Another World Class Congressional Intellect Confesses
by Holden Watch
The Senate Democrat's passage of their version (perversion?) of a health care "˜reform' bill on Saturday reminded us of recent coverage of another rare moment of senatorial frankness.
When we began reporting confessions of members of Congress about their failure to read the legislation on which they vote, we had no idea that the trickle would become a gusher. First Rep. T. Timothy Holden, then Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Committee Chairman John Conyers came clean on their unwillingness and/or inability to read and comprehend the contents of critical legislation they impose upon the American people.
More recently, Sen. Thomas Carper (D-DE), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, told a national news outlet that he does not "˜expect' to read the actual legislative language of the committee's health care bill because it is "˜confusing' and that anyone who claims they are going to read and understand it is fooling people.
"˜I don't expect to actually read the legislative language because reading the legislative language is among the more confusing things I've ever read in my life,' Carper told CNSNews.com.
Carper indicts them all, saying that anyone who claims they'll understand it "˜"¦is trying to pull the wool over our eyes.' He's telling us that even if some of them attempt to read it, they will not understand it.
Carper says they work with "˜conceptual language' and then let nameless, faceless bureaucrats fill in the blanks, you know, the people who are unknown and unaccountable to voters. Tim Holden's House works the same way.
So, if members don't read bills, their employers in the American public should just ignore them when passed. It's only fair, right? If conceptual language is good enough for members of Congress, why is it not good enough for the people? Heck, the Democrats won't even release the legislative language of bills before votes are taken. They know the American people are a lot smarter than they are - smart enough to read and understand what they will not and cannot, and too smart to fall for the hooey they pass.
Tim Holden and his colleagues are paid to read and understand bills. If they don't, they aren't doing the only job they have.
Why should we take what they do seriously?
In fact, why should we even keep them around?