Yesterday’s election
Posted by Paul Cox on January 20th, 2010
You’re going to read a bunch of hype in the political news about how yesterday’s election was a huge, huge deal for the nation. People will tell you that it signifies a giant shift in public opinion, that it means the nation hates the policies that President Obama and the Democratic Party have been putting forward, and that it proves the Republicans have their mojo back.
Don’t believe the hype.
The win by Republican Scott Brown, a teabagger type in Massachusetts (which is said to be a fairly liberal) state, is due primarily to a couple of factors.
First, Brown definitely outworked the Democrat, Martha Coakley. Between the primary and Sunday, Coakley held 19 events. Brown held 66. When you hold three times as many rallies, speeches, and so forth as your opponent does, you’re outworking them. She ran a crappy campaign and frankly, she deserved to lose. Only at the last minute did her campaign recognize the danger and start working hard, and by then it was too late. (Kind of reminds me of how Hillary Clinton took things for granted, and deservedly lost.)
Second, despite what you’ll read about how incredibly liberal Massachusetts is, remember- this is a state that elected Mitt Romney their Governor, for crying out loud. (Granted, he ran much further towards the middle than he did when he was running for the Presidential nomination.) They’re not afraid to be a bit different and elect a Republican now and again.
Third, and perhaps most importantly… the Boston Democratic political machine was even lazier than Coakley was. By and large, they didn’t do anything to help her out. Why? Because she beat the Boston-area chosen candidate in the primary (Mike Capuano). The machine didn’t do diddly of their normal stuff- no fundraising, no GOTV (get out the vote), no phonebanking, no nothing.
The reality is that the old saying about all politics being local was true this time.
In a way, this result is a good thing. It greatly lessens the importance of that turncoat slimebag Joe Lieberman; now that he’s not the 60th vote in the Senate any more, who cares if they piss him off? He’s totally dead meat in the 2012 election (assuming he is stupid and arrogant enough to run again instead of retiring).
In fact, the Democrats would be wise to take a page from the Republican playbook and bounce Lieberman right out of his chairmanship of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. They should either give him the crappiest committee assignment they can think up, or better yet, assign him to zero committees at all and tell him if he wants a slot he should get it from the Republican pals.
Naturally, because the Democratic leadership are a bunch of weenies, they probably won’t do this. (Can you imagine a truly bold, gutsy, brave Democratic party in today’s world, led by guys like LBJ and Sam Rayburn? Healthcare would be done months ago.)
The result also gives the Democrats a built-in excuse; now they can propose endless numbers of popular policies and watch the Republicans filibuster them over and over, thereby taking the blame for stuff not getting done.
The Democrats are paying the price for their lack of boldness. People voted hugely for change in 2008. For Pete’s sake, we elected a BLACK GUY for President. That’s pretty huge for a nation where, about two generations ago, black folks couldn’t drink from public fountains, or sit in certain restaurants, or walk down the street in many states in our country while holding hands with a white person without risking their personal safety.
President Obama has been too careful. He needs to be bold again. He needs to step up. He needs to propose even MORE liberal and progressive policies and then negotiate back DOWN towards the middle with the Republicans, instead of starting at a moderate position in the vain hope that it’ll result in “bipartisanship” (how’s that worked out so far?) and winding up with wishy-washy policies that aren’t much of a change.
While this election has more to do with local factors than national ones, it still holds both warning and opportunity for the Dems. Let’s hope they recognize it and take advantage.
January 20th, 2010 at 4:13 am
The teabaggers are everywhere. Didn’t millions of people vote for mccain/palin? This country is screwed.
January 20th, 2010 at 4:40 am
I think the repubs got bounced out over spending. I think the dems are seeing the same thing.
BTW, it’s tea party, like the Boston Tea Party.
January 20th, 2010 at 5:42 am
The average person couldn’t care less about spending, so long as they’ve got theirs.
As an example, I offer you air traffic controllers and supervisors who whine about federal income taxes like their salaries come from magic money trees.
January 20th, 2010 at 6:04 am
“I think the repubs got bounced out over spending.”
Didn’t Snakey save the taxpayers a bundle when she jammed her pay rules down controllers’s throats ? Pay cuts and freezes for vets and a B scale for new hires. Of course FAA Guy’s pay wasn’t touched, it was business as usual for management and sheet cake all around at FAA HQ. Gravy train on NATCA reclass in the 90s,then support the Snakey-Stoogel agenda to the letter and echo tea bagger rhetoric at the Follies. Bravo FAA Guy ! Bravo !
