Travis Seitler: Web Designer

I just sent off this message to my Representative:

The Homeland Security Appropriations Act (H.R. 2892) is a perfect example of why we need to limits bills to “one subject at a time”: the prisoner abuse cover-up legislation it contained had absolutely NOTHING to do with the funding or activities of the Department of Homeland Security.

What makes it worse is that there was no urgency to even pass this bill. Congress could have simply approved DHS funding at current levels with a continuing resolution. That’s why I think a vote for H.R. 2892 was really a vote for the prisoner abuse cover-up.

Representative Tiberi, by voting for this bill, you failed in your duty to uphold the law; you have instead chosen to side with those who wish to legislate the obstruction of justice. Have you forgotten whose interests you were elected to represent out there in D.C.?

Such behavior is completely unbecoming of a representative of the citizens of Ohio.

So what Very Important Issues did my Representative weigh in on yesterday?

• House Resolution 924: Congratulating Iowa State University of Science and Technology for 150 years of leadership and service to the United States and the world as Iowa’s land-grant university. [full text]
• House Resolution 948: Congratulating the University of Kansas (“KU”) football team for winning the 2008 FedEx Orange Bowl and having the most successful year in program history. [full text]
• House Resolution 493: Congratulating the women’s water polo team of the University of California, Los Angeles, for winning the 2007 NCAA Division I Women’s Water Polo National Championship, and congratulating UCLA on its 100th NCAA sports national title, making it the most accomplished athletic program in NCAA history. [full text]

Yep, yep… there’s lots of tough choices to make when you’re a U.S. Representative. And I’m sure my fellow 16th Districters can join me in saying, “thank you, Rep. Pitts, for congratulating those Universities and their sports teams! That is precisely why we elected you, sir. Keep up the good work.”

Oh, and then there was this silly little matter of the President vetoing HR 2082 (the House of Representatives’ ‘08 Intelligence Authorization Act). There was a House vote to override the veto, and Rep. Pitts voted “nay.” (Yawn.) Let’s get back to important stuff, like sports… okay?

By the way: you may be wondering, “why did the President veto this bill anyway? I thought our ‘War on Terror’ was crippled until this Act was approved!” Well, it seems there is a Very Important Reason. Now, his veto message includes a few reasons, but the primary one seems to be this: “…the bill would harm our national security by requiring any element of the Intelligence Community to use only the interrogation methods authorized in the Army Field Manual on Interrogations. It is vitally important that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) be allowed to maintain a separate and classified interrogation program.”

So the President doesn’t really care about you and your family’s risk from potential terrorist plots; his only concern is to be able to conduct “interrogations” (read:torture) outside of any legal restrictions or oversight.