Despite some probable Republican gains this year, Democrats have a good chance of control of Congress next year. Fortunately for Republicans, Democrats nationally have opted for a losing strategy; . Then again, with a track record like that of this Congress, one cannot fault Democratic strategists for trying to distract the electorate this year.
Following the 2006 elections, Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) promised to the most ethical Congress in history. With two prominent liberal members of her party now facing ethics charges, and another member having resigned earlier over unwelcomed “tickle fights” with male staffers, it would be slightly more accurate to describe this Congress as the most venal in history. While the present Congress is technically the second one during which Ms. Pelosi has been the Speaker, scandals and ethics inquiries easily take more than two years to develop. Thus, the controversies of this Congress already existed in the one previous. Furthermore, if it is true that (D-CA) and (D-NY) have been singled out to face ethics charges on account of their race, then it follows that other members not (yet) facing charges have behaved less than ethically. But, as seasoned readers of this blog know, the current Speaker of the House has a way with words.
Just this week, Speaker Pelosi personally the last administration, and Republicans in Congress for the ongoing recession. , however, suggests that the policies of this administration and its lackeys on Capitol Hill are to blame. It is true that President Obama inherited from his predecessor this recession, but it is also true that American allies have better weathered this downturn. Countries such as and that have practiced fiscal austerity since the recession are so far making a stronger recovery than has this republic to date. Britain under Gordon Brown’s Labour Party took an approach like that of the Obama administration, and, fortunately for the people of the United Kingdom, the new government there has a different policy.
By now, readers inclined to support the agenda of Democrats in Washington are thinking that strides were taken by Congress to constrain the costs of its new programs, particularly with respect to health reform. It is now known, however, that the cost estimates put forward by the administration and Congress were smaller than ever was realistic. An IRS report that current budget allocations in health reform are too small for that agency to fulfill its responsibilities under the excessive new law. of a separate report from an agency overseeing federal social spending further suggests that the cost savings of health reform were grossly exaggerated. Another consequence of that irresponsibly expansive legislation was that pediatric hospitals were inadvertedly from certain discount eligibility relating to drug purchases.
Naturally, challenges to the new law, which no thinking person can seriously claim will reduce health care expenditures, are ongoing. While states begin to various requirements under the legislation, others have sought to escape its draconian impositions. Voters in the Missouri primaries Tuesday, overwhelmingly voted for a ballot initiative meant to relieve its residents of the individual mandate imposed by the new law. To put this into perspective, President Obama only narrowly lost Missouri in the last presidential election, while more than 70% of those who turned out Tuesday the individual mandate. A Democratic candidate for Congress was that majority.
The ongoing problems with the health reform law should have alerted the press to the need to hold legislators to account for their deeds. Sadly, the fourth estate remains a fifth column for sleazy, self-interested politicians and their government-growing cohorts, to the detriment of the essential liberty possessed by the American people. Evidence of this became apparent following the financial reform bill passed last month.
The Securities & Exchange Commission, in a pornography scandal recently, secured a from Freedom of Information Act in the financial reform legislation. Congressional Democrats that they will now hold hearings on the issue, but the challenges of the legislative process and lingering policy priorities may stymy any change to the law this year. Were the press actually accountable, this issue would have arisen prior to passage. While a slow legislative process was meant to serve the American people, so too was the free press. A regulatory agency which did little to reprimand emplyees who surfed the web for pornography while the financial market collapsed is not one which merits greater secrecy. Of course, in a just world, financial regulatory reform would require greater accountability on the part of existing regulators and agencies before creating more of what already exists.
Supporters of the the often Tea Party Movement say that they want legislators to read the bills on which said lawmakers vote. The demand, however, should be for people outside of Congress to read proposed legislation. Flaws and problems in legislation should be noticed before bills are passed into law. Whether intended or not, legislators and their staffs will rarely catch all potential pitfalls present in bills, and when they are caught, the lawmaker weighs that provision against the broader measure. Compromise should be a welcomed aspect of the lawmaking process, but the public should know precisely what is being compromised. Media exists to fill that role, but has failed to so often enough in recent years. To make matters worse, video surfaced this week of a town hall meeting in which another prominent Democratic member of Congress, Pete Stark (D-CA) suggested that the powers of the federal government are substantial limitation.
The task before Republicans this November may not be insurmountable, but will be difficult given political conditions. Democrats, nonetheless, seem to be making things easier. Henry Waxman (D-CA) seems to believe that a of conservative Democrats in November could be desirable. Waxman is not alone. It seems that the Democratic congressional leadership is in the ideas members seeking fiscally responsible policies. This sort of arrogance cost Republicans their majority in Congress nearly four years ago.
Last 5 posts by James Kane
- A November to Remember - November 8th, 2010
- On hope and fear - October 18th, 2010
- Expecting Different Results - September 12th, 2010
- A glaring omission on Iraq - August 31st, 2010
- In Defense of Michael Steele - July 9th, 2010