An Open Letter to John Boehner

Dear Mr. Boehner,

First of all, congratulations on your historic victory in the just concluded midterm election. I remember 1994, staying up to watch the election returns come in as seat after seat fell to Republicans, and they were able to take control of the House for the first time in 40 years. This was the first election since then that has had me so enthused, and I look forward to your inauguration as the new Speaker of the House. As hard as it is to imagine, the election is the easy part. Governing is the hard part. You've won. Now what? You seem to have made a good start, you struck the right tone in your speech on election night. You seem to realize that this was not a victory for Republicans as much as it was a defeat of Democrats. But now it is time to move forward, and with that in mind, I would like to offer you a little advice.

1. Keep things simple. Write legislation that is easy to understand. Whenever possible, have each piece of legislation should serve a single purpose. A bill should have a preamble, telling what it is supposed to do in plain, clear language. It should then have bullet points to explain how it is going to do that. Only then should the legal-eze appear, and even then, if it starts to near 100 pages, red flags should go up that this is getting much too complicated.

This is much of the problem with grandiose legislative initiatives like the Health Care Bill. By the time it was written, it was over 2,000 pages of legal mumbo jumbo that no one could understand. Republicans have their own ideas for health care reform. Instead of rolling these up into one big health care bill, have a series of bills created. For example: Republicans would like to allow people to buy health insurance form any company, regardless of the state that the policy is underwritten in. Great. Write it up. How long would it take to write a bill that just did that? A second Health Care reform Republicans have proposed is that people should be able to buy their own health insurance policy, and get the same tax breaks that corporations get. There is a second bill, write it up, vote on it, send it on to the Senate. Make the Senate and the President go on the record on these "common sense" reforms, that have been written in such a way that the American people understand precisely what it is that is being voted on.

2. Pass a new rule that, in every two-year session of Congress, every member of Congress has the opportunity to bring one piece of legislation to the floor for a vote. It is my belief that this would go a long way to show that Republicans are interested in working with Democrats. Nancy Pelosi came off as authoritative. Democrats, with their large majorities, were unwilling to even listen to Republican ideas, let alone allow them to be voted on. Show that you are a bigger person, and that the Republicans are the party of grown-ups. Every member can bring one piece of legislation out of committee, without committee approval. It will receive an up or down vote, and the American people will know where both sides stand. Of course, all legislation must pass whatever test is placed it by the first suggestion.

3. Target the deficit. Come up with a number that you want to reduce the deficit by, and try to meet it. Better yet, give a number to the President and let him know that any budget that he proposes that exceeds that number will be considered dead on arrival. This would tell the American people that you are serious about tackling the debt.

4. Quit giving away your authority by creating agencies that have the power to write regulations with the force of law. It is your job to make law. Do it. This was another problem with the Health Care Bill. The legislation didn't create rules as much as it created agencies that had the power to write them. And while you are at it, take back some of the authority that you have given to agencies such as the EPA. How about this. Any new regulation put in place by the EPA is only valid for 60 days, unless both houses of Congress vote on the regulation, and the President signs it into law - just like any other law. This needs to be implemented soon, or the EPA may end up instituting cap and trade without anyone every casting a vote on it.

5. For every new law, and new regulation, that you pass, you will repeal one. Better yet, be bold, and go for a two-fer. Repeal 2 laws for every new one that you pass. Most Americans have come to realize that there are too many regulations placed on them. The problem is, every time a new bill is signed into law, the burden becomes heavier. Laws don't often go away, just like spending programs don't. Make an effort to reduce this burden on the American people.

6. Find a way to show Americans that you are just as opposed to Big Business as you are Big Government. Power corrupts, and absolute power... Well, we all know that. The bigger anything is, the more corrupt it becomes, and this is true just as much for Big Business as it is for Big Government. It is a common misconception to think that Big Business is opposed to the regulatory burden placed on it by Big Government. The fact of the matter is, in many instances , they welcome it, because they can afford to accommodate the regulations, passing the costs on to consumers. Where they benefit is from the reduction of competition from small business. The Americans with Disabilities Act is a good piece of legislation, however, you can't argue that it is much easier for McDonald's to be able to comply with its requirements than it is for Ma's Diner.

It has been said, be careful of what you wish for, you just might get it. Well, Mr. Boehner, you have long wished to be Speaker of the House... to have at least one hand on the reigns of government. You have it now, but only with power that has been loaned to you from the American people. Use it wisely, or you may find that this blessing can quickly turn into a curse. I wish you luck, you may need it.

Sincerely,

Brent W. Tuominen