Putting the genie back in the bottle.

Ryan made a point a couple of posts back about Reagan corking the genie in the bottle that LBJ and Carter had released in the sixties and seventies. And maybe there's the blueprint for help.

If the new executive, or a future executive faced with the consequences of the socialistic policies of his/her predecessors, were to clearly delineate state and federal fiscal responsibilities, and realign spending along said lines, the genie could get pushed back.

That was Reagan's first massive federal cut. One could call him a heartless bastard for slashing federal social programs, or one could simply say, "This isn't the Fed's job. It's the state's job. They pay for it." Which is exactly what Reagan did. If one wants to see the success/failure of "welfare states" vs. non-welfare states, then compare California to Alaska.

I know this isn't a comforting idea, being that McCain won't do this if he wins, but we can save the idea for 2016 or 2020. It's small comfort being right now and saying I told you so a generation later, but it is a small bit of sunshine.