They have a dream

We celebrate the memory of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. every year.

You might hear the occasional racist nitwit say something they think is clever about MLK Day, but by and large just about everyone is on board with King’s message of non-violence and inclusion. Of course by everyone I mean everyone except the 114^th Congress of the United States of America.

In spite of this being the most diverse Congress in history — 104 women and 93 people of color — the House leadership said Congress is once again all white and almost exclusively male. The lone woman in a leadership position is Rep. Candice Miller, from Michigan’s 10th district, who chairs the House Committee on Administration. This committee is charged with overseeing and recording day-to-day goings-on of the House. That’s right — she’s their secretary.

One of the more powerful positions in the House hierarchy is that of majority whip. The etymology of the word comes from an old hunting term “whipping in,” which was used to describe keeping hounds from wandering off.

That’s a pretty accurate, if somewhat poetic, description of what this person does. The majority whip is the House enforcer. He keeps party members in line with leadership by incentive or coercion. And just who did house members elect to be their overseer? Whom do they trust in this position of political power? None other than Steven Scalise from the 1st district of Louisiana.

Here’s a little background on the honorable representative from St. Bernard Parrish. While he was in the state legislature he tried to kill a resolution that would have apologized for slavery. The resolution was merely a statement apologizing for Louisiana’s part in that historic institution. Scalise objected on the grounds that it would be an “admission of guilt.” Seriously, I’m not making that up. Future U.S. Senator David Vitter suggested they change the wording to read “an expression of regret,” but Scalise stood firm. The resolution eventually passed by an 11-2 vote.

This is the same Steve Scalise that spoke at a group affiliated with ex-Grand Wizard of the Ku-Klux-Klan, David Duke. He claims he didn’t know who the people were. I guess he thought everyone was just hanging out their bed linen. I find it hard to believe that someone as involved with Louisiana politics as Scalise didn’t know of clansman Duke who once ran for the State Senate and at one time came within a skinhead’s hair of becoming the governor of the state.

In addition, Scalise voted twice, once in 1999 and again in 2004, against creating a Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday in Louisiana. It would appear Scalise has a dream of his own.

But wait, there’s more. The returning chairman of the House Judiciary Committee is one Bob Goodlatte from Virginia’s 6th congressional district. This committee is charged with overseeing the administration of justice within the federal court system. As such it is a significant player in the implementation of civil rights law.

Chairman Goodlatte has a fairly long paper trail in the civil rights arena that would leave even the most casual observer scratching their head and wondering why he was picked to head this committee. In 2013 he voted no on the reauthorization of the Violence against Women act. In 2007 he voted no on legislation that would have banned job discrimination based on sexual orientation. In 2005 he voted to make the “can you hear me now” Patriot Act a permanent fixture. In 1998 he voted to end affirmative action in colleges and universities. This is the man who now chairs the committee charged with managing the very legislation he seems to be against.

Goodlatte also voted no on enforcing anti-gay hate crimes. He voted no on maintaining the right of habeas corpus in death penalty appeals and voted against grants for historically black and Hispanic colleges. It’s too bad David Duke never ran for the House.

Of course no treatise on the People’s House would be complete without mentioning our own Don Young. While he may no longer head a committee (darn ethics investigations!) he still makes his presence known. Aside from telling tales of how he and his father hired “wet backs” to pick tomatoes, he is also known for wearing silly hats to show his lack of respect for people he is interrogating, and waving a walrus penis bone around while conducting the business of the people.

While his colorful antics may be amusing, his voting record is anything but. He, like Goodlatte, voted to continue discrimination in the workplace based on sexual orientation. He also voted for legislation that would funnel money away from public education and against funding for public housing. Not surprisingly, Congressman Young gets low scores from both the ACLU and the NAACP.

As we stop to remember the late Martin Luther King we should also remember what he stood for. His message was one of inclusion. He worked for empowering the disenfranchised. His dream involved the migration of power from the select to the many. It appears the dream of the 114th congress is to undo Dr. King’s good works.

Chuck Legge is a freelance political cartoonist and community columnist who lives in Sutton.

His political cartoons, “The World According to Chuck,” are printed in the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman and other newspapers around the state and nation.