Pete Sessions to Co-Chair GOP Retreat

Well, I'm disappointed--when I saw an article that Pete Sessions was leading a GOP House Retreat, I thought it meant they were leaving. No such luck. It's a marketing thing. From Real Clear Politics:

To Avoid Further Losses, Republicans Need 'Re-Branding'

The co-chairmen of the 70-member Suburban Caucus, Reps. Mark Kirk (Ill.), a moderate, and Pete Sessions (Texas), a conservative, are scheduled to present the agenda -- and polling data backing it up -- at the House GOP retreat beginning today in West Virginia.

House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) has been talking for more than a year about the need for Republicans to "re-brand" themselves or remain in the minority.

Look, people, I've got a piece of advice that serves for everyone, not just those in Congress. If you want to keep your job, do your job. Showing up for work, for instance, is a good way to keep your job. That shouldn't have to be said, but some people in Congress seem to have trouble in that area. Instead of taking time off for a marketing seminar, how 'bout staying at work?

And if you are a Congressman, please meet the people you represent and find out what they want. It may be that a sizeable percentage of people in your district don't want a right-wing extremist who votes with the Republican Party 91% of the time. Pete Sessions votes as if he won a landslide victory--he didn't. To date, he has ignored the 42% of constituents who voted for his opponent.

As Peggy Noonan said, George W. Bush destroyed the Republican Party:

On the pundit civil wars, Rush Limbaugh declared on the radio this week, "I'm here to tell you, if either of these two guys [Mr. McCain or Mike Huckabee] get the nomination, it's going to destroy the Republican Party. It's going to change it forever, be the end of it!"

This is absurd. George W. Bush destroyed the Republican Party, by which I mean he sundered it, broke its constituent pieces apart and set them against each other. He did this on spending, the size of government, war, the ability to prosecute war, immigration and other issues.

Were there other causes? Yes, of course. But there was an immediate and essential cause.

And this needs saying, because if you don't know what broke the elephant you can't put it together again...

The elephant is broken, and now they're relying on Pete Sessions to help put it together with his "re-branding" effort? Good lord, they're in worse trouble than Peggy Noonan imagined!

Pete Sessions Votes "No" to Mine Safety, Public Housing Improvements

From Congress.Org:

S-MINER Act - Vote Passed (214-199, 17 Not Voting)
"To establish improved mandatory standards to protect miners during emergencies, and for other purposes." Pete Sessions voted "no." See H.R. 2768, Roll No. 10.

HOPE VI Improvement and Reauthorization Act - Vote Passed (271-130, 29 Not Voting)
The House passed this bill to reauthorize the HOPE VI grant program that revitalizes severely distressed public housing. Pete Sessions voted "no." See H.R. 3524, Roll No. 18.

Reps. Fossella And Sessions Meet With Dallas Financial Leaders

From MondoVisione

Reps. Fossella And Sessions Meet With Dallas Financial Leaders As Part Of Task Force on Capital Markets And U.S. Competitiveness - Fossella Continues Field Meetings To Develop Legislative Recommendations For Reform

Congressman Vito Fossella’s (R-NY13) most recent field meeting of his Task Force on ways to enhance the competitiveness of the U.S. capital markets, which was held this past Monday in Dallas, Texas, focused primarily on the issue of regulatory reform. Joining Fossella at the meetings was Congressman Pete Sessions (R-TX32), a member of the Task Force and the House Financial Services Committee.

Fossella, who serves as Chairman of the “Capital Markets, Economic and Information Security” Task Force under the House Republican Policy Committee, met with members of the Dallas Security Traders Association and others to discuss regulatory improvements to enhance market efficiencies, liquidity and capital formation.

Fossella said, “Dallas is a growing center of the financial and energy markets within the United States and internationally. Our meetings in Dallas helped us gain a unique perspective on the issues affecting the competitiveness of the U.S. markets. As an integral link between investors and the marketplace, the Dallas-area securities traders provided valuable input about ways in which we can modernize and improve regulation of the markets to enhance innovation and efficiency. Strong and competitive capital markets equal economic growth – both in Dallas and across the country.”

Sessions said, “The financial securities industry is vital to the economy of Dallas and to the United States. I believe that Congress has the responsibility to ensure that capital markets are free from burdensome government regulation and frivolous litigation, which will encourage increased capital formation, job creation, and global competitiveness in America. I welcome Congressman Fossella’s visit to Dallas to hear from participants from across the securities industry, and I thank him for his continued interest in working on these important issues.”

Read about Vito Fossella at Veto Fossella, a site "...dedicated to exposing Rep. Vito Fossella's (R-NY13) Congressional record. His Congressional district, NY-13 is made up of Staten Island and the Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, Bensonhurst and Gravesend neighborhoods of Brooklyn. Our sympathies if he is your Representative."