As the Republican revolt in the House of Representatives continues to gain traction, GOP leaders have one final group to win over: Democrats. Although the Republicans may be the minority party in the House, they are the only ones actually representing the majority of Americans who are sick and tired of paying $4 per gallon at the pump.
This reality is starting to sink in for Congressional Democrats. The people demand leadership, and the Democrats—elected into the majority to provide just that—have failed.
Republicans, however, believe it isn’t too late to do something. Hoping to garner enough support to force a vote on the issue, GOP House members have now turned their energy towards swinging their Democratic counterparts.
House Minority Leader John Boehner, one of the principle figures of the Republican revolt, sent a letter to each and every Democratic member of the House last Thursday, beckoning their assistance. The bulk of the letter reads:
“The American people expect Congress to work toward solutions for their everyday problems. Right now, the biggest challenge facing most American families is the price of energy. But on August 1st Speaker Nancy Pelosi adjourned the House of Representatives for a five-week vacation, continuing to ignore this crisis. Americans rightly expect more from us as their elected representatives…
“If you agree that Congress should not be taking a five-week vacation until we address the energy crisis, will you join us in publicly calling on Speaker Pelosi to reconvene the House and allow a vote on increasing American-made energy?
“We, and the American people, anxiously await your reply.”
This widespread appeal for House Democrats to answer to the demands of the people has been picking up steam—even though many Democrats are desperately trying to insulate themselves from the heat emanating from Washington.
Even Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, spending her precious 5-week vacation time promoting her astronomically unsuccessful book, cannot escape the growing pressure. At a book tour stop in Ann Arbor Michigan on Friday, she was confronted by a horde of protestors demanding the Speaker return to Washington and expedite a vote on resolving America’s energy crisis.
As one of the protesters stated:
“I think it’s a disgrace that she is here on a book tour while there is no debate (going on in Congress)…”
Surely Mrs. Pelosi understands that readers are severely unenthusiastic about forking over $23.95 for a mediocre book while their gasoline bills continue taking such a drastic toll.
Whether or not the Speaker will listen, however, still remains a mystery. The honest chances of Republicans swaying her are grim at best. Mrs. Pelosi has proven herself time and time again as an aggressive opponent of democracy with unequivocal opposition to the mandate of the people.
Nevertheless, the hope lies in the fact that certainly not all Democrats are as backward and blindly stubborn as their Speaker. Republicans simply must find out which ones still follow the people and which ones follow Pelosi.
