Intense Drama

Double wow! What an even more historic week! You could see the tension on the faces of the Congress and their staffers. I suspect we also reached a record number of constituent phone calls to all the offices. In fact, I couldn't reach one Senator's office to alert them that my boss was interested in cosponsoring his bill - I had to climb 5 flights of stairs and tell them in person!

With the end of session in sight and so much to legislate, many senators wanted to give floor speeches. I deferred a subway car to Senator Conrad (D, ND) and his staffer so that they could ride in private while he prepared, and I took the next car (these little "subways" have 3 cars that travel on underground tracks connected the Senate, Capitol and House buildings. Nice if you're in a hurry or there's bad weather). I also saw Kay Bailey Hutchison (R, TX) getting out of her chauffeured car at the Russell Bldg while I unlocked my bicycle.

The Senate couldn't muster a veto-proof passage of the 2nd economic stimulus package, which included some excellent bills for public health, energy assistance for low income families, a 7-week extension of unemployment insurance benefits, a temporary 10% increase in food stamp benefits, $19.6 billion for states to address rising Medicaid costs, and $925 million for a polar icebreaker, among others. Very disappointing.

We're still on the cusp of getting mental health parity, now that the name of the bill (Wellstone-Domenici) was sorted out - now it's how to pay for it.

Most dramatic was the day-to-day, even hour-by-hour changes about the bailout - who's at fault, who knows how to solve, who would support those solutions. High-level meetings, unexpected bedfellows (House R's holding up the most recent solution, supported by D's and the White House Administration).

Goals and values agreed to first: no rewarding high-paid executives for risky/greedy decisions, risk/benefit borne by taxpayers, how any monies would get paid out, what protections for homeowners at risk for foreclosure, any role for judges to adjust mortgages (apparently one of the deal-breakers), special oversight boards, etc. Especially dramatic to watch how this gets negotiated while banks start to fail, the stock markets across the globe drastically dip, and newscasters prognosticate - which either inspires confidence or fear.

During all of this, I dropped my two public health bills 9/24! S. 3570 - A bill to establish a National Public Health Coordinating Council to assess the impact of Federal health-related socio-economic and environmental policies across Federal agencies to improve the public's health. S 3571 - A bill to stimulate social policy and community environments to improve health by encouraging policies and programs to improve community health by policy and design, and for other purposes. Both have been referred to the HELP committee, but it's so late in the 110th Congress, and with so little legislating time left, and with the chair, Senator Kennedy, not returning until January, there is no way that these bills will be considered.

I hope that both will be re-introduced (new bill numbers) in the 111th Congress, with Senate cosponsors, and that it might make it out of committee and pass by unanimous consent. Fingers crossed! The floor statement will also be printed in the Congressional Record, further describing the purpose of these bills to promote public health, on Page S9423. I'm thrilled!

I also heard CDC head, Dr. Julie Gerbeding, keynote the George Washington University's Moments in Leadership. Two of the ten suggestions she had for Congress were addressed by these bills!

The Senate and key staff are working a second weekend, trying to get the bailout and continuing resolution passed. It looks as if the Senate might be in a lame duck session in either October or November.

In the meantime, my spousal unit is here for the weekend, and we went to the Air and Space Museum hangar near the Dulles Airport - the Udvar-Hazey. Fabulous! Actual airplanes - including the Concorde, the Corsair, and the Blackbird (my favorite). We also did a flight simulation of an F14 - I was the gunner, and we rated "Ace"! It was the going upside down part I struggled with...

Question: what did you think of the first presidential debate?