112th Congress

The 112th Congress The Worst In Bill Passage Since World War II!

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The 104th Congress of 1995-1996 under Speaker Newt Gingrich and Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole had the worst performance of any Congress in fifty years, when it passed only 333 bills into law.

But now the 112th Congress has surpassed the 104th Congress in mediocrity, as under Speaker of the House John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, ONLY 219 bills have been passed, and this coming after the 111th Congress (2009-2010) was the most productive since the 89th Congress (1965-1966) under President Lyndon B. Johnson!

The common thread of the 112th and the 104th Congresses is that in both cases, the House of Representatives was under Republican control, and with Republican control also in the US Senate for the 104th Congress. Split party control in the past two years between Democrats and Republicans turned out worse than the Republican control of both houses in 1995-1996!

Twenty Women In The United States Senate In The 113th Congress: All Time High!

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The 113th Congress will have TWENTY women, the highest number in American history!

The 112th Congress had seventeen women, 12 Democrats and 5 Republicans.

The 113th Congress will have 16 Democrats and 4 Republicans, with Senator Olympia Snowe of Maine and Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas, both Republicans, retiring!

Five new women will join the Senate—Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts,.Tammy Baldwin of WIsconsin, Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, Mazie Hirono of Hawaii, and Deb Fischer of Nebraska, with Fischer being the lone Republican. Fifteen women Senators will remain, including three Republicans—Susan Collins of Maine, Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. The twelve returning Democratic women include: Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Barbara Mikulski of Maryland, Kay Hagan of North Carolina, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Claire McCaskill of Missouri, Diane Feinstein of California, Barbara Boxer of California, Parry Murray of Washington, and Maria Cantwell of Washington.

Also, three states have both Senators being women—New Hampshire, California, and Washington!

And to top it off, New Hampshire not only has two women Senators, but also both House members are women, and the new Governor is a woman, the first state to have an all female representation in Congress and the Governorship!

How far America has come as we enter the year 2013!

John Tyler, Andrew Johnson, And Barack Obama

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When one looks at American history and the conflicts that arise between Presidents and Congresses, it is clear that all Presidents have battles with Congresses over some issues, even when their party is in control of both houses of Congress.

Some Presidents are more effective than others in accomplishing legislative goals, and of course, some Presidents face an opposition party Congress control in both houses, and much more rarely, in one of the houses of Congress.

But when one looks at the depth of hatred and refusal to cooperate of the Republican majority in the 112th Congress, and probably likely to continue in the 113th Congress in 2013-2014, it makes one want to look back and see when did such hatred and refusal to cooperate become a general reality in our 224 year history?

The answer is twice before the present situtation with President Barack Obama–the times of President John Tyler (1841-1845) and of Andrew Johnson (1865-1869).

Both were Democrats put on the Presidential ticket of the Whig Party (in the case of Tyler), and the Republican Party (in the case of Johnson), to bring Democratic party votes to Whig William Henry Harrison in 1840 and Republican Abraham Lincoln in 1864.

Both Presidents Harrison and Lincoln died within weeks of their inauguration–Harrison after a month from pneumonia, and Lincoln by assassination six weeks into his second term.

When Tyler and Johnson, therefore, became President by succession, the party that had put them on the ticket as a balancing act electorally, totally turned against cooperation with both Presidents, considering them to be illegitimate successors, although constitutionally, legitimate.

So Tyler had battle after battle with Henry Clay and other Whigs, who were furious that he was President, and very little could be accomplished without constant battle,. There was also a motion to impeach Tyler, which, fortunately, went nowhere.

In the case of Johnson, things deteriorated quickily, and eventually, Johnson faced an impeachment trial on flimsy grounds, was found not guilty by the Senate, but had been weakened and repudiated, nevertheless.

In both cases, their major accomplishment was the acquisition of Texas under Tyler, and of Alaska under Johnson, the two largest states in land area.

The difference now is that Barack Obama legitimately won a majority of the popular vote twice, and still is rejected and mistreated by the Republican House, in a way not seen since the time of Tyler and Johnson!

112th Congress Least Productive Since World War II!

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The 112th Congress is setting records for being the most ineffective, least productive, Congress since World War II!

The last time this situation existed was the Republican 80th Congress of 1947-48, but even they accomplished more than this present, pitiful Congress!

Only 91 bills have passed in 2012, added to 60 for 2011, so a low total of 151 is truly an embarrassment!

Comparing this to the 111th Congress of 2009-2010, we find that Congress passed 125 laws in 2009, and 258 in 2010, for a grand total of 383.

So two and a half times as many bills were passed in 2009-2010, as compared to 2011-2012.

Usually, 6-10 percent of bills introduced pass into law, but this Congress it is a mere 2 percent!

This is partly due to the impact of the Tea Party Movement, which has caused the complete loss of reputation of the Republican Party in the House of Representatives.

No wonder the public opinion rating of Congress is ten percent in the last polling!

Congressional Members Leaving Who Will Be Missed, And Those Who Will NOT Be Missed!

