It's the 4th of July and no better day to talk about courage. Recently, the Texas Legislature dodged an important political issue because they lacked the courage to address it. Governor Perry asked them to take up the illegal federal airport pat-downs and vote on a bill that would ban such pat-downs in the State of Texas without proper cause. There were some Senators and House members who did take up the cause and pledged their vote, but most of them fell short. Even to the point where many House members simply refused to show up for a vote, thus guaranteeing no vote would be taken.
The Justice Dept had threatened Texas with legal action if the bill passed, and instead of standing with the Constitutional rights of Texans, our legislature simply chose not to vote. Is there a better example of cowardice in current political debate?
Well, maybe soon there will be. Congress is discussing the debt ceiling. President Obama and the Dems want to raise the debt ceiling and eliminate the tax break that corporations get for having private jets. The GOP wants something closer to austerity measures before they agree to a new debt limit. However, many Republicans have hinted that they would strike a deal to delay true substantive action until after the next election. Cowards.
No one in Congress has the guts to do what must be done. So, chances are, nothing will be done. Imagine if this was the prevailing mindset in the pre-Revolutionary English colonies. I doubt the 4th of July would have any meaning today.
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