Politics are cylical in this nation. The party in power in both the legislature and the WH changes over varying periods of time, and for a variety of reasons. Assigning one single reason for a party getting clocked politically, like the Rs did in 2006 and 2008, or for one special election for a Senate seat is myopic.
AS
SCT
January 20th, 2010 at 7:47 am
It could just be that people are tired of both parties making promises and not delivering. The Republicans used abortion for instance as a point to sway the Christian right. They hold power for years and guess what? Nothing changes. The Democrats talk health care. Guess what? The health care they were talking is not the health care they are trying to deliver. Both parties have talked of ethic changes. Both have had the power to change it over the last 15 years. Guess what? Nothing changed. We still have the lobbyist running the country and the electees wetting their beaks at the trough. And how about Bush’s Holy War in Iraq? One year later with the Dem’s in control and we are deeper than ever in Iraq and all the middle east. Perhaps everyone is just fed up. I will give the Repubs props. They pushed thru whatever they wanted when in power. It sucked for the most part and made the rich richer and the poor poorer but they did it. The Democrats have proven to be a bunch of wimps. So why not just change them all out every election. Don’t let any of them get comfortable until they start doing the will of the people..
January 20th, 2010 at 8:37 am
Scott Brown won because he held 66 events compared to Coakley’s 19. That’s rich. It was the drunk lifeguard’s seat ! Look for more democracy in action come November.
January 20th, 2010 at 9:01 am
We have a 3 yr contract and hopefully will get another before Obama leaves office (if he does not get re-elected).
Anyone who thinks that McCain would have ordered that FAA back to the table with NATCA and given us a contract please step forward and let us read why.
If the R’s get back in the WH and have a majority , you can kiss ATC goodbye. Our govt. pensions are gone. If you don’t believe me ask a FSS person that is now working for nothing at LM.
I will be retired in less than a year and am very concerned that the R’s will go after my pension too.
Don’t think for one minute that Boeing and LM are not reved up again with their business plans to take over ATC when the time is right. They will be like vultures preying on a carcass. ATC will be carved up like Christmas Turkey .
January 20th, 2010 at 9:44 am
Keep on believing your own spin, and get ready for another surprise in November. Liberals love to call Tea Party activists “Teabaggers.” Do you know what “teabagging is? You should – you just got Teabagged!
January 20th, 2010 at 10:36 am
What surprise would that be Nostrodamus ?
As I recall, Rs took control of Congress two years in to Clinton’s first term. Not only did Clinton win a second term, but the country(and controllers)enjoyed a period of unprecedented prosperity. Is that the “surprise” you’re talking about ?
Will I be surprised if Rs take back control of both bodies of Congress in November. Yea I would be. But frankly, I couldn’t care less. I have seen this political play before, I know how it ends, and Mr Obama will be my commander in chief for the rest of my FAA career.
Now, as long as you’re peering in to your crystal ball, how about a call on this year’s super bowl winner ?
Tea bagged ? Sure, and throw in a splash of lemon please.
LMAO
AS SCT
January 20th, 2010 at 6:30 pm
I call them teabaggers precisely for that reason Scott, but I’m sure you know all about that don’t ya!
January 20th, 2010 at 9:32 pm
Next subject- Towers will be replacaed- my guess is somewhere in the third world- perhaps Inida. Pay scale? $5 a day for air traffic controllers in India controlling US towers.
Volpe Center Staff Awards, December 19, 2007:
http://www.volpe.dot.gov/noteworthy/docs/awards2007-program.pdf , page 20.
Staffed Virtual Tower (SVT) Concept Evaluation Team For developing a
prototype SVT system in six months that performs the functions of an air traffic
control tower with more efficiency and less controller workload.
Jonathan T. Lee (Team Leader), Francis J. Coyne, Timothy G. Hall, Daniel J.
Hannon, Stephen M.Mackey, Thomas B. Sheridan, Michael Malonson (CSC),
Sharon Woods (CSC), Alan Kauffman (CSC),Narendra Koganti (CSC),Michael
Francis (CSC/EG&G), Richard J. Gopen (Micro Lan Systems)
Existing control tower configurations significantly limit the amount of air traffic possible
under poor weather visibility, but the cost of replacing the towers is becoming
prohibitive. The FAA asked the Volpe Center to develop a prototype SVT system that
performs the functions of an air traffic control tower with more efficiency and less
controller workload. Within six months, the team generated a hardware/software model
suitable for a feasibility analysis, which was successfully conducted in August 2007.
