James Valvo

House Republican leaders failed their first major test about whether they will play straight with the American people -- and now they’re paying the price. In an attempt to meet their Pledge to America commitment to cut $100 billion in spending in their first year, House leaders decided to compare their continuing resolution cuts to President Obama’s FY2011 budget request instead of comparing the cuts to current spending levels. This was a mistake. (more)

The Republicans are now beneficiaries of a historic rejection of big government.  President Obama and Democratic leaders are offering a bevy of explanations for why they just lost at least six Senate seats and over 60 House seats, including control of the chamber.  The president would have you believe it was “unsupervised spending.”  Pundits are convinced it was the economy, stupid.  But some are pausing to consider how the president could have so badly misread his mandate.  The truth is: he didn’t; he knew exactly what he was doing. (more)

Americans are demanding major changes in the way Washington operates, but while the heat is on Congress, more power than ever resides in the executive agencies.  That means making government more accountable will require a redesign of the federal regulatory rulemaking process, which currently serves as a shield that allows laws to be made in an unaccountable and unchecked fashion -- out of public view and insulated from voters.  This must end. (more)

House Republicans have a chance to show they’re listening to the American people. The House Republican Conference recently announced they would not request earmarks in the looming feeding frenzy that is appropriations’ season. The special projects are a perennial public relations disaster for both parties, as transparency advocates uncover lawmaker-directed taxpayer funds for catfish genome research, tea pot museums and the infamous Bridge to Nowhere. (more)