You asked for it, you got it
At least 24 congressmen who have been very vocal in their criticisms of the administration will not be getting any funding for pet projects in their respective districts. Allocations for the purpose have vanished from the 2018 budget just signed by the president. Now you can say what you want about the matter, but the fact is it does not come as a real surprise to many.
Indeed, some of them must have seen it coming and that is why when the news broke that they just lost their allocations, they simply bit their tongues and kept quiet. If it is any consolation to them, their silence speaks volumes of their character. They knew that if they can dish it out they should also be willing to take it all in.
But that is just some of them. For the rest who cannot take the deprivation, they just had to call for a press conference and there do what they love best — complain. In moods that swung from downright anger to inconsolable disappointment, the remaining few bitched about not finding anything in the budget that they can use to show their constituents they are still congressmen.
And that is because these remaining noisy few have almost forgotten that they are primarily in Congress to make laws and, at least secondarily, to secure funds to finance projects that will at least obscure or masquerade the fact that they fell far short of their main job. By calling for a press conference and disclosing the loss of their allocations, they now try to project themselves as victims and martyrs when in fact they merely got what they were asking.
It is not difficult to admire those who chose to keep their dignity by staying silent. They easily breezed through this test in character. They knew that in pursuing a certain path, they must be prepared to accept everything the path takes them. They are truly what might be called principled and conscientious objectors. By not complaining about their fate, they deserve the nation's respect.
But those who loudly objected deserve no sympathy from a public that has now seen who they really are. They criticize the administration for what they would have the public believe are just and honest causes. And yet they still expect the same largesse due those who decide to play ball with government. How exhilarating that for the slightest shaking, they would easily fall and be exposed for what they really are.