Men of Honor
Posted: Jul 23rd 2003, 2:02 am
The important business of state had to take a back seat the other day as members of the US Congress were too busy calling each other names and getting kicked out of the Capitol.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,92667,00.html
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,92667,00.html
Personally, I am nostalgic for the days when open brawling was common on the floor of the Congress and duels were an acceptable method of dispute resolution. At least when politicians are fighting each other, it is harder for them to screw the taxpayers.The uproar has to do with the blowout on Friday in the House Ways and Means committee room. At issue were both the acerbic leadership style of Committee Chairman Bill Thomas (search) and inflammatory remarks made by California Democrat Pete Stark (search) to some of his Republican colleagues.
Democrats are fuming because Thomas ordered Capitol police to kick out Dems who had retired to a nearby library in protest of the bill approval proceedings. They were angry Thomas got verbal approval for a bill the Democrats said they hadn't even seen.
Republicans justified the police involvement by saying they felt physically threatened. And they remained furious over Stark's outburst in reaction to the meeting, during which he called Thomas a "****sucker" and Republican Scott McInnis (search) a "wimp" and a "fruitcake." Some characterized the slurs as "anti-gay," though McInnis is married and, by all accounts, not gay.