A careful approach

Democrats including state Sen. Bob Coffin of Las Vegas, Assemblyman David Bobzien of Reno, Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson and North Las Vegas City Councilwoman Stephanie Smith took part in a telephone conference call Tuesday to endorse a two-year, $775 billion public works spending bill proposed by President-elect Barack Obama, supposedly as a strategy to create new jobs and reverse the country's economic tailspin.

The incoming president, with a solid Democratic majority in Congress, doesn't really need the endorsement of some mid-level officeholders in little Nevada for a bill that hasn't even been presented, of course. What this was really about was putting pressure on the surviving members of Nevada's Republican congressional delegation -- Sen. John Ensign and Rep. Dean Heller -- to stop asking questions and fall into lockstep with the big-spending parade.

The event was part of a national effort organized by the Campaign for Jobs and Economic Recovery, a "coalition of labor unions and progressive interest groups" seeking to "build support" for Congress to pass the biggest-ever "stimulus spending bill." Given those bona fides, how much emphasis should we expect on helping the small businesses that actually create the majority of American jobs?

Construction work is fine. Any job is fine, in these times. But are government projects paying inflated prevailing wages to primarily union construction workers -- jobs that must be funded, in the end, by taxing fishermen in Alaska and farmers in Ohio and waitresses in Mississippi -- really the best and most efficient way to get this economy back on track?

In addition to Nevada, Democrats in 11 other states held similar events to pressure Republicans to support the recovery plan. Why?

One suspects the real concern is that if this latest big-spending potlatch doesn't work -- as previous handouts and bailouts have failed to work -- Democrats hope to inoculate themselves with enough GOP support to avoid Republicans pointing a finger come 2010, saying, "Told you so."

"I would hate to think that a member of the Senate from our state is holding things up," said state Sen. Coffin. "These votes that take a little courage pay off in the long run."

Really? How much courage does it take to join with a panicked mob, racing hither and thither with no more principle in mind than "something must be done"? And how have this autumn's panicked handouts "paid off," so far?

What takes some courage is precisely to take the unpopular stand, to resist panic, to demand some accountability and a clear rationale for how more tax-and-spend (or "borrow-and-spend") is going to help -- especially when printing more greenbacks must eventually lead to price inflation, further eroding savings and reducing our standard of living.

And what is the obstructionism of which Republicans stand accused? Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell and Republican House Leader John Boehner said this week that Congress should hold hearings on the yet-to-be-seen spending bill, entertain GOP amendments and post it on the Internet for at least a week so the public can see what's in it.

"A trillion-dollar spending bill would be the largest spending bill in the history of our country at a time when our national debt is already the largest in history," Sen. McConnell said. "As a result, it will require tough scrutiny and oversight. Taxpayers, already stretched to the limit, deserve nothing less."

What's wrong with that?

"As a steward of the taxpayers' money, I plan to take a careful and deliberate approach to this trillion-dollar proposal," Sen. Ensign said Tuesday. "It needs to fit the bill of money spent wisely and effectively to truly boost our struggling economy."

In a statement, Rep. Heller agreed he won't be pressured, either. "Asking support for legislation that has not been introduced is irresponsible," said Rep. Heller. "Any stimulus package that comes before Congress should be pro-growth, promote investment in the United States and create jobs. It should not include excessive deficit spending and be full of special interest pork projects."

Amen.