The Last Congressman on Earth

Yesterday afternoon, House Republicans formulated a counterproposal to the $700 billion bailout bill they claimed created more problems than it solved. Their proposal? 1) Bailed out banks take out insurance, I presume, to cover future losses. And 2) a capital-gains tax cut.

Yes, you read correctly. According to the House Republicans that thwarted a deal yesterday, the answer to our nation’s economic crisis is a tax cut for the wealthy.

I couldn’t make this stuff up if I tried.

Henry Paulsen, the Treasury Secretary reviewed their proposal and said it wouldn’t work. The House Republicans’ response to Paulsen and stymied Democrats? Not attending a late night meeting to continue negotiating.

That’s right. Like a gaggle of bratty kids, these politicians took their ball and left the playground. Apparently it’s going to be their way or the highway. I heard a pundit last night observe that the most conservative of Republicans could care less about George Bush and his treasury secretary and that some of them are scrambling to leverage this issue for Republican political gain. Or their own.

Except I could really give a shit about the Republican Party right now. If I could sacrifice both parties to fix this situation, I’d do it without hesitation. Not attend the meeting to continue negotiations? Are you kidding me?

For the politicians that seek to raise their station on top of the coat tails of this crisis, I’ll say only this: country comes before party and if all this maneuvering delays or blocks a remedy for our financial woes, I can attest that the last person on Earth I would want to be would be a member of Congress.