DeLay's shamful Congress

Jonathan Alter writes of the "single most corrupt decade in the long and colorful history of the House of Representatives" under Tom DeLay.

I have no idea if DeLay has technically broken the law. What interests me is how this moderate, evenly divided nation came to be ruled on at least one side of Capitol Hill by a zealot. This is a man who calls the Environmental Protection Agency "the Gestapo of government" and favors repealing the Clean Air Act because "it's never been proven that air toxins are hazardous to people"; who insists repeatedly that judges on the other side of issues "need to be intimidated" and rejects the idea of a separation of church and state; who claims there are no parents trying to raise families on the minimum wage—that "fortunately, such families do not exist" (at least Newt Gingrich was intrigued by the challenges of poverty); who once said: "A woman can't take care of the family. It takes a man to provide structure." I could go on all day. Congress has always had its share of extremists. But the DeLay era is the first time the fringe has ever been in charge.

The only comparison to DeLay Co. might be the Radical Republicans of the 1860s. But the 19th-century Radical Republican agenda was to integrate and remake the South. The 21st-century Radical Republican agenda is to enact the wish list of the tobacco and gun lobbies, repeal health and safety regulations and spend billions on shameless pork-barrel projects to keep the GOP at the trough. Another analogy is to Republican Speaker Joe Cannon, who ran the House with an iron fist a century ago. But Cannon had to contend with Progressive Republicans who eventually stripped him of his power. DeLay's ruling radical conservative claque remains united, at least for now.[...]

A new book, "Off Center: The Republican Revolution and the Erosion of American Democracy," by Jacob S. Hacker and Paul Pierson, explains how the GOP is simply better than the Democratic Party at the basic blocking and tackling of politics, including the exploitation of cultural and religious issues. The authors argue that even if DeLay goes down, the zealotry and corporate shilling will continue as long as the GOP controls the House. Consider DeLay's temporary replacement, Missouri Rep. Roy Blunt. The Washington Post reported last week that Blunt is respected by Republican members in part because he has "strong ties to the Washington lobbying community." That's a qualification for office?

The only reason the House hasn't done even more damage is that the Senate often sands down the most noxious ideas, making the bills merely bad, not disastrous. What next for the House of Shame? If DeLay's acquitted, he'll be back in power. If he's convicted, his proteges will continue his work. Reform efforts by fiscal conservatives determined to curb their borrow-and-spend colleagues are probably doomed. The only way to get rid of the termites eating away the people's House is to stamp them out at the next election.

In short, the Republicans are better at winning election, then use their power to pay off their supporters while ignoring the important functions of government in a modern industrial nation. The Democrats are not nearly as well-organized to win elections, so they have lost to power to give America the government it needs and deserves.

I don't think Tom DeLay will be able to return to the job of House Majority Leader, but that will not make much difference in how the Republicans run Congress. Tom DeLay's effort to place the moderate and known Gay Republican Representative David Dreier to "hold his place", was defeated by the Conservatives who run the House.

DeLay's redistricting of Teas left him with a Congressional District that he only won by 55% in 2004. A marginal district is one a strong incumbant wins by 55% or less. As Majority Leader he could have used his K-STreet connections to flood his own district with corporate-directed donations. Without that job, and with the results of this indictment on his record, he may be defeated in 2006.

We can all hope. America will be better off with Tom DeLay out of office.