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SMALL CHANGE FROM CONGRESS
Charleston Post Courier, SC
Jan 9 2008
Presidential candidates from both parties promise to be agents of
change. But it doesn't take a long memory to recall what happened
last time voters were promised a fresh start for government. A year
of Democratic control of Congress has produced a 10-year low in the
public approval rating for the national legislature, but not much else.
The new Democratic leadership's key note was struck by House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi of California, who promised change in the form of
bipartisanship and civility, a willingness to work with President Bush
to "end the war in Iraq," and the most ethical Congress in history.
Something clearly happened to the first two promises along the way.
Democrats have been harsh critics of the president. House Republicans
complain of being shut out of the legislative process. But the biggest
departure from bipartisanship came in the repeated failed efforts of
congressional Democrats to tell President Bush how to run the war.
The administration asked Ms. Pelosi not to visit Syria in April. She
went anyway, and The Washington Post chided her for trying to act
like an alternative president. Ms. Pelosi later promoted a resolution
blaming Turkey for the genocide of Armenians in the early years of the
last century. She withdrew it after bipartisan appeals not to offend
an ally helping stabilize the Middle East. She also withdrew a bill
restricting wiretapping of terrorist suspects because she misjudged
support for the administration's opposition to it.
Ms. Pelosi promised to break the link between lobbyists and legislation
and make the earmarking process more transparent. She made it harder
for lobbyists to entertain members of Congress, but the Post reported
significant loopholes in the new law. Earmarking transparency was
undermined in the omnibus appropriation passed last month by the
insertion of spending provisions not reviewed by House or Senate.
Ms. Pelosi had some victories. A year-end summary by The Associated
Press listed laws to raise the minimum wage, set new fuel efficiency
standards for motor vehicles, increase subsidies for farmers and
authorize new water projects. She was unable to enact bills to
raise taxes to offset changes in the alternative minimum income tax,
roll back energy tax breaks, nearly double the size of a children's
health insurance program and open federal funding for embryonic stem
cell research.
Ms. Pelosi promised change, but her achievements were small relative
to her promises, and her way of doing business was intensely
partisan. Maybe there's a lesson here for this year's presidential
candidates.
Charleston Post Courier, SC
Jan 9 2008
Presidential candidates from both parties promise to be agents of
change. But it doesn't take a long memory to recall what happened
last time voters were promised a fresh start for government. A year
of Democratic control of Congress has produced a 10-year low in the
public approval rating for the national legislature, but not much else.
The new Democratic leadership's key note was struck by House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi of California, who promised change in the form of
bipartisanship and civility, a willingness to work with President Bush
to "end the war in Iraq," and the most ethical Congress in history.
Something clearly happened to the first two promises along the way.
Democrats have been harsh critics of the president. House Republicans
complain of being shut out of the legislative process. But the biggest
departure from bipartisanship came in the repeated failed efforts of
congressional Democrats to tell President Bush how to run the war.
The administration asked Ms. Pelosi not to visit Syria in April. She
went anyway, and The Washington Post chided her for trying to act
like an alternative president. Ms. Pelosi later promoted a resolution
blaming Turkey for the genocide of Armenians in the early years of the
last century. She withdrew it after bipartisan appeals not to offend
an ally helping stabilize the Middle East. She also withdrew a bill
restricting wiretapping of terrorist suspects because she misjudged
support for the administration's opposition to it.
Ms. Pelosi promised to break the link between lobbyists and legislation
and make the earmarking process more transparent. She made it harder
for lobbyists to entertain members of Congress, but the Post reported
significant loopholes in the new law. Earmarking transparency was
undermined in the omnibus appropriation passed last month by the
insertion of spending provisions not reviewed by House or Senate.
Ms. Pelosi had some victories. A year-end summary by The Associated
Press listed laws to raise the minimum wage, set new fuel efficiency
standards for motor vehicles, increase subsidies for farmers and
authorize new water projects. She was unable to enact bills to
raise taxes to offset changes in the alternative minimum income tax,
roll back energy tax breaks, nearly double the size of a children's
health insurance program and open federal funding for embryonic stem
cell research.
Ms. Pelosi promised change, but her achievements were small relative
to her promises, and her way of doing business was intensely
partisan. Maybe there's a lesson here for this year's presidential
candidates.