The third rail of politics met the third rail of the CTA last week in Springfield.
Advocating the reform of Social Security is often called the "third rail of politics" because once any politician touches it…he dies.
While the decisions about fixing Social Security are left exclusively to Federal government officials, Governor Blagojevich seems to be trying to force local officials into the same dilemma.
Just when it looked like state officials might have found a financial resolution to Chicagoland's mass transit woes, Blagojevich made a surprise demand. The Governor indicated that he would only approve a sales tax increase on condition that senior citizens have access to public transportation for free.
In effect, the Governor has offered senior citizens a $20 million gift that puts anyone opposed to such a deal in a precarious political situation. Blagojevich knows that offering a nice perk to Seniors gives him political leverage. Opponents to the potential perk are likely to feel politically vulnerable as they approach a potential third rail.
Whether it be Social Security, Medicare, subsidized prescription drugs or free CTA rides (maybe), senior citizens have tremendous affinity for helpful government programs. Combine their concern about losing these types of programs with their renowned track record for voting in large numbers, and you can see why Seniors are a political force that can never be underestimated.
Blagojevich played the oldest card in the political deck, the General Assembly folded. But the end result may finally be a jackpot for those who count on the CTA.
The governing of a CTA funding plan was hard. It took overtime sessions and doomsday threats. The politics the governor played were easy.
The 2 Regular Guys at CBS2School weigh-in the Governor's CTA gamble. The question for you, is it good government for the seniors to get free rides, or just playing politics?
VIDEO: CBS 2 School: Seniors On The CTA
3 comments:
I just have to say, if this is what seniors are doing to us now, what happens when the Baby Boomers retire in droves? As to the original question, giving free rides to seniors is just pandering to a major political force. Sure, we need to take care of our seniors, but they're a drain on our economic capabilities. The extensive welfare programs we have in place (Social Security, Medicare, etc.) are good ideas, but with so many dependents, they're virtually untenable, and that problem is only getting worse. At some point, we have to say, "No, we're not giving any more because there's nothing left to give."
Garrett, there is plenty to give. How about instead of turning our backs on the seniors we simply raise taxes on the top 1%? Clinton did it, and it lead to 8 years of incredible growth and he managed to turn a deficit into a surplus. Instead of taking services away from seniors (or anyone for that matter) we take a little more from those who can afford to give more. Tax cuts on the rich never made sense to me, but tax cuts during a war are irrational. Never before in the history of civilization had any other society cut back on taxes during a time of war. I say we increase taxes - it only makes sense to sacrifice a little extra for those who sacrifice everything; we can also re-instate the estate tax which would be enough to pay for the rising costs of public services. There is plenty to give, it is just that those with the resources to give greedily keep everything for themselves.
Im not sure how we have plenty to give when we are $9 trillion dollars in debt. Honestly while taxing the top 1% is good and probably the smart thing to do my question is why do we give social security to the people who make $100,000 a year for 30 years and retire with multi millions in the bank? Why do they need social security?
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