We can’t secede but we can still dream

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The Republican Party has controlled both houses of Congress and the Executive branch for 100 days. Much has been written about what hasn’t happened during that period. Prior to the election, a lot was promised. Had every pledge been honored, we would have invented a new health care system, defeated terrorism, lowered taxes and undertaken the most ambitious infrastructure building program ever, among other things. Whether that’s good or bad isn’t the point. The nothingness of what occurred is.

If 100 days of complete control cannot produce anything, something is wrong. What was straight party-line gridlock has become intra-party obstruction. Do no harm has become do nothing. It’s like a class of students afraid to raise their hands for fear of giving a wrong answer. Constituents, donors, lobbyists and the media are more than willing to draw and quarter the owner of an unpopular idea.

Reality suggests it’s not going to change anytime soon. We’ve all been lied to enough. Promising activity is about the only consistent activity we are going to see out of this government.

Personally, I blame it on incalculable amounts of money being allowed into our election system. If you don’t believe money has corrupted government, consider that regularly (sometimes daily) your representative, regardless of party affiliation, is required by either the Democratic or Republican committees to make the walk to party headquarters and raise money at a phone bank set up specifically for members to call constituents on behalf of the party to beg for donations. The irony is the promised payoff will allow your congressman or senator the means to fight the good fight, whether it be taxes, abortion, education reform or gun rights – among others. If our elected representative solved one or more of those issues with legislation, he or she would lose great material for fundraising. The battle is where the treasure lies. The issue makes the money.

As I think about how money has created inactivity, I’m fortunate to be in Texas. Texans are nothing like the national stereotype. Of course, the state’s conservative. And yes, it’s a state gerrymandered like no other. But if any state was given the ability to govern itself, Texas would do it. I am not, though, suggesting secession. That would be ludicrous. What I am hopeful about is the possibility that the wreck in Washington makes it necessary for states to become more self-centered and self-reliant. Indeed, part of the frustration with the last 100 days in Washington was the inability to do anything about it.

California has a strong state government. It needs it. The latest available figures, show the state paid $16 billion more in taxes than it received in federal aid. Imagine that. When President Trump threatened to cut federal funding over the state’s sanctuary cities, state officials did the math and shrugged. They’d profit by cutting off funding to the federal government. They’d come out much better.

One interesting twist to the state’s governance is the citizen initiative. Like any bureaucracy, California’s breaks down occasionally. Things don’t necessarily grind to a halt, though. Citizens, armed with enough signatures can bypass the state government by proposing ballot initiatives. For the most part it works but each time, the electorate gets what it wants be it Proposition 13 which doesn’t allow property tax hikes without voter approval, or Prop 57, which made marijuana legal (as far as the state was concerned.)

Florida, the third part of the giants along with California and Texas, does well enough it refused the hundreds of millions of dollars from the federal government for Medicaid expansion.

When I think of these “supernova” states in general and Texas, specifically, my thoughts go to the interactions I see and participate in on a local or state level. There’s nothing like the distrust, intrigue or heavy-handedness of Washington insiders. Ultimately, in any of the three states, an issue needing attention receives it. I’ll check to be certain, but I don’t think Texas has threatened to shut down the government recently. Even on a personal level, I know good, conservative people. But our dealings are local. It’s hard to label a local concern republican or democrat. Sure, there will always be civil rights or other passion-driven issues but overall, this state governs itself much better than the feds handle theirs. Our state politics doesn’t punish the participants. It’s work but it somehow gets done.

It may seem to make the case for secession but, again, it would be wrong and fraught with un-intended consequences (Ever tried to build a military from scratch?). The fact it could be a considered question says more about Washington than Texas. It’s a startling question. On the 101st day of one party control, though, I imagine, for fun, how we would fare with only our state government and it makes me feel a bit better.

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