Day: January 6, 2011

It Is All About The Constitution!

The new story for the incoming Congress has a “new” idea…….why not turn to the Constitution to “legalize” all bills and procedures?  What procedures?  That game played by politicians in “Foggy Bottom”……

As usual it will be about the Constitution…….or what they want you to believe is about the Constitution…..but there is a new twist to the game…the GOP will do a very infantile thing at first chance….

From David Corn in Politics Daily……

On Thursday, Capitol Hill Republicans, a day after taking control of the House, intend to read the U.S. Constitution on the floor of the House of Representatives. This is, of course, a stunt designed to position the GOPers as the party that really, really, really cares about constitutional government. But the exercise is the showy equivalent of wearing a flag pin. It’s no great feat to mouth the words written in 1787 in Philadelphia by a committee of the Federal Convention. That doesn’t resolve any issues, for as any high school student with a decent history teacher knows, Americans have been arguing about what is and isn’t constitutional governance since Marbury v. Madison. Still, this stunt-reading comes at a convenient time, for there is indeed a foundational debate underway in the United States, and it does track back to this sacred secular text.

As reported by Andrew Cohen in Politics Daily…..

Under the new procedural rule, set forth in a five-page memorandum reportedly distributed last week to all House members, the House clerk will soon be required to reject outright any legislation that does not cite “as specifically as practicable the power or powers granted to Congress” that support the measure. The effect of the new standard will be to force lawmakers at the earliest stages of the legislative process to explicitly identify the perceived legal basis for the proposed exercise of federal legislative power. The purpose of the new rule presumably will be to screen out from any meaningful deliberation proposed legislation that House lawmakers believe is beyond the scope of congressional authority. That very argument — that Congress exceeded its constitutional authority under the Commerce Clause, for example — has been made, with force, in the ongoing legal and political battle over the validity of the Patient Protection and Affordable Health Care Act of 2010.

Beyond its symbolic power, however, it is unclear what impact the new rule will have upon the nation. Under axiomatic legal precedent, virtually all congressional action is presumed valid anyway, at least initially. Moreover, by taking their oaths of office, lawmakers swear to abide by the Constitution, and virtually all legislation is vetted for constitutional support on some level by government lawyers before it makes it to committee or to the floor of the House. It is also quite obvious, from 223 years of legal and political debate on the topic, that the text of the Constitution itself, including those portions that deal with legislative power, are susceptible to many different (and often evolving) views and interpretations, a practical reality that would likely render most “Constitutional Authority Statements” controversial and contentious.

All this is to make the process more “transparent”…..but to whom?  If it is for the people, then this game will be a waste of time….why?  Most people would not recognize most of the Constitution even if it bit them in the ass…..Is if for the Congress members?  If so, then my question is….should not these slackers already be aware of the Constitution and the status of bills?  If not…..why did you elect them?

This is just another political game….a game to make it appear that they are doing something when they are NOT!  As usual the Constitution will be a political prop………

Boehner’s First Day

In the past I have been very critical of the new speaker of the House, John Boehner…….and when I say critical I mean I have been unkind to the speaker….but his first day he did something that was unexpected by me and if this holds good for the next two years I may have to re-evaluate my opinion of the man….

As reported by Newser…..

John Boehner may be the incoming speaker of the House, but he doesn’t want a whole lot of power. In fact, one of tomorrow’s first votes could be on a package of rule changes Boehner says will decentralize power—and even allow minority-party members to have more of a say. Of course, “new speakers always say they want to have a more open process,” Rep. Anthony Weiner tells the Wall Street Journal. “Then the sheer demands of making the trains run on time and getting things passed requires that you change your mind.”
Boehner’s rule change package, expected to be approved by House Republicans today, includes a requirement that legislation be posted online 72 hours before going to the floor, so that bills will no longer be changed the night before a vote, as well as a requirement that lawmakers vote on whether to raise the federal debt ceiling rather than doing so automatically when a budget is passed. He has promised to “work with members on both sides of the aisle” as he attempts to get things done, but will have to walk a tightrope as he also tries to appease the many freshman Tea Party representatives.

I will admit that this may all be just a silly political game, but some of it is quite good and shows signs of a person that may seriously want the system to work……I will watch and report……but I am NOT holding my breath!

Since every other word out of his mouth for the last year has been ….”Where are the jobs?”  After listening to his open comments and the word jobs was not mentioned once…..and since I was promised jobs by the conservs…I need to ask   Where are the jobs?