Scratch and dent speaker sale...

...in the House

Jim Jordan, like Steve Scalise, has lost his bid for Speaker of the House. Neither was able to garner enough votes to assume McCarthy’s former role. What’s going on in the house is much like a couple shopping at an audio store. One wants a high-end model speaker, while the other wants an inexpensive, mildly-damaged lesser brand.

While at times a bargain may be found, the maxim that “you get what you pay for” is often true. Sometimes, people are willing to pay the higher price for quality; other times, people find a markdown item is sufficient. When it comes to Speaker of the House, top-of-the-line is preferable, but damaged goods is that to which the American people have grown accustomed.

The fact is, neither the American people nor members of the House are willing to pay the price for a top quality Speaker. While many products offer deluxe models with bells and whistles galore, true top notch quality often comes at top shelf prices and with fewer options, because it is easier to make something superb when it is focused, often with a single purpose. This is true with audio equipment (any audiophile reading this is well-aware), and it is true with politicians as well.

A failure of the American system (or of American voters) has been in populating the House of Representatives with those who, while they take an oath to do so, have no intention of upholding and defending the Constitution (if they even have any idea the boundaries it sets for the federal government). These people then seek to elect a Speaker who will serve their agenda, rather than choose a person best qualified for the position.

Jim Jordan isn’t a superlative product, but neither is he the steal that Scalise would have been. None of the establishment Representatives in the House (this goes for both parties) are willing to suffer the cost of a speaker like Jordan or a higher caliber candidate (most Americans are unwilling to pay that price). Instead, the majority will only cast a “yea” vote for the candidate with the greatest trappings, the most “features” if you will, the one that will continue to push legislation that violates the Constitution. We settle for the scratches of corruption and the dents of partisan politics.

The American people deserve better. Unfortunately, politicians take advantage of the people’s ignorance of the Constitution and that for which our founding fathers fought. It is a sad state of affairs, but it is what we the people have allowed and for what so many continue to vote. Like I said, it is often true that you get what you pay for, and most Americans vote for loss leader lawmakers and bargain basement bureaucrats. What may seem like a deal at the time of purchase often costs more in the long run. Remember, when you vote for someone who will not govern according to the Constitution, just as when purchasing open-box and discount electronics, the old adage applies: caveat emptor.