Legislative Process
Congress out of Session does not mean it isn’t Working
The Fix blog at the Washington Post has an article arguing that since 1978, Congress has only worked a full week 14% of the time. This is a common—and extraordinarily misleading– jab at Congress. While it is easy to criticize an institution that frequently makes itself an easy target, it’s a disservice that unnecessarily undermines
Could Boehner be the First Speaker to Lose Job and Win Seats?
The Fix recently wrote about how “A 2015 rebellion against John Boehner would be unprecedented.” In the piece Philip Bump argues that “no speaker has overseen a pick-up of House seats and subsequently lost his job.” Setting aside problems in closely connecting congressional elections and the speakership election across this period,* this statement really hangs
Reid Goes On Record For Earmarks
Earmark reform is a hot topic on Capitol Hill and in the advocacy community. Earlier this week, Senator Reidcommented on the need to repeal the ban on earmarks. This is not a new sentiment for many members of the House and Senate. What is new is for a congressional leader to actually
Senatorial Courtesy, Blue Slips Caught in the Fallout
Ian Millhiser has a very good piece on judicial nominations and blue slips over at Think Progress. It covers a lot of ground and is a wonderful read. However, I do have some bones to pick with his take. At the core of Millhiser’s argument are blue slips and their place in Senate history. He contends
Boehner’s Overthrow and the “Then What?” Problem
Boehner’s time as Speaker may be limited. Yesterday Tim Alberta reported on substantial conversations to replace Boehner. This morning Brian Buetler verified that these talks are not particularly covert. According to several accounts, House Republicans are not hiding their dissatisfaction with the leadership. However, as both articles mention the plan suffers from a “then what?” problem. Conservatives’
Whose Bill Is It Anyway?
Congressman Mike Rogers’s recent announcement that he will not seek reelection this November received a fair amount of news coverage. This is hardly surprising since he is the Chairman of the high-profile House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. While the media reported widely on the “succession race” for the chairman’s job, another consequential development barely
This Quiet House
This past week the House passed by voice vote the SGR patch, or “doc fix,” setting Medicare physician reimbursement rates. This means we don’t know how individual House members voted. Given the significance of the legislation, this was an unusual departure from normal floor process. It was even more unusual that no member, Republican or
Is Obama’s budget DOA?
In yesterday’s Washington Post, Lori Montgomery did an excellent job laying out why Obama’s budget matters less this year than most. But don’t let that fool you; it still matters, and matters a ton. First, Congress has fewer than 150 staff in the House and Senate combined who review the president’s budget and put
Grijalva Unapologetic Over Missed Votes
GAI Senior Fellow Susan Lagon, Ph.D. spoke with AZ Central about why Members of Congress — such as Rep. Raúl Grijalva — miss floor votes and what that means. Read the full article, or the following excerpt: Floor votes are one of the most visible jobs for a member of Congress,
The Good News is Congress Just Agreed…
Just this afternoon, the Washington Post ran a story on their web site titled “Senate Moves to Extend Jobless Benefits.” Most readers would surmise that the chamber had in fact voted to extend the emergency legislation that provided unemployment benefits beyond the traditional 26 weeks to the 1.3 million Americans whose payments were cut off