Here are 20 things Congressional Republicans could actually accomplish

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

(Nicholas Wapshott is a Reuters columnist but his opinions are his own.)

1. Start planning sharp cuts in defense spending to reduce it by $100 billion in the next ten years, which would provide a boost of $135 billion to the American economy. ( http://www.cato.org/publications/policy-analysis/economic-effects-reductions-defense-outlays )

2. Revisit the crony-capitalism Farm Bill, just passed, that subsidizes big agribusiness companies like Pilgrim's Pride, Tyler Farms, and Riceland Foods. About a third of farm subsidies go to the largest four percent of farm operators. It's a boondoggle. ( http://www.cato.org/publications/commentary/gop-hypocrisy-farm-bill )

3. Restore a version of the Voting Rights Act to head off blatant gerrymandering and voter suppression. A new Voting Rights Act would go beyond the scope of the original to make voting more universal and accessible to all eligible Americans. ( http://www.aei.org/article/politics-and-public-opinion/judicial/lets-enact-a-new-voting-rights-act/ )

4. Privatize the Federal Aviation Administration, as Canada did in 1996, and as Britain, Austria, and Denmark have done. Estimated saving to taxpayers: $11.8 billion. ( http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2013/07/how-to-cut-from-transportation-housing-and-urban-development-appropriations )

5. Make marijuana legal. Prohibition of illegal drugs has failed and filled our prisons to the brim. It has also promoted Mexican drug cartels, causing America heightened security problems on the border. The federal government's insistence on a ban on grass may be an overreach. ( http://www.cato.org/publications/policy-analysis/undermining-mexicos-dangerous-drug-cartels )

6. Privatize Amtrak to improve services and lower operating costs. Potential saving: $950 million. ( http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2013/07/how-to-cut-from-transportation-housing-and-urban-development-appropriations )

7. Cut the prison population by concentrating law enforcement on worst offenders. Make prisons rehabilitate rather than punish. Ease harsh sentencing that doesn't work and institutionalizes crime. ( http://www.aei.org/events/2009/10/23/when-brute-force-fails-how-to-have-less-crime-and-less-punishment-event/ )

8. Demand the Keystone XL pipeline be built, bringing jobs to Americans and making energy cheaper. Stop federal subsidies to big energy companies and stop restrictions on export and import of energy, such as the tariff on imported ethanol. Allow private enterprise to expand nuclear energy. And, while making sure fracking is safe, don't over-regulate exploitation of this new source of free energy. ( http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2013/01/how-to-keep-promises-to-expand-energy-production-and-create-american-jobs )

9. Close the Maritime Administration, created in 1950 to provide domestic maritime commerce in the event of a national emergency. It's outdated, raises consumer prices, and undermines competitiveness of American shipping and shipbuilding by subsidizing inefficient shippers. ( http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2013/07/how-to-cut-from-transportation-housing-and-urban-development-appropriations )

10. Close Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, because the government shouldn't be in the mortgage business. This transfer from the public to private sector can be achieved without upsetting the housing market. ( http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2013/04/eight-steps-to-eliminate-fannie-mae-and-freddie-mac-permanently )

11. Make it easier to start new businesses, which create more jobs than any other sector. Help to change regulations for small businesses; big businesses are already well-served on Capitol Hill. ( http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2013/04/who-creates-jobs-startup-firms-and-new-businesses )

12. Reform Medicare so seniors do not experience a reduction in their Medicare Advantage benefits or lose their existing plan. ( http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2013/05/the-obama-medicare-agenda-why-seniors-will-fare-worse )

13. Encourage the jobless to take online education courses that would make them more employable. Many courses are free. ( http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2013/02/returning-the-unemployed-to-work-adding-online-education-to-unemployment-insurance )

14. Relax the 1930s labor laws so employers can pay some more than the union negotiated raise. Give non-union workers a voice to promote better working conditions. (Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Representative Todd Rokita (R-IN) have already introduced the Rewarding Achievement and Incentivizing Successful Employees (RAISE) Act along these lines.) ( http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2013/01/labor-unions-declining-membership-shows-labor-laws-need-modernizing )

15. Allow more foreign investment in American industries and lift the "special legal protections" that hamper American companies investing abroad. The regulations on inward and outward investment are often over-complex and invite expensive and time-wasting litigation. ( http://www.cato.org/publications/policy-analysis/liberalization-or-litigation-time-rethink-international-investment )

