Showing posts with label Committee Chairs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Committee Chairs. Show all posts
Monday, October 8, 2012
Sunday, September 30, 2012
From the Chronicle: Texas' clout in Congress may erode
This isn't a new story. Texas enjoyed tremendous influence in Congress throughout the 20th Century, but not so much since then.
From the Chron:
Texans are scrambling to salvage the Lone Star State's clout in the Republican-led House of Representatives as post-election changes are expected to strip two veteran lawmakers of committee chairmanships.
Six-year term limits are ending Rep. Lamar Smith's command of the wide-ranging 39-member House Judiciary Committee, an assignment the San Antonio Republican has used to showcase immigration and law enforcement issues crucial to Texas.
And Rep. Ralph Hall is preparing to step down as chairman of the 40-member House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, where the Rockwall Republican has spotlighted issues of concern to NASA and Houston's Johnson Space Center.
From the Chron:
Texans are scrambling to salvage the Lone Star State's clout in the Republican-led House of Representatives as post-election changes are expected to strip two veteran lawmakers of committee chairmanships.
Six-year term limits are ending Rep. Lamar Smith's command of the wide-ranging 39-member House Judiciary Committee, an assignment the San Antonio Republican has used to showcase immigration and law enforcement issues crucial to Texas.
And Rep. Ralph Hall is preparing to step down as chairman of the 40-member House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, where the Rockwall Republican has spotlighted issues of concern to NASA and Houston's Johnson Space Center.
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Catching up With Darrell Issa
The Washington Post details Darrell Issa's busy year as chair of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee:
Issa issued 22 subpoenas and published 11 investigative GOP staff reports, and the panel sent 748 letters seeking information from the White House and federal agencies in his first year, according to the panel’s records.
. . .“Do we send a lot of letters out? Yes,” he said recently. “When we hear about it, we send letters. And when we get answers, we very quickly say, ‘We’re all set, thank you very much, we’re done.’ ”
In addition, Issa and his aides noted that the administration faced virtually no serious congressional oversight in its first two years, when Congress was controlled by Democrats.
Click here for an interview with Rep Issa.
2301s should file this under "ambition counteracting ambition."
2302s should see this as an example of congressional oversight.
It also highlights points we make about divided government.
Issa issued 22 subpoenas and published 11 investigative GOP staff reports, and the panel sent 748 letters seeking information from the White House and federal agencies in his first year, according to the panel’s records.
. . .“Do we send a lot of letters out? Yes,” he said recently. “When we hear about it, we send letters. And when we get answers, we very quickly say, ‘We’re all set, thank you very much, we’re done.’ ”
In addition, Issa and his aides noted that the administration faced virtually no serious congressional oversight in its first two years, when Congress was controlled by Democrats.
Click here for an interview with Rep Issa.
2301s should file this under "ambition counteracting ambition."
2302s should see this as an example of congressional oversight.
It also highlights points we make about divided government.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Congressional Hearing: “The Extent of Radicalization in the American Muslim Community and That Community’s Response”
That's the full title of the hearing being held to day in the House Committee on Homeland Security.
While critics argue it plays on fears of Muslims, the committee's chairman, Peter King, argues that "Congressional investigation of Muslim American radicalization is the logical response to the repeated and urgent warnings which the Obama administration has been making in recent months.”
- NYT story here.
While critics argue it plays on fears of Muslims, the committee's chairman, Peter King, argues that "Congressional investigation of Muslim American radicalization is the logical response to the repeated and urgent warnings which the Obama administration has been making in recent months.”
- NYT story here.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Friday, May 14, 2010
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Obama's Budget Meets the Committee Chairs
After years of diminished strength, congressional committee chairman have additional strength and are using it to force changes in Obama's proposed budget:
What the Democratic barons of Congress liked best about President Obama’s audacious budget was his invitation to fill in the details. They have started by erasing some of his.
The apparent first casualty is a big one: a proposal to limit tax deductions for the wealthiest 1.2 percent of taxpayers. Mr. Obama says the plan would produce $318 billion over the next decade as a down payment for overhauling health care.
But the chairmen of the House and Senate tax-writing committees, Senator Max Baucus of Montana and Representative Charles B. Rangel of New York, have objected to the proposal, citing a potential drop in tax-deductible gifts to charities.
Billions in savings from cutting government subsidies to big farmers and agribusinesses? No dice, said Senator Kent Conrad of North Dakota, who heads the Senate Budget Committee.
Mr. Conrad also panned the limit on tax deductions. And his criticisms of those savings proposals aside, Mr. Conrad said Mr. Obama’s 10-year plan would not do enough to reduce future debt.
Congress is, after all, the legislative branch.
Shrink spending on Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security? Representative John M. Spratt Jr. of South Carolina, chairman of the House Budget Committee, suggested Mr. Obama’s proposals did not go far enough.
Cap industries’ emissions of the gases blamed for climate change? Representative Henry A. Waxman of California, who leads the House Energy and Commerce Committee, will have to contend with dissent on a panel with Democrats from coal and manufacturing states.
What the Democratic barons of Congress liked best about President Obama’s audacious budget was his invitation to fill in the details. They have started by erasing some of his.
The apparent first casualty is a big one: a proposal to limit tax deductions for the wealthiest 1.2 percent of taxpayers. Mr. Obama says the plan would produce $318 billion over the next decade as a down payment for overhauling health care.
But the chairmen of the House and Senate tax-writing committees, Senator Max Baucus of Montana and Representative Charles B. Rangel of New York, have objected to the proposal, citing a potential drop in tax-deductible gifts to charities.
Billions in savings from cutting government subsidies to big farmers and agribusinesses? No dice, said Senator Kent Conrad of North Dakota, who heads the Senate Budget Committee.
Mr. Conrad also panned the limit on tax deductions. And his criticisms of those savings proposals aside, Mr. Conrad said Mr. Obama’s 10-year plan would not do enough to reduce future debt.
Congress is, after all, the legislative branch.
Shrink spending on Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security? Representative John M. Spratt Jr. of South Carolina, chairman of the House Budget Committee, suggested Mr. Obama’s proposals did not go far enough.
Cap industries’ emissions of the gases blamed for climate change? Representative Henry A. Waxman of California, who leads the House Energy and Commerce Committee, will have to contend with dissent on a panel with Democrats from coal and manufacturing states.
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