In Washington, D.C., everyone’s agog to see how things will play out in the U.S. House of Representatives, where a minority faction of Republicans is holding the majority hostage.
One outcome is the impending resignation of John Boehner, House speaker. The other is that Republicans cannot agree on his successor and some want to rewrite the script as to the speaker’s role.
The reverberations from the implosion will not be felt beyond the Beltway, according to political pundits. Most Americans do not pay attention to national politics other than the occasional outburst by Donald Trump, which is broadcast only because of its entertainment value.
THAT DISCONNECT with voters is somewhat ironic seeing that today most U.S. representatives and senators spend more time in their home states than conducting the nation’s business in D.C.
We also have the electronic means to let them know in a moment’s notice our thoughts and concerns.
Even so, most voters feel increasingly marginalized when it comes to politicians. Their barometers? Their pocketbooks.
Two things back up this feeling of disconnect:
First, is an economy that has remained stagnant for the middle and lower classes.
Even though unemployment is a meager 5.1 percent, down from a raging 10 percent in 2009, hourly wages have remained stagnant and a worker’s earning power has steadily fallen over the last 10 years.
Hands down, wages mean more to U.S. voters than foreign policy, immigration, health care or the fight against terrorism.
Secondly, with the news that only about 160 U.S. families will be able to direct the lion’s share of campaign spending for the U.S. presidential campaign, it’s no wonder that most Americans feel they have little voice.
This disenfranchisement is part of the attraction to the famously wealthy Trump, who says he will not be beholden to any donor other than himself. (Which is not a little scary.)
But the bigger picture is that we are a country of increasing wealth for a decreasing number of people.
According to a story in The New York Times, just 158 families, together with the companies they own or control, have so far contributed more than $176 million in the first phase of the 2016 presidential campaign.
Most of this extreme elite lean Republican, who favor, naturally, legislation that will be to their economic advantage, including income tax cuts and those levied on capital gains from the sales of stock, as well as reductions in entitlement programs such as Medicare and Social Security — things they don’t need.
UNTIL MEMBERS of Congress take their role of working for their entire electorate to heart — and not the super rich — then confidence in their ability to govern in a just manner will continue to plummet.
Their future is in their hands.
— Susan Lynn
