George Graham

U.S. Will Remember that Republicans Opposed Economic Recovery

republicans

The people in the photo (appropriately at right) are Republicans. You might want to save the picture as it could become a historical relic. The reason? This could be the last crop of Republicans seen in the United States Congress. In future years, I expect to see Democrats and possibly a few Libertarians or members of some other party that might not yet exist, but I think the Republicans have just sealed their political doom. Voters will remember that not one Republican representative voted for the $819 billion economic recovery plan approved by the House yesterday by a vote of 244-188.

The names of House Republican leader John Boehner (speaking) and party whip Eric Cantor (looking over his right shoulder) will live in infamy. They led the failed blockade against the stimulus bill. Both are far-right conservatives who would rather see Americans sink into poverty and despair than give in to “liberal” policies, such as creating jobs, feeding the poor, healing the sick and providing educational opportunities for bright but underprivileged kids. What they want is more tax breaks for Big Business and the richest of the rich.

To become law, the economic recovery plan must also win approval in the Senate, where Republicans could use a filibuster to block it. While I expect a lot of saber rattling from these political dinosaurs, I don’t think they’re dumb enough to use the filibuster. That would, indeed, be the final nail in their coffin.

Fortunately for America, political representatives must be re-elected to remain in office. And I cannot believe that those who stand in the way of America’s economic recovery will be re-elected.

About the author

gwgraeme

I am a Jamaican-born writer who has lived and worked in Canada and the United States. I live in Lakeland, Florida with my wife, Sandra, our three cats and two dogs. I like to play golf and enjoy our garden, even though it's a lot of work. Since retiring from newspaper reporting I've written a few books. I also write a monthly column for Jamaicans.com