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This is Intentionally Vicarious… I’m Todd Youngblood… And I was just sitting here at my desk pondering aimlessly… about gridlock in Congress. Seems like I’ve been reading and hearing about bickering between Democrats and Republicans and the increasing partisan divide for my entire adult life. Nothing can ever get through Congress because all the Reds and the Blues seem to be able to do is line up on opposite sides and throw rocks at one another.
But then… along comes the CARES Act in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sure… there was a bit of the typical political posturing, but the fact of the matter is, the legislation got negotiated, passed and enacted at lightning speed.
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I applaud the quick action by our friends in Washington. This is an unprecedented situation that continues to require unprecedented action. But something about all this – that has nothing whatsoever to do with the pandemic itself – scares the daylights out of me. Jonah Goldberg captured the essence of my fear perfectly when he said…
“I am all in favor of a policy of using water hoses on house fires; I’m just also in favor of turning off the hoses once the fire is out.”
The CARES Act is 247 pages long. How many of our 535 Congress-people do you think carefully read the entire thing? How many of our 535 Congress-people do you think even skimmed through the entire thing? And now for the questions that really concern me…
How much pork and how many pet projects are baked into that bill? How much stuff unrelated to our current crisis is baked into that bill? How much is all that unrelated stuff going to cost we taxpayers over the next 5, 10, 20 years? Here’s what needs to happen…
All of the legislation that has been and does get passed due to the COVID-19 pandemic needs to have a Sunset Provision.
All of it! It all needs to become null and void. The CARES Act got passed in a gigantic hurry. I’m OK with that. BUT… When the crisis is over, the CARES Act needs to end with it. If parts of it make sense, Congress can enact new legislation to reinstate those and only those parts.
We citizens must protect ourselves and insist on a Sunset Provision.
Think about it…
Actually, do more than think about it. Talk about it. To everybody you come across. Write to and call your Representatives & Senators. Insist on a Sunset Provision!
