Google “train wreck in Congress,” and the first links appearing are two journalists discussing Capitol Hill’s inability to resolve debates about President Bush’s federal budget proposal, FISA, Pentagon spending, energy legislation and even digital TV.
They’re missing the point. Congress itself is the train wreck.
Only a couple of the dozen annual appropriations bills required to keep the federal government’s doors openhave been passed and sent to President Bush, which means the mother of all omnibus spending resolutions is right around the congressional corner.
No previous Congress has arrived at the weekend before Thanksgiving without at least passing a continuing resolution.
But that’s not the worst of it with the 110th Congress. America has 162,000 of its finest men and women in uniform in combat in Iraq, making amazing progress in defeating al Qaeda where it concentrated its forces, and for at least the 40th time since January, the Democratic leadership this week again tried and failed to force a withdrawal.
Meanwhile, important bills like energy reform are still in committee even as oil nears $100 a barrel, an alternative minimum tax “patch” looks like a hopeless case, which means higher taxes for millions of middle-income Americans, and Congress hasn’t lifted a finger to pressure the Bush administration to stop dawdling on securing America’s borders.
Why? Partisan bickering is part of it, to be sure, but look at the one thing this Congress has done plenty of — earmarking. The public’s business isn’t being done because most members of Congress in both parties are obsessed with earmarks, even though it’s been crystal-clear since 2005’s “Bridge to Nowhere” debate that the public is fed up with the corruption and waste earmarks epitomize.
People outside the Beltway know earmarks often aren’t really about “taking care of the folks back home,” but rather taking care of a congressman’s favorite campaign donor, rewarding a special interest for its “independent expenditures” in the last election, or to fatten his wallet or that of somebody in his family.
Democrats promised to clean up the Republicans’ “culture of corruption,” but instead, Congress has gone on an earmark feeding frenzy. They’ve even found creative new ways to deny the obvious, like House Appropriations Committee Chairman Rep. David Obey claiming it’s not an earmark if he does it.
And when denying reality fails, this Congress just covers it up with “ethics reform” that, for example, gives Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid the power to keep selected earmarks from public disclosure.
Lest anybody think this column is focused only on the sins of the Democratic majority, let it be noted that Republicans also deserve much of the blame for the train wreck Congress has become.
Two-thirds of the House GOP recently voted for the pork-laden Water Resources Development bill. That’s the spending measure the Senate approved at $14 billion, the House approved at $15 billion and they “compromised” at $23 billion.
Even Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee and the guy responsible for the GOP’s 2008 House campaign strategy, endorsed that monstrous hypocrisy.
In short, Congress has become so pork-obsessed that getting earmarks receives more attention than taking care of such basic public business as properly feeding and arming our soldiers overseas or making sure the Social Security checks will continue to go out on time.
No wonder Gallup reports deep public disgust with Congress. On six major issues, Gallup found solid majorities either “disappointed” or “angry” with the performance of the Democrats.
On Iraq, for example, 68 percent are either disappointed or angry, while on the economy, the figure is 53 percent. For health care and dealing with the federal budget deficit, the figure is 60 percent, it’s 65 percent on immigration and 55 percent on government reform.
Only on terrorism did Gallup find less than a clear majority of people saying they are disappointed or angry with the Democratic majority, and even there the figure is 49 percent.
Is the disgust really that deep? Well, Gallup says only 25 percent of Republicans and 26 percent of Democratsapprove of the job Congress is doing overall. No matter their party, three out of four Americans know a train wreck when they see it.
Mark Tapscott is editorial page editor of The Washington Examiner.
