Civics Class Is In Session

With Professor BooMan.

So far in this Congress, the Republicans have rarely provided a significant number of votes for anything. But, when it comes time to spend money, the Republican members of the subcommittee in charge of allocating those funds were willing to support the legislation.

The reason for this is that they must support the legislation if they want the Democrats on the subcommittee to continue to involve them in the process of crafting appropriations. Ordinarily, these same dynamics would apply to other legislation like the bills on health care reform, cap and trade, and the Employee Free Choice Act. A loyal minority would still legislate and participate constructively in the mark-up of bills. This is what Max Baucus was attempting to do with the health care bill.

It's highly unusual for a minority party to choose to obstruct across the board. But that is what the Republicans have chosen to do with the single exception of the appropriations bills. They're willing to give up their influence in everything except the allocation of federal dollars to their states.

The lesson for Baucus is that he must make the Republicans pay for their bad faith. All future bills in this Congress that pass through his Finance Committee should not seek to include Republican input.

One interesting thing to keep in mind is the career of Teddy Kennedy. Kennedy was in the minority from 1981-1987 and again from 1995-2001 and 2003-2007. Despite that, he left a legacy of accomplishment during those years that exceeds that of anyone who was in the majority. He managed to do that because he understood what the job of a senator is, and that is to legislate, not merely to represent a unified opposition to the majority. There are currently 40 Republican members of the Senate, and no more than one or two of them is worth a damn as a member of the minority because they have no interest in their job.

And the funny part is that the GOP's growing raft of tenther Governors like SC's Mark Sanford, Texas's Rick Perry and increasingly MN's Tim Pawlenty turn around and say that Congress has no legal Constitutional jurisdiction over this federal spending that the Republicans in Congress are fighting for anyway. Congressional Republicans refuse to have a constructive say over anything but allocating money for their states and districts, and increasingly the base back in those home states are coming out and fighting against that, too.

What's a GOP Congresscritter supposed to do, other than squirm uselessly inside a trap of their own design?