SamSaid!

CONFIRMED

     John Roberts hasn't been confirmed as yet, but it is looking more and more like a safe bet. Interesting how his status changed. At first we was nominated to succeed Justice O'Connor, but when Chief Justice Rhenquist  died, Prez Bush changed his status  to become the nominee to succeed Rhenquist both as a Justice and Chief Justice. Ted Kennedy has fulfilled his blowhard role and Joe Biden as taken advantage o free TV time to plug his bid for the 2008 Presidential campaign. The vote will take place in the next week or so, and the odds are that Roberts will be confirmed. The real indicator will be how many Democrats vote “no” in the floor vote of the Senate.

     The nominee to replace Justice O”Connor hasn't been identified and probably will not be named for a few weeks. In the meantime, she continues to serve as the “swing ” vote. Looks like she may be swinging for some time. The media are having a field day speculating on who the next nominee will be  — Hispanic, Female, or both. The Dems are howling for a woman. It would serve them right if George nominated a woman who would be a first cousin to Barry Goldwater. Good Old Patrick Leahy is arguing to keep a 5-4 court, since a 6-3 court would spell doom for some of the left wing causes he supports. But I think George is made of sterner stuff. He has the chance of a lifetime. I don't think he will blow it.

A BIG MESS

     New Orleans is a mess  — a very big mess. But that is nothing new. It has been a big mess for a long time. In searching for a synonym for “corruption”, New Orleans would be a good place to start. Now, of course, the Crescent City is a much bigger mess  — the Katrina mess. Certainly there is no sentiment to abandon our fellow citizens who are in total and desperate need of help, so we have to live with this  huge mess for months and years to come. We can only hope at the outcome.

     I don't quarrel with the President's outline of programs to rebuild and reconstruct New Orleans. He really didn't have much choice. But when $200 BILLION dollars are involved, I am not very comfortable about how our tax dollars will be spent. Obviously, the New Orleans City officials as well as the State leaders in Baton Rouge just can't wait to get their hands on such largesse. The small change is enough to make friends and associates millionaires over nite. Here is a case where $100,000 amounts to chump change. In a political environment built on decades of graft, fraud and kickbacks, it is far too much to expect that our tax dollars will be safe-guarded or well spent. And it is reasonably safe to assume that the bureaucracies administering umpteen re-construction programs will live for decades and grow in size every year.

     The basic problem is that the dollars to be spent to re-build New Orleans are tax dollars. They don't belong to anyone  –  they are just sitting in a big pile in Washington  —   waiting to be spent. In not belonging to anyone, they are are free for the taking, and accountability is just a matter of missing records. Just wait and see  — when we get to the $100,000,000,000 mark, just ask your Congressman, “Where did it all go?” Answer, “Nobody knows”.

     A good exercise would be to count the number of new millionaires in Louisiana in 2015. This is not a lottery for those in the inner circle.   –  nope, it is a sure thing. To some, Katrina was a tragedy. To others it will be a bonanza. Remember, the objective is to throw money at the problems, not save nickels and dimes.