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moreCongressmen don't often tout a record of not steering money back to their districts. But that's one thing Rep. John Boehner is doing now in hope of becoming the next House majority leader.
On Sunday the Ohio Republican, kicking off his bid for the post Tom DeLay finally abandoned over the weekend, called for a "conversation on renewal." Behind the scenes he's lining up support by reminding members that he has voted against all three of the major highway bills that have come up for a vote during his 15 years in Congress, including the most recent pork-filled bonanza that President Bush signed last year, and that he has often refused to add earmarks to transportation bills. His staff has even circulated criticism from the Cincinnati Enquirer--Mr. Boehner's hometown newspaper--for forgoing tens of millions of dollars in pork that he could have easily directed to his district.
Whether or not Mr. Boehner is the right man to lead the House majority, his conversation is clearly necessary now. House Republicans have been adrift for at least a year and arguably haven't accomplished anything big since the initial flourish of conservative ideas shortly after Newt Gingrich led the party in a takeover of Congress in 1994. Welfare reform came in 1996, as did the Freedom to Farm Act, which curbed subsidies until it was undone two years later. Congress did pass President Bush's tax cuts after the dot-com bubble burst, but with even more Republicans in the House and Senate today and clear evidence that the cuts are fueling the booming economy, Congress has been unable to renew them, much less make them permanent. Meanwhile spending continues largely unabated; Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security are still headed for fiscal meltdown; and Republicans are in danger of not standing for limited or even ethical government.
If Republicans pass up the opportunity they now have in the House, they'll waste another year and probably find themselves in the minority in the next Congress. And deservedly so. No party can afford to sit idle on domestic policy while controlling both houses of Congress as well as the White House. Voters can be patient and even forgiving. But squandered opportunities and toleration for unprincipled leadership will eventually erode public trust in a party's ability to confront the problems facing this nation and with it the ability to win elections.
Bonnie said:Who should step in to run the house??
Embrace Reform Without DeLay
A would-be majority leader offers some ideas.
BY BRENDAN MINITER
Tuesday, January 10, 2006 12:01 a.m. EST
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http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/bminiter/?id=110007789
