Pelosi to Harman: Jane you ignorant...

Pelosi chooses Reyes to run intel panel
Speaker passes over committee's senior Democrat Harman

MSNBC posts the story(linked above) of House Speaker-elect Nancy Pelosi’s snubbing of fellow Californian Jane Harman by choosing Texas Representative Silvestre Reyes to Chair the House Intelligence Committee (OK, stop the snickering – I know it’s an oxymoron).

Rep. Harman is too Conservative?
Much of the speculation about why Representative Pelosi chose to dump a fellow Californian and – dare I say – woman from the important assignment of chairing the House Intelligence Committee centers on the idea that Harman is too conservative or too close to the Bush administration on military issues, and specifically Iraq. Is Representative Harman too conservative for Representative Pelosi? Could that be the reason? Let’s compare Representative Harman to Ms. Pelosi's choice, Representative Reyes.

Interest Group Ratings
American Conservative Union lifetime rating:
Harman 30% - Reyes 27%
Americans for Democratic Action (liberal) for 2005:
Harman 70% - Reyes 80%
American Security Council 2003-04 (focus on nat’l security):
Harman 40% - Reyes 50%

109th Congress Key National Security Votes
S. 3930 – Military Commissions Act;
Harman: No / Reyes: No
H.R. 5825 – Electronic Surveillance Modernization Act;
Harman No / Reyes: No
H.R. 6061 – Secure Fence Act;
Harman No / Reyes No
H.Res. 861 – A Resolution pledging support for the war in Iraq;
Harman: No / Reyes No
H.R. 4437 – Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act;
Harman: No / Reyes: No
H.R. 2863 – Ban on “cruel, inhuman or degrading” treatment of detainees;
Harman: Yes / Reyes: Yes

By interest group and key votes comparisons there appears to be little difference between Ms. Harman and Mr. Reyes. So, if they are evenly aligned on issues of national security and both semi-moderate Democrats why did Ms. Pelosi actually choose Rep. Reyes over Rep. Harman? Probably a more personal issue; some speculate it really boils down to jealousy over the level of recognition Jane Harman has in California over Ms. Pelosi. Democrats won’t talk about this issue because, according to the L.A. times, “…the split is so toxic that Democrats in California and Washington won't go near it.”

Security Should not be Compromised for Petty Reasons
I am not deeply involved in the area of national security and intelligence and therefore I concede that my knowledge is minimal in this area. But, given the similarities in their interest group ratings and key votes I am not confident that national security has been damaged by choosing Representative Reyes over Representative Harman. (The damage was done on Election Day which gave Ms. Pelosi the option to name committee chairs for the 110th Congress).

My concern, more than anything, is that national security should not be held captive by petty matters of personality conflicts or partisan gamesmanship.

For example, the rejection by Democrats to confirm John Bolton as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. By all accounts, Ambassador Bolton has been doing a great job; and yet Democrats are still arguing that he is just not warm and fuzzy enough for their taste.

Congress must return to a day when politics stops at the border. A day when Democrats and Republicans joined together to defend America, and they did so without regard to how it might affect their electoral or personal fortunes. As a nation, we need to honor and promote statesmen and reject those who would use their position of power to carry out personal vendettas or allow the prospect of political gain to trump the need to further our nation’s security.

Whatever Ms. Pelosi’s reasons are for snubbing Representative Harman, they should be spelled out for America. We should be reassured that she did not make a decision about our nation’s security based upon petty personal reasons.