Thu
Nov 9 2006
07:45 pm
Measuring the drapes and draining the swamp: the first 100 hours
By: R. Neal

While the president jokes that he will help her measure her drapes, the first woman to ever hold the prestigious (soon-to-be) title of Speaker of the House of the United States House of Representatives says the new Democratic majority will drain the swamp and effect change in the first 100 hours.

It's hard to find a concise summary (memo to Democrats: bullet points -- check into it), but this Washington Post article says the First 100 Hour agenda will be:

  • Put new rules in place to "break the link between lobbyists and legislation."
  • Enact all the recommendations made by the commission that investigated the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
  • Raise the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour, maybe in one step.
  • Cut the interest rate on student loans in half.
  • Allow the government to negotiate directly with the pharmaceutical companies for lower drug prices for Medicare patients.

    • Broaden the types of stem cell research allowed with federal funds.

All laudable initiatives that I support one hundred percent. To that agenda, I would add the following for the next few days after that:

  • Require the VA to clear up the backlog of claims and restore funding so our veterans and troops returning home from war and their families get the benefits they have been promised and that they deserve.
  • Order a top-down review of all EPA regulations rolled back by the Bush adminstration.
  • Issue subpoenas for Cheney, Rumsfeld*, Wolfowitz*, Cambone, Gonzales, and anyone else involved in codifying torture and violation of habeas corpus into U.S. law to hold them accountable.
  • Issue subpoenas for all of the above and/or anyone else* involved in cooking the intelligence books that led America into the failed war in Iraq on false pretenses and hold them accountable.
  • Order a top-down review of our broken health care and insurance system.
  • Get the Rush Holt Voter Confidence Act out of committee and on to the floor of the House for a vote and funding.

I'm sure KnoxViews readers have other ideas. Let's hear them. There is a short window of opportunity over the next couple of years to a) fix the mess we are in, and/or b) at least call attention to the miserable failures of the Bush administration and the policies of the previous Republican controlled Congress and hold them accountable.

If we do that, we can extend the window of opportunity and open up new windows of opportunity for a better America that benefits everyone.

America voted for change. Congress now holds the keys to change for a better America. We must now call on the Democrat controlled Congress to hold up their end of the deal and not blow it like the Republicans did when they had their chance.

OK, then.

(*Pardon my ignorance, but can Congress subpoena a private citizen? If not, I guess we can all see where Bush was going by firing Rumsfeld. All the more reason to hold them accountable.)

Topics:
Andy Axel's picture

Pardon my ignorance, but can

Submitted by Andy Axel on Thu, 2006/11/09 - 8:20pm.

Pardon my ignorance, but can Congress subpoena a private citizen?

Haven't you seen Godfather II?

____________________________

You can live a batter life, or a butter life. Or both, if you choose.

R. Neal's picture

Yeah, but I've slept since

Submitted by R. Neal on Thu, 2006/11/09 - 8:24pm.

Yeah, but I've slept since then. Oh, wait. The Michael before Congress scene? Oh, and I completely forgot about all the people hauled in before the McCarthy hearings. And John Dean. Wasn't he a civilian by the time he got hauled in before the Baker hearings? Never mind. Duh. My bad. Haul all their asses in and hold them accountable.

redmondkr's picture

I'd like to see an end to

Submitted by redmondkr on Thu, 2006/11/09 - 8:43pm.

I'd like to see an end to all those signing statements.  Hard to get that one past a veto, huh?

Scorpio's picture

All it would take

Submitted by Scorpio (not verified) on Fri, 2006/11/10 - 12:40am.

is 3/4 of Congress being unhappy at having their legislation pissed away. Heh.

R. Neal's picture

I should have also noted

Submitted by R. Neal on Thu, 2006/11/09 - 8:55pm.

I should have also noted what is NOT in the First 100 Hours agenda, namely taking away anybody's guns or making their sons or daughters marry a gay person or surrendering to the terrorists.

Nelle's picture

Shortcut

Submitted by Nelle on Sat, 2006/11/11 - 12:38pm.

I think the plan is to simplify the deal and make us marry gay terrorists.

I hope I get a pretty one.Laughing

Sven's picture

Here's what Pelosi said

Submitted by Sven on Thu, 2006/11/09 - 9:15pm.

Here's what Pelosi said about reform in a blogger conference call.

I'm wallowing in ignorance on the supoena myself. I imagine it'd be a helluva lot harder to obtain relevant documents with Rummy on the outside.

 

...oh, and Howard Dean sux. 

Socialist With A Gold Card's picture

That's a mighty impressive

Submitted by Socialist With ... on Thu, 2006/11/09 - 10:20pm.

That's an awesome list, Sven. If she accomplishes even one third of that list, I'll be mighty impressed.

I'd also add the modification or outright repeal of section 14(b) of the Taft-Hartley Act, thereby prohibiting states from outlawing "union shops." Such a step would eliminate the falsely named "right-to-work" laws and perhaps begin rebuilding the labor movement in the US. As a direct consequence of that one section of the law, union representation has tracked downward almost exactly in line with the decline of real wages over the last 30 years. This is not a coincidence, and it needs to be fixed. The subject came up during the Carter and Clinton administrations, but obviously nothing came of it at the time.

I know this is a pipe dream, what with a 51-seat majority in the Senate and a Republican president, but I think it needs to be brought out at least to a back burner somewhere. Right now, the issue is sitting cold in the freezer, in desperate need of a thaw.

--Socialist With A Gold Card

"I'm a socialist with a gold card. I firmly believe we need a revolution; I'm just concerned that I won't be able to get good moisturizer afterwards." --Brett Butler

 

JaHu's picture

I'm sure KnoxViews readers

Submitted by JaHu on Thu, 2006/11/09 - 10:01pm.

