When Edward J. (Ed) Feulner, Jr., long-time President of the Heritage
Foundation, and I organized what now is known as the Republican Study
Committee (RSC) 35 years ago, the Republican Leadership in the House was
either liberal (John Anderson) or non-confrontational (Robert Michel).
Aggressive conservatives were shut out of the Leadership. We then were
confronted by the Democratic Study Group (DSG) which at that time was
seeking to have a place in the Democratic Leadership. These were the
days of John McCormack (D-MA) and Carl Albert (D-OK), who went along to
get along. Today, of course the DSG types dominate the House Democratic
Leadership. There is no moderate-to-conservative Democrat in the
Leadership. Likewise RSC types dominate the Republican Leadership. There
are clear differences between the parties in the House.
One of the things Ed Feulner and I urged conservatives in the House to
do was to adduce an agenda of their own. Indeed, along the years they
did so. Whether we are talking about Jack Kemp's tax cuts or Newt
Gingrich's Contract with America, the Republicans did have an agenda
separate from the official leadership.
After Republicans became the majority party for the first time in 40
years, conservatives left it up to the official leadership to come up
with an agenda. At first that worked fine but by the time 2006 rolled
around there was no real agenda except to retain the majority. House
Republicans were adrift.
Not so anymore. The Republican Study Committee, under the able
leadership of Representative Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), has proposed an
eight-point agenda for which they hope for votes on before the present
110th Congress adjourns. The problem, of course, is they are no longer
in the majority so the Democrats set the agenda and it is unlikely they
will permit votes on most of these issues.
The one which probably resonates most around the nation is a moratorium
on earmarks. The public is really sold on the idea that earmarks
represent pork-barrel spending. In that connection RCS has proposed
limiting Federal taxing and spending to what middle class families can
afford.
Not surprising, RSC is proposing a simple tax code which Americans can
understand. I take that proposal less seriously since every party in
every election in my memory has promised the same thing and yet the tax
code becomes more complex.
The RSC agenda includes a family-focused patient-centered health care
system. That yet might be doable since our health care system has not
been given over completely to the socialists.
Continued... |