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Political procrastination is "kicking the can down the road" by sidestepping tough issues, foot dragging, passing the buck, and blaming others for delaying. As with most forms of procrastination, expediency is the operative factor.
Elected public officials, who pass legislation without reading the document, politically procrastinate. We saw this negligence in the 110th Congress with the passage of TARP, and in 111th Congresses with the passage of the stimulus package. Many representatives rubber-stamped these bills.
On October 3, 2008 Congress passed The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act (with TARP). Just prior to that, both US Secretary of the Treasury Hank Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke opined that the financial world was on the verge of collapse. Congress was pressed into action based on the idea that something had to be done immediately. This is a classic procrastination example. Decisions get put off. There is a last minute rush at the end to finish before there is a disaster.
Did Bernanke and Paulson see this crisis coming? Were they asleep at the wheel and woke up just before a crash? Or, was this a version of the Chicken Little story where a panicked chicken caused others to think the sky was falling down? As in the chicken little story, did a fox benefit by taking advantage of the crisis?
Now comes The American Recovery and Investment Act of 2009 (The Stimulus Package). Officials asserted that the package needed to be immediately passed to stimulate the economy. Was this Chicken Little time again?
If the financial sky was truly falling, was the Stimulus Package enacted too late? Did congressional representatives, who added lard to the bill, expect that the economy would right itself soon enough? Do we have another case example of political procrastination?
There is ample evidence to suggest that many elected officials avoided the complexity of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) by not reading the bill. It was passed by the Democrat Party and opposed by all Republican legislators. When people pass bills without reading them, is this an example of the sort of expediency we so often see with procrastination? I think so.
If you took a college final examination, and neither read the books nor attended the lectures, would you pass or fail the test?
US Attorney General Eric Holder, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, and State Department spokesperson P.J. Crowley denounced SB 1070, the Arizona Immigration Law. (Arizona legislators framed the law on federal immigration law.) Here is the rub. These three public officials did not read the Arizona law that they denounced. Janet Napolitano, for example, made a statement of belief about what she thought the law meant. This statement of belief represented a flimsy excuse for procrastination.
SB 1070 is an obvious hot button issue. Yet Holder and Napolitano took initiative to denounce the law before they read it. The law is brief and readable.
Is political procrastination new? Hardly! There is an Aesop's fable of an orator, Demades, who spoke before the Athens Greece Assembly 2500 years ago. He told a fable of fellow travelers: Dementer, a swallow, and an eel. The travelers came to a river without a bridge. Swallow flew over the river and eel swam under. The orator paused. Several asked what happened to Dementer. The orator answered: "Dementer is very angry with you for listening to fables when you ought to be minding public business." Times change. Things remain the same.
When it comes to procrastination, does it matter what political party is in power? Not as far as I can tell.
Is there an antidote for political procrastination? Getting capable people into office starts with an alert, educated, populace with developed critical thinking skills who can discern between political rhetoric and productive actions. Consider voting for a person, not for the individuals party affiliation. Consider candidates with proven practical judgment, ability to think things out, and the will to follow-through effectively. How do you know who they are? Do your homework.
Dr. Bill Knaus
