Stampeding to the Vapid and Meddling Middle in Pennsylvania Politics

Lynne Kiesling

This David Weigel article from the November issue of Reason made me very glad that I don’t live in Pennsylvania anymore (not that Illinois politics offers me any attractive choices either).

The not-so-secret twist of Pennsylvania’s Senate race is that both candidates are trying to reshape their parties’ coalitions by tacking hard to the big-government, social conservative center. Casey, an old-school liberal on taxes, wages, trade, and union issues, is also an anti-abortion, anti-stem cell research, pro-Iraq war conservative. Santorum, who started his career in 1991 as a tax-cutting, small-government conservative congressman, has evolved into a visionary Republican leader in using government to fund religious charities and pay families to stick together.

Yikes. This certainly reinforces my deep conviction that the best route to civil society and individual well-being is to take as many decisions as possible out of the political process.