The Plan is Oversight

Certain snooty pundits and pre-election Republicans have accused the Democrats of not having a plan for governing were they to regain power in Congress. While that criticism has certainly been exaggerated, I can't help but ask: Why do they need a plan? Their not having one would surely cause less harm to the national interest than has six years of almost absolute Republican rule.

Indeed, the Republican Congress has been as negligent as the Bush administration has been incompetent. More than anything else, what is sorely needed is that which has been grievously lacking: oversight. That is something the Democrats can provide in refreshing abundance.

Let's not be too unfair to the new Democratic majority. They've been largely locked out of the process of governing by a divisive Republican administration and congressional leadership that have been all too happy to exercise raw partisan power and eschew Democratic participation. Consensus was not a priority. It was not even a goal. Under such conditions, why would we expect the Democrats to have a mature, fully formulated plan to remedy all the nation's woes? Of necessity, their role in government these past several years has been not construction but opposition. They'll get turned around soon enough.

In the meantime, a healthy dose of oversight will go a long way.

Copyright (C) 2006 James Michael Brennan, All Rights Reserved