Crawford: Tea Partiers on a Roll

They haven’t taken over DC yet, but Congress.org reports on their progress:

“Less than two months into the 112th Congress, there’s little doubt about the big influence of the tea party movement in the House of Representatives. The tea party has pushed the GOP leadership much further on budget cuts than it had planned on going, increasing the likelihood of a government shutdown.” Read More

http://blogs.cqrollcall.com/trailmix/2011/02/tea-partiers-on-a-roll.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=craig-crawford

The “Retirement” Announcements Begin, Just as the 112th Congress Begins Work

     The tragic shooting in Tucson, which seriously injured Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, moved the initial working days of the 112th Congress back by a week. But today, after the Martin Luther King Holiday, the Congress got down to the “People’s Business”, and began the initial work to repeal and replace the President’s job-killing health care legislation.

     And as the work begins on Capitol Hill, the first two “casualties” after the November 2010 shellacking have appeared.

      Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND), the former head of the Budget committee, has announced that he will not seek another term. He says that he believes that he can be more effective in positive changes outside the confines of the Senate. Interpretation: He will be a K Street lobbyist!

      Tomorrow, Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT), already rumored to be facing a difficult challenger in 2012, will announce that he will not seek another term.

     Last week, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) announced that she would not seek another term.

     There are a total of 32 seats up for election in the Senate in 2012, with 23 being held by Democrats and Lieberman. Remember that the balance in the Senate right now is 51 Dems, 47 Republicans, and 2 Independents. The Republicans will need to keep their 9 seats, including keeping the Texas seat, and gain 4 more to take the control of the Senate.

       It’s going to be a long and rocky road to 2012 !!

GOP Memo to 112th Congress: Bills Must Cite Constitutional Authority

Fulfilling one of their most prominent campaign promises, House Republican leaders have unveiled a new rule to require that each bill filed in the House “cite its specific constitutional authority.”

And for those who may have skipped that constitutional law class, Republicans have organized four staff briefings prior to the Jan. 5 start of the 112th Congress to provide guidance on compliance with the new rule. The first session will be Monday at 1 p.m. in the Capitol Visitor Center.

GOP leaders have prepared a memo for all members of the new Congress and senior staff informing them that no bill may be introduced unless the sponsor has submitted for the Congressional Record a statement “citing as specifically as practicable the power or powers granted to Congress” to enact the measure. The memo included five examples of forms that sponsors could include with their legislation.

And the memo warned that any bill that is filed without the requisite “constitutional authority statement” will not be accepted by the House clerk and will be returned to the sponsor. Such a statement, House Republicans added in a Friday statement, “also demonstrates to the American people that we in Congress understand that we have an obligation under our founding document to stay within the role established therein for the legislative branch.”
Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1210/46565.html#ixzz18QVwwxyk