Common Sense

http://www.downsizedc.org/blog/common-sense

Quote of the Day: "Students of American history will recall that the important place where work gets done in the legislative body, almost without exception, is in the committees, more so than on the floor although sometimes more attention is paid to the floor." - Paul Sarbanes

Subject: Common sense

Each year the Iraq-Afghanistan spending bill comes loaded with extras that remind us how much we need the One Subject At A Time Act.

Because few in Congress will vote against a bill that "supports the troops," this bill provides an opportunity for legislative abuse . . .

• Four years ago, the otherwise unpopular Real ID Act was attached to the Iraq bill and became law
• Last year, $95 billion in domestic spending was added to the Iraq bill in exchange for Democratic support for the warrantless spying and telecom immunity bill.

The House and Senate conference committee will soon meet to work out differences in this year's bill. It is unknown what tricks they'll have up their sleeve, but the bill, H.R. 2346, is already bad enough. In addition to funding the wars, there is money for the BATFE, federal prisons, foreign aid, the War on Drugs, forest fire management, and other programs. The total price tag is over $900 per family.

Downsize DC's proposed One Subject At A Time Act (OSTA) would prevent the bundling of these different topics into one bill. Instead, each subject would be voted on as a separate bill. Necessary bills will still pass, but unpopular measures won't. The country would be spared the cost of programs most members of Congress didn't want in the first place.

If members of Congress had common sense, they would actually want to live under OSTA's constraints. Then they could vote for a reasonable and necessary bill without being forced to accept unnecessary, unrelated provisions. Whether the U.S. should fight these wars, and whether the federal government should provide more money for wildland fire management, are two completely unrelated questions. Members of Congress who support one but oppose the other shouldn't be forced to either accept both or reject both.

Demand common sense from Congress. Tell them to pass the One Subject At A Time Act. In your personal comments . . .

• tell them you object to the price tag of H.R. 2346, the Supplemental Approriations Act
• demand that it be broken up into different bills by department and subject
• insist that they oppose any backroom deals in the conference committee that will make the bill even worse

You can send your message at DownsizeDC.org's "One Subject at a Time" campaign page.

Thank you for being a part of the growing Downsize DC Army.

James Wilson
Assistant to the President
DownsizeDC.org