FAA sponsors, management, and staff from the Terminal Air Traffic Systems Operations
and Safety group were impressed and agreed that the SVT concept has potential for
improving airport operations, especially at night and during low-visibility conditions.
Plans are now being formulated for the next phase of SVT development.
The project’s challenges were both technical and cultural. Electronic systems that functionally replace out-the-window views must be as accurate, reliable, and intuitive as the visual depiction
system now available. In addition, air traffic controllers are well compensated, unionized,
and likely to be resistant to changes that will affect working conditions or that they may
perceive as threatening to their role. The project was successful, increasing air traffic
capacity under poor weather visibility by one-third. It also garnered considerable interest
at the recent Air Traffic Control Association conference. This effort was significant
in that it embodied best-practice principles of human systems integration to develop
new technology.
January 21st, 2010 at 5:45 am
Actually, it was the “tea party activists” who originally called THEMSELVES “teabaggers”. Us progressives just happily went along with the nickname.
the people who claim that this election wa some kind of referendum on health care reform are forgetting a big factor- Massachusetts already HAS basically universal healthcare. They passed their own state reform a couple of years ago.
The talk about spending being a problem is, as o have pointed out here before, a big fat steaming pile of hypocrisy. Republicans are perfectly okay with massive levels of government spending or tax cuts (ie less revenue), so long as it all flows TO the rich and powerful and giant corporations.
But let the Democratic Party start to make moves that help average people and suddenly it’s “the goverment is spending too much!”
January 21st, 2010 at 8:37 pm
Was an awful campaign from the D. Looking at Virginia and N.J. i don’t think it was just outworked. All the national polls had double digits against health care they were pushing. Huge amounts of spending. I also thought Bush spent too much. His base doesn’t jive with his war stance. R’s don’t like much of anything and Independants left in droves. BO carried Mass. by 26. 31 point swing didn’t come from a few extra campaighn stops.
I have been disappointed (contract aside)they didn’t do squat with the supermajority they had for a year. Didn’t need 1 R. Title 49 anyone????
Seems like the best years are the mixed party control years. They know they have to meet in the middle to do anything. Both parties have sucked when they had full control!!!!!
January 22nd, 2010 at 9:01 am
DEMs are almost always disorganized. While the R’s focus, work harder & outspend the D’s.
Obama is an exception – see how that worked out.
Pretty sad at the D’s refuse to learn.
January 25th, 2010 at 9:55 am
It doesn’t matter what you call them. They are real. I think they represent that part of our society that is just tired of goverment and people who control others in general. I watched tea party coverage in a part of the country also known to be a liberal safe haven. They are tired of what they are being told by this president and to a large part this congress. The tea party movement was a protest against government corruption. Well its has been a year and the only thing I see is that the unions all got thiers but did the new hope removed the corruption. Well from where I am, the corruption in the FAA is still operating without fear or worry. The tea party movement sees this and other examples and are making the choice with the ony power they have, at the ballot box. Political pendulums are bad for all of us. Bush brought in Obama. How far will the pendulum swing in three years. My guess is that Unions will be demonized and lumped in with ACORN. Then this set up a situation that all goverment jobs under union contracts are going out for bid for real. The goverment will only be responcible for monitoring the contractors. So keep dismissing the amercans who have organized against the goverment, I’m sure this blog will be used to support thier position that goverment(and its employees) are out of touch.
Democrats have always used the soft hearts of Rebublicans to prevent large swings in policy claiming that it would hurt the poor. Well I think that attidute is changing, last week I saw a bumper sticker on a truck that stated “F**K the POOR”. It looks like Dems and Repubs are going to be footnotes in history. It would be our arrogance that caused it.
January 25th, 2010 at 10:25 am
LOL, we didn’t hear a peep out of the so called “tea bag” movement during eight years of Bush and his trillion dollar medicare drug plan. And if McBush had won, we never would have. Many of these groups are being funded or at least encouraged now by wealthy individuals and think tanks who lean or even tilt to the political right and oppose Mr Obama. And some Republicans who are so inclined will use the tea baggers as their political stooges.
“Political pendulums are bad for all of us”
Speak for yourself. Political power shifts between the two parties in a cyclical nature, always has in fact. The tea bag set has two real choices, vote Republican or not at all. Footnotes in history……yea sure, we all remember President Ross Perot.
