If Washington is so concerned about jobs, then why are they leaving on vacation without settling the FAA shutdown, which not only leaves some 4,000 FAA workers unemployed, but also an additional 70,000 construction workers locked out? And let’s not talk about the handful of FAA workers who have been ordered to work without pay until the matter is resolved because their jobs relate directly to air travel safety.
Oh man, the construction workers were working on airport construction jobs . . . renovations, expansions repairs, etc. And while I’m not necessarily a fan of directing all our job-building efforts to construction, closing down the FAA (mostly because politicians were yelping at each other over the debit-limit issue) has turned into a “ahh well, a few more people out of work is no big deal and we’re going on vacation because we don’t have time to vote straight up or down about this” non-issue for them.
Of course there is also political spitting involved as well . . . some Republicans don’t want the government to subsidize flights into 13 rural airports (all of which, not coincidentally are in Democratic regions), and Democrats
And far be it that the airlines are refunding or reducing fares for flyers . . . the extra cash is going to the airlines. Shocking, I know. Meanwhile, the government is losing $30 million a day in uncollected taxes. That will total more than $1.2 billion by the time the senators return to work next month. It’s like piling on after the debacle of the debt fight . . . just another straw . . . And, by the way, the FAA’s long-term operating authority ended in 2007 and the agency has been working under a series of short-term extensions since then. Sound familiar?
If lawmakers continue to harp on the need to create jobs, then they need to be held accountable for their inability to do that. Businesses aren’t going to commit to hiring people unless they have a clear vision of government policy and regulations. And now many businesses have learned they can live with fewer employees, especially if they see another recession on the horizon. In our current no-growth economy, it’s great to stand in front of a microphone and make political points with constituents, but most Americans are fed up with the talk and the reality of more of the same. Government needs to get out of the way, develop policies that encourage domestic job growth instead of inhibiting it. Our economy continues to contract and in an ever-increasing global economy, job growth may be the only way to get this train started again.
Our politicians have put us in a position without much wiggle room and fewer options for federal financial help. Not a bad thing given their ability to screw up even the most simple pieces of legislation, but the drain of two wars, reckless spending, a failure to fix our major entitlement programs, an inability to cut spending and an unwillingness to end tax loopholes for individuals and corporations means our national financial position remains a mess. The question of whether or not the clowns in Washington
