It doesn’t look like there will be a lot done in Congress this month. Both parties agree that funding issues are likely to be punted until after November elections, perhaps even longer.
I feel in the marrow of my bones that the deficit and debt are going to cause a real donnybrook on spending and spending priorities. Everywhere I turn, I hear rumblings that send shivers down my spine. Not that it scares me; we have been here before.
I believe 2011 could easily become a repeat of 1981. At that time, newly elected President Reagan, a Republican-controlled Senate and House and conservative Democratic “boll weevils” collectively tried to scale back the role of government. While the Community Services Block Grant was created in this environment, there were many sleepless nights in the process.
I also happened to tune into Fox and Friends on Saturday night as they were attacking the inefficiencies of the Weatherization Assistance Program. This came on the heels of Vice President Joe Biden's announcement that the 200,000th home had been weatherized through the Recovery Act and the recent record-breaking milestone of weatherizing more than 31,000 homes in a single month.
Just as we think we have turned a corner in proving the benefits of this worthwhile program, another attack comes at us . . . usually from right field. Any issues with the program have been magnified 100 times, overwhelming all of the positive things that are going on.
Expect a very aggressive press strategy on Weatherization Assistance in the next 30 days.
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