WASHINGTON -- Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel, it has been said, and never was it more obvious in the United States than in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Rescuers were still searching for bodies from the smoldering rubble when lobbyists descended upon Washington, D.C. like locusts upon the African plain.
What is a genuine national crisis has become an excuse to barbecue pork. As Jamie Whitten, one-time House Appropriations Committee Chairman, observes: "I never saw a disaster that wasn't also an opportunity."
The airlines led the way, winning instantaneous approval of a $15 billion government program, including $5 billion in cash and as much as $10 billion in loan guarantees. Although the industry deserved compensation for its forced shutdown, Congress went on to hold taxpayers accountable for the earlier decline in demand due to the slowing economy.