The Transparency Of The Behind Closed Door Legislative Approach
By: Doug Busselman, Executive Vice President
The culture of government elites working out their arrangements behind closed doors and then ramming the crafted expansion of government through the final approval process is the system the current majority party selected as their strategy of choice. Not a lot different than the government approach of the leaders who operated inside the Kremlin walls before that socialist system crashed. Those who would like to institute their brand of socialism for our country practice promised a transparency that we are getting a good look at through their actions on the current legislative action plan for instituting a government-dominated health care payment system.
The House version of the legislation was crafted behind the closed doors where they and their party leaders operate. The Senate version of the legislation was arranged through the backroom deals that the Senate party leadership manages. Why wouldn’t the differences be worked out in behind closed door conclaves? The transparency of behind closed door legislation is really very obvious… If the established lawmaking rules can’t be counted on to deliver the accomplishment you seek – you make up a new approach, taking the process behind closed doors, avoiding to bother with constraints that might keep you from getting it done.
We saw the same approach taken by the Nevada Legislature in 2009. Here again the same political party is in control -- although they had to invite enough of the minority party into their behind closed door deal-making parlor to get the votes need for passage of the tax increases they worked out behind those closed doors. It was interesting to listen to the early session, high-sounding, morally-superior promises issued regarding transparency by the majority party leaders, echoing the refrain of their national party messiah. Then the backroom was prepared, the doors closed and things got down to doing the dealings.
It is also quite transparent that when our elected representatives go behind closed doors to fashion the concepts of whatever necessary legislative arrangement they are going to put together, the outcome is automatically going to involve greater government intrusion into our lives and higher levels of taxes. The transparency of behind closed door legislation is obvious… The fundamental reason for going behind closed doors is that their agenda requires an outcome that isn’t possible through open, public discussion and deliberation.
What should be even more obvious is the need to use the ballot box in 2010 to break down those closed doors, (in Carson City and Washington, D.C.) replacing the culture of behind closed government with open, public discussion and deliberation. Between now and November we need to get very busy with the mission of replacing the leaders and participants who consider behind closed door government as the best solution to accomplishing their agenda.
When our elected officials are behind their closed doors they have demonstrated that listening to what we want isn’t a very high priority. Perhaps with enough replacement of such elected officials and the removal of behind closed door government the input of citizens might start to matter again.
The culture of government elites working out their arrangements behind closed doors and then ramming the crafted expansion of government through the final approval process is the system the current majority party selected as their strategy of choice. Not a lot different than the government approach of the leaders who operated inside the Kremlin walls before that socialist system crashed. Those who would like to institute their brand of socialism for our country practice promised a transparency that we are getting a good look at through their actions on the current legislative action plan for instituting a government-dominated health care payment system.
The House version of the legislation was crafted behind the closed doors where they and their party leaders operate. The Senate version of the legislation was arranged through the backroom deals that the Senate party leadership manages. Why wouldn’t the differences be worked out in behind closed door conclaves? The transparency of behind closed door legislation is really very obvious… If the established lawmaking rules can’t be counted on to deliver the accomplishment you seek – you make up a new approach, taking the process behind closed doors, avoiding to bother with constraints that might keep you from getting it done.
We saw the same approach taken by the Nevada Legislature in 2009. Here again the same political party is in control -- although they had to invite enough of the minority party into their behind closed door deal-making parlor to get the votes need for passage of the tax increases they worked out behind those closed doors. It was interesting to listen to the early session, high-sounding, morally-superior promises issued regarding transparency by the majority party leaders, echoing the refrain of their national party messiah. Then the backroom was prepared, the doors closed and things got down to doing the dealings.
It is also quite transparent that when our elected representatives go behind closed doors to fashion the concepts of whatever necessary legislative arrangement they are going to put together, the outcome is automatically going to involve greater government intrusion into our lives and higher levels of taxes. The transparency of behind closed door legislation is obvious… The fundamental reason for going behind closed doors is that their agenda requires an outcome that isn’t possible through open, public discussion and deliberation.
What should be even more obvious is the need to use the ballot box in 2010 to break down those closed doors, (in Carson City and Washington, D.C.) replacing the culture of behind closed government with open, public discussion and deliberation. Between now and November we need to get very busy with the mission of replacing the leaders and participants who consider behind closed door government as the best solution to accomplishing their agenda.
When our elected officials are behind their closed doors they have demonstrated that listening to what we want isn’t a very high priority. Perhaps with enough replacement of such elected officials and the removal of behind closed door government the input of citizens might start to matter again.
Posted by Doug Busselman at 1/6/2010 6:51 AM 
Categories: Government
Tags: Transparent Government Election 2010 Nevada Legislature Health Care Reform Congress
Categories: Government
Tags: Transparent Government Election 2010 Nevada Legislature Health Care Reform Congress
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