When a good idea comes together

Realizing that the Republican congressional majority had simply given up on the pretense of administrative oversight, Harry Reid and the Senate Dems crafted an idea in December whereby our party would pick up the slack. As Roll Call reported three months ago:

Lacking the power to formally examine alleged corruption in the Bush administration, Senate Democrats plan to create their own investigative team and hold hearings on their findings in the new Congress.

Though the hearings will not be officially sanctioned by the Senate — and will not be aided by Congressional subpoena power — Democrats say they will offer an opportunity to provide oversight of the executive branch, which they claim has been lacking under Republican rule.

“The fact is, with one-party rule — the presidency and the House and Senate — there is no oversight on anything,” said Democratic Policy Committee Chairman Byron Dorgan (N.D.). “The oversight function … is non-existent.”

Truth be told, this was unusually innovative thinking for Dems. Under the predictable model, Dems would identify an outrage and demand congressional hearings. Republicans would yawn, pat the Dems on the head, and wink at the administration to keep up the good work. Without the votes the override GOP obstinacy, Dems did little more than stew in frustration.

Then they found a recourse — using the DPC to hold the hearings Republicans won’t hold. But would they be effective? Would people show up? Would the media care? Would the hearings produce useful information or simply be political theater?

A few months after the initiative has begun, I think it’s safe to say the DPC initiative has been a stunning success.

These are frustrating times for the Democratic Party, shut out of power in the White House, the House and the Senate. Democrats don’t have power to call hearings, to subpoena witnesses or to move legislation.

But they still have the power to raise a ruckus. And one of their best vehicles for raising a ruckus is the Democratic Policy Committee, a taxpayer-funded entity established by law and given the power to hold meetings, pay for witnesses’ travel and, on a good day, get coverage from C-SPAN.

“You guys usually call these things ‘events,’ ” Dorgan protested when asked about the session’s legitimacy. “We’re trying very hard to do this in a serious way.”

And the hard work is paying off. The almost-official hearings are generating valuable testimony, media attention, and — what’s that word again? — substance.

The first set of hearings dealt with employees at the Social Security Administration who were pressured to toe the White House line.

A pair of Social Security employees told the Democratic Policy Committee that they objected to internal agency documents that directs employees to talk about the system’s problems and the need for reform.

“That is a political message and it’s not my job as an agency employee to project a political message,” said Debbie Fredericksen, who works in the Minneapolis field office and is a union representative.

The second set of hearings was yesterday and dealt with serious financial abuses — with our money — in Iraq.

A government contractor defrauded the Coalition Provisional Authority of tens of millions of dollars in Iraq reconstruction funds and the Bush administration has done little to try to recover the money, an attorney for two whistle-blowers told Democratic lawmakers yesterday.

The lawyer, Alan Grayson, represents two former employees who charged in a federal lawsuit that the security firm Custer Battles LLC of Fairfax was paid approximately $15 million to provide security for civilian flights at Baghdad International Airport, even though no planes flew during the contract term. Grayson said the firm received $100 million in contracts in 2003 and 2004, despite a thin track record and evidence the government was not getting its money’s worth.

A former Coalition Provisional Authority official who briefly oversaw the airport security contract also spoke, depicting a temporary governing body awash with cash but lacking in the necessary controls to ensure that money generated from the sale of Iraqi oil actually went to rebuilding the country.

“I wish I could tell you that the Bush administration has done everything it could to detect and punish fraud in Iraq,” Grayson said. “If I said that to you, though, I would be lying.”

These are serious developments, generated by serious hearings, dealing with serious questions. And none of this would ever see the light of day were it not for this new DPC initiative.

Nice job, Dems.