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As the lame duck session of the 112th Congress finishes its last weeks, one can reflect on some of the members who will not be returning, some because of defeat, and others because of retirement or resignation.

Some of these members made major contributions and will be missed, including:

Senator Olympia Snowe of Maine
Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut
Senator Herb Kohl of Wisconsin
Senator Richard Lugar of Indiana
Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas
Congressman Barney Frank of Massachusetts
Congressman Dennis Kucinich of Ohio
Congressman Gary Ackerman of New York
Congresswoman Shelley Berkley of Nevada

Among those leaving who will NOT be missed are:

Senator Jon Kyl of Arizona
Senator Scott Brown of Massachusetts
Congressman Ron Paul of Texas
Congressman Allen West of Florida
Congressman Joe Walsh of Illinois
Congressman Ben Quayle of Arizona

Altogether, 47 members were defeated; 35 members are retiring; and 11 members have resigned, including just today, Illinois Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr, who has serious mental illness complications.

A grand total of 93 members will have left by the end of the year, which means about one out of six members in 2013 will be brand new in Congress.

The Reckless, Irresponsible Republican House Of Representatives In The 112th Congress!

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Here we are, seven weeks before the elections for Congress and the White House, and the Republican House majority under Speaker John Boehner, after five weeks summer vacation, and only two weeks fall session, will adjourn until after the elections.

In doing so, they will ignore the following issues, among others, resulting in the most disastrous, least accomplished Congress in more than a half century.

Tax cuts for working families
Jobs legislation
Renewal of the Violence Against Women Act
Appropriations bills
Energy legislation
Avoidance of “going over the cliff” on budget cuts at the end of December
Aid to veterans to find work
Farm legislation to assist those affected by the massive drought
Legislation on cybersecurity
Work on the Alternative Minimum Tax and Estate Taxes

By refusing to deal with these issues in a timely manner, the Republican House throws them into a tight, limited time period after the elections, with no clear answer as to who will be in control of both houses of Congress and the White House until after November 6.

The answer is that the voters should kick out the GOP House majority, punishing them for their lack of action, and their reckless, irresponsible behavior, allowing the Tea Party element to dominate them, and putting the nation into distress on a constant basis for the past two years!

The Most Dysfunctional Congress Since The 1870s!

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The 112th Congress is so dysfunctional that it is the worst one in performance since the Reconstruction years of the 1870s after the Civil War!

The 112th Congress has produced the fewest laws since at least 1947, with only about 150 laws

Congress is usually judged by how many laws it has passed, but with a Democratic Senate and a Republican House of Representatives, nothing has been done, except for accusations back and forth.

The most conservative Democrat votes to the left of every Republican, and the most moderate Republican to the right of every Democrat, a situation that has never occurred before, with some across the aisle voting always occurring in the past, with a lot of it in the 1930s through to the early 1970s.

Congress’s popularity ratings are in the low teens, below of that of Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez, an unbelievable situation!

Unless either party wins control of both houses of Congress in 2012, another four years of paralysis is likely.

But if the Republicans gain control of both houses of Congress and the White House, their purpose would be to destroy the “welfare” state of the New Deal and Great Society, wiping out a century of social and economic reform.

That would portend a possible civil war, as a large portion of the population would not tolerate such right wing extremism, and it could lead to a breakdown of our society’s stability and to foreign policy adventures which would bring deterioration of our unity!

Is Ezra Klein Correct That We Are Witnessing The Worst Congress Ever? YES, By A Landslide!

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The 111th Congress (2009-2010) has been seen by many observers as the most productive Congress since the 89th Congress (1965-1966).

But now, the 112th Congress (2011-2012) has been declared by Ezra Klein, the brilliant commentator of the Washington Post and MSNBC, as the WORST Congress EVER!

Is Ezra Klein correct in his assessment? ABSOLUTELY!

The 112th Congress, as Klein says, has failed to deal with the problems facing the country, and has had as its major agenda the defeat of President Obama for a second term, and in the process, holding Americans hostage in the midst of the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression!

Klein points out the following:

No Congress, with records back to the 80th Congress of 1947-1948, has produced such little passage of legislation, with the smallest being the 104th Congress (1995-1996), with 333 laws passed, and Democrat Bill Clinton being relected President in 1996 as a result.

Congress has only a ten percent approval rating, an all time low, with the Internal Revenue Service being at a popularity rate of 40 percent; Lawyers at 29 percent; President Richard Nixon during Watergate at 24 percent; Banks at 23 percent; the British Petroleum Oil Spill at 16 percent; and Paris Hilton at 15 percent, as examples!

The 112th Congress is the most polarized Congress since the end of Reconstruction in the 1870s, and we all know what came after–the GILDED AGE period of corporate dominance, not well looked upon by historians, and reminding us that we are now, in so many respects, in a new GILDED AGE, personified not only by the GOP control in the House of Representatives and in many state governments, but by the wealthiest Presidential nominee in American history, Mitt Romney, worth twice the assets of the last eight Presidents from Richard Nixon to George W. Bush combined!

