The Dysfunctional U.S. Senate

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“Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself.”  – Mark Twain

Timothy Egan laments the state of Congress.

If ever there was a place in need of more comedy, and less comity, it’s the U.S. Senate.

Cobwebbed by senseless rituals, speeches which no one listens to  and rules that make it all but impossible to act on the will of the people, the Senate cries for more ridicule, decorum breaches and old-fashioned wit.

Yes, they should be lauded for pulling off two of the most significant reforms of modern times, in health care and financial regulation.  But those rare legislative triumphs almost didn’t happen, and probably will not be repeated — by either party on any major issue — for a generation. The default mode in the Senate, less by design than by institutional arteriosclerosis, is insulated decay.

And should Republicans win the House and a few more seats in the Senate, you can pretty much close down shop for the next two years.

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