By Andrew Cline on 1.21.09 @ 6:07AM
Sorry, Mr. President. Effectiveness has never been the first
measure of a federal action.
In his inaugural address yesterday, President Barack Obama
reframed the basis for action undertaken by the federal
government. No longer is it right to ask whether a program is
appropriate for Washington to take on. The only question is
whether the program is effective.
"The question we ask today is not whether our government is too
big or too small, but whether it works -- whether it helps
families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a
retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend
to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end."
He forgets, never knew, or doesn't care that effectiveness has
never been the first measure of a federal action. It is an
important secondary measure once the constitutionality or
appropriateness of an action has been determined. But as James
Madison asked in Federalist 41:
"Is the aggregate power of the general government greater than
ought to have been vested in it? This is the first
question." (Emphasis in original.)
When thinking of our federal government, the first question is
and always has been whether that government has too much power --
that is, whether it is too big. Yesterday, Obama tossed that
question aside in favor of building a government that "works."
The Founding Fathers would be aghast. The people should be, too.
When the effectiveness of a federal action becomes the first and
only question, trouble is not far behind. Just ask Barack Obama.
"The secret authorization of brutal interrogations is an
outrageous betrayal of our core values, and a grave danger to our
security," Obama said in October of 2007. He has made clear that
harsh interrogation techniques are unacceptable because they
violate core American principles. So, regardless of whether they
sometimes work, he will not authorize them based on principle.
Obama recognizes that mere effectiveness is not a sufficient
measure of government action. Principles beyond the end
justifying the means must apply -- except when it comes to saving
us from the financial crisis. Obama is using the recession the
same way he accused President Bush of using 9/11 -- as a
catch-all crisis to justify vastly expanded federal powers. The
question for Obama is, if it was wrong for Bush to do that, why
is it now OK for Obama?
