In a recent “PBS NewsHour” panel discussion, Washington Post Associate Editor Jonathan Capehart criticized President-elect Donald Trump for selecting cabinet nominees designed to “wreck Washington.” Underlying Capehart’s critique is his assumption that Washington, in its present form, doesn’t need “wrecking.”
The majority of Americans disagree with that assumption.
The Left is lost in their own imaginations.
And tomorrow is Thanksgiving day.
Be informed, not misled.
The Federalist notes, "According to election exit polls from CNN, 73 percent of Americans believe the country is headed in the wrong direction. Among this cohort were 43 percent of respondents who were 'dissatisfied' with the state of the nation and a staggering 30 percent who were 'angry' about the situation. A voter analysis conducted for Fox News showed that 82 percent of the electorate wanted at least 'substantial change,' with a full one-quarter wanting 'total upheaval.'"
In retrospect, no polls were needed to see the coming landslide. It was evident as soon as the incumbent vice president attempted to portray herself as the change candidate. The incumbent is never a change candidate. So the voters sent Trump back to the White House to do exactly what Capehart is suggesting — to give Washington a good “wrecking.”
You will not be surprised to know that after their major election loss, Democrats are doubling down on their worldview by trying to save the monstrous deep state they have been building for decades and making sure their own ranks still fall in line with radical social policies.
As President Joe Biden prepares to leave office, he and his party are scrambling to undermine one of President-elect Donald Trump’s campaign promises: "cull the odious deep state."
Biden is reportedly being pushed by his party to bolster the federal bureaucracy in the waning weeks of his presidency. Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., said the Biden administration has already done some “scenario planning” as it attempts to “fortify the Justice Department, the intelligence agencies and other offices in Trump’s crosshairs,” according to The Hill.
The Hill story gives a clear look behind the scenes of Democrat elected officials and influencers.
It's a disaster carried by name-calling and profound disagreement, even in self-identifying how out of touch they are with a majority of Americans.
D.C. Does Not Reflect America
Americans have a great capacity to deal with adversity, so long as they believe we are all in this thing together. Americans no longer believe that. Rather, they sense that the American bureaucracy is in business for itself, and for good reason.
The place to start is the economic divergence between D.C. and the rest of the United States. We have touched on this unhealthy relationship previously. There are more than 3,000 counties and county-equivalents in the United States. Yet, half of the top ten, and three of the top five, wealthiest U.S. counties in terms of median household income are suburban counties of Washington, D.C. Fifty years ago, just five of the fifty richest U.S. counties were suburbs or exurbs of Washington D.C. That number has more than tripled to 17.
Can anyone seriously claim that the economic conditions in inner-city America, or in the (former) industrial heartland counties, or in rural America, have improved during this same time period? Of course not.
D.C. Treats Americans With Disdain
While wealth in and around Washington grows, those in Washington treat other Americans like fools. We see examples of this across the federal spectrum.
One example is the Department of Defense, an agency quintessentially federal in character. The Constitution expressly provides Congress with the power to “raise and support Armies” and to “provide and maintain a Navy.” We have no problem with that. However, that the federal government is properly in the defense business does not mean that it carries out that business properly.
The Pentagon recently announced that DoD had failed its seventh consecutive annual audit. Of the 28 DoD activities audited, one received a qualified opinion and 15 others received audit “disclaimers,” meaning that the reviewers could not form accurate opinions about the propriety of the DoD accounts. Only nine activities received clean audits, while three audits remain outstanding.
And then there's education.
On the other end of the spectrum lies the Department of Education, a federal agency that has no Constitutional foundation whatsoever. I urge you to go back and read that document. There’s not so much as a hint of federal power over education. The Department of Education’s very existence is an implicit insult to Americans. Its raison d’etre is to take your money, tell you how to educate your children, all based on the theory that you — as ordinary Americans — cannot be trusted to figure out how to do that yourselves.
What has the Department of Education given us for its trillions of dollars? Boys and men in girls’ and women’s sports, and electricians and pipefitters paying off college loans for the children of the Washington elite.
What has the Department of Education not given us? Better-educated children. In 2023, reading and math scores for U.S. children dropped precipitously. Yes, particularly bad bureaucratic decisions during the Covid pandemic contributed to that failure. However, even prior to Covid, heavy federal involvement in education yielded little or no results. After decades of federal spending through 2011 (totaling $2 trillion adjusted for inflation), educational achievement among U.S. children showed essentially no improvement at all, albeit at three times the per-student cost. And student performance in core areas continued to stagnate or decrease slightly right up until the Covid pandemic.
Takeaway
Joseph LoBue, a retired Naval officer and attorney, concluded his article for The Federalist with this:
"To most Americans, these institutions need a good “wrecking.” And those Americans sent Trump back to the White House to make sure that government of the bureaucrats, by the bureaucrats, for the bureaucrats shall perish from the earth."
Be Informed. Be Discerning. Be Vigilant. Be Hopeful. Be Thankful. Be Prayerful.