An interesting battle is quietly taking place in the annals of Congress (and online) that probably won't make it very far beyond the Beltway chattering class but is worth noting in this space.
The turse is between Republican Leader John Boehner, Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi, and House bureaucrats (hired by Pelosi) who interpret silly, outdated, and flawed House Rules governing the use of websites by Members of Congress at their discretion.
The gist of the story is that Leader Boehner's office received approval in August to use the domain name, earmarkreform.house.gov, to serve as the House Republican's hub to reform earmarks. However, just two weeks after the website went live, the House Chief Administrative Officer, Dan Beard, rescinded his approval of the domain name, calling the previous approval a "mistake," and has shut the website down.
Boehner is, rightfully, crying foul. CQ has the full scoop:
[Boehner] said he was convinced the revocation was politically motivated.
“I am writing today to register my protest over this belated change,” he wrote Beard. “Changing its address now will inevitably hamper the effectiveness of the new Web site, much to the convenience of the majority that runs the House.”
Boehner went on to allege that the change was probably related to the continued stream of stories about Democratic House members and their use of the earmarking process.
The response to Boehner:
In a statement, Beard spokesman Jeff Ventura said permission for Boehner to use the Web site was issued mistakenly. He said the CAO had determined that the address violated using a slogan in the name of any site included in the house.gov domain and that Boehner had been asked to “transition” to another address.
“The CAO is now initiating a review” of all House Web addresses “to ensure compliance with traditional formatting,” Ventura said. Any sites that are in potential conflict with the House Administration Committee’s interpretation of the rule will be reviewed by the committee.
He said the House information resources office is “working with Mr. Boehner’s staff to make the transition as seamless as possible.”
Boehner is fighting a good, worthwhile fight that conservative activists could rally behind. In fact, over at Slatecard, our donor analytics show that the issue badge, Cut The Pork, is the #1 most frequently given issue badge and is the #2 issue badge with regard to total donations:
Top Issue Badges By Frequency
1. Cut The Pork: 54
2. Pro-Life: 48
3. Protect & Defend America: 46
4. Jobs & Economy: 36
5. Conservation Of Resources: 33
Top Issue Badges By Total Dollars
1. Protect & Defend America: $9,435.99
2. Cut The Pork: $6,593.00
3. Available and Affordable Health Care: $4,825.00
4. Jobs & Economy: $4,337.00
5. Defeat Radical Islam: $3,525.00
However, the truth of the matter is that, when live and operational, the website probably wasn't actually doing much good with regard to changing the narrative about House Republicans and earmarks. However, it was a strong step in the right direction as a positive embrace of the Internet by Republicans and a very real hub of information/efforts toward one single goal.
But, now, in its death -- we're all writing about the fact that John Boehner's efforts to reform earmarks is being crippled not by a team of appropriators -- but by Nancy Pelosi and her liberal allies.
That's a win for his communications team. A scoop of porridge if you'll have it.
Boehner Cries Foul After House
CAO Revokes GOP Web Address
CAO Revokes GOP Web Address
House Minority Leader Rep. John A. Boehner wants his Web site address back.
The Ohio Republican on Thursday protested a decision by House Chief Administrative Officer Dan Beard to revoke his staff’s earlier approval for Boehner to use the address www.earmarkreform.house.gov.
The site, which House GOP leaders set up to promote their ideas for making further changes to the congressional earmark system and to pressure Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democratic leaders to support them, had gone online earlier this month.
Boehner had received permission to use the Web address in an Aug. 18 letter from the House Information Resources office. The GOP site went online earlier this month.
Boehner got another letter this week telling him that permission had been rescinded.
He said he was convinced the revocation was politically motivated.
“I am writing today to register my protest over this belated change,” he wrote Beard. “Changing its address now will inevitably hamper the effectiveness of the new Web site, much to the convenience of the majority that runs the House.”
Boehner went on to allege that the change was probably related to the continued stream of stories about Democratic House members and their use of the earmarking process.
In a statement, Beard spokesman Jeff Ventura said permission for Boehner to use the Web site was issued mistakenly. He said the CAO had determined that the address violated using a slogan in the name of any site included in the house.gov domain and that Boehner had been asked to “transition” to another address.
“The CAO is now initiating a review” of all House Web addresses “to ensure compliance with traditional formatting,” Ventura said. Any sites that are in potential conflict with the House Administration Committee’s interpretation of the rule will be reviewed by the committee.
He said the House information resources office is “working with Mr. Boehner’s staff to make the transition as seamless as possible.”
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