Posted on 08/02/2010 1:15:05 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Greta van Susteren publishes Senator Pat Leahy’s admission that he had no clue what was in the financial regulation bill before pushing it into law with an appropriate headline, so be sure to check it out. Leahy pledges to fix the law that he supported in order to fix what he never bothered to read:
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.),
Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee,
On FOIA Exemptions For The Securities And Exchange Commission
August 2, 2010“The Freedom of Information Act is our nation’s premier open government law, and a powerful guardian of the public’s right to know. The Wall Street reform bill that has now become law makes great strides toward enhancing transparency in our financial system. However, I am concerned that an overly broad Freedom of Information Act exemption, originally drafted in the House of Representatives and which was included in the final law, is contrary to the very important goals of the Wall Street Reform bill – restoring accountability and transparency to our financial markets. The SEC should immediately issue guidance narrowly interpreting this FOIA exemption in a manner that is both consistent with the President’s policy of government transparency and with Congressional intent. I will work with the Obama administration and others in Congress to ensure that the SEC remains subject to FOIA and accountable to the American people.”
Oh, come on now. It’s not as if Congress usually passes bills without reading them. Or, um, actually … it is. For those who may have missed it this weekend, Democrats refused to fix the ObamaCare provision that requires companies to drown themselves and the IRS in 1099s for business-to-business transactions over $600 in order to qualify them as tax deductions. Thanks to their pay-go rule, they won’t strip that requirement unless Republicans agree to hike taxes on other businesses to make up for the $19 billion in phantom revenue Democrats claim this change would have provided — even though more and more Democrats realize that this gives strong evidence that Democrats have a hostile approach to the private sector.
While we’re talking about accountability, Senator Leahy, perhaps voters should hold you accountable for your dereliction of duty. After all, you chair the Senate Judiciary Committee, which has at least some connection to FOIA issues and government accountability. Why didn’t you read the bill and discover this yourself?
Len Britton’s ad looks more and more relevant each day, and not just on economics.
Does Leahy even know how to read ?
The large print edition was not available at the time of passage.
If they aren’t going to read the bills why do we need them? You could train a monkey to push a “yea” or “nay” button. I know, I know, you will say that won’t because of the smell...but I believe those monkeys would get used to it.
He’s legally blind in one eye. Apparently it’s his reading eye.
If I were in Congress I might not read every bill. I would have someone I trusted provide me with an even handed “view graph” summary of every bill. The summaries could be prepared in cooperation with other members of Congress. I would want thorough breifing. I would also try to solicit inputs from as many key stakeholders as possible, outlining their concerns. Most stakeholders are well represented in Washington by lobbyist and this would be a legitimate way for them to earn a living.
That's what staffers are for.
Probably not.
This is what you get when the country is run by lawyers at every level.
The Constitution is one of the greatest documents ever written and it doesn’t take a degree to understand it.
This wonderful country could return to greatness if we insist that EVERY law passed by Congress be easily understood by laypeople....
Quick!! Vote him out! Give him his pick of queers and vote him out!!! He’ll likely appreciate you for it.
Since there were no pictures he passed.
It doesn’t matter. He would have Leaked all over it anyway.
I doubt that the “plow through every line” approach would be particularly useful. My way would certainly be.
MY employee would be fired....
This wonderful country could return to greatness if we stop electing lawyers.
Forces other than our legislature are writing laws and then bribing our representatives to vote one way or the other on them. Our system has failed. It’s corrupt.
Forces other than our legislature are writing laws and then bribing our representatives to vote one way or the other on them. Our system has failed. It’s corrupt.
Hard to imagine we have such utter incompetent, ignorant morons leading this country into the abyss... the Founding Fathers must be shaking their heads in disbelief.
Nor apparently were the "Cliff Notes"
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