[Mrfnews] 06LR07-MRF LEADERS REPORT - December

Sat Dec 9 16:37:35 EST 2006

06LR07 - MRF LEADERS REPORT - December
MRF LEADERS' REPORT
Motorcycle Riders Foundation
236 Massachusetts Ave. NE
Suite 510
Washington, DC 20002-4980
202-546-0983 (voice)
202-546-0986 (fax)
jeff at mrf.org (e-mail)
http://www.mrf.org (website)

#06LR07 - MRF LEADERS' REPORT – December 9, 2006

TO: The Leaders of the American Motorcyclists' Rights Movement

FROM: Jeff Hennie, MRF Vice President - Government Relations

SUBJECT:
MRF Leaders Report
December 9, 2006

Leaders Report
The 110th Congress, an overview.
With only a few more races yet to be determined, Democrats are ready to
ride into the majority next year in both the House and the Senate after
more than a decade out of power. The victory was wider than even many
Democrats had dared to predict, and they embraced it as a mandate to take
Washington in a fundamentally new direction. New members will join winning
incumbents being sworn in on January 3, 2007. What follows is a summary of
both House and Senate key committee members and chairmen, and how those
appointments will potentially affect the Motorcycle Riders Foundation
(MRF).

Senate Committee Makeup

On Tuesday, November 14, Senate Democrats announced their tentative
committee assignments for the next Congress. Under the incoming majority's
plan, the number of seats on each committee would be the same as in the
108th Congress, when the Senate also was divided 51-49. The majority will
have a one-seat margin on all the committees
with the exception of the bipartisan Ethics Committee (where seats are
divided evenly) and the Joint Economic Committee (where Democrats will
hold a two-seat majority).

Incumbent Sen. Thomas Carper (D-DE) will join incoming Sens. Claire
McCaskill (D-MO) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) in being assigned to the Senate
Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. This is one of the key
committees for the MRF, as it has jurisdiction over highway safety;
interstate commerce; regulation of interstate common carriers including
railroads, buses and trucks; science, engineering and technology research
and development policy; and other transportation-related fields.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, the primary committee
having jurisdiction over transportation and other motorcycle-related
authorization, will see incoming Sens. Cardin (D-MD), Sanders (I-VT) ,
Klobuchar (D-MN) and Whitehouse (D-RI) joining the ranks. The committee
also has jurisdiction over public works projects such as bridges and dams,
as well as construction and maintenance of highways. Under the new
committee structure, which reorganized the subcommittees, Sen. Lautenberg
(D-NJ) will chair Transportation Safety, Infrastructure Security and Water
Quality. Lautenberg has already released a statement with a short list of
specific issue areas that will receive subcommittee attention, and leading
the list are drunk driving and motorcycle safety. Sen. Boxer (D-CA) is set
to chair the full committee. The MRF will be monitoring Chairman
Lautenberg and his committee very closely.

Senate Chairmen and Ranking Members

In the current 109th Congress, Republicans (with 55 Senate seats) have
held a two-seat advantage on most committees. Party ratios on committees
are subject to negotiation between the majority and minority, so it could
be weeks before committee rosters are finalized for the 110th Congress.
Most Senate panels will have to shrink by one seat or grow by one to end
up with an odd number of members. The party leaders will work out the
specifics over the next several weeks.

Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee - Chairman Ted
Stevens (R-AK), and Ranking Minority Member Daniel Inouye (D-HI), who will
swap titles next year, have similar priorities and have worked together
closely for decades, not only here but also on the Appropriations
Committee. Stevens will be a voice of reason on the committee concerning
motorcycles as he has supported ABATE of AK and the MRF in the past on
many issues.

Few panels would see a more drastic change of focus under Democratic
control than the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. With the
retirement of Sen. James Jeffords (I-VT), liberal Democrat Barbara Boxer
(D-CA) would take the gavel from conservative Republican James Inhofe
(R-OK), a long time defender of motorcycling. At oversight hearings, Boxer
has engaged in testy exchanges with Bush Administration witnesses, often
scolding them for what she sees as efforts to roll back bedrock
environmental standards. Inhofe has strongly supported the
administration's industry-backed approach to pollution control. But with
transportation reauthorization work on the far horizon, and given the
Senate's narrow partisan division, Boxer might have to settle for
high-profile oversight activity rather than passage of complex,
controversial legislation. More recently, Sen. John Warner (R-VA)
announced his intention to challenge Inhofe for the Ranking Minority
Member's seat in the committee.

House Chairmen and Ranking Members

After a dozen years of a Democratic minority, all but three of the
chairmen selected by incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) will be
getting their first shot at wielding the gavel of a full committee. Some
spots are still up in the air, with Intelligence the most hotly contested.
Incoming freshmen members of the House have yet to confirm their committee
assignments. Committee make-ups should be finalized around the beginning
of January 2007.

