Last April, in a very public yet largely ignored extension of the middle finger to lower class consumers, the Bankruptcy and Consumer Protection Act was pushed through Congress by the credit card industry, Republicans, and a disappointingly high number of unprincipled Democrats.
In an especially heinous display of compassionate conservatism, an amendment which would have protected victims of natural disasters from the more stringent bankruptcy provisions was defeated in a party-line vote.
Ignoring data which shows the leading cause of personal bankruptcy to be health care costs, champions of the bill claimed a great victory in the war on irresponsibility and sloth. Large corporations and the extremely wealthy silently thanked the American people for studiously ignoring how the bill laid primary responsibility for bankruptcy abuse squarely on the shoulders of the average consumer, while allowing the aforementioned large corporations and extremely wealthy people to continue using loopholes and tax shelters to protect themselves from the consequences of unforeseen tragedies, like being indicted for accounting fraud.
As search-and-rescue operations along the Gulf Coast give way to reconstruction of both physical infrastructure and people's lives, it would be understandable for the reader to think that Republican leaders would reconsider their position and adopt some form of bankruptcy relief for hurricane victims. The reader, unfortunately, would be mistaken. Four Democratic House members have proposed legislation delaying the application of the Bankruptcy and Consumer Protection Act to those affected by Hurricane Katrina. Representative James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) and chairman of the Judiciary Committee said last week he will not allow a hearing on bankruptcy relief. Sensenbrenner and other Republicans must be too busy pursuing other facets of the compassionate conservative agenda to be bothered with poor, bankrupt Louisianans.
One item that is at the very top of this agenda is a repeal of the estate tax, which would benefit only the richest one percent of the population. In fairness to the GOP, making a repeal of the estate tax seem like a good idea at a time of national tragedy requires a Herculean effort. Republican lawmakers are up to the task though, as seen through the efforts of Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL). In a message left on the voicemail of estate tax law expert Harold Apolinsky, Sessions voiced the idea of turning Hurricane Katrina fatalities into political weapons. "If we knew anybody that owned a business that lost life in the storm," he opined, "that would be something we could push back with." Sessions and Apolinsky are still looking for that perfect poster boy for hurricane relief through large tax cuts concentrated at the top of the economic food chain.
Hurricane Katrina has laid bare the priorities of the American ruling majority. The compassionate fa?§?¤e was swept away by 20 foot storm surges and 140 mph winds. While everyone in government should be working together to alleviate the suffering of displaced Gulf Coast residents, the Republican Party is busy giving away massive rebuilding contracts to Halliburton and searching Internet lists of hurricane deaths for potential political tools.
At last, Americans see the true face of conservatism. All it took was the destruction of a city.
