Congress

“I was incredibly proud to witness today’s presentation of the Congressional Gold Medal – our nation’s highest civilian honor – to Burmese human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.  For a quarter century, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has served as a guiding light for those who yearn for democracy in Burma, and indeed for all who espouse the principles of human rights and non-violence around the world.  In the face of enduring hardships, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has demonstrated a strength of character and perseverance that is helping to inspire a new period of hope for greater political freedom in Burma.”

As House Republicans use up their last hours in session this month on more partisan messaging bills with no hope of enactment, we wanted to make sure you saw today’s New York Times piece highlighting the dismal record they’ve set as the least productive Congress of the modern age.  Most egregiously, the Senate has passed a number of bipartisan bills that haven’t

Before Republicans took control of the House of Representatives, they announced their “Pledge to America” with claims that they would focus on priorities important to the American people, such as creating jobs, restoring economic certainty, and reducing the deficit. Two years later, Republicans’ record shows that they abandoned their pledge, and instead have consistently chosen to focus on partisan political issues rather than policies to restore our economy or create jobs. Now House Republicans are adjourning until after the election, and Republican leaders are concluding their legislative agenda the same way they started it: choosing obstruction and political messaging over working together to enact policies that help Americans.

We’ve been saying it all along, but this article in Roll Call presents some pretty stark numbers of exactly how fruitless the Republican-led House has been:

Recently, House Republicans have spent time playing the blame game and attempting to distance themselves from the devastating effects of the upcoming sequestration, designed to force Congress to enact a long-term plan to restore our nation’s fiscal health.  But a look at the not-so-distant past shows that sequestration was approved with 174 Republican votes and House Republican leaders were praising the process just a year ago, even claiming credit for the majority of the deal:    

“I’m pleased that the District of Columbia’s statue of Frederick Douglass will now be on display in the U.S. Capitol. Douglass, who was born in the state of Maryland, spent his entire life fighting injustice and demanding equality for all in our democracy.  This statue will join the halls of the Capitol building as the third statue or bust of an African American, and is a wonderful tribute to a great Marylander and civil rights hero.”

"In the eight years Dennis and I have served together, I have seen firsthand his strong commitment to public service and his love of country.  Dennis has been a tireless advocate for the people of California's Central Valley communities during his time in office, and he will be missed in the halls of Congress by colleagues on both sides of the aisle.  As he returns home, he does so having made a real difference in the lives of those he has represented here and in the lives of countless families across the country, and I continue to wish Dennis, Kathie, and their family well during this time of transition."

“I continue to be dismayed by Republicans’ attempts to distract from the real challenges facing this nation by pursuing an unnecessary and partisan lawsuit against Attorney General Holder.  As I said on the House Floor in June, the investigation against him by Republicans on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has been motivated by politics, not by the pursuit of justice.  Instead of moving forward with this partisan lawsuit, House Republicans would be better off working with Democrats to address the serious challenges we face by achieving solutions that create jobs, move our economic recovery forward, and set our country back on a sound fiscal path.”