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Lame Duck Recipes
What the Democrats could do, should do, and what they’ll probably settle for
As Congress wanders back into D.C. for the strange interregnum known as the lame duck session, where nobody knows who is going to be in charge next year and a bunch of their coworkers are in strange laid-off-but-still-there mode, numerous possibilities present themselves.
Back in the olden days, when we weren’t under a constant threat of hostile takeover of the government from home-grown fascists, the lame duck session was rarely important. There were retirement speeches, some horse-trading over lingering bills and future committee assignments, and generally a feeling of wrapping things up so everyone could go home for the holidays. Election results were usually as expected and any movement in Congress was in the same direction in both houses.
None of that still applies. Republicans took the control of the House, but only by the slimmest of margins and exclusively through reapportionment and gerrymandering. They are trying to claim a mandate, but it looks strongly like a repudiation. Nevertheless, GOP leadership has loudly signaled plans to launch investigations, impeach executive branch officials, and use the debt ceiling and a government shutdown to try to force cuts in social, health, and education spending. Some of the more extreme members have suggested retaliatory punishment against Democratic lawmakers in payback for stripping Marjorie Taylor Green (R-GA) of her committee assignments over past antisemitic remarks.
So, the clock is ticking. At a minimum, Democrats need to raise or eliminate the debt ceiling. It is, and always has been a gimmick. If political leaders want to reduce the deficit, they can raise taxes and cut spending. Screwing with the United States' credit and holding the economy hostage is childish and reckless. Ever since Republicans started doing this in the 90s it has been foolish for the Democrats to not fix this recurring nightmare; if they don’t fix it now, after the next hostage-taking session has already been scheduled, it would be straight malpractice.
The midterms should have been a wake-up call all around that defending democracy is quite popular. Democrats could revisit voting rights, pass HR1, reform the electoral count act, and…
