Representative John Dingell, a Michigan Democrat, said in an interview on Bloomberg Television’s “Political Capital with Al Hunt” airing this weekend that the Senate’s “undemocratic” procedures have made it a “drain on the legislative process.”
(This is not a legal transcript. Bloomberg LP cannot guarantee its accuracy.)
AL HUNT: And we begin the program with Chairman John Dingell of Michigan. Mr. Chairman, thank you for being with us.
REP. JOHN DINGELL: A pleasure to be here, Al.
HUNT: Let’s start with the financial regulatory bill that passed the House. You strongly supported it, and yet, about 11 or 12 years ago you were the one with great prescience who said that if we repealed Glass-Steagall we are going to have to bail out these banks. This bill does not restore Glass-Steagall. Do you think it goes far enough, or will Congress maybe have to revisit this?
DINGELL: First of all, I would rather it went further. It doesn’t set up structural impediments to banks getting too big, but it does allow controls and, as such, is a massive step forward. Will we have to revisit it again? It will depend on whether a lot of smart MBAs and lawyers up in New York are able to find ways around federal regulation the way they did to create the recession of 2008.
HUNT: On energy and climate, another issue you have been very involved in, the Senate, given the calendar and politics, is now talking about a bill that would cap greenhouse emissions only on power plants. What are the prospects that Congress this year would adopt some kind of scaled back energy bill?
DINGELL: There is a fair chance, and you have to remember that Senator Reid has done a remarkable job of reading the Senate and putting through difficult legislation in the face of almost uniform Republican opposition. Their strategy is to stop everything, to delay everything and they are doing it really quite well. But in spite of that Reid has gotten major pieces of legislation through, the financial reform bill, not complete, but there, and also the health-care bill which -
HUNT: Do you think energy could be added to that list this year?
DINGELL: I think so and I certainly hope so. And quite frankly there are two reasons for doing it. You could quarrel about whether or not there is a scientific basis for addressing the problem of climate change. I happen to think there is.
But beyond that it is necessary that this country finally address the overuse of petroleum products. We produce - we have about 3 percent of world’s oil and we use 25 percent of it. We can’t continue that.
HUNT: Telecommunications - net neutrality, a controversy that seems to be around forever - who is going to decide the issue in 2010, the Congress or the FCC?
DINGELL: Well, Sam Rayburn once made the observation to the chairman of the FCC, he said, remember, you work for us and if you do that everything will be all right. I sent a letter to the chairman of the FCC asking serious questions about what he was getting ready to do and about his authority. I have not gotten the answer to that question.
The hard fact of the matter is we do have to have neutrality with regard to telecommunications and broadband. But it has to be done properly, and as events appear it is pretty hard to say that the FCC is proceeding on a course that will avoid lawsuits and quite frankly that will sustain lawsuits and challenges.
HUNT: Is it time for Congress to step in this year?
DINGELL: Well, Congress will be pretty well loaded this year. I think that until the FCC takes further steps it probably won’t be necessary. A number of us here on the Hill that tried to guide them and to explain to them that, first of all, they ought to stay with the existing interpretation to the law because it is well established and old.
And one of the things that the FCC is doing, which I think is questionable. The fact is they are trying to bottom what they are doing on a minority view by Justice Scalia in a lawsuit which happens to have a point. But any freshman law student will tell you the minority views in a court case are not the defining law.
HUNT: On the economy your state of Michigan and your depression, 14 percent unemployment, President Obama’s person in charge of the auto industry recovery, Ed Montgomery, is now leading. Is the administration doing enough for Michigan, for the auto industry?
DINGELL: Well, Michigan people will tell you there is not enough being done and, quite honestly, it is pretty hard to see how anything could be done to cure the problems we have in Michigan. We are not the worst off state, but second worst, but that is terrible as you well know.
Now, having said that, it is important that we do something and do everything that we can to see to it that the state turns around and that the economy of the nation turns around.
HUNT: Is the Congress focused too much on curbing the budget deficit and not enough on stimulus and helping with jobs?
DINGELL: I happen to think so. If you will remember, Roosevelt in 1937 went back and cut back on what he was doing with regard to the stimulus and the end result was that it triggered a recession in 1937 which was very serious. I do spend a lot of time reading history. Those days -
HUNT: Is there a danger of repeating that if Congress puts the brakes on too much?
DINGELL: Well, we are very concerned about that. And very frankly, this problem seems exacerbated not just by the fact that there is the potential in this country, Al, but there is also a potential around the world. And so it is - it won’t be just the United States that is making that mistake if it is a mistake. I am concerned that it might be.
But it will be the whole world and that will aggravate a situation which will make it harder for anyone to address it. And remember, the United States has been providing the leadership in terms of trying to restore the world economy with relatively small help by the way, from the Chinese, who are a very large part of the problem.
HUNT: Let’s switch to Afghanistan. A change of command in Afghanistan, you have voted for more funding. Do you think this war is winnable?
DINGELL: It is winnable and when you are in a war you have got to assume that it is winnable. The minute you decide it is not winnable you have just simply got to get out. So we don’t have any easy way out at this time in any event. We have a corrupt, incompetent government and we are trying to engage not only in defeating the Taliban and al-Qaeda, but also we are trying to do nation building and with the corrupt government and a nation that has a history of anarchy.
Now understand, Al, what - winning may not be what Americans now think it is. It is to get a state in Afghanistan that can sort of run itself and not allow troubles to get out of there which will cause something like the 9/11 bombing over here.
HUNT: With the passing of Senator Byrd you are the dean of the entire Congress now. If you had that magic wand, sir, with all of your years here, what one or two changes would you make in this institution?
DINGELL: Well, the first thing I would do is I would address the United States Senate. That is the slowest moving thing since the snail and very frankly, their requirement for 60 votes is perhaps the most singular undemocratic institution - small ‘d’ - that I have ever seen or heard tell of. That has become a device where, very frankly, we are channeling senators to get goodies for themselves and their state in spite of the need by simply threatening filibuster. And it has made that body be the drain on the legislative process going back to the days when my dad was here and I was a small boy.
HUNT: Sir, thank you very much for being with us.
***END OF TRANSCRIPT***
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#<610771.1204164.2.1.46.17993.25># -0- Jul/02/2010 09:05 GMT
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