Bank Account v. Credit Card

This would be funny if it wasn't so serious.

"Make no mistake, I agree that they [the unemployed] need help, but I look at it as: Are we going to do it from the bank account, or are we going to put it on the credit card?" he [Sen. Scott Brown, Rep - Mass] said.

Democrats in turn rejected Brown's proposal to cut other government funding to pay for more jobless benefits. Both sides say the solution may be to attach those benefits to a deal extending the Bush-era tax cuts.

 So, in other words, we can put unemployment benefits on the credit card as long as we put more spending on the card too!

At Balloon Juice, John Cole points out that elections have consequences. The Huffington Post has an article about tempers flaring in Kentucky unemployment offices. Indiana has added armed guards at all their unemployment offices. Both states voted Republicans into office last month. Kentuckians elected Rand Paul to the Senate. Here's what he said before the election:

Kentucky Republican Senate candidate Rand Paul has a blunt message for the millions of Americans who remain unemployed in the long-term: "Accept a wage that's less than [you] had at [your] previous job" and "get back to work."

Sure, some people do hold out for a career level job. Back in 2002 when I was laid off I did so for a while. After a while though you start looking for any job. Even then it takes a while to get hired. Here in 2010 it is much, much harder to find a job than when I was unemployed 8 years ago.

Ultimately the GOPpers show no real interest in reducing deficit spending and no real interest in helping anyone other than the already rich. Yet many people continue to vote against their own economic interest for whatever reason. Somehow I doubt the people in those Kentucky and Indiana unemployment districts will connect those dots.