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Obama’s Record So Far: A on Transparency, D on Appointments

Nov. 18, 12 a.m.

As a state Senator in Illinois and as a U.S. Senator, Barack Obama built a reputation as a process reformer. He worked hard and had some notable success on ethics and lobbying reform. He also advocated good ideas on campaign and election reform, and brought more transparency to government, including his achievement — with unlikely Senate ally Tom Coburn (Okla.), a conservative Republican — of getting disclosure posted online of all entities receiving federal funds.

Pelosi’s Deal-Making Skills Helped Save Health Care Bill

Nov. 10, 12 a.m.

Whatever one thinks of the substance, and whatever happens from now on, the House Democrats’ victory Saturday on their health care reform package with only a single Republican supporter was a triumph of legislative maneuvering, with the biggest kudos going to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). Any student of the legislative process had to admire and acknowledge the artistry of threading several needles at once to get that minimum winning coalition together.

Results Won’t Change Congress, but Election Has Many Implications

Nov. 4, 12 a.m.

Unfortunately, because of lead times, I have to write this long before the results of the Tuesday elections are in. So I cannot make intelligent post-dictions, much less stunning predictions, given that at least two of the three big contests — the New Jersey gubernatorial race and New York’s 23rd Congressional district — are as I write too close to call.

To Escape Economic Purgatory, Feds Must Spend More Money

Oct. 28, 12 a.m.

When I first heard about the plan to give every senior on Social Security $250 because there will be no cost-of-living adjustment, I laughed until it hurt. It hurt a lot.

Snowe Falls, but More Obstacles Remain for Health Care Legislation

Oct. 21, 12 a.m.

The health care reform debate is rapidly moving to some critical moments and critical choices in both the House and the Senate; the dynamics now raise fascinating questions about the process, the parties, the institutions and the norms inside Congress.

Health Reform Fight Will Raise Questions About Our Tax System

Oct. 14, 12 a.m.

First, a shout-out to Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), who chronicled his extraordinary “district work period” adventure in the Washington Post on Monday. I don’t know many people who could survive a week alone on a desert island — much less write about it so compellingly.

House Leaders Have a Fiduciary Duty to Protect the Institution

Oct. 7, 12 a.m.

Let us start with Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.), who took to the House floor last week to say that the Republican health care reform plan is to have people “die quickly.” It was an over-the-top, outrageous comment that has no place in civil discourse.

‘Son of Chafee’ Health Reform Bill May Be Most Likely Outcome

Sept. 30, 12 a.m.

The choice of Paul Kirk (D) to temporarily fill the vacant Senate seat in Massachusetts was a first-rate move by Gov. Deval Patrick (D). Kirk has done a first-rate, bipartisan job with Frank Fahrenkopf on the Commission on Presidential Debates, and he did a terrific job with the Profile in Courage awards, especially the gutsy choice of Gerald Ford for his pardon of Richard Nixon. Kirk is smart, savvy, civil and seasoned, just what one would want for a temporary appointment.

Edward Kennedy’s Gift to the Senate — and the Country

Sept. 23, 12 a.m.

After a brief protest from Massachusetts Republicans in their state Senate, the commonwealth is on the verge of changing its law to allow Gov. Deval Patrick (D) to appoint an interim Senator until the special election to fill the late Sen. Edward Kennedy’s seat can be held in January.

Wilson’s Outburst Did Dishonor to All of Congress

Sept. 16, 12 a.m.

'I hold the distinguished gentleman in minimum high regard.” That was the way former Speaker John McCormack (D-Mass.) would express his deep displeasure and anger at a colleague on the floor of the House. Call it the 1950s equivalent of “You lie!”

An Exciting Few Months Awaits All Congress Watchers

Sept. 9, 12 a.m.

Not exactly a recess, or even a “district work period” — more like a district angst period — this August was far more tumultuous and action-packed than most any I can remember. A core part, of course, was the intensity in districts and states all across the country over health care reform. But August also included the death of Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), leaving a huge void in the policy sphere and in the life of Washington, D.C.

As Ethics Issues Swirl, the House Finally Has the Right Process

Aug. 5, 12 a.m.

Last week, the Washington Post had a story discussing potential conflicts of interest of the members of the House ethics committee over its investigation of alleged earmark irregularities linked to the lobbying firm PMA Group. PMA has close ties to a number of Members of Congress, including the powerful chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.). It turns out that the 10 members of the ethics panel have requested a number of earmarks from Murtha’s subcommittee.

The Time Has Come to Put a Limit on Supreme Court Tenure

July 29, 12 a.m.

