The House of Representatives is adjourned for the rest of 2006. The first session of the 110th Congress will commence on January 4, 2007.

Session Wrap Up

Late last week, the House passed H.R. 6111, the Tax Relief and Health Care Act, by a vote of 367 to 45. Among other things, this bill extends the income tax exemption for higher education tuition; tax credits for research and development, renewable energy, and small businesses investing in low-income neighborhoods; and other tax relief for soldiers, teachers, and restaurateurs.

This legislation also creates new inducements for Health Savings Accounts (HSA) which combine a tax-free, high-deductible insurance policy with a tax-free savings account to pay for smaller expenses. These plans are a crucial component of more market-driven health care, giving individuals more choice and control over health decisions. The expansion of HSAs has the potential to revolutionize the American health care system, hopefully controlling the upward spiral of medical costs.

Iraq Study Group

Much discussion has been focused on last week’s release of recommendations by the Iraq Study Group (ISG). While some pundits and politicians tout this report as the roadmap for what to do next in Iraq, there are some fundamental troubles with the proposal. One glaring problem is that the ISG declares, “Iran should stem the flood of arms and training to Iraq,” and “Syria should control its border with Iraq to stem the flood of funding, insurgents and terrorists in and out of Iraq.” While both of these wishes are exactly right, I see little reason to expect them to be anything more than just that. The reality is that Iran and Syria, or at least significant factions in both countries, seek to undermine the new Iraqi government as well as U.S. interests in the Middle East. It seems naive to expect Iran and Syria to cooperate in the establishment of a secure Iraqi democracy. In simple terms, it is unlikely that these two nations want us to succeed, let alone be willing to help us succeed. As the president and congress consider the ISG plan and decide how to proceed, one thing is clear – we cannot place undue faith in allies who aren’t.

Regardless of how many of the report’s recommendations are adopted, it remains critical that congress continues to provide our troops with the equipment and support they need while they are engaged in the war. I am going to continue to fight to make sure we keep our commitment to them.

Bye Bye, Kofi

Concluding a decade in the post, Kofi Annan is preparing to step down as the United Nations (U.N.) Secretary General. Sadly, he oversaw the bleakest period in U.N. history. Under his watch, the institution was implicated in ongoing cases of corruption and mismanagement – most notably, the Oil-for-Food Program. This epic scandal revealed official U.N. collusion with Saddam Hussein’s regime to bilk millions of dollars from the suffering Iraqi people in exchange for turning a blind eye to the very abuses the organization was designed to prevent. Annan presided over failed peacekeeping missions in Rwanda and Bosnia in the mid-1990s. More recently, the U.N. has done little to stop genocide in the Sudan. Worst of all are the allegations of rampant rapes in refugee camps – committed by U.N. peacekeepers! While a smug Annan was quick to attack U.S. actions and foreign policy regarding Iraq in a recent speech in Missouri, we must remember that he did nothing to confront the Hussein regime diplomatically. As Iraq’s interim defense minister Hazem Sha’alan remarked, “Where was Kofi Annan when Saddam Hussein was slaughtering the Iraqi people like sheep?” So long, Mr. Secretary. May your successor fare better than you.