Monday, November 05, 2007
The Do-Nothing Congress
I like it that way. I mean, I like it when Congress doesn't pass any new legislation because that means they cannot screw up something more than it already is screwed up. I've read that the House of Representatives has held over 1000 votes in 2007 which is a new record for votes cast in one year. They have been "in session" for 146 days which is near a record number of days also. I can tell those wacky Dems in Congress have been extra busy also by the number of Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee e-mails I receive soliciting my money to stop the Republicans and stand up for their America. (I am a registered Democrat in Name Only due to living in the liberal bastion of Gainesville, Florida. If I weren't registered Democrat, I would rarely get to vote in local elections).
Yet this vote-happy House has managed to get only 107 bills signed into law and most of those are far from significant. I mean, who really cares what the name of a Post office or Federal Building is. Useless legislation. The one real noticeable bill turned into a law is the increase in the Federal Minimum Wage. WOW! What a life changer that one is. Many states already have their own version of a minimum wage and most exceed the Federal level so why they even bothered with this is beyond my comprehension. (Muttering under my breath, it is not the government's job to tell employers how much they have to pay their employees, no matter what level of government is involved, but hey, I don't get to vote on those issues directly.)
So as far as the Congress getting any actual legislative work done, I am a happy camper. As for all of their inane attempts to pull our troops out of Iraq, to allow the Mexican Invasion to continue unabated or to tax, tax, tax, cheers for the American public, at the urging of talk radio, to let these power brokers in DC know how we really feel and make them stop passing ridiculous legislation. I'd rather watch them knock themselves out in the Capital Building arguing over Rush Limbaugh's semantics than feel the effects of their increasingly socialistic laws.
But, I still have a bone to pick with these "leaders", maybe they should be called "elected placeholders". The ONE and ONLY requirement for Congress to accomplish every single year is to pass a budget. That's it. Doesn't sound like an impossible task. There are thousands of local governments and private businesses and even common family households agreeing on a budget every year without much fanfare. It is not rocket surgery or brain science.
Yet, here we are more than one full month into the new fiscal year and they have so far passed ZERO budget bills. I think there are 12 separate appropriations bills that need passing and forwarded to the president. This is the same year in and year out. They have passed none. And they aren't even talking about them. They find lots of other interesting BS to occupy their time but they never seem to get around to doing the job for which they are being paid.
I like it. Congress is finally accomplishing what I want them to accomplish, Nothing. If they can't get together and dismantle broken laws and discuss the Fair Tax and quit treating the public as someone who needs to be watched out for in all aspects of life, then I prefer they do exactly nothing. But for God's sake, can't you at least put together a budget? A real budget complete with all your favorite earmarks and pet projects. We've come to expect those crazy perks and we all like to laugh and moan about your level of idiocy using the taxpayer's buck.
OH
Yet this vote-happy House has managed to get only 107 bills signed into law and most of those are far from significant. I mean, who really cares what the name of a Post office or Federal Building is. Useless legislation. The one real noticeable bill turned into a law is the increase in the Federal Minimum Wage. WOW! What a life changer that one is. Many states already have their own version of a minimum wage and most exceed the Federal level so why they even bothered with this is beyond my comprehension. (Muttering under my breath, it is not the government's job to tell employers how much they have to pay their employees, no matter what level of government is involved, but hey, I don't get to vote on those issues directly.)
So as far as the Congress getting any actual legislative work done, I am a happy camper. As for all of their inane attempts to pull our troops out of Iraq, to allow the Mexican Invasion to continue unabated or to tax, tax, tax, cheers for the American public, at the urging of talk radio, to let these power brokers in DC know how we really feel and make them stop passing ridiculous legislation. I'd rather watch them knock themselves out in the Capital Building arguing over Rush Limbaugh's semantics than feel the effects of their increasingly socialistic laws.
But, I still have a bone to pick with these "leaders", maybe they should be called "elected placeholders". The ONE and ONLY requirement for Congress to accomplish every single year is to pass a budget. That's it. Doesn't sound like an impossible task. There are thousands of local governments and private businesses and even common family households agreeing on a budget every year without much fanfare. It is not rocket surgery or brain science.
Yet, here we are more than one full month into the new fiscal year and they have so far passed ZERO budget bills. I think there are 12 separate appropriations bills that need passing and forwarded to the president. This is the same year in and year out. They have passed none. And they aren't even talking about them. They find lots of other interesting BS to occupy their time but they never seem to get around to doing the job for which they are being paid.
I like it. Congress is finally accomplishing what I want them to accomplish, Nothing. If they can't get together and dismantle broken laws and discuss the Fair Tax and quit treating the public as someone who needs to be watched out for in all aspects of life, then I prefer they do exactly nothing. But for God's sake, can't you at least put together a budget? A real budget complete with all your favorite earmarks and pet projects. We've come to expect those crazy perks and we all like to laugh and moan about your level of idiocy using the taxpayer's buck.
OH
# posted by OH @ 12:16 PM 
