Washington IS the Problem

Matt Yglesias claims that "Washington" has nothing to do with our political system being out of touch with America - only the Republican Party does. I agree with him that on specifically the filibuster fight and its disconnection with real America, that's true. This is a GOP creation through and through, as are much of the most recent examples of politicians ignoring our country's most pressing needs. However, the idea that "Washington" and the beltway insider culture isn't out of touch with America, well, that argument can only be made by someone from Washington in that culture who is out of touch with America.

How many examples do you need from BOTH parties AND the media to know the problem is the Beltway mentality? Last I checked, it both parties in Washington that has pushed "free" trade even as these policies clearly sold out ordinary Americans. Last I checked, there is almost never talk of universal, single-payer health care, even though most of the industrialized world has that one figured out. And last I checked, there is almost never a debate in the confines of Washington about how corporate power is at the core of many of our most pressing problems. In the insulated, lobbyist-prowling confines of Washington, such talk is considered out of bounds.

I used to live in Washington, so I've got some experience with this: I know what's it's like to be in an environment divorced from reality. That's why I got out as quickly as I could. Washington - most of its journalists, almost all of its pundits, all of its corporate lobbyists, and all but a handful of truly decent politicians - are out of touch. And any argument to the contrary made by people in Washington just reinforces the point even more.