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November 17, 2008, 01:22 PM ET
What's Wrong With Being in Congress?
Most liberals and many conservatives decry the extent to which George W. Bush, encouraged by Dick Cheney, has drawn unilateral power into the presidency during these past eight years. Even before 9/11, Cheney was hiding the workings of his energy task force behind a curtain of executive secrecy and Bush was, on his own authority, taking charge of how the federal government treats embryonic stem cells.
With Bush and Cheney less than 10 weeks away from eviction from the White House and a former Constitutional law professor about to move in, wouldn’t you think members of Congress would look forward to restoring their branch of government to prominence? Especially those who have a future as leaders within that branch of government.
Apparently not. Joseph Biden, one of the most senior Democrats on Capitol Hill, left the Senate to become Obama’s vice president. Rahm Emanuel, tagged by many as a future speaker of the House, left to become Obama’s chief of staff, a job that hardly anyone lasts in for more than a few years. And now Hillary Clinton, a Senate majority leader in the making if there ever was one, seems eager to become secretary of state.
Maybe they’re right to end careers in Congress for even a brief stay in the executive. Presidents are not known for giving back the powers that their predecessors accumulare, and Congresses controlled by the president’s party are not known for taking them back.
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