219-212

My last two days at Parliament were very interesting. On Monday I went in for a half day of work before Politics class at 12:45. I got in and was handed a gigantic stack of mail from the past few days. It took me about 30 minutes to get through opening everything and sorting it into piles for Alun to read, piles of newsletters and other pamphlets, and piles of policy correspondence for my office managers and I to tackle. Just as I planned out how to tackle the lovely stack of papers, my boss suggested that I come with him to a meeting with college students from his constituency in a committee room in the palace. We walked over and met about thirty Welsh students, all of them my age, sitting in the committee room waiting to speak with my boss. He sat in the chair and gave a brief introduction to the stuff that he does and how Parliament works. Most of the students looked bored. Simon leaned over to me and whispered that my boss has no idea how to talk to young people. I thought it was interesting.

The professor of the class asked several questions, which my boss answered in long politician-esque answers. He then introduced Simon and gave his background, and Simon got up and had a slightly more entertaining speech about careers in policy and Parliament. Alun then introduced me as his American intern and asked me to give my perspective as a college student intern. I was really nervous talking to people my own age. I got up and introduced myself as an American student from Missouri, "in the middle of the country" and said I go to school in Northern Indiana "near Chicago." I told them about what I do in the office, basically the boring stuff that my bosses don't want to do, and that I was having fun and learning a lot about the differences between the US and UK systems. My boss prompted me and asked me to explain some of the differences between our democracies. I explained how US democracy is based on compromise while UK democracy is based on adversarial, one-party rule. Even the layout of our legislative chambers reflects this. My boss nodded in agreement and mentioned that it was a big day in American politics with the passage of the healthcare bill. On the spot, I said it was indeed an "exciting" day in America (exciting can be interpreted in several ways), and used the bill as an example of how sometimes there is little compromise in our politics. I was also asked about college tuition in the states and my career goals, and most of the students were shocked to hear how much we pay to go to ND and graduate school. I talked with the professor after the meeting about tuition costs to clarify that I dont actually pay 50k to go to school because most people are on scholarships, and there are cheaper state schools. I think I came off as arrogant when I was talking to the group, as I wasn't sure how much they knew about the states or healthcare or Westminster. Simon said I did a pretty good job, and the professor knew who the Fighting Irish were, which made me happy.

In the committee room willingly put on a happy face about the passage of the healthcare bill, as I sort of had to and did not want to embarrass myself or my boss by saying something disagreeable. But I feel like I made a decent enough point to the group in saying that a 219-212 vote clearly is not a representation of the compromise that should be inherent in our system. I said that usually compromise is the name of the game, except for the recent bill. We discussed this vote again at lunch today, and I expressed my concern to my bosses about how the bill cannot possibly reflect the will of the American people if even factions of democrats voted against the bill. Even so, Obama and Nancy claim this as a victory for the American people that the people wanted all along. 219 members of the house and 60 people in the senate, a total of 279 members of congress just sent America on a 900 billion dollar experiment - an experiment that has no proof it will work, and experiment that most people did not sign up for, an experiment that shakes the foundations of the principles of our country. When I turn 25, I am required by the federal government to buy an insurance plan that I don't want. I am also required to pay too much for it. Thanks. Either way, that's the law now, and hopefully government will do its best to impliment it correctly. For some reason I am skeptical though.

Our conversation was contentious but respectful. My managers, especially Peter, always look for an agreeable middle ground to argue from, instead of migrating to an extreme position that cannot be put into dialouge with the other side. I appreciated this conversation very much. I wish Obama could take a lesson in the art of respectful dialogue. Instead of impressing his audience with flowery language on compromise while resorting to extremist positions behind closed doors (read: Notre Dame Commencement), maybe he should try accepting, or, God forbid, agreeing with an opposing principle. I don't think that will happen, unfortunately (read:healthcare). We all laughed about the gigantic punchline that was his awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize. I'm glad the Brits realize that was a farce as well.

After lunch I continued working on the huge stack of mail, drafting letters about various policy positions from the digital economy bill to reducing carbon emissions to video game tax breaks. I organized the various letters on the desk, proud of my day long battle with the bottomless folder of policy correspondence. I also sent my first emails from my parliament account, with my official signature line saying I was an intern. All three of us proofread the letters and pamphlets to be sent out in the constituency when the election is called, and Simon and I discussed polling data and the segmentation strategy for delivering the postcards. We talked about the budget debate that will happen tomorrow when Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling, who just looks like an ideal financial guru, opens the secret red box and unveils the Budget 2010, with almost every line to be debated the next few days in Parliament. Should be a good way for both parties to jockey for position before the election. I wish the US debated the budget more openly like they do here. Would make for some awesome realizations if all the non-poli sci majors of the world heard on the news how much waste goes through our government. Food for thought. Either way, tomorrow should be an interesting day in the House. I am sad that I probably only have two more days left in the place before they dissolve. With any luck I may be able to go out to Cardiff to campaign. Only if I play my cards right.