Pelosi pushes gourmet menu

From Politico.com

Newly ascendant Democrats may have hit roadblocks on Iraq and fiscal issues, but they have revamped congressional menus, replacing fatty, pre-made foods with healthier, gourmet alternatives. The once dreary congressional cafeterias now abound with haute cuisine.

The menu transformation is part of Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s “Greening the Capitol” plan to make the House campus more environmentally friendly and socially progressive.

But there can be a downside to delicious. Not everyone is happy with the enhanced offerings. Many congressional employees have complained that as the food quality has increased, so have the prices.

“It’s a big jump from high school cafeteria to fancy-pants gourmet. I just wish my pay improved,” said Caryn Schenewerk, a staffer for Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.). [emphases are mine]

It’s nice that even though Congress can’t do squat to help the little people, they can eat well and increase expenses for everyone who eats there.

And who pays these expenses? You guessed it. So bend over and take it like a man.

Blue Dog Democrats

Speaking of politics,

The blue dog Web site boasts that its mission is to “refocus Congress on balancing the budget and ridding taxpayers of the burden of debt.” If a balanced budget is what they want, the best fiscal option would be to enact what is called a “continuing resolution” budget that would fund all programs at last year’s level plus 1% or 2%. Along with rising tax revenues, this could cut the budget deficit roughly in half next year, to well under $100 billion. But Republicans can’t do that on their own: they need the votes of these moderate Democrats.

Here’s the rub: So far this year the blue dogs have been almost all bark when it comes to fiscal restraint and debt reduction. Thirty of the 48 have voted for every one of the non-defense spending bills their committee chairman have sent them. Speaker Nancy Pelosi is enforcing party discipline, and as a result 28 of the 48 blue dogs voted “no” on each of the 27 amendments that Republicans proposed to cut the costs of these bills. The 13 freshman Democrats who represent conservative districts–such as Heath Shuler (N.C.), Baron Hill (Ind.), Zack Space (Ohio), Nick Lampson (Texas)–have been a particular disappointment; back home these same blue dogs trumpet their “independent streak.”

The Blue Dog web site proclaimed in a news release in March,

The Blue Dog Co-Chairs applauded Chairman Spratt for including key Blue Dog-advocated priorities in the Democratic Budget Resolution including: an adherence to pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) budget discipline; a commitment to the extension of statutory PAYGO requirements; a commitment to provide adequate funding for our national defense; holding the line on mandatory spending levels to put our country back on the path to fiscal responsibility; and putting an end to irresponsible deficit spending in order to reach balance by 2012 [emphasis mine].

Fiscal responsibility, like disenfranchisement, must mean different things to different people.

By the way, the National Taxpayers Union has a page devotedto those representatives who have voted for every Flake amendment. (Since the beginning of this year’s Appropriations season in Congress, Arizona Representative Jeff Flake (R) has offered numerous amendments to spending bills in order to eliminate special-interest earmarks that waste tax dollars. )

On the list is James Sensenbrenner (so is Paul Ryan). One wonders how Burkee and Walz would respond to that.