Congress Flees Town in the Face of Hard Decisions. Our Juan Ciscomani Goes, Too.

(Photo credits: TheHill.com and Arizona Daily Star)

In 1814 the US government fled Washington, DC, while the British Army sacked and burned the buildings of the nation’s capital. President James Madison, congressmen, and the other leaders soon returned, however, and took steps to end the War of 1812. From an overall viewpoint, the war was a draw. But the strength of the fledgling American military led one British leader to remark that “The Americans . . . have brought us to speak of them with respect.”

            Last week the Republicans in control of the current Congress, including District 6 representative Juan Ciscomani, abandoned their chambers in the face of massive public opposition to the latest self-serving machinations of their President, Donald J. Trump. When they return, though, few will “speak of them with respect.” The most recent Gallup Poll on Congress showed only 29 percent of those asked thought the Republicans were doing a good job. Remember, the GOP controls both House and Senate.

At least the evacuees didn’t burn the place down.

The Senate scrammed rather than deal with possibly the most outrageous of Trump’s increasingly perfidious actions, the creation of the $1.776 billion fund to salve the “wounds” of his supporters who are “victims” of the “weaponization” of American justice. Former FBI Director James Comey and New York State Attorney General Letitia James, subjects of thinly veiled current Department of Justice attacks, might want to apply. We’re actually in favor of giving it all to Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who sued and won his return after deportation by ICE and then won again when the DOJ brought vindictive criminal charges against him.

Over in Ciscomani’s House, Speaker Mike Johnson stopped a vote on a War Powers Act resolution aimed trying to control Trump’s erratic and disastrous Iran war. According to its sponsors, the resolution would likely have passed. It won the vote to get to the House floor with some Republican support, although predictably not that of Ciscomani. He’s said the war will bring about freedom for the oppressed Iranian people. For the record, so far it has brought about an even harder-lined Iranian government, not inclined to give in without major concessions from the US, and a major hit to world economy. So, that’s succeeding very well, Juan.

And House members of both parties are working on a bill to kill what’s become known as the “Anti-Weaponization” fund. So far, Juan Ciscomani is not a sponsor. Given that he would have to cross both Johnson and Trump to become one, he’s not likely to sign on. If he doesn’t, and the fund starts doling out money to the likes of those who stormed that very Capitol building on January 6, 2020, the voters of Ciscomani’s district should hold him personally accountable for the outrage.

These members of Congress are celebrating Memorial Day in traditional ways—visiting the graves of American soldiers, perhaps picnicking with folks in their districts. But, unlike the British, those bills won’t go away, and Ciscomani and his Republican companions will have to deal with how to do the bidding of Trump, whose favorability rating is modestly better (or, should we say, not as bad) as the congressional GOP (a whole 35 percent of voters think he’s doing a good job).