Lying Liars

Hey, lying politicians are back! We'll hear Democrats and Republicans calling each other liars at least until November.

But some of their lies they'll carefully ignore.

Every day I hear some Democrat charging the Republicans with "cutting welfare to the bone," with "gutting the safety net." Nonsense. The only time the Republicans have come close to making substantial cuts in the welfare state was under Clinton, with "welfare reform."

For years, what has passed for cuts is nothing other than cuts to some proposed budgetary increase. Cuts are mere fictions, something to lie about to one's fiscally conservative constituents.

This Democratic lie about Republicans lets the Republicans off the hook, so no wonder they accept the lie as a compliment! It's also a handy diversion from today's whopping growth in the domestic budget, deficits, and debt.

Just as Republicans lie about themselves, the Democrats do too. They pretend to be for the common man and against Big Business. But then you read how a major Democrat, Washington state's Governor Gary Locke, negotiated an "incentive package" to entice Boeing to place one plant in his state — billions of dollars for 800 or so jobs. Part is outright subsidy, another is tax breaks — shifting the burden to others. So how do the Democrats justify it? Secondary effects, ripple effects. In other words: trickle down!

With all this cooperative lying, ask yourself: Do we have two major political parties in order to provide competition . . . or just to provide cover?

This is Common Sense. I'm Paul Jacob.

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