Just a moment...
Now, in 1938, with the economy sliding into a “new Depression,” Roosevelt was considering new government pump-priming expenditures—which would further unbalance the budget being prepared for fiscal 1939. In April, 1938, Garner warned the President that such expenditures would meet with considerable congressional opposition—making these statements w
... See moreRobert A. Caro • The Path to Power: The Years of Lyndon Johnson I
Reagan cared more about the functions of self-government than his most ideological supporters. He knew how to persuade and when to compromise. But after he was gone, and the Soviet Union not long after him, Free America lost the narrative thread. Without Reagan’s smile and the Cold War’s clarity, its vision grew darker and more extreme. Its spirit
... See moreGeorge Packer • Last Best Hope: America in Crisis and Renewal
... See moreStarting with the “Great Society” splurge in the 1960s, which created many social programs but failed to provide any way to pay for them, America has become accustomed to living beyond its means, essentially by borrowing huge amounts of money and passing the debt along to future generations. (An admirable exception was the Clinton presidency, which
Thune and Johnson, acting with the support of Republicans in both chambers, have, in effect, renounced their power over the purse and abnegated their powers of oversight. Their Congress is supine, submissive and subordinate, less the equal of the president than a tool of the executive branch — a subject of his will.