The nomination of Sonia Sotomayor for the Supreme Court is on course for a strong confirmation vote on the Senate floor. But the 13-6 vote in the Judiciary Committee, with all Republicans save Lindsey Graham (S.C.) voting against her, made me reflect again on the politics of confirmation in light of our permanent campaign/polarized partisan politics environment — and on the need to rethink one of the fundamentals in our Constitution: the equivalent of lifetime tenure for federal judges.

Obama and Allies Must Not Dawdle on Health Care Reform

July 22, 12 a.m.

The August deadline for a health care reform bill on the president’s desk was never realistic. But it was plausible to set an August deadline for two disparate bills passing the House and Senate, leaving a month or two to work out the kinks and come up with a compromise plan. Now, however, it is looking increasingly unlikely that even this deadline can be met.

Social Networking Sites May Be Model for the Government

July 15, 12 a.m.

The Obama administration has found some rough waters as it tries to navigate through Congress with a plan to reshape financial regulation.

Is Obama Too Weak in Dealing With Congress?

July 8, 12 a.m.

An interesting theme has emerged in the past couple of weeks from analysts, described succinctly in a recent column by Clive Crook of the Financial Times: “Obama Is Choosing to Be Weak.” The Crook thesis is that by delegating so much authority to Congress, President Barack Obama is first encouraging the creation and passage of truly bad legislation, starting with the climate change bill that passed the House before the recess, and moving to the health reform bill slowly taking shape on Capitol Hill.

Congress Must Create Some Entrepreneurial Opportunities in Crisis

June 29, 12 a.m.

As we navigate through the economic miasma, Congress has to keep in mind one of the greater long-term dangers that America faces: the flight of venture capital from a United States seen by many investors as stagnant in its growth prospects — and competing with places like India and China and other emerging nations that look to have much more robust growth for several years.

Slow Confirmation Process Is Hurting U.S. Government

June 24, 12 a.m.

More than five months into the new Obama administration, hundreds of key executive positions, across all departments, remain unfilled.

More RXes Needed for Nation’s Ailing Health Care System

June 17, 12 a.m.

Health care reform is moving rapidly toward action, with both chambers of Congress deeply engaged and a substantial amount of interaction within and across committees, and with President Barack Obama becoming much more directly involved. The main focus, and the controversies, have centered on the insurance system — how to cover everybody, how to pay for covering everybody, whether there is a public plan to compete with private plans, and so on.

Congress Needs to Beware of Growing Populist Anger

June 10, 12 a.m.

Why did the Democrats lose the House in 1994 after 40 years of rule?

Voting Rights Act Ruling Will Expose ‘Judicial Activism’

June 3, 12 a.m.

The Senate will soon be taking up the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor for the Supreme Court. The Judiciary Committee, and then the full body, will be filled with debates over what is proper and appropriate for justices — and other judges, for that matter. Conservatives, whether they have called Sotomayor a racist or they have kept their criticism more muted, have had one consistent criticism. Sotomayor is a “judicial activist,” they say — the opposite of what they believe defines a good justice.

Congress Needs a Five-Day Workweek (Most of the Time)

May 26, 12 a.m.

This Congress has been as active and productive as any I can remember. The number of major bills passed and enacted into law, the serious, sustained activity in areas of broad, complex and critical importance, all are truly impressive. The Memorial Day recess (all right, all right, District Work Period) is a well-deserved few days off.

Congress Must Not Abandon Its Critical Oversight Function

May 20, 12 a.m.

In Monday’s Washington Post, Fareed Zakaria had an insightful column that started with why the dire predictions about the coming flu pandemic being the equal of the 1918 global disaster proved (so far) to be inaccurate. He offered well- deserved kudos to the Mexican government, which acted swiftly and decisively, and to the larger fact that governments are simply different — better equipped, better prepared, with a wholly different mindset — than they were in 1918. Zakaria applied the same logic to the dire predictions that we are about to enter the next Great Depression, also inaccurate and unlikely to occur, because governments globally have responded with “amazing speed and scale.”

Conditions Seem Right for Some Type of Health Reform to Pass

May 13, 12 a.m.

Back in March 1993, when we were just beginning the Clinton journey toward health care reform, I wrote an opinion piece in the Washington Post on the prospects for success. My central point was that there is a universal public definition of reform: I pay less.

Kemp: A Big Loss; SCOTUS Vacancy: A Big Opportunity

May 6, 12 a.m.

First a word about Jack Kemp. I met Jack when he came to the House and developed an instant affection for him. It was impossible not to like him — he was open, honest, enthusiastic, passionate. There was simply nothing phony about Kemp and so much to admire. Jack loved his country and loved its people and wanted nothing more than to have everyone, regardless of race, creed or status, succeed.