16. Abolish the Department of Homeland Security. Its functions would be better served by separate agencies specializing in different tasks. The gigantism of the current department has not made America safer. Instead of trying to defend every potential target we should be investigating and arresting aspiring terrorists. ( http://www.cato.org/publications/policy-analysis/abolish-department-homeland-security )

17. Charge fees for more uses of national parks and federal land. Off-road vehicle use, for instance, could reap revenue to counter damage to land. Legislation governing this issue ends next year. ( http://www.cato.org/publications/policy-analysis/improving-incentives-federal-land-managers-case-recreation-fees )

18. Adopt the Oregon proposal to allow students to pay for their college education after graduation. But vary the amount repaid according to the student's earning prospects. ( http://www.aei.org/article/education/higher-education/it-could-work-with-some-adjustments/ )

19. Extend the charter schools experiment. Too often state education is not fit for purpose. Charter schools offer a variety of means to find a better way to give every child a better chance. And allow for-profit education companies full access to charter schools and other education opportunities currently denied them. ( http://www.crpe.org/publications/hopes-fears-reality-balanced-look-american-charter-schools-2012 )

20. Ease restrictions to allow same-sex married couples to adopt more easily. ( http://www.aei.org/article/society-and-culture/civil-rights/marriage-and-adoption/ )

http://news.yahoo.com/20-things-congressional-republicans-could-actually-accomplish-172719208.html

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Republicans will do what they've done since gaining the House majority in 2011. Nothing.

[GandD 5,966]

Republicans will do what they've done since gaining the House majority in 2011. Nothing.

Not true, they've voted to appeal obama care quite a few times now. Can't blame them if the Dems in the Senate won't work with them.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Not true, they've voted to appeal obama care quite a few times now.

True. I stand corrected.

I should have said that Republicans will do what they've done since gaining the House majority in 2011: Practice political grandstanding with no actual legislative accomplishments to show for it.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

They passed the Obama sequester.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

They passed the Obama sequester.

Woo-hoo. I think they named a couple of post offices, too.

[GandD 5,966]

Why do you hate post offices?

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Why do you hate post offices?

I don't. I just realized that great legislative accomplishment of naming post offices that I have not given Speaker Boehner due credit for. That unfortunate oversight on my part may have to do with Speaker Boehner's efforts to rid the nations of post offices altogether. That, of course, is not part of his accomplishment portfolio. Funny why they name post offices that they really want to close. Maybe they should consider naming them after really unpopular people.

[JohnR! 5,495]

Not true, they've voted to appeal obama care quite a few times now. Can't blame them if the Dems in the Senate won't work with them.

39 times so far, and counting...

Prince Boehner is worse than Pelosi and that is no small feat!

[GandD 5,966]

39 times so far, and counting...

Prince Boehner is worse than Pelosi and that is no small feat!

Gotta get all the Junior Republicans on record voting down Obama care. They did run on that very idea.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Gotta get all the Junior Republicans on record voting down Obama care. They did run on that very idea.

They ran on the idea of casting inconsequential votes? Awesome.

[GandD 5,966]

They ran on the idea of casting inconsequential votes? Awesome.

Future Campaign adds/debates. They'll need to have a appealing voting record for their constituency in order to get the nod. Don't blame me, I tried.

[JimandChristy 1,689]

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Future Campaign adds/debates. They'll need to have a appealing voting record for their constituency in order to get the nod. Don't blame me, I tried.

Anyone with a functioning brain can see these votes as the futile exercise that they are. But I suppose the crowd with functioning brains is not their target audience.

[GandD 5,966]

Anyone with a functioning brain can see these votes as the futile exercise that they are. But I suppose the crowd with functioning brains is not their target audience.

I remember hearing this on NPR and thinking, what a d1ck:

Although nearly 40 votes have been held since the law was passed, Boehner, R-Ohio, said of the upcoming vote, scheduled for next week: "We've got 70 new members who have not had an opportunity to vote on the president's healthcare law. Obamacare is going to drive up the cost of healthcare. It is going to drive up the cost of health insurance and make it harder for small businesses to hire workers."

http://www.military.com/daily-news/2013/05/11/boehner-wants-obamacare-test-for-new-lawmakers.html