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On Contempt of Congress Vote by House Judiciary Committee
July 25, 2007
The contempt proceedings in the House Judiciary Committee today are part of a broader effort by House Democrats to restore our nation's fundamental system of checks and balances.

The Constitution gives the Congress a crucial role in overseeing the Executive Branch in order to protect the American people against overreaching, incompetence, and corruption. I am hopeful that today's vote will help the Administration see the light and release the information to which the Judiciary Committee is entitled.

For the last six years, under Republican leadership, Congress failed to conduct its proper oversight role, resulting in fiascos such as the mismanagement of our Iraq policy, widespread corruption by contractors such as Halliburton, and the failed response to Hurricane Katrina.

Blog Post
House Votes to Ban Permanent Bases in Iraq
July 25, 2007

"The Democratic Congress will go on record -- every day if necessary -- to register a judgment in opposition to the course of action that the President is taking in Iraq. The Democratic Congress will go on record -- every day if necessary -- to fight for a redeployment of our forces as the central element of a New Direction strategy for Iraq."

- Speaker Pelosi, 7/25/07

Blog Post
Judiciary Committee Meeting on Contempt
July 25, 2007
UPDATE: The Committee has approved the report recommending to the House that Miers and Bolten be cited for Contempt of Congress. The vote was party-line.

At 10:15, the Judiciary Committee will hold a "Meeting to Consider: a Resolution and Report Recommending to the House of Representatives that Former White House Counsel Harriet Miers and White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten be Cited for Contempt of Congress." Yesterday Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers prepared a 52-page memo "that for the first time alleges specific ways that several administration officials may have broken the law during the multiple firings of U.S. attorneys."

Press Release
Pelosi: Increase in Minimum Wage Signals a New Direction in Our Country
July 24, 2007
"'Leader Reid, it seems like yesterday we were here urging the Senate to end the war in Iraq and bring our troops home. And here we are, one week later, gathered here to observe a remarkable thing. An increase in minimum wage shouldn't be that remarkable, but it took 10 long years because of Republican obstructionism to block fairness for an increase in the minimum wage. Ten years. In fact, in the last Congress, the Republicans prevented consideration of the minimum wage coming to the House floor 11 times. Does that tell you whose side they are on?"
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Blog Post
Long-Awaited Minimum Wage Increase
July 24, 2007
Working full time, a minimum wage worker brings home only $10,712 a year, nearly $6,000 below the poverty level for a family of three. Today, minimum wage workers will see the first federal pay increase in a decade. Raising the minimum wage means a $4,400 yearly pay raise--money that could pay for 15 months of groceries, or more than two years of health care. It could buy 19 months of utilities, 20 months of child care, or 30 months of college tuition at a public, 2-year college.

Over the next two years, the minimum wage will increase from $5.15 an hour to $7.25 per hour. Thanks to this increase, in 2009 a family of four will move from 11 percent below the poverty line to 5 percent above the poverty line. Nearly 13 million people will benefit from the increase. The minimum wage increase will have a direct positive impact for:

Blog Post
Oversight Committee Reviews Documents, Narrows Requests on Tillman Case
July 24, 2007
Continuing the ongoing investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Army Ranger Specialist Patrick Tillman, an update from the Oversight Committee:

Blog Post
Two Reports Analyze Medicaid Citizenship Requirements
July 24, 2007
Today Oversight Committee Chairman Waxman released two new analyses that examine the impact of the Medicaid citizenship documentation requirements that went into effect in 2006. A GAO analysis shows that the requirements have caused eligible U.S. citizens to lose Medicaid coverage, and a report by the Committee's majority staff shows that the new requirements have not achieved the goal of saving taxpayers money.

GAO Report: Citizenship Documentation Requirement (pdf) >>

Summary of GAO and Staff Findings (pdf) >>

From the summary, on the majority staff's findings:

Articles
National Public Radio: Democrats Talk-Up Minimum-Wage Increase
July 24, 2007
"This is the first piece of legislation [of the six for 06] passed by the new Democratic majority in Congress to take effect. That had party leaders cheering on Capitol Hill today."
Articles
Wall Street Journal: Pelosi Cultivates Her Own Style In Building Support for Farm Bill
July 24, 2007
" More Armani than Carhartt, Speaker Nancy Pelosi brings her style of coalition politics to the House farm-bill debate this week as she tries to balance the need for change in federal agricultural programs with the Democrats' dream of reviving the party's historic urban-rural alliances."
Press Release
Pelosi Statement in Support of Renewing U.S. Import Restrictions on Burma
July 23, 2007
"'Today's vote to renew U.S. import restrictions on the military regime in Burma sends a clear message that those fighting for democracy and human rights in Burma do not stand alone in their struggle."
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