A New Direction for America
By Congressman Brad Sherman
Throughout 2006, Democrats spelled out specific legislative plans. When Americans called for greater integrity in Washington, we pledged to make Congress more ethical. When Americans called for common-sense proposals to improve the everyday lives of all Americans, we put forward an agenda that addressed critical economic, health care, and educational concerns of ordinary families. We offered a new direction for America.
Now, in the first 100 legislative hours of the new session of Congress that convened today, we will begin to live up to those commitments. In the first 100 hours, Congress will pass legislation to make the American people safer, make Congress more honest and open, make our economy fairer, and build a better future for our children.
On Thursday, the opening day of the new Congress, we adopted an ethics reform package that will make this the most honest, ethical and open Congress in history.
The new rules will begin to sever the link between lobbyists and legislation by banning gifts and travel from lobbyists, and by ending abuses connected to privately-funded congressional travel. The package also brings civility to the legislative debate – committing to a fair and open process for amendments, guaranteeing time to read legislation, and ensuring that the minority can participate in conference committees.
During this first week, we are also going to change the House rules to restore pay-as-you-go budgeting – which will begin to reverse the record budget deficits that are passing on trillions in debt to our children and grandchildren.
Then, we will pass important legislation to meet the everyday needs of all Americans. We will make America safer by implementing the recommendations of the 9/11 commission; make our economy fairer by raising the minimum wage; make college more affordable by cutting the interest rates on student loans; improve health care by promoting stem cell research, and take the first step toward achieving energy independence by repealing subsidies to oil companies and investing the savings in renewable energy.
On no other issue was the call for a new direction clearer than in the war in Iraq. The recent report of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group concluded that the President’s Iraq policy is failing. I hope that the President will recognize that he must take our policy in Iraq in a new direction.
These proposals are not partisan. All of them enjoy broad support
The American people – many Republican and independent voters among them – entrusted a new Congress with their hopes and aspirations for themselves, their families and their future. We will work to honor that trust. We are prepared to lead, and we are ready to govern.