Why doe we even bother having a Congress anymore? Maybe they’ve been stuck in “neutral” for so long that they’ve forgotten how to drive. But now it turns out that they’re damned if they do, and damned if they don’t.
Congress has been in gridlock for most of the last seven years. Mostly this is because of Tea Party bomb throwers in the House who want blow up the government, not work for it, and by obstructionist GOP Senators who would rather die than give Obama the correct time of day much less any legislation. Bipartisanship is dead.
Make that was dead. Both Republicans and Democrats found something they could both rally around, the “9/11 families”. They have been begging for years to be allowed to sue the Saudi Arabian government for any implicit role in the 9/11 attacks. Congress went to work on a bill on it. President Obama immediately threatened a veto, citing unintended consequences, especially to military personnel overseas.
Congress passed the bill. Obama kept his word and vetoed it. With overwhelming bipartisan support, unheard of for this congress, they massively overrode the Presidents veto. They laid one on the President, and the 9/11 families get to sue. Happy endings all the way around, right?
Well, maybe not so much. According to a new report on CNN.com :
Top congressional leaders from each party expressed buyer's remorse Thursday about a controversial new law that was enacted over President Barack Obama's objections that allows 9/11 families to sue Saudi Arabia.
Just one day after these lawmakers led the first override of a veto during Obama's presidency they publicly called for making changes to the law. But even as they admitted they agreed with some of the White House's concerns, GOP leaders quickly blamed the President for "dropping the ball" for failing to engage with Congress on the legislation before it passed. (Italics mine)
Buyers remorse? This car hasn’t even had it’s first oil change yet, and already they hate it? Wazzup wit’ dat? The President was very clear about the dangers of this bill, and Congress refused to listen, and now they want to blame him. That’s like a six year old knocking over a vase, and them blaming Mom because the side table was too low.
Look, let’s be clear here. Republicans in both chambers of Congress have done nothing but flip the President the bird every time he stepped into the room. But now all of a sudden, on this bill, they would have listened to and worked with him if he had just come on down to chat? Like Jon Stewart, when I smell bullshit, I call bullshit, and this is a steaming pile of it.
But being Congress, now that they’ve created this mega turd, they don’t seem to know how to clean it up, kind of like the aforementioned six year old not wanting to pick up the shattered glass for fear of cutting himself. But they may at least give it the old college try;
Echoing concerns raised by the White House that the measure could open the US to similar lawsuits from people in other countries, House Speaker Paul Ryan said the law needs to be changed to ensure that US troops are protected."I'd like to think there is a way we can fix it so that our service members do not have legal problems overseas while still protecting the rights of the 9/11 victims," Ryan said at his weekly news conference.
Aw, nice sentiment Paul, great to see your heart’s in the right place. The funny thing is that Paul Ryan months ago expressed concerns about this bill exactly because of the “unintended consequences”, but decided to support it anyway to ensure that the 9/11 families would have their day in court. But I wouldn’t look for action anytime soon. When asked if Congress would try to fix the bill in the lame duck when they come back after the election, Ryan simply stated, “I don’t know”.
Look, I have no problems with Congress trying to get the 9/11 families their day in court, hell, I fully support it! I lost pilots I knew and worked with at United on those flights. But I also believe that President Obama was sincere in his judgement on this issue. Damn it, he took the monumental risk of making the decision to send that team after Bin Laden, one that could have ruined his Presidency and put us on the brink of an armed conflict with Pakistan, to bring justice and closure to those families, and the rest of the country as well. That moment is etched in my memory. When I heard him speak the words that Osama Bin Laden was dead, I collapsed in my chair and cried like a baby, both in renewed pain at the loss, but with intense relief and healing as well. The man who did that would never deny those families justice for purely political purposes. His concerns about the consequences had to be deep and serious, and Congress should have listened to him on this one, right out of the gate.
So we’ll see what happens from here. But I don’t have any great confidence. Hell, these idjits can’t even walk into the wells of their chambers without tripping over their untied shoe laces, I recommend loafers for safety’s sake. But I have no doubt that if they come up with a workable and acceptable fix that President Obama will sign it in a heartbeat. Maybe they’ll actually consult with him this time. We can always hope.
Thanks as always for reading!