Rep. Henry Waxman reminds me of a chupacabra, the legendary Latin American cryptid that supposedly stalks the night sucking the blood out of farmers’ livestock. Except instead of sucking the life out of farm animals, he sucks the life out of our economy. He also has an insatiable thirst for media attention that he staves off by holding congressional hearings. It seems every time there’s a government witch hunt or proposed government witch hunt, he’s the John Hathorne-wannabe thirsting for blood.
Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post columnist William Raspberry once likened him to Joseph McCarthy. A quick look over Waxman’s career makes it hard to deny the accuracy of the observation. In 1998, Rep. Waxman created a Special Investigations Division of the House Government Reform Committee to “conduct investigations of any matter” at “any time.” Waxman has used this inquisitorial squad to investigate everything from Valerie Plame to colored contact lenses to Holocaust-era insurance restitution. If you’ve read about it in the paper, heard it on the radio, or seen it on TV there’s a good chance Henry Waxman has thrown your tax dollars at investigating it.
As discussed in this blog’s last posting, the Congressional Chupacabra’s next victims will be CEOs of companies that have lost value as a result of Obamacare. The premise of this latest Henry Waxman hearing was aptly summed up by The Wall Street Journal: “The White House claims CEOs are reducing the value of their companies and returns for shareholders merely out of political pique.” It’s a far-fetched premise, but the Democrats have to grasp for something; the truth is too dangerous for them.
The reality is that if these corporations left the Obamacare writedowns unreported they’d be running afoul of the Securities and Exchange Commission. This isn’t some game corporate
The Democrats hope they can silence reality though. They think a Waxman hearing is the way to go. He’s got a history of browbeating everyone from Roger Clemens to Big Tobacco into submission.
I’m going to make two predictions:
1) Waxman’s hearings are going to backfire. In calling the farmers back to the chupacabra’s lair, Waxman is providing the CEOs a prominent national forum to have their voices heard. With the well-documented truth on their sides, the CEOs are going to eviscerate the Democrats’ ill-conceived, fantasyland arguments over how Obamacare would bring costs down. The Congressional Chupacabra is going to get a pitchfork in his side.
2) If, in a couple of years, Henry Waxman catches wind that any companies failed to report their Obamacare writedowns, he’s going to haul their CEOs in for a hearing to browbeat them for violating SEC disclosure requirements. It’s what he does.
Hopefully someday soon the Congress will get serious and start tackling the issues Americans are truly worried about: our crippled economy and stagnant job growth. Hey! Here’s a thought: why not provide some of our unemployed citizens jobs building a coliseum to house all 3,500 CEOs Henry Waxman’s going to feel compelled to bully for giving the lie on Obamacare.
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