When I was growing up, I recognized a certain dichotomy in political campaigning. There were promises and there was experience, and often the twain don't meet. For most of my life, the emphasis seemed to be on the promise. A chicken in every pot (before my time), victory with Honor (stupid stupid Nixon), W'all can save the economy (Carter totally underestimated our dependence on OPEC), never bow to the will of terrorists ( a promise quickly broken by Ronald Reagan), never negotiate with evil (another promise broken by Reagan), NO NEW TAXES! (G.H.W. Bush isn't an idiot like his kid, but he sure seemed like it that day), compassionate conservatism/uniter not a divider (I have not the bandwidth to document the lies and broken promises of Chimpy McWorthless.)
I kind of like the promises, even though I know that the highest probability is that they are lies. In part, that comes from my well-studied understanding of the word "trust". Trust is a gift, valued by the giver, and often open to manipulation by the receiver. Trust can never be earned; it's always open to question and repeal. I didn't know this when I first distributed fliers for Max Baucus' Senate run in 1978. Hell, I couldn't even vote then. But I trusted Max to well represent the needs of Montana. For much of his career, I think he's done a fair to middlin' job of that.
But, in his last two terms, Baucus has done things that I just can't stomach anymore. With the last three election cycles, it seems that experience has become a far bigger factor in American zeitgeist, and unlike our 'enlightened libertarians', I'm not really immune to that. When a person's history is promoting promise, I think it's a-okay to take them at their word (and rather silly to demand 'experience' as if you have the right to expect your fantasies fulfilled.) But when a person has experience to view, it's even more silly to ignore that.
Max has experience in the Senate, and lately, it's been pretty bad. That's why I have no intention of voting for Max Baucus in November. Let's go to the tape.
1) The vote authorizing an idiot to conduct a war in a country that had nothing to do with the defense of the nation. I've said at various times that this one was a deal breaker for me. I've since softened my view. But still, Max is one of the most powerful men in the Senate, and if anyone should have known how destructive a vanity war could be to our economy, it should have been Max. I'm certain that Baucus was 'serving Montana' by voting for our collective will to be tough, but he should have been at the forefront letting us all know that freedom isn't free (it cost's a buck-o-five) but revenge is the short trip to bankruptcy.
2) The Bankruptcy bill. What in the name of God was this man thinking? Law that defends predatory lending practices? A law that allows debt to be sold and not cleared such that companies that claim remuneration from you, rightly or wrongly, can now sell the debt to protected entities that can hound you (damage your credit history) literally for the rest of your life. With the 'sub-prime' meltdown, this monster vulture of a bill is coming home to roost. Financial institutions are now in trouble because people who have no hope of settling debt are simply choosing to walk away, and the financial institutions which bet the farm on Americans paying whatever they were told they had to, are now panicking. This was bad legislation, and Max was so damned proud of his role in getting it passed. This didn't serve Montana. It served the rich getting richer.
3) The Kyl-Lieberman amendment vote on the Defense Authorization Bill. I'm not going to link the hell out of this or belabor the point. The Military Commissions Act was the death of Habeas Corpus in America, and a blank check for the assholes in the White House to wield extreme un-Constitutional powers. On top of that (Max voted nay for the MCA) Baucus turns around and hands the White House the ability to use force against Iranian nationals (Iran itself). This militarist grab by the WH is a horror I have dreaded since I was a very young anti-authoritarian, and Max, KNOWING BETTER! supported it. This was contrary to absolutely everything that I believe Montanans value and support. Max's vote for this was probably the deal-breaker for me.
4) The dextra bloggers in this state have well documented Max's propensity to promise and fail at the promise. I won't ham-hand it here.
5) Max is in the perfect position (head of the Senate Finance committee) to stand in the way of out-of-control Republicant spending. He has, for 30 years in the Senate, failed to do so. THAT would be serving the will of Montana. Instead, he adds to the problem. Pogie pointed to his latest mailer, showing how we are borrowing from the Chinese to prop up our economy with a paltry rebate we can spend for $4.00/gallon gasoline. I'm certain that Max thought it would escape our notice, being in fine print and all, but to me, the message at the bottom was in 72 point type:
"Prepared, Published and Mailed at Taxpayer Expense"
Max, I'm your typical Montanan when it comes to this point: Do something to stop the goddamned spending!
6) This latest filibuster against allowing Washington DC legislative representation. Go ahead and call it the final straw if you want. The principle is simple, and should be served at all cost: NO taxation without representation.
Do not get me wrong. I know, very clearly, what Max has done good for Montana. He has been instrumental in getting us road-improvements. His environmental voting record has been rational and good. He is on the side of liberty when it comes to most every social issue. Max is truly a good Montana Democrat. But times have changed, and Baucus hasn't changed with them. This country is in deep shit, financially, militarily and socially. The Republicants in power have left our military bogged down, and Max refuses to lead. Our debt load, both personally and federally is unsustainable, and Max refuses to lead. And you would figure that after 30 years in the Senate, Max would have figured out that Montana is not socially conservative. We are socially libertarian, and yet he refuses to lead. The time has come for leaders who keep their promises. And Max's experience speaks poorly of his ability to do so.
I'm sure that this profession of non-support will be met with claims that I am throwing away my vote. Yup, I surely am. I don't know yet whether I will vote for one of Max's challengers, or simply not vote for the Senate race. Either way, I wouldn't be too concerned about one simple guy in Bozeman. Max will romp to a victory, and continue to fail serving what we really most desire in this state. I am enamored of Mike Lange's promise to oppose the Iraqi war. I am fascinated with the idea that he cares about our debt. Lange, regardless of the level to which I or others have made fun of him, is truly a moderate in the Montana style. So much so that the Montana GOP even attempts to reject his liberal ways ... hehe. Simply put, I like his promises. You can tell me all about his lack of experience, and I'll probably laugh.
Because my experience of Max is leaving a sour taste in my mouth. Trust is waning. Perhaps before November, Max will get that back. But it's gonna take some real serious promises, and I'm not feeling very giving right now.
Max is the reason why we have not had a wilderness bill in Montana since the one vetoed by Reagan in 1988. Burns takes a lot of heat for that. It was Max. He has foiled every effort, yet has gained the unquestioning support of outfits like Montana Wilderness Association. And that is the problem. People were always willing to acquiesce to Max and allow themselves to be used because he was the closest the could get to true power. They sold their souls.
Posted by: Mark Tokarski | March 10, 2008 at 09:07 PM
Max is kinda like them toys you buy for your kids. You know, the one's that say batteries not included. Well, with Max it's balls not included! Max is not the teflon senator, he's the gyroscope senator! He'll do NOTHING to upset the balance, even if it's the right thing to do! Max lost me a loooong time ago. He takes us for granted now.
Posted by: Larry Kralj, Environmental Rangers! | March 11, 2008 at 01:13 PM
Max has represented his state very well, which is why he's stayed on the job so long.
Posted by: dew-r-lite | March 14, 2008 at 07:39 PM