as he was vacationing there.  President Harding had died, and Coolidge, as VP, was sworn in at about 3 am.  Silent Cal, as he was known, tried very hard to minimize the impact that the federal government had on individuals.  Can you even imagine not worrying about what the federal government can do to you today?  He hated the DC society stuff.  Ask a Republican presidential candidate who their role model as president would be.  Reagan would probably be the answer of nearly every one.  Who was Reagan's?  Well, who did he try to model his presidency after?  Yup,  Coolidge. 

Tonight the President is giving his State of the Union Speech.  Coolidge followed the tradition of sending a written report, which was practice from Thomas Jefferson to Woodrow Wilson, who set the model used today. Coolidge reverted to a more subdued event.   After Coolidge, it became a glamour shot for the President to this day. 

Senator Cruz has been in DC for one term, so we can wait and see how he turns out.  Is anyone impervious to the DC comfort zone?  Anyone spend a career fighting the political machinations of DC?  Not very many.  The late Senator Goldwater did.  Besides, I can only think of a few, one whose son is running for President.  Congressman Paul voted against the Iraq war.  He fought for decades the machine.  Senator Colburn, R-OK, who just retired due to cancer, also maintained the proper balance against the machine.  He promised to retire from the House after three terms, he did.  He worked tirelessly against waste and abuse.  He kept his roots, going home on weekends to do pro bono medical treatments, against the will of the powers in the Senate.

Has your representative or senator gotten comfortable in DC?  You should check it out.  Our nation was not founded by professional politicians.  Now we know why.  The trappings of power are intoxicating.  Is your representative drunk on it?