There’s no shortage of things to complain about when it comes to the federal government. The dysfunction and partisanship are not the least of the concerns. Polls routinely and consistently indicate a deep seeded disapproval and mistrust of the federal government.
In a slight divergence from my normal Inside Washington column, I’d like to take this month’s column to highlight what I believe is our greatest challenge.
The Budget Control Act in 2012, which created the automatic spending cuts called “sequestration,” the government shutdown in October 2013 and the Ryan-Murray Budget in December 2013, have all been the result of the partisan divide that exists in Congress surrounding federal discretionary spending levels.
In less than a year, Americans will head to the polls to elect all 435 members of the House of Representatives and 33 members of the Senate. How do you feel about your representation in Congress? If you’re like an overwhelming majority of the public, you’re probably incredibly dissatisfied with Congress and its productivity this year.
This year has seen a drastic increase in the public’s frustration with Congress and the Obama Administration. The re-election of President Obama, one-third of the Senate and the entire House of Representatives in November 2012 brought more than 80 new elected officials to Washington.
The government shutdown lasted just over two weeks. After continuous name calling, blaming and political insults, the House and Senate finally agreed on a deal that would essentially almost ensure another fiscal showdown at the beginning of 2014, a midterm election year.
After several months of planning and patience, House Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) has introduced the Water Resources Reform and Development Act (H.R. 3090).
As we step into September, Members of Congress return to Washington, D.C., after a five-week recess. While Congress has not been inactive, the overwhelming majority of action taken in both the House and Senate has been largely symbolic because of political posturing and the refusal to vote on legislation passed by the opposite party.
When I sit down to write Inside Washington every month, I often struggle to find the balance between expressing the proper level of concern for America’s decaying infrastructure and trying to articulate the often unjustifiably apathetic response from our representation in Congress.
As the first quarter of the 113th Congress comes to a close, Congress has very little to show for it. So far, the actions in Congress can best be described as yet-to-be-fulfilled promises. The 113th Congress began with several marque items on the agenda.