The Republican majority in the House and Republican opposition in the Senate set back economic recovery in 2011 and right up to this moment in 2012, by any measure! And this Congress caused the loss of America’s credit rating, and seem ready to do it again!

Voting unsuccessfully to repeal the Affordable Care Act THIRTY THREE times is an exercise in futility, and the House of Representatives has wasted approximately EIGHTY hours in doing nothing, two work weeks when they could have been working on job creation legislation!

This Congress has NOT passed any appropriations bills by the deadline of October 1 in 2011, and will not by October 1, 2012, as things stand!

The failure to provide for the future of our infrastructure–roads, bridges, subway systems, and airports– is a major problem for the long term.

Two Congressional experts, Thomas Mann and Norman Ornstein, have written a book condemning the paralysis of the 112th Congress, saying it is the worst performance they have witnessed in 40 years of covering Congress!

In sum, the 112th Congress is an embarrassment, and there is no sign of any improvement in the future, particularly if the split Congress continues into the future!

Two Prestigious Scholars Blame The Republican Party For The Stalemate In The 112th Congress

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Two well known scholars, Thomas Mann of the Brookings Institution and Norman J. Ornstein of the American Enterprise Institute, have recently published a book and authored articles criticizing the Republican Party for the stalemate in the 112th Congress.

The Republican Party is blamed for its refusal to hold members of their party in Congress accountable for their wild statements; is seen as totally against compromise; refuses to accept facts, evidence and science; lacks respect for the legitimacy of the opposition party and its members; and is so far outside the mainstream as to be alarming for any hope of accomplishment of any goals or programs!

The two people most responsible for this extremism are former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, and Grover Norquist of the Americans for Tax Reform. But also the filibuster has been abused in the Senate, and prevented many executive branch appointments from being confirmed, both in the government agencies and in the court system.

The reaction to Roe V. Wade after 1973 mobilized social conservatives, while the tax revolt in California in 1978 mobilized anti tax activists. Also, the South turned conservative Republican after the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s; and the rise of conservative talk radio, and the growing impact of Fox News on cable, also had a great impact on what has become a growing stalemate and gridlock.

Health care reform, climate change, economic recovery, deficits, and debt issues have become a chasm between the two major political parties. Polarization has become the norm, and is a dangerous trend which may continue, if the voters again send a confusing message of a divided Congress in the 2012 Congressional elections. The Tea Party movement, if it grows, will further create conflict at a time when we need negotiation and compromise!

This assessment is extremely worrisome, as it means that our national government may be totally paralyzed, when we need true statesmen in both parties dealing with our important national agenda!

Mitt Romney Does Not Work Well With Others: Forecast Of An Isolated Presidency If He Wins

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Mitt Romney, the front runner in the Republican Presidential nomination race, has already revealed himself to be very stiff, formal, and aloof from the problems of ordinary Americans.

Now we are learning that he is much the same in dealing with other politicians.

Romney acts as if he is the Chief Executive Officer of a corporation, who isolates himself in his plush offices, makes policy with just a few aides, and then expects that everyone will follow his lead and avoid challenges at group meetings, where he expects to announce his decisions on policy, and everyone joins in unison in support of the initiatives he has promoted. He does not like criticism or alternative ideas, as he has great confidence in his own ability and intellect.

This was Mitt Romney as a corporate leader, and it is the prescription for disaster if he is President of the United States.

One might ask how one can conclude that this is so. The answer is that we have learned that this was his approach in his one term as Massachusetts Governor from 2003-2007!

Having to deal with a Democratic state legislature which was 85 percent against him, one would think he would realize that he had to deal with the opposition by getting to know members of the legislature, and conducting lots of meetings trying to bridge the gap in a bipartisan way, but that was not Romney’s style at all.

Interviews with Massachusetts politicians who served under Governor Romney reveal a man who avoided contact with them; never learned the faces or views of most of them; avoided socializing with legislators; came across as emotionally remote; overused the veto pen to no effect, but set a record of 844 vetoes, the most in Massachusetts history; worked as an outsider from the beginning to the end of his governorship; openly criticized legislative leaders that he needed to work with and in the process turned them away from any cooperation efforts with him; acted as a control freak in wanting every action of the legislature to go through the governor’s office; and failed to give recognition to those legislators present at public events (a policy that Barack Obama is a master of).

It is clear that Mitt Romney may be a corporate leader of great talents and skills, but that is NOT going to get things done with the US Congress, whether his own party controls, or particularly if the opposition party has control, which is probably quite likely, or a split Congress, which would create a nightmare scenario far worse than the one Barack Obama faces now with the 112th Congress.

Face the facts, Mitt Romney can only relate to wealthy people of corporate mentality, to his family, and to the Mormon Church. With the kind of obscene wealth he has, he can go on enjoying his life, but we need a more hands on President of the United States to deal with the rest of us folks, and we already have one named Barack Obama!

In other words, Mitt Romney is no Franklin D. Roosevelt, no Lyndon B. Johnson, and no Ronald Reagan! He is more like Herbert Hoover or Calvin Coolidge, and we know where that ended up!