The anti-Reagan: Mitt Romney

By Stephen L. Goldstein, author Atlas Drugged: Ayn Rand Be Damned!

            Turns out, Mitt Romney is the anti-Reagan. With his “honesty”—Suspend your disbelief!—he may unwittingly have propelled the Gipper onto the ash heap of history, where he belongs. CEO Romney, who admitted relishing the chance to fire people, went a sweeping step further when he proposed eliminating FEMA, turning its responsibilities over to the states, and ideally privatizing all relief efforts. He was positively Reaganesque in his insistence that government (especially the big, by definition bad, federal government) is not the solution but the problem. Romney, who knew his audience at one of the presidential primary debates would lap it up, was in his glory.

            That was then; the weather was good. This is now—after Hurricane Sandy devastated the Northeast and sandbagged Romney. To federal, state, and local officials struggling to coordinate massive, complex relief, search, and rescue efforts, Romney’s vision of businesses charging dazed victims for goods and services on-the-spot is sinister and bizarre, not to mention impractical: Would everyone who uses a road in a neighborhood have to pay before it could be cleared? And how would anyone know who they were? Not to be macabre, but business is business in Mittland. Would there be a discount for removing two dead bodies? Would they take a check or only cash or credit card? Anyone with even a modicum of empathy recoils from such illogic and obscenity.

            In typical fashion, Romney walked back his words after the press pounded him. As president, he promised FEMA would receive the funds it needs. But which Romney should Americans pay attention to? As it turns out, both! And we should thank both of him, too. With Romney’s doubletalk about FEMA, he has done the greatest service to the nation of his entire political career. Make that his life! Since Ronald Reagan declared government persona non grata, the country has been engaged in a debate over the proper role(s) and limitation(s) of the public sector. And the anti-government faction has been winning hands-down. Grover Norquist has arm-twisted countless members of Congress, as well as members of state legislatures, to sign no-tax pledges to starve “the beast” of government. Even Bill Clinton once declared the era of big government over.

            Thanks to Romney, no one is gonna listen to such garbage talk any longer. Hurricane Sandy may have been a perfect storm. But Mitt’s words may have been more consequential, forever turning the tide of public opinion. His hot air may have warmed the otherwise cold hearts of Americans by revealing the absurdity of dismantling and privatizing the federal government. The weathercock is finally about to swing in the direction of appreciating the role of government, if it hasn’t already.

            When we fully come to our senses as a nation, we’re sure to reaffirm that we don’t live in an either-or world. The reality is: It isn’t either that government does everything or that the private sector does; it’s both. In some areas they overlap; in others, they are complementary; in still others, there should be a firewall between them. We need to restore our lost balance, no longer tolerating political hacks who want to gut government and redistribute its proper roles so business can bag bucks when Americans are hurting. If not, keep trying to “win one for the Gipper” and see how Mother Nature gets even next time.#