Neo-Federalism

Given the results of the election, perhaps its time to promote a new philosophy: Neo-Federalism.

What is Neo-Federalism? Well...

(1) FEDERALISM. Blue states have the freedom to promote the values they want and Red states can have the values they want. If they want creationism, we can have evolution. If they want pro life policies, we can have pro choice policies. If they want private health care, we can have state funded universal health care. If they want stem cell research bans, we can have state funded stem cell research. It's as simple as that. Local control. The republican manta for the last two decades should become ours as well.

(2) MASSIVE and I mean MASSIVE federal tax cuts. Hell, do a 5% Federal Flat Tax. The Repugs are going to give us these anyway, so lets just out tax cut the tax cutters. Why? STARVE THE RED STATE WELFARE STATES. They take way more in federal money than the blue states. We are funding their theocracies!!!

(3) PAY AS YOU GO FEDERAL FUNDING. Once the tax cuts are done, put handcuffs on the federal government. The Red States are going to quickly see they are hurting. They'll want to increase the debt. Don't allow it.

(4) CUT FEDERAL SPENDING. Everything. Highway funds, farm subsidies, hell even entitlement programs can be cut. Let the state governments handle it. Remember the Red states see more of this money than the blue states and guess who pays for it - the blue states.

(5) MAKE THE BLUE STATES BLUER. We need to do exactly as the Repugs did in the Red States. Work to oust even moderate Repugs. For every moderate Repug we give power to, we amplify it twofold by indirectly giving more power to Red state Repugs. We need control of the local statehouses and governorships to enact the necessary social legislation we are going to allow the Repugs to kill at the federal level.

(6) OBSTRUCT. DELAY. ATTACK. At the federal level we have to obstruct, delay and attack the Repugs so that they cannot "federalize" their radical right wing agenda. This is the tricky part. On some issues we may have to let them win. On others, can may only let them get half of what they want. It will depend on the issue. Above all, we have to protect the judiciary from radical judges. Especially in the blue states.

I really believe that this is the only way. It's a long term strategy. We are going to loose some federal elections. But I just don't see how we can get the religious zealots to open up their eyes.

The Red State World view is just too different and too ingrained to hope against hope that somehow, someway a democrat will come along who will be able to talk these people into the reality based community. Unfortunately, they have to be shown the hard way that the unholy alliance between the radical religious right and the radical economic conservatives will hurt the red states, not the blue states. They only way I know how to do it is to hasten its ends while protecting the blue state social safety net.

Check out today's NYT editorials. Freidman says that he feels like this election was about two different teams, not policies or issues. The values voters just don't view America the way we do. And somehow, they now control our federal government.

Everything I have ever seen tells me these values voters are 1/3 of the electorate. They win by joining with the economic conservatives. The Neo-Federalist philosophy can attract some of those economic conservatives in the short term. This can help us along. Long term, Neo-Federalism just may stave off the theocracy these folks want to establish and might just turn red states blue again.