I still haven't heard much about the deficit impact of Libya from the fiscal conservatives on the Hill, who are cutting the shit out of every program they can pronounce -- you know, because deficit spending is evil and will lead to the end of the republic, etc.
Meanwhile, I want to make something entirely clear about my position on this thing. This is not about the cost of the Libyan operation. Once again, it's about the hypocrisy. Just like it's about hypocrisy when a family values Republican thumps a Bible about the sanctity of marriage, all the while thumping a mistress (gay or straight) on the side. It's not about the gayness or the divorces or the mistresses, it's about the hypocrisy.
In this case, why is deficit spending okay when it comes to defending the Libyan people, but deficit spending on the American people is eeeeevil.
Truth be told, I'm not especially concerned about the costs of this operation, either. Whether "Operation Odyssey Dawn" is a good idea is a question worth considering in great detail, but when evaluating the merits, costs aren't exactly the first question I'm inclined to ask.
Then again, I'm not a deficit hawk who's been telling the nation that spending more money -- on anything -- will likely cause the end of civilization as we know it. Those who have been making just such a case may want to take a moment to explain why we can't afford to fund Head Start centers, but the price of Tomahawk cruise missiles aren't much of a concern.
Once again, the Tomahawk missiles used on the first day of operations cost us around $68 million. No word on how that would be offset. No CBO score. No screeching about deficits from the usual suspects. Meanwhile, they say we absolutely have to cut $51 million from the National Parks and $420 million from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting -- or else we're all doomed.
Why?