Post by IrishMike on Jan 11, 2009 13:29:17 GMT -5
Normally,leadership in the House of Representatives introduce new rules to govern the body every 2 years without hardly any notice.
Not so,now that Pelosi is in power.
Gone are the term limits for committee chairman,now seniority is king over merit.
This congress has suspended cost containment measures for one of the fastest growing programs:Medicare
Also,in 2004 Pelosi introduced the "House Bill of Rights"to protect house minority interests,allow more meaningful substitutes to bills,give members more time to examine bills before the final vote and to stop going beyond the 15 min norm for roll call votes.
Before becoming the Speaker,she reiterated her commitment to "bi-partisanship"and to protect the "rights of the minority".
Well that was then and this is now.
To further grease the wheels, Democrats have also emasculated the "motion to recommit" -- a procedural safeguard first given to the minority a century ago after a rebellion against tyrannical GOP Speaker Joe Cannon. It has been used by both parties to offer motions to "recommit" or send back bills on the floor to the relevant committees.
Republicans used the tactic 50 times in the last Congress, primarily to block tax increases buried in larger bills. Sometimes they also used the device to tack on a popular amendment to a bill -- such as an amendment in 2007 ending Washington, D.C.'s, then-existing gun ban, which was added to a bill on voting rights for D.C. residents. That made the overall bill political poison, forcing an infuriated Speaker Nancy Pelosi to pull the bill off the floor.
Barack Obama ran for president pledging to end needless partisanship and to create "a new politics." He is at least making a stab at that by appointing a couple of cabinet members with Republican ties and consulting with GOP Congressional leaders. It's unsettling that his fellow Democrats on Capitol Hill seem intent on marching in a completely opposite direction.
Courtesy of WSJ.
Not so,now that Pelosi is in power.
Gone are the term limits for committee chairman,now seniority is king over merit.
This congress has suspended cost containment measures for one of the fastest growing programs:Medicare
Also,in 2004 Pelosi introduced the "House Bill of Rights"to protect house minority interests,allow more meaningful substitutes to bills,give members more time to examine bills before the final vote and to stop going beyond the 15 min norm for roll call votes.
Before becoming the Speaker,she reiterated her commitment to "bi-partisanship"and to protect the "rights of the minority".
Well that was then and this is now.
To further grease the wheels, Democrats have also emasculated the "motion to recommit" -- a procedural safeguard first given to the minority a century ago after a rebellion against tyrannical GOP Speaker Joe Cannon. It has been used by both parties to offer motions to "recommit" or send back bills on the floor to the relevant committees.
Republicans used the tactic 50 times in the last Congress, primarily to block tax increases buried in larger bills. Sometimes they also used the device to tack on a popular amendment to a bill -- such as an amendment in 2007 ending Washington, D.C.'s, then-existing gun ban, which was added to a bill on voting rights for D.C. residents. That made the overall bill political poison, forcing an infuriated Speaker Nancy Pelosi to pull the bill off the floor.
Barack Obama ran for president pledging to end needless partisanship and to create "a new politics." He is at least making a stab at that by appointing a couple of cabinet members with Republican ties and consulting with GOP Congressional leaders. It's unsettling that his fellow Democrats on Capitol Hill seem intent on marching in a completely opposite direction.
Courtesy of WSJ.