Outgoing Republicans trash the place [View All]

[Jon8503]

by kos

Do you remember all those stories that made the rounds after the 2000 election about outgoing Clinton officials trashing Air Force One and the White House before skipping town? There was nothing to it, of course: a few pranks here and there, but otherwise just the normal wear and tear typical of previous transitions, according the General Services Administration, which had (naturally) been called in to do a scorched-earth investigation. Finally, after weeks of anonymous leaks accusing the Clintonites of major vandalism, the director of the White House Office of Administration was forced to admit that he couldn't document any damage or repairs.

But the stories! There were hundreds of them, all agog over the news that a few staffers had removed the W keys from their keyboards. So immature! So childish!

But Republican legislators punting on half a trillion dollars worth of spending bills because they're "tired" and they want to gum up the works for the incoming Democrats? It's barely worth a yawn. Some priorities, eh?

This is what's happening:

Like a retreating army, Republicans are tearing up railroad track and planting legislative land mines to make it harder for Democrats to govern when they take power in Congress next month <...>

With Congress turning off the lights this week, there seems no chance of saving the appropriations process. Instead, most of the government will remain on a stopgap bill through Feb. 15, and in kicking this can down the road, the Republican leadership has no idea where it will stop rolling.

"It's a demonstration of the irresponsibility of Republicans that they would leave this country with this mess," said the next House speaker, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.). "But we won, we will deal with it."

Republicans have talked a good game about "bipartisanship", but they don't mean it. And while Pelosi changes the rules to be friendlier to the minority (draconian rules institute by the GOP to punish Democrats), Republicans are still doing what they can to frak over the incoming Democratic majority.

Remember, moderate Republicans were mostly wiped out this year. What's left are the fire-breathers. Pelosi can talk all she wants about cooperation and bipartisanship, as long as her actions acknowledge that Republicans have no interest in that sort of thing.

http://www.dailykos.com/