Friday, January 15, 2021

Washington can expect a "new normal" — even after Biden's inauguration — Ursula Perano

Americans are about to experience a higher level of security, surveillance and censorship, and a Patriot Act 2.0 can also be expected in reaction to violence on both left and right.

As I have said previously, the three functions of governance are security, order, and welfare in that order. Now the political emphasis is shifting away from welfare toward security and order.

If Democrats don't respond appropriately, they will lose control in the midterms (likely in any but the best case anyway) and the presidency in the next general.

This is dicey, since the majority preference is for security and order ("law and order") but with a light touch. Not simple to implement.

Axios
Washington can expect a "new normal" — even after Biden's inauguration
Ursula Perano

7 comments:

Nebris said...

If tens of millions of Americans are left on the economic edge [and a few million shoved over] 'Law & Order' ain't gonna be worth shit.

Tom Hickey said...

f tens of millions of Americans are left on the economic edge [and a few million shoved over] 'Law & Order' ain't gonna be worth shit.

Right you are, and I think that the Dems get that.

They need to pass a trillion plus targeted relief package ASAP and vaccinate as many as possible as quickly as possible, and without getting distracted.

The GOP probably can be counted on to obstruct as usual, and the virus has its own tricks to avoid being stamped out by mutating.

Matt Franko said...

Pfizer saying the mutation probably covered by their mRNA vax

https://www.pfizer.com/news/press-release/press-release-detail/vitro-study-shows-pfizer-biontech-covid-19-vaccine-elicits

Moderna looking at it too....

mRNA might be an advantage to what they’re doing in Europe...

Matt Franko said...

Moderna

https://investors.modernatx.com/news-releases/news-release-details/statement-variants-sars-cov-2-virus

Good so far...

I’m getting the moderna one eventually.... as of now,,,,

Andrew Anderson said...

targeted relief package ASAP Tom Hickey

"Targeted" and "ASAP" are conflicting requirements.

And those who don't need the fiat can always give it away to someone who does.

Even Naked Capitalism gets this right; means testing is a jobs program for meddlers and a deliberate humiliation for the recipients.

Tom Hickey said...

"Targeted" doesn't imply means tested. It means "not shotgun."

In a relief package, put the funds where they are most needed and where there will be most socially beneficial effect in addition to economic.

In a stimulus package, put the funds were they are most likely to be spent rather than saved. It's basically all economic.

This is an emergency relief program not a stimulus program.

Peter Pan said...

Impeachment is more dangerous than Trump
The aftermath of the Capitol 'coup' echoes the post-9/11 era
BY MICHAEL TRACEY
https://unherd.com/2021/01/impeachment-is-more-dangerous-than-donald-trump/

The most apt parallel for the second impeachment of Donald Trump may not be any other of the three previous presidential impeachments, including his own just over a year ago. It may instead be the PATRIOT Act, which was passed in the heated emotional aftermath of the September 11 attacks, with negligible debate afforded to the long-term implications of what Congress was enacting. Reason and deliberation had given way to a collective desire for security and revenge, and thus the most sweeping curtailment of civil liberties in the modern historical record was approved. Those who departed from the swiftly assembled consensus could expect to be denounced as sympathisers to terrorists.

New normal: tried and tested.