Special Interests Have another Good Day

Two articles in The Plain Dealer, January 20, 2010, reflect the sorry state of our government. On the first page of the Business section, Wall Street celebrates the demise of health care reform. “Investors have moved back into stocks on hopes that an election in Massachusetts will create a logjam in Washington.” Page 3 of Section A details the lonely efforts of of Ohio’s Republican Senator George Voinovich to fight the national debt. He is quoted speaking of the “public good” and “the best interest of our nation,” but the writer: Stephen Koff concludes that his desire to create a powerful congressional commission is lacking in support. "The idea has sparked protest from a variety of interest groups, some fearing tax hikes and others saying this would inevitably lead to cutting Social Security and Medicare, staples for America's seniors." The special interests win, and the nation loses.