Priorities, Challenges, and Opportunities

The 108th Congress Comes into Focus

John Boehner, November 8, 2002

From public education reform and tax relief to a bold corporate responsibility measure and a bipartisan, overwhelming response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, President Bush and Congress have worked together in many important areas during the past two years - especially when you consider the unusual conditions here at home and throughout the rest of the world.

As the current Congress wraps up its work for the year, the men and women elected to serve in the new Congress set to begin in January are looking forward to the challenges that lie ahead. The results of the recent congressional elections have launched the Republican Party into the majority in both the House and Senate for the 108th Congress.

With that majority comes a responsibility to lead and to act on the legislative priorities President Bush has been advocating since he entered office. Many of these priorities have already been voted on and passed by the House of Representatives during the past two years. However, the Senate chose not to act on several of them, even if they received bipartisan support in the House. These issues now will become the backbone of both the President’s and the congressional agenda.

One such issue is homeland security. As we wage a global War on Terrorism, the President has proposed a significant reorganization of the federal government by asking Congress to establish a new Department of Homeland Security. The department will oversee all of the agencies responsible for our security – including the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the Customs Service, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. By bringing these agencies under one umbrella, redundant functions will be eliminated and costs will be reduced. As a result, more resources will be directed to where they are needed most – in the field instead of behind desks in Washington, DC. Unfortunately, the Senate has stonewalled this proposal for months, even though the House approved it earlier this year with support from both parties. Unless the issue is addressed by the end of this year, it certainly will top the legislative agenda for the 108th Congress heading into 2003.

Another such issue is pension security. After the Enron, WorldCom, and Global Crossing collapses during the past year, President Bush asked Congress to send him a strong, bipartisan pension security bill. Both parties in the House endorsed a bill I authored to grant employees new protections, new options, and new freedoms aimed at giving them greater confidence in their pensions. However, this legislation never even reached the floor of the Senate. Regardless, I will continue to push for these reforms next year, and I expect the President will do the same.

And finally, the House this year voted to strengthen the 1996 welfare reform law. Few would argue that this law has not been a great success. Since we enacted welfare reform, the number of people on welfare has decreased by 9 million. And 3 million fewer families are on welfare today than 8 years ago – a staggering 57 percent drop. My colleagues in the House and I sent the Senate further reforms to enhance the work requirements of those receiving welfare benefits, promote greater job education and training, and support working mothers with greater childcare funding. But the legislation never came up for a vote in that chamber. As a result, I expect welfare reform to be a top priority for the White House and Congress in 2003.

Working together, Congress and the President will have the opportunity to address even more priorities, from a national energy policy to permanent tax relief to prescription drug benefits for those on Medicare. Make no mistake, the new Congress will still be nearly evenly divided. However, the recent elections seemed to breathe new life into President Bush’s common sense priorities that simply were stalled due to "inside the beltway" politics. With the election out of the way and new leadership in place, we are challenged with getting those priorities moving again. It’s a great opportunity for the President and the Congress. I’m eager to get to work.

Congressman John Boehner represents the 8th Congressional District of Ohio in the U.S. House of Representatives.