After serving for more than a decade as ranking Democrat on the House
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Rep. James Oberstar (D-MN)
will almost certainly have his chance to chair the panel when Democrats
assume control of the House in January. First elected to Congress in 1974,
Rep. Oberstar has made transportation a primary focus throughout his
legislative career, having served as a top aide to what
was then called the House Public Works and Transportation Committee before
being elected in his own right. In addition to an FAA reauthorization and
preparations for the next highway bill, the panel probably will consider
pipeline safety legislation if Congress does not act on this issue this
year. Amtrak overhaul efforts, transportation
security issues and annual Coast Guard reauthorization legislation are
also on the committee's agenda for the next two years. The Transportation
panel has traditionally worked across party lines to forge compromises.
Aides from both parties said they expect that pattern to continue under
Rep. Oberstar. Assuming that Democrats will not
alter the subcommittee structure and will adhere to a seniority-based
system, three Africa-American women are in line to take over subcommittee
chairmanships: Rep. Corrine Brown (D-FL) on the Railroads Subcommittee;
Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) on the Water Resources and Environment
Subcommittee; and Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) on the Economic
Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency
Management Subcommittee. Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR) now serves as Ranking
Democrat on the Highways, Transit and Pipelines Subcommittee and is the
prime candidate to lead that panel. The Highway Subcommittee has the
lion’s share of the House jurisdiction when it comes to motorcycle issues
in the highway bill. Chairman DeFazio has been out front on motorcycle
issues for a long time and the MRF will continue to work hand in hand with
him. Chairman Oberstar has been less enthusiastic than DeFazio on
motorcycle issues but has not stood in the way of any pro-motorcycle
legislation, and he has had that opportunity. As long as DeFazio is in
charge of the Subcommittee, expect to see more good things out of the
House T&I Committee. With the announcement that outgoing Chairman Don
Young (R-AK) will go after the Ranking Membership of the House Resources
Committee, expect Rep. Thomas Petri (R-WI) to move up to Ranking Member of
the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in the next
Congress.

The Democrats accomplished their stunning takeover of both chambers of
Congress by netting six Senate seats — exactly what they needed for a
51-49 majority, including Democratic-aligned Vermont Independent Bernard
Sanders and self-described Independent Democrat Joseph I. Lieberman of
Connecticut — and by nearly doubling the 15-seat net gain they needed to
claim control of the House. Most of the House seats were won by fairly
conservative standards, downright so when compared to future Democrat
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s politics. The real test of the
Democrats leadership will come when Speaker Pelosi is tempted to force her
ultra left wing agenda instead of taking the more moderate direction the
country seems to be crying out for. Look for the Democrats to use their
majority to press for campaign issues leading into 2008. It’s not entirely
clear what the new Congress will mean for motorcyclists; however a few
issues seem to be surfacing early and often, including mandatory helmet
legislation, alcohol related crashes and speed limits just to name a few.
The MRF needs your help more than ever to keep the Congress from
destroying all the motorcycle freedoms we enjoy. The 110th Congress will
convene in January, and Democrats are already planning on a full agenda
that will keep Congress busy through the summer. So start planning your
lobby trip to DC soon.

An expanded version of this congressional critique will be printed in the
next MRF REPORTS and the complete version, including committee by
committee breakdown, will be available on the MRF website.

As always, do not hesitate to contact me in our Washington, DC office with
any questions, comments or threats at jeff at mrf.org or 202-546-0983.

Jeff Hennie
MRF Vice President – Government Relations

To subscribe or unsubscribe from this mailing list, visit
http://www.mrf.org/subscribe.php

Ride With The Leaders by joining the MRF at http://www.mrf.org/join.php or
call 1-202-546-0983.

Visit the new MRF online shopping store at https://www.mrf.org/shop for
the latest in MRF goodies.

Register online for all MRF conferences at http://www.mrf.org/events.php

Send your nominations and donations for the MRF's Young Activist
Scholarship to http://www.mrf.org/yascholarship.php

Sign up today for the MRF's new roadside assistance program by visiting
http://www.mrf.org/mrfroadside.php

(c)All Information contained in this release is copyrighted. Reproduction
permitted with attribution. The Motorcycle Riders Foundation, incorporated
in 1987, is a membership-based, national motorcyclists' rights
organization headquartered in Washington, DC. The first motorcyclists'
rights organization to establish a full-time presence in Washington, DC,
the Motorcycle Riders Foundation is the only Washington voice devoted
exclusively to the street rider. The MRF established MRFPAC in the early
1990s to advocate the election of candidates who would champion the cause
of rider safety and rider freedom.
________________________________________

The MRF Reports is an official publication of the Motorcycle Riders
Foundation. All rights reserved. The print version is published six times
per year and distributed nationwide.
Articles from the MRF Reports which are posted here may be reprinted, with
attribution to the author and to the Motorcycle Riders Foundation, for
non-profit uses.
Opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily
reflect those of the Motorcycle Riders Foundation or its officers.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Articles from the MRF Reports which are posted here may be reprinted, with
attribution to the author and to the Motorcycle Riders Foundation, for
non-profit uses.

Opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily
reflect those of the Motorcycle Riders Foundation or its officers.

Top of Page