I have asked hard questions of the politicians who choose to post here. To me, it matters not if they are democrats or republicans or members of Heaven's Gate, but only that they are participants in the most shameful government in U.S. history. I am spent from all the shouting, spin, whining, and lying from both sides. I -- none of us -- should be forced to sift through the palaver of media consultants to glean the intentions of our elected officials.
And yet today, I will take a step back to praise Rep. Louise Slaughter, a woman who I still admire greatly, despite her inability to derail this oppressive administration. Though Rep. Slaughter and her colleagues have lost this battle, she has never stopped fighting.
And today, I'll accept that that should be honored.
The following statement by Rep. Slaughter struck a chord with me. I found it both idealistic
and honest, a combination now so short in supply we doubt its existence.
"Mr. Speaker, the unauthorized creation and falsification of documents...must be condemned. The forgery calls into question the role that we, as Members of the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight, have been sworn to carry out. It is our duty and responsibility to ensure that we provide oversight, to make sure we are acting in accordance with rules and regulations of the land. We must guarantee we are fair to all our witnesses. We must guarantee we conduct fair and open hearings. We must guarantee we put together a fair and accurate record of our legislative history.
Furthermore, I find it distressing to witness this kind of overreaching and blatant disregard for the law simply in order to make a political point, to create an enemies list, mistreat them as witnesses before the Congress and then to silence those who challenge this kind of behavior brings dangerous memories to mind and sets off resounding alarm bells.
As the people of this country once again examine this institution ever more closely, do we think they would accept the use of forgery to make a point? Do we think they would accept silencing those who attempt to make us honest? I think not.
In the name of the men and women who have served Congress in the past, in the name of those who will come after us, and in the name of history, we must be clear. We will not let forgery go unchecked. We will not allow representatives in this Congress to deceive. Mr. Speaker, we will not tolerate this kind of action.
Rep. Slaughter spoke these words over 10 years ago, on October 26, 1995 during the 1st session of the 104th Congress. She was referring to a document forged by the staff of David M. McIntosh (R-IN) and distributed during a meeting of the Government Reform and Oversight sub-committee he chaired. The forgery sought to discredit the Alliance for Justice and bolster support for the Istook-McIntosh-Ehrlich proposal, a naked political tactic to de-fund democrats. The Cato Institute's Stephen Moore called Istook-McIntosh "hugely important" for "the future of the conservative movement."
McIntosh was a member of both the Reagan and GHWB administrations, a Founder and National
Co-chairman of the Federalist Society for Law & Public Policy, a Senior Fellow for Domestic Affairs at the Hudson Institute's Competitiveness Center, and a Senior Fellow at Citizens for a Sound Economy.
In response, Rep. Slaughter sought a privelaged resolution to investigate the forgery. And ten years ago, Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich allowed the resolution to be tabled, thus denying "the opportunity to even debate [this] serious issue" (Rep. Slaughter).
Ten years ago. Surgical mind polution from the Hudson Institute. Forged documents that trace back to the office of an elected official. And a congressional majority leadership with so much contempt for democracy they would abuse that power to obstruct justice.
I am angry our leaders have failed us, and at the cost of their failure. But today I'm willing to concede that Rep. Louise Slaughter has been on the front lines for over a decade, battling a ruthless enemy for whom the death of thousands is an acceptable trade-off in their lust for power.