Sick of government ? Does that include them or their parents who collect social security, maybe receive medicare benefits, a military pension and benefits, maybe a kid who got a Pell grant for college, or even a small business loan ? Plenty of Americans are rhetorically conservative, but when it comes right down to it, just as many are taking some form of government assistance or pay out.
And unions have been demonized for decades by corporations and their allies on the political right (and left). Where the heck have you been ?
January 25th, 2010 at 1:51 pm
Good or bad, like it or not – Ross Perot was responsible for Clinton getting elected by taking the independant votes from Bush Sr.
January 25th, 2010 at 9:14 pm
Every time you leftwingers use that obscenity to refer to me, my friends, and my neighbors, we get a little more pissed off at the Democrats.
So keep it up, losers.
And pay attention to the state of the union speech Wednesday. Your savior is getting ready to drive a 4×4 up your six.
January 25th, 2010 at 9:28 pm
What obscenity? Republican?
At least the Dems aren’t threatening the “nuclear option” that the Republicans did with the Supreme Court nominations. After all the 60 vote rule to invoke cloture is changeable at any time by the rules committee. =)
January 26th, 2010 at 12:17 am
Mikey and the tea-baggers are a joke. Nothing but whiny hypocrites. Where the eff were you clowns the past 8 years? Where was the outrage about bloated spending and corruption during the shurb years?
January 26th, 2010 at 7:45 am
Whatever the Teabagger movement might have started as it is no longer. It has been hijacked. I believe the tickets for an upcoming event are like $550.00 or there abouts. I don’t thing the old retired fixed income folks or “grassroots folks” can afford those type of events. But guess who can?
January 26th, 2010 at 11:46 am
Well Paul, you really don’t get “it”. Your analysis is unfortunately way off. (Watching NBC have you?)
I have been reading this blog for a while now…
(CLUE #1)Tea Party goers are not happy with either political machine. Most of Congress need to be replaced, they are power and money hungry people and they recognize that. Yours and my taxes will be going up. I care… you may not. Most Tea Partiers didnt like McCain either… he was the biggest loser in the republican lot. (my opinion)
(CLUE #2)Bipartism is only used when the MAJORITY party tends to give consessions to the MINORITY party. NOT the other way around. Stop complaining about “stuff not being done”. YOU have the votes in both the House (256-179)and the Senate (41-57). So where’s the problem??
(CLUE #3)Yeah, let’s revamp the World’s Best Healthcare…and Not “tweek” the system. GREAT IDEA!! (/sarc off)
Stop blaming Bush. It’s the new Prez’s problem now. Also, a lot of R’s didnt like what Bush was doing either towards the end of his term either. Fox News covered that…. where was NBC?
Thanks.
January 26th, 2010 at 2:17 pm
“Stop blaming Bush”
I’ll blame Bush for the rest of his life, for appointing that hatchet face Snakey.
Yea, FOX was all over Bush all right. Seven years and eleven months of worshiping the guy, and one month of criticism.
FOX news, we distort, you decipher !
I’ll say it again. Politics is cyclical in this nation and voters are fickle. Always has been and they always will be.
February 2nd, 2010 at 9:44 am
Please watch PBS Frontline February 9th 2010 Check your local listings
http://faawhistleblower.wordpress.com/
February 4th, 2010 at 12:24 pm
Opposing view: FAA puts safety first
http://faawhistleblower.wordpress.com/
February 5th, 2010 at 12:22 pm
AS@SCT
Fine. You may be right about the FAA during Bush’s time. I have no clue about Snakey nor the insights of the FAA. Thats why I look into this time to time.
That being said… this thread was about the National Political spotlight and feelings. You could easily find any news station to “squat” on Bush at anytime for 8 YEARS. NBC, ABC, CBS, PBS, CNN, MSNBC….am I missing one? So give me a FRIGGIN break. FOX News is 1 news source.
By the way… Thanks for keeping me safe in the air. (seriously)
February 5th, 2010 at 11:37 pm
The “past 8 years” includes one of Obama’s now, I believe. Maybe it’s time to use a different phrase; that one’s obsolete if you only intend to demean Bush 43.
“Nothing but whiny hypocrites,” _Tea Bag Scott Brown_? Really? Are the democrats ANY better?
