Hightower: Our Do-Nothing Congress Takes a Vacation
http://www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/hightower-our-do-nothing-congress-takes-vacation
Gosh, has it already been three weeks since Congress took a vacation?
Those poor stiffs must be pooped from trying to catch up on all the heavy lifting that piled up while they were away from their lawmaking duties. And -- gosh, again -- in just a few days, Congress will go back on vacation, this time for a five-week summer recess. So much to do; so little time.
That's why GOP Speaker John Boehner is now cracking the whip. He's spurring his colleagues to pick up the pace and stay focused on his No. 1 national priority -- namely, suing the president of the United States. It seems that Obama has had the audacity to try to do something about some of the bubbling crises -- immigration, living wage, student loans, etc. -- with which Congress (or more specifically the House, or even more specifically Boehner and his Republican stalwarts) has been ignoring, stalling or playing politics. So, of course, the president must be sued to prevent him from ... well, from taking actions to help people.
The speaker's logic might seem a tad confusing or just plain weird to you, so I'll let him clarify his meaning: "The legislative branch," Boehner intoned in a recent op-ed, "has an obligation to defend the rights and responsibilities of the American people."
Huh?