The Poison Atmosphere in Washington

Things are really starting to get out of control in Washington, and I'm beginning to think it's a good idea that they have a two week recess coming up. The scenes in the House yesterday looked like something straight out of the British Parliament with members shouting each other down, hissing, booing and whistling at each other like hooligans at a soccer match.

I can't blame just one side or the other, because each has certainly contributed to the war that is currently raging. GOP leadership has been weak at best, and the Dems are just plain crazy. I wish we could flush them all out of there and start over. (Remember the end of Tom Clancy's Debt of Honor? Crude, but effective.)

Priorities seem to have gone wildly askew, and with outright hatred boiling over on the floor of both house, how can we expect anything constructive to be accomplished. On top of all the mayhem, we have the Republicans voting themselves a raise, and given the budget problems we now face, this was not good timing. If you read this report, I think you'll see the theme for 2006 emerging:

The Republican-controlled Congress helped itself to a $3,100 pay raise on Friday, then postponed work on bills to curb spending on social programs and cut taxes in favor of a two-week vacation.

In the final hours of a tumultuous week in the Capitol, Democrats erupted in fury when House GOP leaders maneuvered toward a politically-charged vote _ and swift rejection _ of one war critic's call for the withdrawal of troops from Iraq. "You guys are pathetic, pathetic," Massachusetts Rep. Martin Meehan yelled across a noisy hall at Republicans.

On another major issue, a renewal of the Patriot Act remained in limbo as an unlikely coalition of liberal Democrats and conservative Republicans sought curbs on the powers given law enforcement in the troubled first days after the 2001 terrorist attacks.

Both the House and Senate were in session after midnight Thursday, working on the tax and deficit-cutting bills at the heart of the GOP agenda, before returning to work a few hours later.

"What it does is start to turn down the escalating costs ... for our children and our grandchildren. One of the things that we cannot leave to that next generation is a huge deficit that they can't afford," House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., said after enactment of a $50 billion deficit-reduction bill.

Democrats dissented, with one eye on the 2006 elections.

"The Republicans are taking food out of the mouths of children to give tax cuts to America's wealthiest. This is not a statement of America's values," said the Democratic leader, Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California. "Democrats believe that together, America can do better," she said, invoking the party's new campaign slogan.

In 1960 the country was in pretty good shape. Although the whole Vietnam problem was just in its infancy, overall the country was pretty much at peace. The economy was not in bad shape, and there really weren't a lot of reasons why Nixon shouldn't have gone on to victory, having been the Vice President for 8 years.

So how did the Dems convince voters to switch parties in the White House? By telling people that "we could do better", the same slogan that the Dems plan to trot out in '06. If the Republicans don't start showing some real leadership, there won't be any reason for voters to keep handing the keys to the GOP. As crazy as they are, the Dems can still convince voters to let them have control once again.

The new year will not start off on a happy note for either party. The Alito hearings are sure to set off a major firestorm in the Senate, with the House not far behind. With elections pending, important legislation will probably be bottled up, and little good will be done. I don't see a very happy year for either party if things continue as they are.