These threads always become ridiculous. The people on the left see what they want and are blind to the truth. The people on the right see what they want and are, also, blind to the truth. When will we wake up and start thinking for ourselves? People that watch NBC criticize those who watch Fox while the Fox watchers criticize those who watch NBC while neither one has made up their minds for themselves. It always results in bitter “You’re wrong and stupid for believing what you do. I’m right and I can’t believe you don’t see it” arguments. Granted, when you’re right, you’re right, but… c’mon.
And therein we find the supporters of our two stagnant and defunct political parties. Cesspools, both of them! I’m going to lay down a few points I believe to be true. You may not, and that’s great. I don’t care.
President George W. Bush was a certified disaster. Even a majority of republicans were unhappy with him by the end of his terms. Why so many other repubs went along and voted the party line is angering to any free-minded person, and highlights one of the problems inherent in our two-party system. It’s the “them vs. us” mentality, and it’s become dumber than my ex. The important thing to remember about Bush 43 is this: He’s gone. He served two terms and can never come back. Love him (anyone?) or hate him, he’s over. Those of you who sit there and scream about how everything is Bush’s fault have screamed long enough. It’s time to shut up, put on your big boy pants and look forward. We may very well deal with repercussions of his policies and decisions for some time, but it’s Obama’s world now, and we need to be fair in our judgement. No, I’m not saying Obama isn’t doing well – he’s only had 1 year. Give him time.
Where were the angered republicans? A lot of them defected and voted for Obama. Some held to personal convictions and stuck with McCain/Palin. Some voted for Ralph Nader (Yeah, the guy really did get votes. 50,000 or something like that). I don’t like the idea that so many stuck with McCain/Palin, but it’s not really my business. It isn’t yours, either. Ya know what else? It’s incredibly unfair for anyone to blindly criticize anybody else for voting whatever way they did. You exercised your right, they did theirs. Shut up. No, really, somebody get Sarah Palin to shut up! Where were the tea baggers? Read on.
The election in Massachusetts is something. Maybe it’s an aberration, but one thing it is NOT is one candidate “outworking” the other. Those who actually use the ballot boxes aren’t illiterate morons. If I don’t agree with Scott Brown the 1st time I see him speak, I’m probably not going to agree with him the 66th time I’ve heard him say the same thing. He won because his message resonated with more voters than Coakley’s did. To think that he won by “outworking” anybody is a bit too much to believe. Now I’m not stupid enough to say that this election signals a dramatic shift in the country, because I don’t know – and neither does anyone else yet. I do think, however, that it means something – and something potentially significant. Someone else said earlier that it signals dissatisfaction with Obama and, to a lesser extent, the Congress. I think that’s backwards. I think it’s a sign of overwhelming dissatisfaction with Congress, and a lesser reflection on Obama himself. I like Obama quite a bit, and I suspect most people still do. Congress is the target of most voters’ ire. The back-door meetings and no-press negotiations, the shady deals, the “let’s hurry and force a healthcare when the majority of Americans don’t want it” business, the lobbyists, all the other crap that goes on, etc… Again, maybe the election is simply nothing more than an aberration. Say what you want; nobody knows yet. The historians will tell our grandchildren. let’s move on to the next point.
The Tea Party Movement. They seem to exist. They seem to be real. I don’t buy that they’re financed or goaded on by some rich, unseen hands, or that they’re an arm of the Republican party. They aren’t McCain/Palin people, though I realize many of them probably voted that way. I think they’re equally disgusted with BOTH parties and just happen to be fiscally conservative. I think they really are a group of pissed off folks of the common variety. I think they see what’s happening and are genuinely concerned – more than ever before. Where were they during the Bush years? Hiding under the coffee table from Osama Bin Laden. Honestly? I think the first Bush (43) term was ruled by fear. His second term saw a growing wave of discontent and resentment. The Tea Party Movement did not begin with Obama; it began in earnest in Bush’s 2nd term and probably had roots even before that. You didn’t see them then because a) most weren’t yet angry enough to hit the streets b) some saw Bush for a fool and figured things would improve by default when he left and c) others were asleep at the time and woke up with the “Change we can believe in” … that they never saw. Please remember, though, that these people are Americans just like you and I who are out speaking their minds – just like you and I. You don’t have to agree with them, but to mock or insult them because of what they believe is decidedly un-American (and not very polite). Withhold your slander and debate your differences. Otherwise you both appear as fools.
Yes, “AS@SCT” political pendulums are bad for us all…. then good… then bad… then good… then….
