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When Congress opened yesterday, with a new Republican majority in the House, the first item of business was voting in a package of new rules. Those rules can have an effect on how and which bills become law. Republicans made significant changes in the rules, which has left the Democrats crying foul. NPR's Andrea Seabrook explains.
ANDREA SEABROOK: It is the hallmark of American democracy - the peaceful transfer of power between political opponents. Yesterday, after the new speaker, Republican John Boehner, took the gavel from the former speaker, Democrat Nancy Pelosi, Boehner outlined his plans as head of the new majority.
Representative JOHN BOEHNER (Republican, Ohio): Our aim will be to give the government back to the American people. In seeking this goal, we will part with some of the rituals that have come to characterize this institution under majorities both Republican and Democrat alike.
SEABROOK: Under the Republicans' new rules, every bill must refer to a specific part of the Constitution that gives Congress the power to take up such legislation. Boehner said Republicans will dispense with the idea that bigger bills are better and faster legislating is good.
The rules require all bills to be posted online at least three days before they come to the House floor. And Boehner said the most important change will be in how the rules stymie spending increases and, he said, encourage spending cuts.
Rep. BOEHNER: And we will start by cutting Congress's own budget.
(Soundbite of applause)
SEABROOK: Perhaps the biggest change is in a budgetary practice Democrats enacted to rein in the deficit. It's called pay-as-you-go, and it forced lawmakers to pay for every new dollar spent with a cut elsewhere or tax increase equal to that dollar.
Yesterday, California Republican David Dreier, the chairman of the Rules committee, said that didn't really address what Republicans see as the big problem in Congress.
Representative DAVID DREIER (Republican, California): We don't have a revenue problem, we have a spending problem.
SEABROOK: So now instead of pay-as-you-go, Republicans have created a rule they call cut-as-you-go. Meaning, every new dollar spent by Congress must be offset with a dollar cut elsewhere. No tax increases can pay for that spending, said Dreier.
Rep. DRIER: Rather than pairing spending with job-killing tax increases, we will pair it with spending cuts.
SEABROOK: This drew the most ire from Democrats, like Louise Slaughter of New York, the ranking member of the Rules committee. She quoted from a Washington Post editorial.
Representative LOUISE SLAUGHTER (Democrat, New York): Tax cuts for the wealthiest are fully protected, but tax help for those at the other end of the income spectrum? Forget about it.
SEABROOK: The cut-as-you-go rule doesn't even allow lawmakers to close a tax loophole to pay for new spending. And the reason, say Republicans, is that the only way to tackle massive budget deficits is to start cutting; though they did write themselves a few exceptions to their rules, ticking off Democrats.
Representative FRANK PALLONE (Democrat, New Jersey): Today's rules package reveals only one thing, and that is hypocrisy.
SEABROOK: Frank Pallone, of New Jersey, said, take the new health care law. It actually lowers the deficit over the next ten years, but Republicans want to repeal it. So they wrote into their rules an exemption that allows them to ignore the increase in spending it would cause to repeal the law.
Other rules changes would prohibit Congress from passing commemorative legislation, strip delegates of American territories of their voting rights on the floor, and give the chairman of the Budget committee the authority to set spending levels for this year.
But it's more the procedural changes that Speaker Boehner seemed more proud of - smaller, more focused committees, their meetings streamed live online.
Rep. BOEHNER: In time, I believe this framework will allow the House to be a place where the people's will is done.
SEABROOK: And one last change? There will be more time in the schedule for lawmakers to be back home with the people.
Andrea Seabrook, NPR News, the Capitol.