Louisville Courier Journal Editorial Tasks Senator Jim Bunning's "Irrational Protest" And I *SIGH*. Read More Below.
Irrational protest
At least “Groundhog Day,” the movie in which a meteorologist played by Bill Murray repeated his same egocentric actions again and again until he discovered the shadow of his humanity, was funny. The real-life version of that film, that has played out nationally, is anything but a barrel of laughs — but then again, Jim Bunning is no Bill Murray.
In a protracted performance that has left much of the nation either irate or slack-jawed, Mr. Bunning played an obstructionist junior senator from Kentucky who repeated his tactics on stalling government funding for a variety of programs day after day after day. Southgate Jim's stonewalling could have delivered a more wintry season to hundreds of thousands of unemployed Americans, including the senator's own constituents, who need government-backed unemployment and health benefits, just as it threatened to stall many worthy projects that would benefit millions of Americans.
With his filibuster against an emergency extension of those benefits, Mr. Bunning amassed a new roster of statistics that leaves his professional baseball glory days in the dust:
Four hundred thousand Americans, including 4,300 Kentuckians, stood to lose their federal unemployment benefits in the coming days if Mr. Bunning hadn't dropped his one-person protest. That number would have risen exponentially throughout the month, had the stall continued.
Almost 2,000 workers were furloughed by the Department of Transportation as their projects ran out of federal money, thanks to Mr. Bunning. Projects included work in an Idaho national forest and bridge repairs in the District of Columbia.
Speaking of bridges, an important financing presentation on the Ohio River Bridges Project is being delayed because two of its speakers were among the furloughed transportation workers. Also, Mr. Bunning's actions threatened several bid lettings for bridge replacements and other projects in Kentucky.
So, there was nothing remotely funny about Mr. Bunning's theatrics, not when he's cursing on the Senate floor, and not when he's running from reporters and shouting at them when they ask him to explain himself. Little wonder his behavior has invited the White House to describe Mr. Bunning as “irrational” and Comedy Central's Jon Stewart to dub him “longtime Kentucky crazy person,” and spurred other Republicans' overdue efforts to interrupt Mr. Bunning's stunt.
If Mr. Bunning thought he had made a point with all this, it may be one he did not intend: The public pays the government to do a lot of good and important work that affects and improves the lives of everyone. Holding up the checks on unemployment insurance, flood insurance, small business loans, road and bridge repairs and even rural broadcasting, as Mr. Bunning has done, underscores this point in a way that antigovernment rhetoric, and demonstrations, can't touch.
At least “Groundhog Day,” the movie in which a meteorologist played by Bill Murray repeated his same egocentric actions again and again until he discovered the shadow of his humanity, was funny. The real-life version of that film, that has played out nationally, is anything but a barrel of laughs — but then again, Jim Bunning is no Bill Murray.
In a protracted performance that has left much of the nation either irate or slack-jawed, Mr. Bunning played an obstructionist junior senator from Kentucky who repeated his tactics on stalling government funding for a variety of programs day after day after day. Southgate Jim's stonewalling could have delivered a more wintry season to hundreds of thousands of unemployed Americans, including the senator's own constituents, who need government-backed unemployment and health benefits, just as it threatened to stall many worthy projects that would benefit millions of Americans.
With his filibuster against an emergency extension of those benefits, Mr. Bunning amassed a new roster of statistics that leaves his professional baseball glory days in the dust:
Four hundred thousand Americans, including 4,300 Kentuckians, stood to lose their federal unemployment benefits in the coming days if Mr. Bunning hadn't dropped his one-person protest. That number would have risen exponentially throughout the month, had the stall continued.
Almost 2,000 workers were furloughed by the Department of Transportation as their projects ran out of federal money, thanks to Mr. Bunning. Projects included work in an Idaho national forest and bridge repairs in the District of Columbia.
Speaking of bridges, an important financing presentation on the Ohio River Bridges Project is being delayed because two of its speakers were among the furloughed transportation workers. Also, Mr. Bunning's actions threatened several bid lettings for bridge replacements and other projects in Kentucky.
So, there was nothing remotely funny about Mr. Bunning's theatrics, not when he's cursing on the Senate floor, and not when he's running from reporters and shouting at them when they ask him to explain himself. Little wonder his behavior has invited the White House to describe Mr. Bunning as “irrational” and Comedy Central's Jon Stewart to dub him “longtime Kentucky crazy person,” and spurred other Republicans' overdue efforts to interrupt Mr. Bunning's stunt.
If Mr. Bunning thought he had made a point with all this, it may be one he did not intend: The public pays the government to do a lot of good and important work that affects and improves the lives of everyone. Holding up the checks on unemployment insurance, flood insurance, small business loans, road and bridge repairs and even rural broadcasting, as Mr. Bunning has done, underscores this point in a way that antigovernment rhetoric, and demonstrations, can't touch.
Labels: News reporting
posted by KYJurisDoctor at 1:42 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home