2 posts tagged “washington”

One of the most important issues facing modern liberal democracy is the funding of political parties.  Part of this conundrum is that political parties are very political and will find it hard ever to give up temporary advantage that they might enjoy for the long term common good of the country.  The funding parties also mirrors the lobbying something that has great and profound significance in Washington D.C.

But we are reminded that it is possible to get cross party consensus as it was revealed this week that both Republicans and Democrats got AIG to voluntarily cease professional lobbying over the contents and nature of rules that directly affect the company going forward.  This was a preventive measure against what would have been public outrage at public money being recycled so transparently into the political world.  Whoever is the next President will have to address these issues in a forthright and straightforward manner.  Both lobbying and political funding are miniscule parts of an otherwise enormous spending machines (it has often been noted that Americans spend about as much on chewing gum as on the political process) yet they have the power to corrupt the political process.  They also have the power to degrade the seemliness of political process in the view of the American people.  These are issues, therefore, on which it is right and proper for a President to lead.

The Vice-Presidential debate held this evening was a much more hard-hitting affair than the Presidential one. Palin came in with fire burning in her belly and a passion that was barely disguised.  Biden took a great deal more time to warm up but by the foreign policy section he was ablaze.  There was much of substance in this continuous one hour and a half.  There were plenty of disagreements and plenty of scrapes.

Palin had much more to prove than Biden, and she held up well.  Her fresh face and almost constant smile was accompanied with studious, well researched and well delivered responses.  On both sides there were plenty of ducked questions (perhaps more by Palin).  On both sides there were shots at the legislative records of each of the Presidential nominees (perhaps more by Palin on the inevitable discrepancies between Obama and Biden’s record).

Biden promised McCain-Palin ticket represented more of Bush of the administration. He also pointed to the healthcare deficit of McCain’s plans.  Palin promised to change the way Washington worked flaunting McCain credentials as a maverick.  She also pointed to the greed and the corruption that had got the American people in financial crisis.  This debate did not, and was realistically going to be, a changer of the game.