"Libertarians
forget that the winds are generally—socially, economically—in their favor," says
Jonathan Rauch, author of Political Realism: How Hacks, Machines, Big Money, and
Back-Room Deals Can Strengthen American Democracy. "It is not in their interest
to just obstruct on the grounds that everything gets worse if Congress does
nothing. What really happens if Congress does nothing is power flows to the
president, who does what he damn well pleases."
Rauch, a senior fellow at
the Brookings Institution, has a message that idealistic libertarians,
progressives, and populists don't want to hear. Appropriations committees are
good for us. So are unlimited political contributions to political parties and
individual candidates. So are earmarks and even political hacks of all
persuasions. What manner of madness is this?!?!
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