By:  Doug Busselman, Executive Vice President

As I've been reading and re-reading the text of President Obama's speech the other night to Congress, I keep stumbling over the places where he referred to the massive deficit that "we" inherited. 

Every time I read it and every time I hear leadership of the majority party in both houses of Congress talk about the mess they "inherited" I keep thinking about the lessons of leadership, credited to a former Soviet Union dictator.

When he assumed office he found on his first day in the office three envelopes, written by his predecessor...the top envelope was labeled "Open When Your First Crisis Occurs".

A few months down the road a big problem came up with seemingly no solution in sight and the new dictator, wrestling with what to do, decided to open the first envelope.  Inside was a note, handwritten by the dictator who had come before him.

"Blame the problem on the person who came before you," the note advised.

Not having any better idea the dictator blamed the problem on the guy before him and the problem evaporated for a while.  

A year or so later another problem cropped up and the dictator was looking through his desk one day and came across the second envelope labeled "Open When Your Second Crisis Occurs".

Inside the envelope a second note, again in the handwriting of the dictator who had come before him was scrawled, "Blame the problem on the person who came before you!"

The same results came about when the dictator blamed the current problem on what he had gotten from the guy who came before.

Shortly after though things really turned into a new and much bigger mess.  Frantically the dictator rifled through his desk to find the third and final envelope that had been left to him.  Finally, he was able to find the last envelope labeled "Open When Your Third Crisis Occurs".

Ripping the envelope almost in half, he found the final bit of advice, left to him by the person he had turned to all of these times when things had gone badly.  The note, this time typed - not handwritten like the past - advised, "Make Out Three New Envelopes..."

As we listen to the way in which our current leaders...in the White House and on the other end of the street, seek to help their cause by blaming the mess they've inherited, perhaps a bit of Social Studies 101. 

Congress is responsible for approval of federal spending.

The current majority party has been the majority party in both houses of Congress since the last mid-term election.  For those not familiar with how that translates into responsibility -- they vote and they've got the most votes, so they win...

Their track record of being able to even get a budget approved hasn't been very stellar, let alone fiscally responsible.

It also happens that President Obama was a member of the U.S. Senate (in the majority party) during the past two years...although he didn't show up for work too often, given his time spent running all over the country, seeking election to the job he's got now.

Spin-doctoring and ducking responsibility seems to be much the same "business as usual" with the people in charge of the legislative process and the White House today.

This "Change" thing...it's going to start when?