A Conservative View

WHAT AMERICA NEEDS – A CONGRESS THAT ACTS INSTEAD OF FIGHTS!

What Congress has become in my lifetime is a body that spends most of their time developing ways to stop progress and develop political actions to divides the people instead of focusing on progress. I researched their responsibilities and found the following.  

1. Congress is the legislative, or lawmaking, branch of our national government. It shares power with the president and the Supreme Court. The writers of the U.S. Constitution thought Congress was so important, they listed it first! Congress has two parts, the Senate and the House of Representatives.

One thing is certain, Congress has lost its importance of being first as they have defaulted their power and the Presidents use executive powers to act to either help or hurt the people. We just had a President that did more to divide the people than every enemy we have had in our history. Now we have a President that is trying to unite the people and he is being combated by the Federal Courts, the Supreme Court and both the Democrats and Republicans in Congress. The people elected Trump to unite the people and the other two branches of government have stopped him from doing exactly what he promised to do when he was elected. Congress is dysfunctional and so divided it only debates and gets nothing done.

2. Congress has authority over financial and budgetary matters, through the enumerated power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States.

The Senate has not approved a budget in so long it should have its powers removed. If you look at the IRS alone the collection of taxes alone has become a major cost of governing and the people can no longer do their own taxes. I have a Masters in Business and I have been unable to do my taxes for over 25 years. The IRS has grown a lot faster than the economy by issuing 70,000 pages of rules that are changed daily. Trump promised a new tax system that would simplify the tax system and it has been over nine months for nothing to happen in Congress to help the people.

3. Congress has five main functions: lawmaking, representing the people, performing oversight, helping constituents, and educating the public.

Lawmaking created little while lawbreaking has become commonplace in our cities and many States. Federal Judges now make law, Our last President, Governors and Mayors openly ignore laws and nothing happens. Trump called Washington DC a “Swamp”. When a Federal Judge in Hawaii can make laws by decree the Swamp is a morass likely nationwide?

How many of those who read this have been helped by your Congressperson?

As far as educating the public Congress can’t even educate its members. The recent debacle over a Trump phone call is proof positive Congress has no control over its own members.

4. Through legislative debate and compromise, the U.S. Congress makes laws that influence our daily lives. It holds hearings to inform the legislative process, conducts investigations to oversee the executive branch, and serves as the voice of the people and the states in the federal government.

Now we get to the red meat. Congress has demonstrated that debate and compromise are two things that have become totally inoperative today. Congress has made laws that have devastated the people and our daily lives. Congress holds hearings to give face time to individuals who consistently prove they can’t ever agree that white is white or right is right. There are so many Congresspersons  begging for face time on the networks and in hearings I feel sure all 535 members have a hairdresser and a makeup professional to make sure their lipstick, powder and hair look professional.

5. What are the three powers of the Congress? Enumerated powers, or the expressed powers, are powers the Constitution explicitly grants to Congress, including the power to declare war and levy taxes.

I for one doubt that if we were attacked today by North Korea that Congress would be debating the issue to declare war for six months and the vote would be 52 to 48 in the Senate. Even the RINO Republicans would all hopefully vote to declare war. Well I have always been an optimists. If Ms Collins, Mr McCain, Ms Murkowski or Mr Paul rebelled against war, North Korea might gain control of the entire west coast states and Alaska. Maybe we should throw in Arizona, Illinois and New York?

What America needs first and now are jobs, jobs and jobs. Putting our welfare army to work will solve the National debt issue. Only term limits will correct the Congressional issues.

C Brewer  10-21-17