Like millions of Americans, I did some traveling this weekend. Specifically, I drove from DC to Boston and back. Sunday's drive was brutal. I have three complaints about both legs of the trip.

First: why do states conduct road construction on the most traveled weekend of the year? As is often the case, New York and Connecticut had evening road-crews working on the eve of Thanksgiving weekend. On the trip to Boston, I-95 through New York City featured several lane closures--including one choke point that narrowed I-95 to one lane--for construction projects. One job featured several men working underneath a bridge that passes over I-95. I know next to nothing about what they were doing, but was it so essential as to necessitate closing all but one lane on the busiest highway in America as it cut through its largest city on the busiest travel week of the year?

Second: tolls are out of control. Northbound over the George Washington Bridge costs $6, the Jersey Turnpike $6.35 (but the smell around the exit for Elizabeth, New Jersey is free), and southbound over the Delaware Memorial Bridge $3. Connecticut is the only state on the trip that doesn't charge a toll, but they make that up by hiding the state police at the bottom of large hills to gather revenue in a more creative fashion. Maryland's $5 toll on Interstate 95 near the Delaware border (Hey, I thought states couldn't collect tolls on federal roads?) is the most outrageous. You see, Delaware has no sales tax. Maryland doesn't like this, because Marylanders prefer shopping in Delaware. This saves the citizens of Maryland millions, but costs the government of Maryland millions too. Thus, Maryland put in this ridiculous toll on I-95--a federally-funded road--that serves as a proxy tarrif on goods purchased within the borders of their smaller neighbor. Isn't there something in the Constitution preventing states from inhibiting interstate commerce?

Third: some enlightenment is needed regarding toll amnesties during heavy traffic. Massachusetts occasionally permits motorists to pass through tolls without paying the fee when holiday traffic becomes too much. The back-up on the Jersey Turnpike on Sunday afternoon approached twenty miles because of the toll booths. A hundred yards after paying New Jersey's excessive toll, a new back-up began in large part because of the toll for the Delaware Memorial Bridge. On days when highways are heavily congested, tolls waste hundreds of thousands of hours, unecessarily contribute to air pollution, and eat-up expensive fuel in stop-and-go traffic. Here's hoping commonsense can overcome government greed. If it can happen in Massachusetts, it can happen anywhere.

Have you ever noticed that once you get beyond Washington, D.C. that there are no tolls in Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina? When I travel South in the Summer with my wife,
we both have noticed that when we go I-84 and over the Newburg Bridge that the last toll we pay is in the great blue state of Mass. That is when we go along the Blue Ridge Mountains (I-81 and I-77) and eventually onto I-26 to Charleston, S.C. On the way back through the same routes you pay a toll on the Newburg Bridge and of course you pay a toll again in the great blue state of Mass. If you tell the good people of these southern states that the politicians are going to build toll roads and bridges, it will be the end of their political careers.
That is what I've been told. They can't believe that we put up with all the nonsense that we do in Mass. However, William F. Buckley once stated that he would rather be ruled by the first 1,000 people in the phone book than the faculty at Harvard University

If you hate road construction, stay away from Pennsylvania! I swear, PennDOT has worked on the same stretch of I79 since 1997!

It appears you would like to have it both ways – You want a decrease in taxes yet complain when paying for services (tolls) provided by the government. States and subsequently cites have been shorted by the federal government because of the tax cut. State taxes, real estate taxes, mass transit etc. have all gone up. There is no free lunch.
The middle class as always takes it on the chin.

Look, Robert: I didn't order the lunch, so when I complain about how much it costs, don't lecture me that it ain't free.

If politicians could control pork and unneccessary spending in general, and the population could stop thinking that the government spending money is generosity rather that robbery, then spending would be low enough to be funded by sales taxes and tariffs.

Oh, to dream.

Pork is only pork when it doesn’t benefit your neck of the woods. I agree there should be no add ons to legislation but unfortunately this is a way of life in Congress that won’t change anytime soon. The party in control of Congress has had its chance to reign in spending. They are doing a poor job of it. At this time most all governments – Federal, State and local - are deficit spending. There is no surplus. I’d love to cut waste. What entitlement goes first? The farmers, drug companies, corporations or medicare?

Why does one have to go first? Get rid of them simultaneously. And, no, pork is pork, even if it is in my neck of the woods. Conservatives have no problem recognizing this.

Ultimately this is a constitutional problem. That is, once this kind of spending is allowed, no party can escape it because of electoral pressure; so it needs to be blocked at the constitutional level. It is, really, but now none of that has traction politically.

So you say conservatives and liberals can agree – no Pork. Fine, now lets see the congress do something about it. They seem willing to eliminate the filibuster. Why not Pork barreling and log rolling? The answer is simple. Those are the tactics are the tools that grease the wheels in the legislature. They will never be eliminated. Congressmen and Senators talk out of both sides of their mouths. It is all politics. Everyday wage earners or small business owners are being played for suckers. The deck is stacked. And incidentally there will be no constitutional amendment on anything. That being the most difficult way to accomplish anything.

I didn't suggest a constitutional amendment. It's already a part of the constitution.

Wait Robert, I thought you were trying to tell conservatives not to complain about illegal state decreed tariffs various tolls b/c "[s]tates and subsequently cites [sic] have been shorted by the federal government because of the tax cuts." But then in responding to Short you seem to be saying that deficit spending and pork barrel politics is simply a fact of live and that being realistic means to simply accept that fact.

I don't take issue with your pessimism and defeatism, I basically share it. Particularly because Short is correct that all of this behavior is unconstitutional and thus shows that the founding and restraining document of our government is a dead letter and that therefore we live in a tyranny not a republic (that is: men rule not laws). However, I don't think your two claims jive, how is the tax cut to blame for what you then characterize as simply "politics as usual"?

The federal government has always, until the Clinton years, been a deficit spender. One of their main and most important allocations has been funding the states. Now that politics has determined a tax cut is in order, the result is lower tax revenue. Spending is still through the roof but where they are cutting without much publicity is the funding of the states. This is one of the few areas that are invisible to most. Republican Governors don’t complain and Democratic Governors who do are dismissed as politics as usual. Most do not make the connection. Some citizens complain about raised real estate taxes, increase mass transit and tolls. Here in NY an express bus ride to work will shortly cost $5.00 one way. The Verrizano Bridge is now $8.00. Why are we cutting tax mostly to benefit the rich when the middle class is being soaked? We (the middle and upper middle class) are paying more on the back end then we saving on the Bush tax cuts. This is politics as usual as people are sold a bill of goods regarding giving you your money back. You can spend it better then the fed. You sure can, on increased cost of local services.
The bait and switch of the “Tax Cut” is just the latest of Washington’s politics as usual. If you support the tax cut then don’t complain

No, I can both support tax cuts and support spending cuts, and then complain.

Besides, your historical claim is laughable that (1) deficit spending has always been normal until and except Clinton's years, and (2) one of the major costs of the federal government has always been funneling money back to the states.

On the contrary, pre-FDR, this simply wasn't the case. It only got worse post-LBJ, and now even moreso post-GWB, but let's not pretend this is a necessary evil. This is the devolution of responsible and constitutional government that has result from the 20th century takeover by Progressives of the US and both its parties.

Was on the NY Thruway traveling East when it dawned on me that everybody leaves to go home at the same time. Amazing.

Literally, miles and miles of stop and go traffic.

If I didn’t have a commitment in Rochester that I had to go to over the weekend, no way am I on the road on any holiday. Unless I get to leave the night before the rush.

Crazy, baby!