Lieberman… turncoat slimebag? Is Arlen Specter (R, no wait, D – PA) the same thing, or is he safe because he went from what you perceive to be the “bad” side to the “good” side – and do said “sides” have corresponding letters? Lieberman merely went from a (D) to an (I) and still votes with Dems on many issues. I respect that he had the guts to break from the party rather than swearing fealty and servitude to either. Seems the man may be able to think and decide for himself. He may be wrong, but… I don’t know what else I was going to say.
February 7th, 2010 at 2:23 am
Reader 12 says:
“I have no clue about Snakey nor the insights of the FAA.”
Allow me to clue you in then. NATCA and controllers have already “experienced” the smaller government the tea bags caterwaul about.
We got our pay frozen, our unio,n which had previously partnered with FAA emasculated, and we endured three years of a management face dance encouraged, in fact rewarded by Bush’s political appointees. And the FSS employees got even worse, Their jobs contracted out, their careers, benefits and pensions stolen.
You want smaller goverment, in the form of underpaid controllers, less qualified controller trainees being hired, you got it. And we’re in the process of weeding most of those new hires with no background out of facilities like the one I work at. You get what you pay for. Snakey told the world she could hire anyone to do my job. She was fuc*ing wrong.
Aequivocus says:
Yes, “AS@SCT” political pendulums are bad for us all…. then good… then bad… then good… then….
Depends on your perspective. Nice screed, but frankly I don’t buy the tea bag jive. Many Americans are rhetorically conservative. But then start asking them who they know, or who they’re related to, that receives government benefits/programs: medicare, social security, military pension/health care, VA benefits, a Pell grant, or maybe an SBA loan. And I wonder how many of these so called tea bags, ride a government subsidized Amtrak train to work every day in the NE corridor of the US.
I run a business in the agriclutural sector. I’m currently in the middle of a medfly quarantine zone. I have “government”, local, state and federal up my ass, making sure I comply with their protocols before I can move my product to market.
Government ? Yea, I know all about it. These tea bags are a joke in my view. They’re pissed because they have to pay more to register their cars and trucks. And having Sarah Palin, the 2 year queen of a state that receives more federal dollars per capita than any other, show up to be their guest speaker, is a scream.
February 9th, 2010 at 5:25 pm
Aequivocus says:
You don’t have to agree with them, but to mock or insult them because of what they believe is decidedly un-American (and not very polite). Withhold your slander and debate your differences. Otherwise you both appear as fools.
—-Wow. I laid out some simple facts, wouldn’t you call that a debate?
Aequivocus says:
I think they’re equally disgusted with BOTH parties and just happen to be fiscally conservative. I think they really are a group of pissed off folks of the common variety. I think they see what’s happening and are genuinely concerned – more than ever before.
—- Didn’t I cover that?? Maybe a little more concise?
Furthermore, I do take my information through a “filter”, no matter where I get it. I can also can tell the difference in opinion vs fact. I do however, know of sources that can’t be trusted any more, so I no longer waste my time.
So you must be a Libertarian then, right? Because you are obviously P.O.’d at both political partys.
AS@SCT says:
You want smaller goverment, in the form of underpaid controllers, less qualified controller trainees being hired, you got it.
— Well, Barry wants to spread the wealth, he said so many times…. so I hope you didnt vote for him. Otherwise….
Smaller government would be better. FYI, In the case of you wanting more money, you make more in the private sector not a government job. Maybe the FAA should be NON-government, then its possible you’d be paid what you are worth.
AS@SCT says:
We got our pay frozen, our unio,n which had previously partnered with FAA emasculated, and we endured three years of a management face dance encouraged, in fact rewarded by Bush’s political appointees. And the FSS employees got even worse, Their jobs contracted out, their careers, benefits and pensions stolen.
— I dont understand what your point about the Union. Please clarify.
February 10th, 2010 at 8:42 am
No offense Reader, but you obviously don’t know enough about FAA/ATC and what the Bush administration did to my profession to have a detailed discussion about it.
I will say that we tried the “smaller government” approach at FAA under Bush….in the form of pay cuts and freezes for controllers (none for management of course) and much lower entry wages for new hires, too many of whom are unqualified. And privatizing the FAA would be a terrible idea because bottom line profits would then trump the safety of the flying public (you fly, right ?).
Know this, the Obama administration is in the process of fixing the leftover Bush mess at FAA.