Imagine for a moment

[Mxylplyx]

Lets just imagine for a moment that the moderates in the house, from both parties, if there were still enough of them, agreed that party politics has paralyzed the institution to the point that it had become an anchor around the neck of this great nation. Apparently there is not even a constitutional requirement that the speaker of the house be a sitting congressman. Imagine if the moderates decided it's time to reboot the house, and nominated a universally respected technocrat with little to no party affiliation that would come in and enforce regular order back in the house. No more Hastert rule, just bills being introduced and voted upon. Our government would be transformed overnight.

It's just a pipe dream, but seeing a large enough group come together in the house and do something that bold would restore alot of pride I once had for this nation.

 

[GagHalfrunt]

Lets just imagine for a moment that the moderates in the house, from both parties, if there were still enough of them, agreed that party politics has paralyzed the institution to the point that it had become an anchor around the neck of this great nation. Apparently there is not even a constitutional requirement that the speaker of the house be a sitting congressman. Imagine if the moderates decided it's time to reboot the house, and nominated a universally respected technocrat with little to no party affiliation that would come in and enforce regular order back in the house. No more Hastert rule, just bills being introduced and voted upon. Our government would be transformed overnight.

Even if you manage all that you're going to accomplish nothing. The congressswine will not hold hands and go skipping through the daisies, they're still going to corrupt the system by spreading pork to keep themselves in power. They're still going to introduce and pass bills based on the ideology of their donors, not for the good of the county. They're going to lie, cheat, steal and backstab because that's how they wound up in government in the first place and they don't have any other skills to use.

 

[glenn1]

GOP controls the Senate anyway so makes no difference. The Senate won't let any legislation through that's not demonstrably conservative, and Obama wouldn't sign anything that wasn't demonstrably progressive.

 

[ivwshane]

It's been argued that the pork spending used to be what greased the wheels that led to bipartisanship.

Even if you manage all that you're going to accomplish nothing. The congressswine will not hold hands and go skipping through the daisies, they're still going to corrupt the system by spreading pork to keep themselves in power. They're still going to introduce and pass bills based on the ideology of their donors, not for the good of the county. They're going to lie, cheat, steal and backstab because that's how they wound up in government in the first place and they don't have any other skills to use.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

I'm trying to imagine but its inconceivable to imagine.

 

[Mxylplyx]

It's been argued that the pork spending used to be but greased the wheels that led to bipartisanship.

I would stand behind this reasoning. Veteran congressman were raising this ref flag years ago when the earmark ban was gaining steam. A few billion dollars in pork goes a long way in making our government work. The opposition to it is purely philosophical.

 

[Mxylplyx]

GOP controls the Senate anyway so makes no difference. The Senate won't let any legislation through that's not demonstrably conservative, and Obama wouldn't sign anything that wasn't demonstrably progressive.

It's obvious that any legislation would have a conservative tilt due to numbers, but the senate is more apt to compromise. Trying to suggest that Obama is as uncompromising as Republicans right now is straight up dishonest. Conservative tilt does NOT mean a bill that guts Obamacare, or privatizes social security, or some other wild conservative hail mary pass. Back when the semi-adults ran the show they knew not to bother sending trash like that to an opposing presidents desk.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

I would stand behind this reasoning. Veteran congressman were raising this ref flag years ago when the earmark ban was gaining steam. A few billion dollars in pork goes a long way in making our government work. The opposition to it is purely philosophical.

Similar to how I feel about open records and such its good to be able to audit & hold people accountable but there is something to be said about how decades past Presidents could pick up the phone & speak to the CEO of a profitable company like GM and say hey the army is going to need a ton of new trucks I'd like them to be GM trucks but unemployment is pretty high in Detroit what can you do about this/when do you plan on hiring more?
A modern example could be hey apple it looks like you have a lot of iPhone patents, some say you are monopolizing mobility. What would it take to assemble some iPhones in the US instead of China?

 

[TheSlamma]

Lets just imagine for a moment that the moderates in the house, from both parties, if there were still enough of them

Stop there... there isn't.

 

[Mxylplyx]

Similar to how I feel about open records and such its good to be able to audit & hold people accountable but there is something to be said about how decades past Presidents could pick up the phone & speak to the CEO of a profitable company like GM and say hey the army is going to need a ton of new trucks I'd like them to be GM trucks but unemployment is pretty high in Detroit what can you do about this/when do you plan on hiring more?
A modern example could be hey apple it looks like you have a lot of iPhone patents, some say you are monopolizing mobility. What would it take to assemble some iPhones in the US instead of China?

Politicians don't have enough breathing room to operate anymore under the glare of 24hr news cycles, political score cards, etc.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

^^exactly^^

 

[woolfe9998]

I'll take the old school, horse-trading style of politics over the partisan polarized gridlock we have right now any day.

 

[werepossum]

Why of Earth are we attempting to make Congress better function? A decade or three of continuing resolutions and our financial house might be in order, not to mention the benefit of government possibly learning to do more with less the way they regularly expect American taxpayers to do.

 

[MongGrel]

The easy solution, of course.

:biggrin:

 

[nickqt]

So, what you're saying is that Democrats should be in control of the House?

I mean, if you're an actual conservative and not a reactionary, that's fine, but I'd prefer the House to actually be liberal.

 

[Jhhnn]

Why of Earth are we attempting to make Congress better function? A decade or three of continuing resolutions and our financial house might be in order, not to mention the benefit of government possibly learning to do more with less the way they regularly expect American taxpayers to do.

Why should 9% of Reps from gerrymandered districts be able to hold the govt of the people hostage to their reactionary agenda?