November looks pretty black and white to me

Politics is a business of good guys and bad guys. In 2008, when Barack Obama was elected president, the Democrats were the good guys, and the Republicans, from George Bush on down, were the bad guys. Fast forward to 2010 and it’s hard to figure out who wins the good-guy, bad-guy label.

The polls tell us that voters have soured on the Obama administration and the Democrats. In key states like Florida, Iowa and Ohio, independent voters are frustrated that the unemployment rate is so high and there’s no sign of a recovery on the horizon.

So if Obama and his Congress are the current bad guys, who are the good guys? If your response is that the Republicans are the better choice, you’re dead wrong.

Being a very fair-minded voter, I have no trouble voting for any Republican, and have in past years. But at this very moment, with the exception of U.S. Rep. Peter King, whom I like, there is no Republican on this planet who is worthy of my cherished vote.

Let’s start with the House of Representatives. John Boehner of Ohio, the Republican minority leader, is a classic empty suit. He has supported nothing during the past two years. He has opposed financial restrictions on Wall Street, voted against cleaning up improper credit card practices and opposed extending unemployment insurance coverage.

If you talk off the record to Republican members of Congress, some will confess that “Leader Boehner,” as they call him, isn’t much of a leader and is more concerned about getting his suntan upgraded. One or two Republicans shared with me that Boehner is a very good golfer.

The Republicans in the Senate aren’t any better. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has opposed any and all Democratic proposals for the past two years. The day after Obama was elected, McConnell stated that his party would oppose “any idea that is offered by this new president.”

Not only did McConnell keep his word, but he has engaged in more obstruction than any leader of the Congress in recent memory. He has allowed some of his more senior members to conduct intense negotiations over credit card reform, health care and stopping risky investments — and then instructed all of his negotiators to walk away at the last moment.

How about the would-be Republican candidates for president? What have you heard from Mitt Romney, Sarah Palin, Tim Pawlenty or Mike Huckabee on how to get Americans back to work or how to stimulate our sagging economy? With a Congressional election in November, aren’t we entitled to some concrete suggestions? If the Democrats are so bad, what do the Republicans have to offer?

Probably the best example of political malpractice by the minority party is the issue of what to do about the Bush tax cuts that are set to expire. For the past year, Re-publicans in the House and Senate have opposed almost every bill before them on the grounds that they will increase the deficit. Tax cuts cost money, and extending the Bush tax cuts would only add to the current trillion-dollar-plus deficit.

Republican leaders in Washington tell us that we must extend all of the Bush tax cuts, despite their cost. So it’s fine to give people who make over $1 million a year another tax cut, but extending unemployment insurance for 45 million Americans is taboo.

Over the past two years, the Democratic Congress has passed more major legislation than any Congress since the days of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Maybe the Democrats are the bad guys because they haven’t gotten the economy back on track. But you can’t convince me that the Republicans, who oppose everything and say nothing, are this November’s good guys.

Jerry Kremer was a state assemblyman for 23 years, and chaired the Assembly’s Ways and Means Committee for 12 years. He now heads Empire Government Strategies, a business development and legislative strategy firm. Comments about this column? JKremer@liherald.com.