Do nothing congress 
 

By Jim Killebrew

[August 11, 2014]  The people are being fooled by talking points about the "do-nothing" Congress. The Congress is divided into two chambers; the Senate and the House of Representatives. The current Congress has a split majority, the democrats control the Senate and the republicans control the House of Representatives.

The rules of both chambers of Congress allow the leader to be the gatekeeper regarding the bills that can be brought up for a vote. In the House of Representatives the Speaker is the leader. The Speaker is John Boehner. In the Senate the Leader is Harry Reid. When we hear the President or any politician talking about the "do-nothing" Congress we need to look closely at the leaders of both chambers. They each, in their respective chambers, control what is going to be voted on that will eventually be formed as a bill to be sent to the President for him to sign into law or veto and send back to Congress.

The House of Representatives has sent at least 357 bills to the Senate for debate and voting. The Senate Leader, Harry Reid has not allowed those bills to be presented to the Senate for a vote. The Senate is sitting on 357 bills that cannot be sent to the President for his signature or veto. Harry Reid has squelched those bills and failed to act on them in the Senate.

When the democrat President points to Congress and accuses that body of being a "do-nothing" Congress he is really talking about the Senate that is democrat controlled; more specifically, he is talking about the democrat leader, Harry Reid. To remedy this "do-nothing" status, all the President has to do is pick up his phone he brags about so often and call Harry Reid and tell him to quit sitting on the bills that have passed the House and been sent to the Senate.

The President's overreaching and circumventing Congress is politically motivated and could be stopped but for two men in government: The President and the Leader of the Senate; both democrats.

[By JIM KILLEBREW]