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Author
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Topic: Tony Blair Rocks the House (of Commons)
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Dave Thomer
Guardian of Peace and Justice in the Galaxy
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posted 01-15-2001 12:45 AM
   
Every now and then C-Span takes a break from live coverage of the US government to show British government on tape delay. I gotta admit this is great stuff, particularly the Prime Minister's Questions, where the PM has to show up and take questions (duh!) from members of Parliament, explaining his or her policies and what he or she intends to do to address whatever issues the members are concerned about. Besides thinking that this is a truly splendid idea, and admiring Tony Blair's wit, quick thinking, and general all-around coolness, I got to some idle speculation that maybe the whole division-of-powers thing isn't necessarily all it's cracked up to be. Sure, it provides for check and balances, but it also provides for a much easier blame game during periods of divided government along with muddled compromises that don't do a lot to prove or disprove the efficacy of one approach to government. I know there's no chance of the US ever going to a parliamentary system or anything, but it is a position worth thinking about in light of frequent claims that American voters prefer "divided government."Oh, and I really think we need more names like "Derbyshire" and "High Peak" around here, too. |
Kevin Ott
True Believer
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posted 01-17-2001 06:02 AM
You mean you're not satisfied with a good Welsh name like Bala Cynwyd? If you don't think there are enough good British-Isles names near Philly, perhaps you should move to New England.What would be the best alternative to division of powers? It seems to me that having, at the very least, a legislative and judicial body is a good idea, and in the United States at least, those two don't seem to argue to a huge degree, at least not as much as Congress and the President. What about unicameral legislature? Is it Montana or Minnesota that has one of those? How do they handle it? Our Congress seems to be a pretty good example of true republican legislature, since the Senate seems to be pretty good at shutting down some of the cornier ideas -- like flag-burning amendments -- that the House comes up with. And I think American govenment would be vastly improved by the addition of powdered wigs. I think Strom Thurmond still has his. |
slgorman
One of the Regulars
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posted 01-17-2001 03:57 PM
quote:
And I think American govenment would be vastly improved by the addition of powdered wigs.
I will look for the source, but I recently read an article saying how they are phasing those out in England. Sorry, Kevin! |
Dave Thomer
Guardian of Peace and Justice in the Galaxy
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posted 01-21-2001 12:23 AM
I myself like the two houses/executive is the leader of the larger house principle myself. Not to say our system is totally off -- there's just something I like about the folks who write the laws and the folks who execute them (paying attention, Dubya?) working together, one way or the other. It's actually why part of me hopes the Democrats don't do too much in the way of filibustering and interfering with the Republican agenda -- I want to see the GOP do what it can do and demonstrate the consequences to the voting public. I don't want them to be able to weasel out of things in 2002 and 2004 by saying the Democrats kept them from pursuing their agenda.And ya know what? Maybe if we just had something like the Prime Minister's Questions, where the president had to appear on live TV and answer questions from Congress, we could have a real ongoing public dialogue and we would recognize the importance of having an intelligent, dedicated individual leading the government. |
Pattie Gillett
True Believer
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posted 01-21-2001 10:13 AM
Good point, Dave. It doesn't make sense that the only contact the Prez has with Congress is to make the highly theatrical State of the Union address. "Maybe we could change it from "He Shall From Time to Time" to "He Shall, Every Week or So, Have His Ass Grilled." |
Dave Thomer
Guardian of Peace and Justice in the Galaxy
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posted 01-21-2001 03:28 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Pattie Gillett:
Maybe we could change it from "He Shall From Time to Time" to "He Shall, Every Week or So, Have His Ass Grilled."
You know, if C-Span promoted it that way, I bet it would really bump the ratings. |
Pattie Gillett
True Believer
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posted 01-22-2001 11:08 AM
I'm thinking they could do cool "sizzling" graphics and maybe make use of the tele-strator. |
Kevin Ott
True Believer
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posted 01-25-2001 01:51 PM
And have Hank Williams, Jr. shout, "Are you ready for some legislature!?!?!?! |
Dave Thomer
Guardian of Peace and Justice in the Galaxy
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posted 01-25-2001 06:05 PM
Now on that, I'd love to see Dennis Miller do color commentary."I haven't seen a President evade a member of his own party like that since Warren G. Harding in Teapot Dome." |
Kevin Ott
True Believer
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posted 02-02-2001 12:48 PM
I think we may get to see some of the stuff Dave's talking about, though not in the public eye. Hopefully Bush's visits to Democratic retreats will be somewhat fruitful, and he'll be answering questions. |
Dave Thomer
Guardian of Peace and Justice in the Galaxy
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posted 02-05-2001 02:23 AM
This is definitely helpful, but I think a regularly scheduled, publicly accessible exchange is what's needed. Granted, you'd have some cases of people trying to score political points, but I think ultimately, if these encounters somehow became more routine, people would see through that. Plus, it remains true that there's substantial respect for the office of the presidency, so I would hope that people could resist turning such an occasion into a wholly partisan event. |
Dave Thomer
Guardian of Peace and Justice in the Galaxy
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posted 02-05-2001 03:20 PM
This CNN story illustrates why our current commander-in-chief might not be eager for such sessions on a regular basis, and why it would be great if they could be viewed by the public. |
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