John Conyers Doesn’t Have to Cheat; He Just Does
I find this extraordinary.
This weekend, I spoke on free trade at the Club for Growth’s annual meeting in Palm Beach this weekend. At dinner last night, I heard an amazing story from Steve King, a Republican congressman from Iowa. I was amazed at two levels: (1) the story itself and (2) the fact that he was not amazed.
King is a member of the House Judiciary Committee. Recently, the Committee has been meeting about the “cram down” bill, a proposed law that would give the power to judges in bankruptcy meetings to alter the terms of people’s mortgages. King, realizing that the bill is likely to pass, was trying to minimize the harm it would do. So he offered an amendment that would prevent anyone from taking advantage of this special deal if he/she had engaged in any material misrepresentation during the original mortgage process. His amendment passed by a vote of 21-3.
But later the staff of the Committee, who report to Chairman John Conyers, altered the amendment, after it had been voted on, to state that no one could take advantage of the special deal if he/she had been convicted of fraud.
As Mr. Henderson points out, there is a huge difference between the two. It is plain wrong that John Conyers’ staffers felt at liberty to change Congressman King’s amendment without subjecting it to another vote and without asking for King’s assent.
That’s not only undemocratic, it’s highly unethical. Even though King has asked repeatedly and formally asked for an explanation and to have the original approved language of the amendment restored, Conyers has done neither.
As King says in the comments to the post, “They know they’re wrong. They have the votes to beat us fair and square every day. They cheat because it’s easier.”
And they’ll continue to cheat because no one holds them accountable for their dishonesty.
Other Posts of Interest:
- Is John McCain Putting Country in Front of Campaign Again?
- What Happened to the President’s Economic Emergency?
- The Pelosi Rule: Just Agree to Vote Yes and She’ll Let You See the Bill
Category: Our New Democratic Overlords
It won't change until Democrat voters hold them accountable. They don't…never have.