A Conversation With An Anonymous Congressional Aide

Today, I had a conversation with an anonymous congressional aide. Part of this person’s job at the moment is to help come up with ways to sell the bailout to conservatives. Here’s a heavily edited snippet from our conversation that’s published with permission…

John Hawkins: Heh. You have a brutal job. I feel for you =D.

Anonymous: Someone has to save the economy from meltdown :-).

John Hawkins: The problem these guys always have is…they are always going against the base and trying to figure out the best way to break the bad news. They shouldn’t be taking positions that the base is going to hate like this in the first place.

Anonymous: I take the George Will/Edmund Burke view of representatives…

John Hawkins: So do most Republicans in Congress.

Anonymous: These guys should vote, use their judgment and vote what they think is best, then let the voters vote them out if they don’t approve.

John Hawkins: That’s why the Democrats are going to have like a 50 seat advantage in the House and at least a 10 seat lead in the Senate — and probably the White House.

Anonymous: I’m not opposed to primary challenges with GOP incumbents. Wish Toomey had tossed Specter years ago.

John Hawkins: I am the same way, but it is so slanted in favor of the incumbent and it’s extremely hard to beat them. Even those sacks of crap, Stevens and Young, made it through primary challenges.

Anonymous: That’s why I’m not a political strategist; I’m an idealist trying to do my little part.

John Hawkins: Heh. You are in the wrong job for an idealist, my friend =D.

Anonymous: Everyone tells me that.

John Hawkins: Your job is to sell snow to Eskimos or more aptly, crap to guys who already have a sewage back-up.

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