They want their opponents to fail. How else to explain the relentless onslaught of negative coverage in the local media, let alone the hordes of out-of-town journalists parachuting into Raleigh (or simply parroting talking points from the usual left-wing suspects)?
The King of Talk Radio was brutally honest when he said he wanted Barack Obama’s policies to fail. Here’s the transcript of that entire monologue, four days before the president’s 2009 inauguration.
Excerpt:
I got a request here from a major American print publication. “Dear Rush: For the Obama Inauguration we are asking a handful of very prominent politicians, statesmen, scholars, businessmen, commentators, and economists to write 400 words on their hope for the Obama presidency. We would love to include you. If you could send us 400 words on your hope for the Obama presidency, we need it by Monday night, that would be ideal.” …
I’ve been listening to Barack Obama for a year-and-a-half. I know what his politics are. I know what his plans are, as he has stated them. I don’t want them to succeed. If I wanted Obama to succeed, I’d be happy the Republicans have laid down. And I would be encouraging Republicans to lay down and support him. Look, what he’s talking about is the absorption of as much of the private sector by the US government as possible, from the banking business, to the mortgage industry, the automobile business, to health care. I do not want the government in charge of all of these things. I don’t want this to work. So I’m thinking of replying to the guy, “Okay, I’ll send you a response, but I don’t need 400 words, I need four: I hope he fails.”
North Carolina’s liberal establishment and its allies in the press share similar sentiments. They’ve always opposed policies oriented toward free markets, limited, constitutional government, accountability among public institutions, and individual freedom. They’ve always favored political cronyism and back-room bargaining over common-sense regulations that treat people and businesses similarly — and allow success based on merit rather than political connections. They believe a state’s strength is measured by the size of its government sector, and don’t really care if public programs work, so long as they’re funded “adequately.”
Now that the General Assembly has concluded a session which enacted an agenda that should lead to a more robust economic recovery and help reinforce the physical and human capital essential for keeping that recovery on track, the political Left has, as John Hood wrote, “thrown a collective temper tantrum.”
In other words, as with Limbaugh and Obama, the state’s political/media establishment wants North Carolina to fail. Unlike Limbaugh, however, North Carolina’s movers and shakers have no idea of how to help the Tar Heel State succeed, other than passing higher taxes, increasing government spending, and piling on new regulations.
The just-ended session has taken a different approach. If it works, the old guard either will have to reconsider its priorities, or sink into irrelevancy. That’s why they want North Carolina to fail.
