Sheila Jackson Lee on Homicide

Sheila Jackson Lee on Government

As is her wont, it is likely that Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX 18th) will camp out on the House floor for hours at the State of the Union to get an aisle seat to get her photo opportunity with the President.  This time, Jackson-Lee can whisper sweat nothings about CBC support for Obama executive orders. 

Sheila Jackson Lee on President Obama

  Covering the President is right up Ms. Jackson-Lee's aisle (sic).  She is renowned for camping out hours before the annual State of the Union address to get her prized aisle seat and get an photo-op with the President.

Clearly Defining Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee

During a debate on the House floor on the Enforce the Law Act bill (H.R.4138), Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX 18th) offered angry oratory on clearly defining what was Constitutional.  The problem is that her preamble implies that American has been operating under our Constitution for 400 years.

Unfortunately for the "gentle-lady" from Houston, the Constitution has only been ratified since 1789, which is 234 years ago.  

To be charitable, perhaps Ms. Jackson Lee intended to refer to English settlements in the New World, from which the American Republic has a nexus.  Using Representative Jackson Lee's chronology, maybe she meant the Jamestown Colony, which was established in 1607 and briefly abandoned in 1610.   Popular culture considers the Pilgrims settlement in the Plymouth Colony in 1620. Yet  the rules used in both  charters did not embody the constitutional protections which Jackson Lee extolled.  But at least Ms. Jackson Lee was more on base with her Constitutional claim than in 1997 when Jackson Lee asked a NASA scientist in a Congressional hearing  if the Mars Pathfinder had photographed the flag that Neil Armstrong had planted on the moon.

Maybe Congresswoman Jackson Lee ought to crack open her pocket Constitution instead of just brandishing it as a prop. But such a modest proposal coming from the wrong source might be considered too bossy .

Anticipatory Chuckles for the State of the Union

Clark S. Judge should know about State of the Union addresses.  Before Judge founded the White House Writers Group in 1993, he was a Special Assistant and Speech Writer for former President Ronald Reagan.  It is dubious that Vice President Joe Biden, our National Treasure, had any input on this year's SOTU. 

Here is hoping that this year, Mr. Obama can make it through all of the introductions before concluding his remarks.

In all seriousness, if one can stomach actually watching the long laundry list of rehashed reiteration of bumper sticker federal initiatives will will amount to nothing, consider a couple of suggestions to make the time memorable.

1. Find the ugliest tie in the Chambers.  Extra credit if you can name the fashion challenged politican
2. Count the number of times that our Dear Leader utters the word "I".  
3. Play a Between-the-Beltways version of "High Bob".  This year's "magic word" is "fairness".  (N.B.  in the interests of sobriety, the word "I" has been excluded from this year's "magic word").
4. Guess how long Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX 18th) waited in the House chamber in order to secure her row seat for her annual photo op with whoever is President. 

Or if you are really ambitious and want to pay attention, play State of the Union BS Bingo.

Don't feel obliged to wait for the Spin Rooms to form your opinion.  Take part in the instant punditry on Twitter #SOTU.  Look for the handle @CalamityDC

h/t:  Marshall Ramsey

Sheila Jackson Lee--Free At Last?

Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX 18th) made a shocking statement at the well of the House of Representatives last week.

While Congresswoman Lee gave plaudits to President Lincoln for freeing the slaves, her floor speech made two anachronistic assertions.  Firstly,  Rep.Jackson Lee presented herself as a freed slave.  Well, the Emancipation Proclamation was promulgated by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863.  As Rush Limbaugh joked,  Sheila Jackson Lee looks good for her age but she has to be over 110  years old.

 Then Rep. Jackson Lee  claimed that this Congress had freed the slaves. Not quite.    More like the 33rd Congress not the 113th Congress. The House of Representatives did pass the 13th Amendment on January 31, 1865.  It was ratified by the required 3/4ths of states on December 13, 1865.  In fact, the Mississippi legislature had approved the 13th Amendment in 1995 but had only altered the Federal Register this February.   But certainly this Congress did not free the slaves.

Maybe Representative Sheila Jackson Lee was preoccupied about coordinating with her chauffeur for her one block commute.  After all, she needed sufficient time to change outfits so that she  so could spend  up to eight hours  seat squatting waiting on the aisle  to hug President Barack Obama at the State of the Union speech.

President Barack Obama greets Rep Sheila Jackson Lee at 2013 State of the Union

Considering the regal way that Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee treats her staff, it's no wonder that so many Hill Rats yearn to say "Free at last!".

Dynamo Sheila Jackson Lee

Politicians love photo-ops, especially during an election year, as it is free earned media.  But those engaging in those moments of publicity ought to be certain to choose situations which flatter them as well as conveying a desired spin.

Here is a picture of the opening of the Houston Dynamo's new soccer stadium, highlighted by the presence of Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX 18th).

  

It was not generally thought that Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee had a SHOE loose.

 

 But considering her safe Congressional seat and her notable quotables, does it really matter other than for political schadenfreude?