But I was here in DC, at a course called Congressional Operations, learning how Congress really works.
So I missed it :( The thing had been pretty loose for about a month and Paul says that Wed morning when she was brushing her teeth it was just barely hanging on! Anna let him pull it out that morning and she did great :) No pain, just excitement as she headed out the door to school. He sent me this picture of the tooth:
Before I left for DC she promised not to let it fall out till I got home :) So much for that! Then she promised not to let the tooth fairy take it till I got home but she just couldn't wait so I missed that too!!! What a booger! :) But I can't blame her! This is the picture she left for the tooth fairy along with her tooth:
And this is what the tooth fairy left in exchange:
A bunch of quarters and 2 special 1 Dollar coins! I love her!!! What a big girl!!!
She is loving school! From day 1 they were doing site words and she nailed them. She loves the computer time so much. She hates the school food so we bring lunch (rats!). She got all smiley faces for behavior everyday again this week, her third week of school. All smiley faces = a prize from the treasure box. I and one other parent will be the room mothers this year. My first training meeting is right smack at 1:20pm on the 24th, already in conflict with a big work schedule that day when I am hosting some visitors from DC. But I will just have to make it work!
I had the best time at that class in DC! On trips I am usually ready to come home, but this one I was wishing I had just a few more days. There was so much to learn and see and if it weren't for Anna I'd love to do a 7 month fellowship up there. We heard from several key Republicans and Democrats on issues and bipartisanship problems and on how the process works. We learned why this 112th congress has passed the least amount of legislation in history. We heard from Rep Jeff Flake on how he got rid of ear marks. We heard from Dana Bush (CNN) on the role of media. We heard from former Speaker of the House Hastel, who gave us a history of what it was like to work a balanced budget under Clinton and then spend out of control without appropriation in response to 9/11 under Bush, while enacting the 01-03 tax cuts which started the deficit, snowballing g to what we have today. We learned that this congress cannot work together because of the incoming Republican freshmen who took around 87 seats, giving the Republicans control of the house in 2010 are people like us: small business owners, farmers, lawyers, teachers. People America voted for because we were tired of the beaurocrats on The Hill making their life suck. America voted for the people who would stand their ground and would not compromise!
So that's what America got. These people do not understand anything about the art o compromise, which drives how Congress legislates. Compromise and negotiation are the foundation of the quirky processes that drive legislation, and it has to be, for the sake of checks and balance. It takes an art of negotiation and a certain personality to work through issues, to give and take a little on both sides. It's not supposed to be easy!
Take a look. For the worst Congress in American history- the most polarized since right before the civil war. The process hasn't changed, but the people of America have. We voted in 2010 for these people who supposedly reflect our wants. We are the constituents. Our congressmen want their jobs we elected them for, and we elected them to represent us. If we want them to have a spine and do not compromise because we tell them to, this is what they will do, and this is what we will get. And we have heard this from top Republicans and Democrats all week, as well as from lessons and history we picked up. Our congress represents America. So America, what's wrong with this picture? Why aren't we encouraging negotiation and thought? Is it a good idea to keep electing freshmen who have zero idea how congress really works? One of the biggest setbacks for the huge freshman class (1/4 of the House is freshman. 1/3 of the Republican party alone is freshman!!) is that there's a huge learning curve in training these folks on what they can and can't do process-wise. I mean right down to the basics from our text books! On top of this these newly-elects have no drive to compromise. They were elected on their take-no-prisoners campaign. So let's bear with them for the first few years while they figure out what will and won't work. These people are hurting their own party and in turn we feel it as a whole country.
What's it going to take? Time and a crisis. Let's not get as extreme as the civil war but maybe "sequestration" will do it. Last year in order to pass a budget, both parties agreed to an amendment that basically says if they don't come up with a plan to balance the budget that both sides can agree to, then as of Jan 2013, we will have a sequester. This is that for the next 10 years, there will be an equal 10% cut each year across all federal agencies over the next 10 years, effectively gaining $ back over the deficit. This amounts to a whopping 50% cut in defense over 10 years and 50% in social programs. As federal employees we are scared for our jobs and programs and as an American, I am scared for the impacts I will feel at the state level daily. Most Americans have never heard of this but you can bet if you're like most Americans you're going to feel it somewhere. The state can't protect you!
Right now to avoid sequestration, and balance the budget, Democrats want to let the Bush tax cuts of 01-03 expire in Jan to gain revenue to balance the budget. The Republicans want to cut social programs. There's more to it than that certainly but that's the big idea. I frankly think you need both. We wanted this war, we put it on charge for 10 years, and now we have to pay for it! America, you can't spend for 10 years on a credit card and never expect to pay it back! Sorry, but we need to pay our share. And as well, there are several duplicate social programs (and defense!) that could stand a review and consolidation to save money there too.
Alas, both sides disagree and the leadership on both sides can't get it together. And they have no desire to until after the election. If it happens, sequestration will suck and hurt but I can't get entirely angry now that I know what "those idiots" are doing up there. Most all of them mean well and stand for what they think their constituents want. They represent America. So only America can fix it.
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