This new article in the St. Petersburg Times chronicles the sorrows and sufferings of Florida’s Republican congressional delegation. The article, somewhat surprisingly, places Rep. Bill Young (R) in the Conscience Caucus — and we’ve followed their lead.
“I’m not going to support anything that makes Social Security subject to the stock market,” said Young. “I have always been very careful to make a decision regardless of politics. I don’t think a decision should be made based on whether you support the president or don’t support the president.”
The article goes on to note that even Rep. Clay Shaw (R) is now claiming he “wants Congress to find a way to add investment accounts without using Social Security,” in the words of the Times reporter.
We remain skeptical that Shaw is so far off the reservation. But apparently this truly is a time of testing since Rep. Mike Bilirakis (R) declined even to comment for the story, thus placing himself into that distinguished fraternity of congressional worthies who pass on press attention.
The really rich prose in the Times piece, however, is reserved for Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite (R), who’s keeping up her performance art routine as the fairer-sex Hamlet of west-central Florida, agonizing — to paraphrase the Times — over whether to ’tis nobler to serve the interests of thy constituents or “allegiance to the Republican agenda.”
We keep hearing that Brown-Waite is stiffing constituents who are trying to find out where she stands on phasing out Social Security. So, as in the case of Montana, we have to ask: will Brown-Waite be travelling or appearing with the president in Florida?
Will she be endorsing his phase-out plan?
How about Reps. Harris, Shaw and Young?
[ed.note: Are you represented by Rep. Brown-Waite? Do you live in Florida’s 5th congressional district? If so, drop us a line.]
