18 Nov FARTA Bill is a Real Farce
In a last-ditch effort to “Stop the Smell” before Donald Trump and the Republican trifecta take control in Washington, D.C., Democrats in the U.S. House and Senate, with support from the lame-duck Biden Administration, today are reintroducing their Federal Anti-Rectal Toxins Act (FARTA). This news comes more than a year-and-a-half after the legislation to eliminate gross odors and noises was first proposed, as reported here on April 1 (hint, hint, hint), 2023, in The Farcical FARTA Bill.
This, from a government that cannot adopt a budget, let alone a balanced budget. From “leaders” who gleefully add to the $36 trillion national debt and ignore the sad fact that the Social Security Trust Fund will expire in a few years. Instead, we get a rehash of last year’s unsuccessful FARTA statute.
For purposes of this blog, at least the noxious debate surrounding FARTA will provide insight into how our nation’s political dynamics have changed. Its stench also may linger into the looming battles over Mr. Trump’s proposed cabinet members.
The (Breaking) Winds are Changing
Once again, in a press conference to announce the reintroduction of their bill, sponsors described FARTA as a law that would both battle climate change and bring much-needed relief to a victim class of Americans oppressed by the “deplorable garbage” who pass gas. President Biden vowed to sign the bill as part of his legacy in health care, the environment, and the protection of basic human rights.
But, is it not ironic how the major parties’ priorities have changed? Until recent years, the Democratic Party was the domain of the working people – union laborers, farmers, construction workers, etcetera. To be frank, these were people who might have enjoyed passing a little gas here and there. Now, the party has turned on them and wants to ban all such noises and smells, while effectively cancelling all who emit them.
Meanwhile, the Republican Party used to be filled with refined Wall Street types, tax-opposed country club members, and wealthy retirees. These elites literally turned up their noses at the very thought of … they wouldn’t even say the word. Now, the dignified party they once knew openly fights for flatulence. This fits with the Republican Party’s adoption of populist, pro-gas stances like fracking, eating beef, drilling, and not letting “them” take away their fuel-burning cars and stoves.
My guess is that the FARTA controversy, as much as anything, bears witness to the overriding issue of freedom in American life. Many Republicans, as with their stances on guns, prioritize their personal freedoms over that of their neighbor’s right to be protected. Democrats today, with the interesting exception of the abortion issue, regard the impact on the other (and society at large) as more important than the individual’s own freedom.
The partisan metamorphoses are fascinating.
Administration of FARTA Under Trump
One timely question is how our federal government would manage FARTA under the incoming Trump Administration and its newly nominated cabinet leaders.
Take proposed U.S. Attorney General Matt Gaetz, for example. Would he enforce the law if it is enacted? After all, this is a man who appears to want the favor of Donald Trump and teenage girls more than that of the dignified and law-abiding among us.
I don’t know what to make of Elon Musk’s views on FARTA. Again, I’m revealing my age, but I can remember the day when the richest person in the world would have been thought categorically to oppose uncouth things. On the other hand, Musk also is known for shooting rockets into space and fomenting bluster on X (formerly Twitter), so he does seem to like propulsion of air. Then again, does it really matter what Elon Musk thinks? In the end, he doesn’t have an official role in Trump’s cabinet, so he won’t have any sway, right?
We do know that Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who will be President Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, is unlikely to follow the science behind FARTA. Kennedy, it is reported, apparently believes that bean-induced gases are actually more effective in preventing disease than are vaccines, and that they certainly are more beneficial than is fluoridation.
In any event, all Trump appointees are expected to take their cues from the boss. The president-elect – taking full advantage of his immunity from his actions in the White House – will surely release some rectal (and other) toxins whether the law is in place or not. Besides, if Mr. Trump wants to do something, his cabinet is not anticipated to stand in his way. Nothing is.
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I will continue to update you this fall on the fate of the FARTA. In the meantime, don’t make a fool out of yourself like certain political insiders (and bloggers) often do.
Written by Quentin R. Wittrock, founder of Principle Based Politics.
Look for his posts each week, as this blog will explore and promote the idea of principle in politics, both as to individual elected leaders and our federal government as an institution.
Principle Based Politics does not endorse or support any particular political candidate or party.
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