Congress has gone home for the holidays. But news coverage continues, and there are some things it will be useful to know after the new 110th Congress is sworn in. Today's post provides the latest available resources for what is - and will be - happening.
Congressional overview - The Washington Post has a terrific section that takes a look at the new faces of the election of 2006, stating that, "On November 7, 2006, voters elected 10 new senators, 53 new congressmen and 11 new governors." It a very comprehensive way to find out more in depth about House Members, Senators and Governors. The section has good maps, lists of winners, and analysis.
Congress beats OCP in the ratings - That was the implicit message voters sent to both defeated lawmakers and the president in November. A recent Washington Post-ABC News poll showed that Americans now trust the new Congress more than our current president (OCP). And that does not really say much, given the president's "high negatives." The WaPo Babbington and Cohen poll story begins,
Americans trust Democratic lawmakers more than President Bush to handle the nation's toughest problems, including the Iraq war, and a quarter of Republicans are glad that Democrats have won control of Congress, a Washington Post-ABC News poll finds.
At the same time, however, most Americans want lawmakers and the president to work together rather than pursue separate agendas. They also have modest hopes about how much the new Congress will be able to accomplish.
The degree to which congressional leaders can sustain and capitalize on initial goodwill is questionable, because the No. 1 issue for most Americans is perhaps the most difficult for Congress and the White House: Iraq. Forty-four percent of respondents said the Iraq war is the most important problem facing the government, easily eclipsing the economy -- the top concern for 10 percent -- and health care, No. 1 for 6 percent.
The Senator is still very ill, but alive and improving. The Washington Post and the LA Times say that Senator Tim Johnson (D-SD) may be getting better. It is still unclear how long his recovery will take or how much he will be able to recover. The news seems hopeful, however. Quoting from the WaPo,
Wednesday's operation to stop bleeding in Sen. Tim Johnson's brain was "considered a success," his office said yesterday, although the few details released about his condition suggested he was not fully conscious two days after the procedure.
The statement quoted Anthony Caputy, one of the surgeons who performed the emergency surgery on Johnson (D-S.D.), as saying: "Considering his initial presentation, his progress is encouraging. He is now stabilized and continues to show signs of responsiveness to the medical staff and the family.
Senate and House Democratic Committee Chairs are getting ready to do much more oversight. This is perhaps one of the most significant aspects of the Democrats' winning their slim majorities in both houses of congress. Senators Carl Levin (D-Michigan), Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) and John D. Rockefeller (D-West Virginia), as well as Representatives John Murtha (D-Pennsylvania) and Ike Skelton D-Missouri) are all poised to actively investigate the Republican administration. Quoting from Charles Babbington at the WaPo,
In committee after committee next month, the gavel will be handed by Bush allies to ardent Democrats deeply frustrated by what they see as the GOP-led Congress's refusal to conduct meaningful oversight and to hold the executive branch accountable.
Congress has the power of the purse funding the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. What that means is a looming question. Will Congress attempt to enact what seemed like the will of a majority of the voters? One pundit suggested over the weekend that the lawmakers could refuse to pay for any additional troop deployments to Iraq. We will see if they have the courage to do that. The Pentagon budget comes up for debate before long. I quote from my Clipmarked Reuters story,
The Pentagon is likely to ask for an additional $100 billion to fund the Iraq and Afghanistan wars early next year.
. . . The Pentagon's 2008 overall budget request of $468.9 for fiscal 2008 is 6.3 percent higher than its fiscal 2007 budget request of $441.2 billion.
The very important Congressional Budget Office has a new head. The CBO is important because it provides a power alternative to OMB, the executive branch's budget office. The two offices never agree on the facts, so it is important for Congress to have a very competent leader at the CBO helm. The new CBO head is former Clinton administration official, Peter Orszag, according to the WaPo:
Peter R. Orszag, a Brookings Institution economist who served as a senior economic adviser to President Bill Clinton, was named yesterday to head the Congressional Budget Office, the nonpartisan agency that provides lawmakers with cost estimates for legislation and other budgetary analyses.
Incoming Senate Budget Committee chairman Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) announced Orszag's nomination, saying the economist was selected from three finalists who were interviewed Monday by a bipartisan team of congressional budget leaders.
- Congress votes project (WaPo) of the U.S. House and Senate. The site is labeled, "This site lets you browse every vote in the U.S. Congress since 1991."
- Control Congress Forum: "Somebody's got to - Control Congress is a multi-partisan, issue-oriented political forum that brings together the Left, Right, and everyone in between."
- Internet Caucus State of the Net Conference Hyatt Regency, Washington, DC. January 31, 2007. One of the 109th co-chairs was defeated Senator Conrad Burns of Montana.
Technorati tags: bush iraq current affairs news news and politics politics congress senator
2 comments:
There are good points in your articles. With regard to Iraq,I would like to supplement them with some information:
I am a 2 tour Vietnam Veteran who recently retired after 36 years of working in the Defense Industrial Complex on many of the weapons systems being used by our forces as we speak.
If you are interested in a view of the inside of the Pentagon procurement process from Vietnam to Iraq please check the posting at my blog entitled, “Odyssey of Armaments”
http://www.rosecoveredglasses.blogspot.com
The Pentagon is a giant, incredibly complex establishment, budgeted in excess of $500B per year. The Rumsfelds, the Administrations and the Congressmen come and go but the real machinery of policy and procurement keeps grinding away, presenting the politicos who arrive with detail and alternatives slanted to perpetuate itself.
How can any newcomer, be he a President, a Congressman or even the Sec. Def. to be - Mr. Gates- understand such complexity, particularly if heretofore he has not had the clearance to get the full details?
Answer- he can’t. Therefore he accepts the alternatives provided by the career establishment that never goes away and he hopes he makes the right choices. Or he is influenced by a lobbyist or two representing companies in his district or special interest groups.
From a practical standpoint, policy and war decisions are made far below the levels of the talking heads who take the heat or the credit for the results.
This situation is unfortunate but it is absolute fact. Take it from one who has been to war and worked in the establishment.
This giant policy making and war machine will eventually come apart and have to be put back together to operate smaller, leaner and on less fuel. But that won’t happen until it hits a brick wall at high speed.
We will then have to run a Volkswagen instead of a Caddy and get along somehow. We better start practicing now and get off our high horse. Our golden aura in the world is beginning to dull from arrogance.
Thnaks so much for your comment. It was interesting to learn how far down the decisions are dispersed. You know "from whence you speak." You and I are old enough to remember Dwight Eisenhower's warning about the rise of the "military-industrial complex."
We live in a city that had a large number of defense industry workers, our friends and neighbors, for whom we want nothing but good things. So I have such ambivalence about this whole issue.
Stop by and visit anytime; it is clear I'll have further stuff to say.
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