Showing posts with label bi-partisan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bi-partisan. Show all posts

Monday, August 9, 2010

Why is Congress' Approval Rating So Low?

For some reason Congress keeps rolling along, thinking that the have credibility to continue passing laws we don’t need or want, and spending money like we had it.

With only a 19% approval rating (I would like to test those 19% for dementia), Congress should have its collective tail between its collective legs and out on the hustings begging for forgiveness. But that won’t happen. They will continue with their collective arrogance and hubris to spend money they really think is theirs, raising the deficit because they themselves won’t have to pay it.

A few of them don’t seem to know the rules the rest of us have to follow like reporting income, not using business (House) stationary for personal benefit, and so much more. They can’t even follow the U.S. Constitution to get a bill passed. The Senate passed the bill to increase border patrol agents and increase border security. Then the House was called back from recess to pass the bill, which would then go to the President. Only one thing wrong. It was a spending bill which, by law, has to originate in the House.

So then the Senate had to be called back, unless most agreed (including Republicans) that they could do a voice vote over the phone or some such workaround. Thanks to a few bipartisan Senators, the bill was passed although not in the usual way.

How can they and their staff not know something about spending bills that we all learned in fifth grade?

But you know what? Nothing will change; or rather not much will change. We, the citizens, rant and complain and rail against both sides and even incumbents. But when we march into the ballot box in November, we will do what we almost always do and vote for our incumbents. Somehow, although we hate Congress, we seem to think our own guys and gals serving us directly are usually all right. It’s must be those from the other states who are bad. Heaven help us. We are starting to see “The Rise and Fall of the American Empire” and not enough of us seem to care.





Thursday, February 7, 2008

And Then There Were Two...or Three, or Four


Romney's denouement was a surprise to me. I took him at his word that he was marching on despite a poor showing on Super Tuesday. This changes the complexion of the campaign for the Republicans. McCain had started his meager attempt to bring every one into the tent. He saw this as necessary to combat the flogging he was taking not only from Romney, but from the radio right.
Now it seems that he has a choice. To continue the catering if he wishes, or to be true to his more moderate ways. He appears to not need the far right, unless there is an ABMc (Anyone But McCain) movement that Ann Coulter and Rush Limbaugh seem willing to join.

McCain was lambasted this past week with constant references to "McCain-Feingold, McCain-Kennedy, and McCain-Lieberman" legislation. This was an attempt to "liberalize" the Senator, but I always saw McCain's efforts as a way to bridge that awful partisan gap that hamstrings our government. It looks like no good deed continues to go unpunished.