Two areas I expect to see the Republicans move into next - legal reform and infrastructure

[ThomWV]

I shit you not. This is what I expect:

Legal Reform. I do not know what catchy name they will give it, but Republicans are bound to return their attention to a more ambitious form of "tort reform". I fully expect to see them attack the ability of the common man to have his day in court in civil matters. They will be happy to see him led into a criminal court of course.

Infrastructure. Everyone wants to ask the Republicans the hardball question; 'if the Government isn't going to fix the bridges then who will?'. We suppose there is no answer. But there is, and this is what I expect the Republicans to propose. They will say, lets sell the run down bridges and interstates to private industry and let them do the repairs. And then the new owner's can charge whatever the market will bear in tolls to use their property. Imagine the billions that could be extracted from us with that scheme.

They must be stopped - and no, everything is not about jobs. As horrible as the jobs problem is, it pales before the wars, the spying, and the pure corruption of Government.

[LuvNewcastle]

1. I've been expecting them to do that with

infrastructure. I think that's why things have been allowed to deteriorate this much. They're going to start saying "government doesn't create jobs" and then sell off the highways and interstates to their cronies at fire sale prices. As far as tort reform goes, they're already doing it here in my state. I imagine that Congress might pass some reform of its own, though. They'll need Democrats to help, but at the rate things are going, it just might happen.

[brooklynite]

2. Are you insane?

Make Americans PAY to drive their SUV's? With the exception of the odd (literally) Ron Paul, Republicans will never privatize the road system.

[kenny blankenship]

3. After they get done selling off highway system & bridges, they can privatize the Federal courts

They'd call it the "Marketplace of Justice", but since it's already basically the case that justice in America is sold at auction, that wouldn't be new and snazzy enough. Probably they would need to let the upscale owners decide on the new names. For example, a lower court ruling might be reversed in Saks Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, or a plaintiff would have to take a case involving underhanded business practices to Dept of Microsoft Antitrust Division, or contract disputes would be heard in J. P. Morgan Superior Court, (civil cases involving less than $10,000 would be arbitrated around an end-cap display at the local Court of Walmart), and rare cases involving Constitutional issues or tricky controversies of law would be decided in the Supreme Court of Exxon-Mobil. That still leaves the matter of who gets the Federal Prison system. I think Disney is the obvious corporate candidate and most likely purchaser. They have the cash required and the core competencies for mass confinement and maintaining planned "communities" under constant surveillance.

We might even manage to pay off a tenth or so of our national debt, on what we could get for the court system alone! So let's bang that gavel while it's still worth something to somebody. Come on, lucky seven!