Several things.
The economy, for one. The people who pay the majority of the taxes are hurting. The corporations that pay signifnant amounts of corporate income tax are hurting. There just isn't the money to feel the ability to be generous about funding new project, however worthy.
The unsettling impact of terror brought to our shores, with the relentless drumbeat of warning after warning of more to come. This is dispiriting, and takes focus away from long term goals to short term survival. It's not a logical consequence, IMO, but it's an emotional one, and emotion trumps logic every time.
Then, of course, the uncertainty of whether or not we will be at war with Iraq in the next few months. War changes everything, and even the possibility of war changes things. I think it makes people feel less willing to take risks with their money, less willing to hand over money to government for non-war projects.
I'm not a political scientist, and watch virtually no news and none of the talking head shows, so don't know whether these ideas are supported by the mass media or not. These are just my little thoughts. But there they are, such as they are. |
