Open letter to the new Republican Congress

Your recent victory gives you a tremendous opportunity. Please don’t waste it. The past two decades have seen multiple changes of leadership in Congress. Every one of these new majorities eventually sowed the seeds of their own destruction. I offer a few pieces of advice to help keep you from writing the next chapter in this story of failure. 

Humility

You are no longer the party out of power. You are no longer the underdog. Behavior that is acceptable for the lovable loser is not acceptable for the king of the hill. You have a great opportunity. Don’t squander your newfound support by demonizing your ideological opponents. Keep a level head, choose your words carefully, and articulate your reasons for every action. View every interaction with the public as an opportunity for education, not as an opportunity for ranting. You finally possess some power. Resist the urge to wield it like a sword. 

Follow the Right Course of Action

It is a sad truth that too many members of Congress base their decisions on that which will enhance their re-election prospects or on the demands of their party. In the course of pursuing what you feel to be the right course of action, do not be afraid to reject the short term electoral benefits or to defy party leaders. Stick to your principles; people respect that. If you’re going to lose an election, at least lose it for following what you feel to be the right course of action. 

Resist the Temptation to Right Every Wrong Overnight

The past decades have seen an unprecedented growth in the scope of the Federal government, little of which was accompanied by any Constitutional authority. Resist the urge to right all of these wrongs. Set reachable goals, and work to achieve them. Resist the urge to engage in silly initiatives designed to please your core base. Instead, keep to the principles that enabled your election, all the while explaining to the public why you are doing so. To that end, I suggest three areas of focus. 

Executive Branch Restraint: “All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States.”

You now have the opportunity to stop the executive branch’s troubling practices of selectively enforcing laws and of exercising powers not granted to it by the Constitution. Instruct your ideological opponents that someday there will be a President in office whose policies are opposed to their interests and that a failure to act now simply concedes a precedent that it is permissible for the executive branch to rule autonomously by decree. 

War Powers: “Congress shall have power… to declare war”

Educate the American people on the foundational notion that Congress alone has the authority to exercise war powers. When critics counter by citing the War Powers Resolution and its sixty day grace period, explain how that resolution was an unconstitutional surrender of power and work to repeal it. Convince the people of the importance of following the Constitution to the letter on this issue – no one should rest easy under a system in which the ability to initiate an armed conflict rests in the hands of a single person. This issue is more than just a legal technicality; it’s a philosophy that must be embraced. The President must acknowledge that the decision to initiate a military conflict is not, in any way, his or her decision. 

Federal Judiciary: “Advise and Consent”

Finally, you have the opportunity to stop the appointment of utterly deficient Federal justices, judges who hold to an interpretational philosophy which can justify any conceivable ruling. The power over the judiciary selection process is one of the most important granted to the Senate, but it has been used in a cavalier fashion for far too much of the Senate’s history. Remind the people that it is the President who must bow to the will of the Senate on this issue, not the converse – if the President does not follow the advice of the Senate, then the Senate will not grant its consent. Opponents will cry of judicial logjams. Remind them that you would be happy to approve of the President’s nominees just as soon as the President submits a suitable candidate. At some point, the President will make a show of deference by nominating a candidate who fits your requirements in a purely superficial fashion. Do not take the bait, but explain that the apparent concession by the President is a pretext; the nominee is deficient in key ideological areas. Stick to the principles, always explaining why. 

Closing Thoughts

I hope you consider these thoughts, and I wish you the best in doing the job assigned to you. In all things, act ethically. Communicate with full openness and honesty, always in a respectful manner. Don’t waste the opportunity you’ve been given. 

Brown is an associate professor in the Department of Psychological Sciences at Western Kentucky University.