Congress
514 pieces tagged “Congress”, newest first.
The Pennsylvania Avenue Refugee Showdown
Congress battles Obama over the Islamic Trojan horse.
A Renewed Call for Senate Civility
It's billed as "the world's greatest deliberative body." But at a time when public polls routinely place the popularity of federal lawmakers in single digits, it's time to ask: What happened to the U.S. Senate? That's a question that has troubled many, both inside and outside of Washington, for a long time. The dysfunction has reached such a low that a freshman senator named Ben Sasse of Nebraska recently made it the subject of his first speech on the Senate floor.
Budgeting in Wonderland
One need not be intricately familiar with the tale of "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" to appreciate that the federal budget process has similarly become an alternate reality replete with sketchy characters, peril and the absurd. In the latest trip down the Beltway rabbit hole, a Republican-led Congress relied on Democratic votes to produce a two-year budget agreement that removed the limit on Uncle Sam's credit card and increased spending now in exchange for offsetting spending cuts and revenue increases that will mostly occur 10 years from now. Well, that's if future Congresses stick to the offsets.
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Once More With 'The Vision Thing'
It was George H.W. Bush who reportedly dismissed an idea from a friend that he should spend time at Camp David thinking about what he might do should he become president. According to a January 26, 1987 article in Time magazine, Bush is said to have dismissed the suggestion with this line: "Oh, the vision thing." Now comes the new speaker of the House, Rep. Paul Ryan, who is not only embracing the "vision thing," but is accusing his fellow Republicans of not having any vision at all.
Lame Ducks, Lame Deal: The Boehner-Obama Budget Plan
When I had just started to raise a family, and I struggled to make my small business turn a profit, I had to make decisions about what bills to pay based on priorities and due dates. Sometimes, the struggle to balance the checkbook would be a painful one, and we had to do without some things as "luxuries" — even if we hadn't considered them luxuries before.
This Is the Worst Budget Deal GOP Has Negotiated Since George H.W. Bush Violated No New Taxes Pledge
Halloween is looking especially scary this year. On Monday, Republican leaders in Congress declared an unconditional fiscal surrender to President Barack Obama and the left, negotiating a dangerous budget deal that eliminates all of the checks on Washington's spend-and-borrow binge by breaking the budget caps, ending the sequester and raising the debt ceiling by over $1 trillion.
Ryan's Conditions for Speaker Run
"If I can truly be a unifying figure, then I will gladly serve."
A Dangerous Precedent, an Act of Desperation in the Ex-Im Bank Saga
Advocates of crony capitalism just won't give up. Last Friday, a large block of House Republicans joined Democrats in signing a discharge petition to force revival of the Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im) to the House floor. 42 Republicans joined 176 Democrats in signing on to the discharge petition, circumventing the authority of House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling — whose committee has rightfully opposed the bank as corporate welfare.
Of Crickets and Congressmen
Those who take a principled stand in our nation's capital often find themselves alone with the crickets. Unless you're the latest cause celebre of the left (see Sen. Elizabeth Warren), taking a stand against business-as-usual big government on Capitol Hill typically means being labeled a radical extremist who is out of touch with the rest of the country. Look no further than the "far-right extremists" in the House who were voted into power several years ago, thanks in large part to the tea party movement, which — albeit imperfectly — recognized that the federal government needs to be corralled before it goes awry.
Banana Republicans?
When Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) walked into a Capitol Hill conference room to meet with his Republican colleagues last Thursday, he seemed a certain bet to be elected the next speaker of the House of Representatives. Subsequent reports revealed McCarthy already knew he didn't have enough votes to win, or if he did, it was barely enough, but an insufficient majority to rule the contentious GOP caucus. And so he shocked everyone when he emerged and announced his withdrawal as a candidate.