Archive for the 'Congress' Category

Despite the diversion caused the introduction of Bush's plan to increase the pace of disaster in Iraq, the newly-seated Democratic congress has stuck to its goal of turning out legislation vital to the American public.  Where Republicans squandered the last congress squandered the session on silliness and arm-waiving over subjects like flag burning, Democrats in the House have already produced ethics reform, adopted the recommendations of the 9/11 commission, raised the minimum wage, supported stem cell research, and authorized the government to negotiate Medicare drug prices.  Friday, a bill was introduced that would move $13 billion now spent on oil subsidies, and move it to supporting renewable fuels.

Primary credit for this steady stream of practical, necessary legislation goes to Speaker Pelosi, who laid out the plan in advance, and who has refused to be sidetracked.

But with the first hundred hours half over, now comes a new challenge: what next?  There's no doubt that the congress will (rightly) be drawn into more investigations of Iraq, and broader review of the Bush administration's frequent abuse of authority.  They'll also soon be faced with handling not one, but two budgets, since Republicans walked away from their responsibilities on that front last year.  

That's a pretty full plate, but it seems a shame to let the momentum of the first one hundred hours fade back into the usual Washington grind.  What if we could have a second hundred hours, and a third?  Heck, what if we could have a solid two years of unbroken accomplishment?  Many people have expressed the idea that they like it when congress is tangled up in itself, making no progress, because at least they don't bring any fresh misery.  But what if we could have see the reverse of that old saw?  What about a congress that works (five days a week, Congressman Kingston) to make government work for the people?

What would you add to the queue?  I know I'd love to see some of my favorites next in line.

• A ban on mountain top removal mining.  This would have a very tiny affect on the supply of coal, or of coal-related jobs, but an enormous impact for the environment and for those who live among the dying Appalachians.
• A commitment to clarity.  Moving against earmarks is a start, but only a start.  Why not require that all bills be available for public review at least a day ahead of any vote?  No more midnight insertions or legislation that's voted on before it's read.
• A legal system that works.  A requirement that funds available for public defenders be comparable, on a case-by-case basis, to those available to prosecutors.  A federal prison system designed to reform, not warehouse.  A mandate that more funds be available for education than for prisons.
• Make that initial order that brings down the cost of electric vehicles.  Commit to replacing every vehicle in government service with an electric or plug-in hybrids, with first orders to start no later than next year.

That's not even a handful of ideas.  What would you put on the slate?

Hmm, how long before we see a crush of media stories on how divided Republicans are? Bowers gives us the astonishing early numbers from this Congress:

The first two pieces of legislation in the 110th Congress, have both passed--and how! Although a majority of Republicans voted against H.R.1, Implementing the 9/11 Commission Recommendation Act and H.R.2, Fair Minimum Wage Act, both not only passed, but passed with 100% Democratic unity and veto-proof majorities. Implementing all of the recommendations of the 9/11 commissioned passed with 298 Ayes, including 68 Republican defectors. Raising the minimum wage passed with an eye popping 315 Ayes, and 82 Republican defectors.

Those aren't just Republican defections, they are significant Republican defections. It's an embrace of the Democratic agenda by a significant percentage of the opposition.

Via Think Progress, check out the video of Pelosi's appearance on Face the Nation this morning.

SCHIEFFER: So, you’ve told him what you don’t want to do, and that is to expand the size of the force in Iraq even on a short-term basis. But what if he decides to do that? What will be your action then?

PELOSI: If the president chooses to escalate the war, in his budget request we want to see a distinction between what is there to support the troops who are there now. The American people and the Congress support those troops. We will not abandon them.

But if the president wants to add to this mission, he is going to have to justify it. And this is new for him because up until now the Republican Congress has given him a blank check with no oversight, no standards, no conditions. And we’ve gone into this situation, which is a war without end, which the American people have rejected.

We live in interesting times.

Will it be Bush vs. the Constitution and the rest of America?

Stay tuned.

Update by kos: Kudos to reporter Steven Thomma of McClatchy Newspapers for ditching administration-approved language and calling it what it is:

WASHINGTON - As the applause of their first days in power fades, Democrats face the daunting reality that their reign probably will be judged not on easy tasks such as raising the minimum wage, but on how they handle the Iraq war, an issue that divides their own party and defies easy solution.

Democratic leaders oppose President Bush's expected escalation of the war this week. They urge instead a U.S. troop withdrawal starting in four to six months. And they will conduct oversight hearings on Iraq in Congress, starting Wednesday in the Senate and Jan. 17 in the House of Representatives.

CBS News poll (PDF):

Anyone that still supports Bush and his and McCain's war truly, truly are in the outer fringes of this country.

Furthermore, people are stoked about the new Democratic Congress:

But don't they know that the horrible "San Francisco Liberal" Nancy Pelosi is in charge? And she's catty! And wears nice suits! And is short! And, um, did they mention that she's a "San Francisco Liberal"?

Guess what they think our congresscritters should be working on?

And as Congress focuses on Iraq, what are people expecting of Democrats?

71 percent want expect us the Democratic Congress to start pulling troops out (not that they can, it's Bush's call), and 68 percent are optimistic about this new Congress. Sounds like a real mandate to me.

I can't wait to see McCain run into that brick wall as he continues pushing for escalation of his and Bush's war.

Update: dmsilev has more in this diary.

Stoller makes an important point:

[W]e're going to have to get used to a House caucus full of powerful liberal leaders who can do stuff.  This means not obsessing on every word, as well as understanding legislation and governance.  'Message' isn't the only battlefield anymore, so our strategies and conversations are going to have to change and become smarter and more three dimensional.

It used to be that what came out of the mouths of Democrats in DC where the only way we could influence politics. We had no real power, shut out top to bottom.

That has now changed. We can actually do stuff.

So if, say, Chuck Rangel says nice things about Republicans to the press ("blah blah blah working together blah blah blah bipartisanship blah blah blah") while sticking it to them in committee, we don't need to freak out so much about the "saying nice things" part. There's something more important going on now -- the "doing" part.

That's not to say that message is no longer important. It is. But it's just one weapon in our new arsenal. Or if battle metaphors grind, we can say it's just another tool in the toolbox.

Either way, "three dimensional" is a good way to put it. As we pass judgment on the effectiveness of our gals and guys, we should look at the totality of their actions and words. That'll be far more instructive than just rhetoric alone.

While the Beltway Gasbags talk about "healing" and "bipartisanship", the numbers show that the American people are firmly behind the Democratic agenda.

Allowing the government to negotiate with drug companies to attempt to lower the price of prescription drugs for some senior citizens:  87/12/1
Raising the minimum wage: 85/14/1

Cutting interest rates on federal loans to college students: 84/15/1

Creating an independent panel to oversee ethics in Congress: 79/19/2

Making significant changes in U.S. policy in Iraq: 77/20/3

Reducing the amount of influence lobbyists have in congressional decisions: 75/21/4

Implementing all of the anti-terrorism recommendations made by the 9/11 Commission: 64/26/10

Maintaining the current Social Security system to prevent the creation of private investment accounts: 63/32/6

Funding embryonic stem cell research: 62/32/6

Reducing some federal tax breaks for oil companies: 49/49/2

Changing the rules to allow Congress to create new spending programs only if taxes are raised or spending on other programs is cut: 41/54/5

The Democrats' number one task is to serve the American people and demonstrate that they are responsive to their needs. That's our whole reason for existing.

Let the Republicans oppose the Democratic agenda, whine that they're being shut out.

Republicans shut out the people's agenda for the last decade. The people finally got fed up and got rid of them en mass.

It's our time to be responsive. And as the numbers show, it's not even a close question.