Wyo. Republicans puzzled by bad economy

Can four supposedly serious candidates for Wyoming’s lone U.S. House seat gather to talk about the nation’s economic troubles and not once mention the Iraq War?

They can if they’re Republicans. Monday’s Casper Star-Tribune featured a long story about the Republican candidates’ forum Sunday in Cheyenne.

See if you can find any mention of the billions and billions and billions of dollars we have sunk into Iraq in the past five years. We’re in trouble because we’re wasting our treasure on Iraq. Iraq, Iraq, Iraq. Don’t these dinosaurs know this?

Here’s an excerpt from the story:

The Republican candidates for Wyoming's lone U.S. House have vastly different views on how to solve the nation's economic troubles -- and who is to blame for the slowdown.

"We didn't stick with sound business practices, and all of a sudden it all came tumbling down around our ears," said candidate Bill Winney, who blames the mortgage meltdown and higher fuel prices for much of the economic trouble.

Former state Treasurer Cynthia Lummis said out-of-control spending, the mortgage crisis, national debt and the balance of trade all played a role in the downturn. But the biggest factor, she said, was the decision long ago to purchase the nation's fuel abroad, while foregoing opportunities to develop natural resources at home.

See any mention of the Iraq quagmire yet? And who has been in charge of the U.S. Government the past eight years, a time when our only energy policy was "buy more oil?"

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Mark Gordon, a rancher and businessman from Buffalo, said the economic exuberance of the last decade pushed the nation off course economically.

He said the question now is whether taxpayers should be required to "backstop" the poor judgment of some consumers and lenders. He said they should not.

Michael Holland, a physician from Green River, said the root of today's economic challenges can be pinned on bad lending and investment practices, which he said are largely controlled by a group of private bankers who have their own interests in mind.Congress is also to blame for delegating the power to regulate money to groups like the Federal Reserve. The nation needs to return to fundamentals of good finance, Holland said, and Congress needs to take back the power to regulate the financial system. The Fed should be eliminated, he said.

"It's time to chase the money changers out of the temple," Holland said.

Mr. Holland, maybe it’s time to chase the war profiteers out of the temple. Start with Dick Cheney and his Halliburton pals. Maybe then we can bring some stability to our economy.