60

Republicans picked up 60 seats in yesterday's election, but now have to turn to governing the House, and here things might get tricky. For the past two years they have enjoyed a lean and cohesive coalition, while the Democrats have had people in their caucus representing districts that lean Republican. This created internal divisions. Those are the people that were defeated in yesterday's election meaning that the Democrats have the more cohesive caucus and Republicans have to deal with what this author calls Republicrats.

Topics - 7/23/10

In the news, and relevant to the subject matter:

- The House Ethics Committee is set to try Rep. Charles Rangel for ethics violations.
- Democratic House Campaign Committee outlines effort to retain House Majority.
- Climate Bill to be trimmed.

Party Leader?

House Democrats accuse Obama of favoring Senate Democrats and hanging them out to dry on key votes. Part of a president's job is to be party leader. This raises questions about Obama's effectiveness in that role.

And Franken Makes 60

From the NYT, some observations about the consequences of Dems having 60 senators:

With 60 votes (including those of two independents) now most likely aligned with the Democrats, the party could avoid filibusters.

But Mr. Franken swiftly made it clear that he did not view himself as the Democrats’ No. 60. “That’s not how I see it,” he said, adding that he was “going to be the second senator from the state of Minnesota, and that’s how I’m going to do this job.”

Though Republicans expressed disappointment at the outcome, they had in recent weeks become increasingly resigned to Mr. Franken joining the Senate.

On Tuesday, they joined Mr. Coleman in acknowledging defeat and immediately sought to raise expectations for Democrats.

“With their supermajority, the era of excuses and finger-pointing is now over,” said Senator John Cornyn of Texas, who heads the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Mr. Cornyn said it was “troubling to think about what they might now accomplish with 60 votes.”

But whether Democrats can consistently rely on 60 senators being present is in question. Two veteran Democrats, Senators Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia and Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts, are ailing and have regularly been absent from the Senate. In addition, a handful of moderate to conservative Democrats have shown a willingness to break from the party, and even liberals will do so on some issues.

Democrats are known for being difficult to organize in some coherent manner, especially in the Senate. Conversely, as Republicans decrease in size, they become more cohesive and more disruptive. It will interesting to follow the dynamic between the respective parties.

Gene Green Hopes to Retain Sub-Committee Chair

The Chron reports that Gene Green, who represents the 29th Congressional District, is fighting to remain chair of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce's Subcommittee on Environment and Hazardous Materials.

He backed the wrong person in the recent competition over chairmanship of the committee, he backed John Dingell, Henry Waxman won. The decision will be made by the other Democrats in the full committee.

Green told his 30 Democratic colleagues that he planned to "work aggressively" in coming months to enable his committee to reverse "the poor enforcement record" of the Environmental Protection Agency, improve the safety of drinking water and strengthen security for chemical plants.

Green also vowed to take action to ban asbestos, speed cleanup of toxic waste sites and increase recycling and strengthen provisions for safe handling of toxic wastes including toxic electronic waste from computers and other electronic devices

"I have the energy, the temperament and pragmatism to reinvigorate and improve strong environmental protections with your help," Green wrote. "Together we can build consensus among our members for strong, pragmatic and progressive protections from the health and environmental impacts of toxic chemicals."

Green's Houston-area congressional district includes dozens of refineries and petrochemical plants along the Houston ship channel. His district also includes the San Jacinto River Waste Pits in Harris County.

Waxman is a critic of the oil industry, which is not surprisingly supported by Green. Waxman;s opposition to Michigan based Dingell hinged on Dingell's support for the auto industry so we shodul not be surprised if Waxman does nto support Green. It would be a pity because Texas needs all it can get in the upcoming session of Congress.