Inside D.C.

Pre-election politics as usual

Anyone hoping or praying that in this midterm election year Congress will hold back the partisanship bickering until much later in the summer need only scan the headlines around the big issues pending to know those hopes and prayers are for naught. During this run-up to the November elections, the partisan sniping and delaying tactics seem to have started earlier than usual or expected.

The early advent is most likely because we’re approaching the longest consistent congressional “work” period for the rest of the year. As of May 19, Congress will actually be in session, in Washington, DC, for five consecutive weeks; then it’s in session for four weeks in a row post-July 4 recess. Keep in mind I’m talking congressional “weeks,” meaning the week begins around noon to 2 p.m. on Tuesday, and ends midday Thursday so all House members and a third of the Senate can scurry to the airport, fly home and squeeze in a few more campaign stops.

The legislative victims of the political equivalent of “my- political way-or-the-highway” are legion – as is, apparently common sense – but take a look at how the logical solution to the nation’s challenges has given way to the political.

Both sides of the aisle on both sides of the Hill are taking up arms for what looks like a summer-long battle between parties and between the Hill and the White House over climate change. This week President Obama, as part of his executive climate action plan, released a national climate assessment, a most dour document predicting climate change is the first sign of the Apocalypse. No one denies last winter was rough nationally; some contend it’s a return to the olden days of snow measured in feet and wind chills in double digits. The lingering drought in California and Texas is the focus of many, while others contend it’s warmer, colder, rainier, drier, windier than ever and significant “adaptation” is necessary. If weather extremes are uglier, rather than debate how to cope, expect a lot of attacking/defending coal, plugging or denigrating wind, solar and biofuels, proposing/opposing heavy-handed regulation or, if you’re a doubter, pushing for a wait-and-see approach and voluntary actions to protect agriculture, shipping and the rest of the infrastructure.

On immigration, House Speaker John Boehner (R, OH) is all over the map, but seems to be sliding to the side of his GOP stalwarts. He says he wants to get immigration reform completed before October – much to the dismay of many of his caucus running in tough races – but has yet to make any progress. He refuses to take up the bipartisan Senate reform bill, and says the issue for the House GOP is an abiding mistrust President Obama will enforce the law as it’s passed. Until he gets a public commitment the President won’t manipulate the law through the magic of executive orders, he’s not moving.

Over on the Senate side, Majority Leader Harry Reid (D, NV) is convinced the way to pass legislation is to foreclose on floor debate and amendments. A bipartisan, wildly popular energy conservation bill authored by Sen. Jean Shaheen (D, NH) and Sen. Rob Portman (R, OH) is about 100% sure to die a second death because Reid won’t allow GOP amendments be offered. Last summer the bill was sailing through the Senate until Sen. David Vitter (R, LA) tried to hamstring it with an Obamacare amendment. At that point Reid was justified in yanking the bill, but this time energy-related GOP amendments – admittedly not popular with Democrats — have been refused and Reid would rather pull the bill than allow open debate. Energy conservation loses.

In both chambers, what’s become a biennial event – reauthorizing 55 expired federal tax credits – has become the quintessential partisan political/physical football. I won’t suck time explaining why this laundry list of tax breaks – business (R&D), personal (childcare), energy-related (biofuels) – some authorized as long as 50 years ago, needs to be extended each year. Congress knows they’ll expire, allows them to expire, then six months later easily re-extends the list with benefits retroactive to their expiration date. This year the extension effort is all about the haves and have-nots, at least to House Democrats. The House and Senate tax writing committees agree the road to comprehensive federal tax reform in 2015 begins with the tax break extension. Once again, the Senate’s bill was approved in committee on a strong bipartisan vote. In the House, Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D, MD) says because the business-friendly extenders package isn’t paid for – no appropriated money or offsets from savings elsewhere – he’ll block floor action until the expired unemployment benefits extension gets floor time, pointing out the hypocrisy of the GOP and silence on the package’s cost in the process. He threw in action on immigration reform action as a sweetener, alleging the savings from reform pays for the tax package.

Not only will the summer bring more of the same legislative intransigence, it will be liberally spiced with politics and electioneering. Think of it as the DC equivalent of those unending candidate television ads spouting noise and little substance.

 

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