A Model Congress

The Democratic Congress conforms well to Political Economy models of vote-buying (euphemistically called "bargaining"). In the by-now-well-gone-over war funding/retreat resolution, the minimal Democratic majority was far from resolute. The skinny:

Democratic leaders, short of votes to pass the bill when the week began, loaded it up with what critics described as "pork." Dubbed "retreat and butter," the so-called political sweeteners included $25 million for spinach farms in California, $75 million for peanut storage in Georgia, and $120 million for shrimp and menhaden fishermen.

That's small potatoes. But $75 million here, $75 million there, and pretty soon you're talking real money. The bill would:

• Add $1 billion to the president's request to protect against pandemic flu, $1.7 billion for defense health programs and $4 billion for agricultural assistance.
• Include legislation passed by the House this year that would increase the minimum wage and cut some related small business taxes.

I would have hoped the president would veto this bill even if it said nothing about withdrawing from Iraq!