Scandal and the Filibuster

Anyone flipping through the news recently has heard something about the resignation of Representative Eric Massa (D-NY) in response to an emerging sex scandal, and the cloud growing over Representative Charles Rangel (D-NY), who stepped down as Chairman of the House Ways and Means committee after it was revealed that he had improperly accepted corporate-sponsored trips to the Caribbean and failed to disclose hundreds of thousands of dollars in assets. Speaker Pelosi promised to eliminate the "Culture of Corruption" supposedly fostered by the Republicans and demonstrated by Former Representative Mark Foley's "wide stance" scandal, when the Democrats took control in 2006. Now, 4 years and almost two election cycles later, that "Culture" has failed to vanish. Was Pelosi insincere in her campaign promise, or has she failed? 

The point is practically moot by now, as the scandals have only added to a growing anti-incumbent tide, which is threatening to wash away not only many Democrats in swing districts, but many Republicans as well. A general perception that the 111th Congress has failed to make good on the 2008 promise of "Change", public misgivings about the debacle that Health Care reform has become, and the influence of the Radical "Tea Party", will likely all contribute to making 2010 a very turbulent election year.

About two weeks ago, an interesting story appeared, and I regret not having addressed it before today. Senator Jim Bunning (R-KY) single-handedly delayed passage of an emergency jobs bill which would have, among other things, funded the Federal Health Care benefits that have kept both unemployed workers and the medical industry alive during these pressing times. The one-man filibuster meant that the spending measure, which required unanimous consent to pass, was delayed several days as Bunning tried to get an amendment passed that would pay for the bill without borrowing funds. He certainly had a good point, and that point was that the Senate should hold true to the "Pay-as-You-Go" legislation it has passed and stop piling up our country's debt. But keeping millions of Americans in financial limbo against the opposition of all 99 other Senators was not the appropriate way to go about making that point. Bunning's request to remove a tax loophole from the paper industry to earn the required $10 billion was finally accepted in order to break the stalemate, but he really should have either gotten it into the bill in the first place or waited to get it passed separately. I read somewhere that a bill that included a provision closing the loophole was actually on the docket for this week, but Bunning had to have his way. Many of Jim's Republican colleague's have criticized his misadventure as ill-conceived, and I don't blame them. There is a fine line between blocking wasteful "Keynesian" spending and impeding the government's duty to serve the people, but Senator Bunning must have missed that. Actions like his have led to the unfair branding of the GOP as the "Party of No", and I hope we can avoid situations like this in the future.

In other news, I will be serving as a messenger in the Florida House of Representatives over this Spring Break. It will be a great honor to serve the elected representatives of my state.