Why Paris Hilton Matters

For the same reason the immigration reform debacle was so infuriating--a reason that rankles all over the world, regardless of political persuasion: the idea that rich, special interests have special access to the government.

Whether it's LA County or the US Senate, whether it's agribusiness or one o' them Hollywood Party Whores, we know they probably do. But they usually have the grace to be subtle about it and not throw tearful, infantile tantrums about it.

I'm not a pure majoritarian here. I know that Madison warned against "faction" taking over the halls of government, and that sometimes (especially in security matters) the government actually will know better than the polis what to do about a particular situation. But usually those are particular situations, as opposed to broad national policy debates.

Immigration reform is a serious issue that will affect the course of our nation's future. It's going to have major--and unforseen--economic, security, political, and moral consequences. If the DC (and Wall Street) power players think they know better than we do about where the country needs to go on this issue, they need to sit down and explain their plans, if they are at all defensible.

If they're not defensible, they should rethink them. "Shut up and trust us, you nativist neanderthals" isn't going to win any friends or influence people.

And meanwhile the ethics charges continue to pile up, making it that much harder to take seriously anything the Most Ethical Congress Ever tries to do or say. In the best HamNation yet, Mary Katharine Ham captures this disillusionment very very well. It's not so much deep political commentary as it's just a great way of capturing our sense of frustration and suspicion at DC right now:

Continuity error--ring goes on the pinky finger.