I'm sure KnoxViews readers have other ideas. Let's hear them.

How about investigating the illegal awarding of no bid contracts to Haliburton.

Adrift in the Sea of Humility

JaHu's picture

Will Sen. Joseph Lieberman

Submitted by JaHu on Thu, 2006/11/09 - 11:23pm.

Will Sen. Joseph Lieberman attempt to spearhead the democrats control in the senate?

(Yahoo News) even though Democrats will control the Senate, they will do so only by a narrow 51-49 margin. Democrats will lack the two-thirds majorities needed to override presidential vetoes and enact bills the White House might oppose, and the 60 votes needed to prevent Senate Republicans from filibustering legislation.

They also might have to work to keep Connecticut Sen. Joseph Lieberman (news, bio, voting record), the longtime Democrat who won Tuesday as an independent after losing the Democratic primary, on their side.

Could Lieberman along with Cheney's tie breaking vote cause a gridlock with the Democrats on issue of the Iraq war?

Adrift in the Sea of Humility

MJ's picture

I liked Harold Ford's idea

Submitted by MJ on Fri, 2006/11/10 - 9:56am.

I liked Harold Ford's idea of making legislators publicly submit their pork proposals instead of sneaking them into bills overnight.  I'm sure it would be worded more elogantly, but you get the point.

Also, maybe looking into restoring any Veteran's benefits that were rolled back by the GOP controlled government.

Factchecker's picture

Well, since you ask

Submitted by Factchecker on Fri, 2006/11/10 - 2:04pm.

Raise the CAFE standard, give ANWR permanent exemption from drilling, and enact CO2 reductions, probably via a carbon tax, and clean renewable energy targets in the mold of California's. 

Propose a federal Apollo-type program to achieve the latter.  Incentives can be set to spur private investment, which will reduce the federal cost and energize the economy resulting in more tax revenues.  Other costs will be offset by having increased national security by starving terrorists and immunizing us from the economic damage they can inflict, from mitigation of global warming effects, having improved health and lower cleanup costs due to cleaning the air, new technology trickle-down to other mainstream uses, and from improved economic competitiveness through cultivation of new jobs created in the fields of science and engineering.  That kind of thing.

In other words, get us the hell off of oil and dirty coal.

Number9's picture

In other words, get us the

Submitted by Number9 on Fri, 2006/11/10 - 2:09pm.

In other words, get us the hell off of oil and dirty coal.

How? Bicycles?

Number9's picture

Sure. Why not. Where do you

Submitted by Number9 on Fri, 2006/11/10 - 3:23pm.

Sure. Why not. Where do you need to go that you can't go on a bicycle?

I have a bike. I like it. But I don't use it to get groceries. I don't think we can convince UPS and Fed Ex to use bikes. I think hills would be a problem.

Rachel's picture

I have a bike. I like it.

Submitted by Rachel on Sat, 2006/11/11 - 12:11am.

I have a bike. I like it. But I don't use it to get groceries.

Really?  Why not?  My spouse does, all the time.

Number9's picture

I have a bike. I like it.

Submitted by Number9 on Sat, 2006/11/11 - 10:30am.

I have a bike. I like it. But I don't use it to get groceries.

Really? Why not? My spouse does, all the time.

Two reasons, I have a mountain bike and I don't like my beer shaken up.

Rachel's picture

I have a mountain bike Then

Submitted by Rachel on Sat, 2006/11/11 - 2:23pm.

I have a mountain bike

Then you don't own a bike that's really suitable for transportation (as opposed to recreation).  If you did, you could use it for a lot more than you think.  My spouse gets in the car about once a week.

Nelle's picture

Oooh, bikes, scaary

Submitted by Nelle on Sat, 2006/11/11 - 12:52pm.

There are civilized counties (such as Germany and the Netherlands) where a significant proportion of trips are made on bicycles http://www.worldwatch.org/node/4130

Those of us living in places like Knoxville find that shocking only because our urban design and zoning work together to create an environment that's actively hostile to pedestrians and bicyclists.

If we strive to change that, and all of us can reduce our reliance on cars, then, boom!, our cities and our economy are that much more sustainable and less reliant on foreign oil. And we're all in better shape, too.

Les Jones's picture

metulj:

Submitted by Les Jones on Fri, 2006/11/10 - 5:01pm.

"Sure. Why not. Where do you need to go that you can't go on a bicycle? "

To Europe to buy wine and clothes. Duh!

Hey, Les, why don't we just call each other assholes and get it over with. - Somebody on the old Southknoxbubba.net (if that was you, claim your quote and win net.fame!)

Factchecker's picture

How? Bicycles?

Submitted by Factchecker on Fri, 2006/11/10 - 4:57pm.

I didn't mention deadlines.  It won't be complete for decades, but we could/should work now to reduce our oil use to what we can provide domestically without increasing production in environmentally sensitive areas.  First priority would be to reduce by the amount imported from mideast.  That should be doable in a few years, with some planning.

For a lot of people's commutes (not too many in Knoxburg), bicycles wouldn't be a bad idea.  Too bad KnoxGOBs for the last few decades have denied us simple sidewalks, let alone many bike lanes.  (I know about Magnolia's.)

mpower1952's picture

where Bush was going by firing Rumsfeld

Submitted by mpower1952 on Fri, 2006/11/10 - 10:55pm.

I had the same thought about Rumsfeld being less accountable once out of the administration.

Actually, I think he's going to head down to Paraguay to the new Bush 1,000 acre hacienda. I don't think he can be extradited from there.

I've been careful not to break the Nazi reference rule.

Be a blessing to someone today.

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