Saw this story about Joe Walsh calling the president idiotic for calling a Joint Session of Congress to speak to the jobs issue.
This congressman, in a very disrespectful manner, wants to skip the Joint Session of Congress. I am sure some more of his buddies may follow suit.
If you had an employee that pulled a stunt like that, what would you do?
If this were the real world -- or as Republicans like to say -- a business -- what discipline should be meted out to an employee that shirks his duties and goes out of his way to disrespect the CEO of the corporation?
- You call the person into the back office.
- You have his final check prepared.
- You have an escort from security in the office with you as you tell him to clear out his stuff from his locker (some places already have the gear in a box ready to go).
- You tell him -- don't come back.
It is swift and immediate.
If the GOP wants to run the Congress like a business -- let's see them do it.
We all know the chances of that happening are about nil.
A congressman can be forced out of office in a media frenzy for or dressing up really stupidly or showing his "equipment" on the web. Just ask the guy in the Tony the Tiger suit or Anthony Weiner...
But the media gives a complete and total pass to a congressman who is willingly and loudly is not doing their job. I don't get it. Your congressperson is your representative to the federal government. They are the people who are supposed to look out for your interests.
They ran around and raised all sorts of money to get you to vote for them. They won the election. They then took an oath to represent you.
They are hired employees.
Now they want to skip out of town because they doesn't like the guy running the show?
Hey -- tough noogies -- you go there and listen to the President of the United States talk to you -- who do you think you are?
This is dereliction of duty. The congressperson took an oath -- a contract -- to be there.
If the media is not going to do anything about it -- what about the courts?
Can a voter in an affected district file papers in federal court demanding their congressperson attend the session? If the court rules in the voter's favor (we are talking about federal court so who knows...) the court could have federal marshals ready to escort the congressperson to their seat or escort them to jail for contempt.
This is a checks and balance Issue. The judicial branch settling an issue between the legislative and executive branches.
Could the voter from the district also could sue the congressman to have him surrender his seat immediately because of non-performance of duty? The voter is no longer being represented. Petition the court to find someone who will.
During the night of the speech the president could have a voter from Walsh's (or any of these disaffected grumbler's) district in the hallway ready to go for the speech. Before the speech a role call gets made. Any absent congresspeople would be immediately replaced for the speech on the floor of the House. (This voter would be a monitor for the folks back home and not have any voting rights.) The need for the district to somehow be represented outweighs the tit-for-tat garbage that is going on here.
Walsh (and his buddies) cannot have it both ways. They cannot say they represent the people in their districts and then not go to a session of Congress, leaving a seat open.
They are paid to represent the all the people.
If they cannot sit and respectfully listen to the President of the United States speak to them for an evening -- they should not be in Congress.