Stand and Deliver: School's in Session

Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi [Getty Images]

In the past few weeks Washington, D.C. has witnessed something that's been rare on Capitol Hill lately.

Politicians who are ready to work after eight long, unproductive years of the House of Representatives being run by obstructionist Republican lawmakers more interested in legislating on behalf of their wealthy donor base than on behalf of the majority of Americans and the environment in which we live.

It's been refreshing to watch Democrats take back the levers of power on Capitol Hill.

Does everyone feel that way? Obviously not.

Especially given a shifting American political climate still marked by division, partisan rancor and an unpopular president with a sinking approval rating now hovering in the 38% range according to the latest Gallup poll data for January.

The results of the mid-term elections in November made it clear that independents and suburban swing voters have drifted away from a president many of them supported back in 2016 when they still bought into the idea that Trump was going to be some kind of crusading reformer of "big government" who would "shake up the system."

Now that his signature tax cut gift to the wealthiest Americans has exploded the federal deficit, his self-proclaimed "trade war" with China has raised costs for some products used by U.S. manufacturers and stifled crop markets and prices for many baffled American farmers, the magic has worn off this scandal-plagued administration - for those who believed in it anyway.

As conservative stalwart William Kristol reported for The Bulwark last Sunday morning, veteran New York political operator Bruce Gyory notes that recent Marist poll data conducted for PBS now shows Trump loosing support among his core base of white evangelicals (down 11%) and blue collar white men (down 17%).

And yet Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell allow the shutdown to linger on.

Tuesday January 22nd: federal workers line up for
charitable food assistance in Washington, D.C. [AP] 

What the White House doesn't seem to grasp is that most of the people who still support Trump - aside from his right-wingy billionaire mega-donors - actually understand what it means to live paycheck to paycheck in this country.

They may be angry about immigration, guns or women making their own reproductive healthcare decisions - but they're not completely heartless.

And they're beginning to understand that the TSA, IRS and National Park Service are parts of the government they need - and want.

The political views of Trump's base may be out of synch with the vast majority of American people, but you can't tell me that Trump supporters aren't affected by the images of federal workers who haven't seen a paycheck since December lining up in the freezing cold on a Saturday to get free produce and canned goods donated from a food bank.

Like the almost 200 furloughed federal employees did in Rockville, Maryland last weekend.

So this protracted government shutdown resulting from Trump's childlike refusal to sign any legislation that would reopen the closed portions of the federal government that does not contain $5.7 billion for his wall, is not sitting well with many of those who own MAGA hats.

Arguably even some registered Republicans would privately admit to feeling a sense of relief over the legislative branch of government now being in the hands of party that's going to use the powers delegated to them under the Constitution to begin exercising some restraint and control to reign in a chaotic president.

The new Democratic House leadership, Jim Clyburn,
Nancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer  

The new Democratic House majority under the leadership of Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Majority Whip Jim Clyburn have only been in power less than a month.

But they've proved quite adept at schooling Trump on the realties of the powers granted to the House of Representatives.

And how power in Washington, D.C. really works.

Just today Trump received a letter from Pelosi saying that she would not allow him to use the House Chamber to give his State of the Union address next week while major portions of the government are still shut down.

Unaccustomed to being told "no", Trump predictably had a hissy fit, calling Pelosi's decision "a great, great horrible mark." - apparently he's just learning that a president must be invited to deliver a State of the Union address in front of a joint session of Congress, and the Speaker of the House controls whether that happens or not.

Sorry Mr. President, Nancy Pelosi is no spineless do-nothing like Paul Ryan, and she has teeth too; as her decision to have the House Oversight Committee investigate how Trump's self-enriching son-in-law Jared Kushner managed to get access to classified material despite not having proper security clearance demonstrates.

Trump is also facing increased opposition from Democrats on the Senate side too.

If you're not familiar with Democratic Montana Senator John Tester, he's a no-nonsense, down to earth politician who rocks a crew cut and still works as an actual farmer.

Seriously, this guy is a political bad-ass, a Democrat who held off a strong challenge by Trump and the Republican Party to take his Senate seat in conservative-leaning Montana in the recent 2018 mid-terms - dude is tough.

My order of Cakepops from Baked By Yael

Two weeks ago Tester took to the Senate floor to tear into Trump for refusing to sign legislation to reopen the government and using innocent tax-paying Americans as pawns.

Want an idea of how our government is supposed to operate, in particular how the Legislative Branch of the federal government is supposed to keep the Executive Branch in check?

Take a few minutes to watch Senator Tester's floor speech from last Wednesday; this isn't some kind of anti-Trump rant, it's about the responsibility of government. It's old school.

Anyway that's it for this edition.

As I mentioned in my blog post on Sunday, I ordered some Cakepops from Baked By Yael, the bakery in Washington, D.C. owned by small business entrepreneur Yael Krigman after seeing a segment on the PBS Newshour about how her business was being affected due to the government shutdown because none of the foot traffic she gets from the National Zoo across the street have been coming in lately.

I'm happy to say that my order of Cakepops was waiting on my doorstep when I got home from the gym earlier this evenin - so I'm about to go eat do my part for small businesses in America.

The Senate is set to vote tomorrow on two different measures to reopen the federal government, the chance of passage is reportedly slim but at least the Senate is trying to take action - and the two measures may be a starting point to move towards a solution.

My sense is that any solution to this issue is going to have to come from the House and Senate - and that may mean Trump faces the humiliation of a vote to override his veto of any measure that doesn't include money for his wall.

We'll see, things are getting grim out there for hundreds of thousands of federal workers and government contractors; Trump is going to have to understand that his new reality is that he now shares power with Democrats on Capitol Hill.

And like Los Angeles, school is now in session.