Yes there is that War on Terror, I mean Conflict With People Who Kind of Disagree With US (name of war since January) and there is also an economic crisis. But Obama has bigger fish to fry.Namely texting while driving.
The transportation secretary is calling a national summit on texting while driving. Law enforcement, industry representatives, and a partridge in a pear tree will be invited to talk about the latest grave threat to Western Civilization.
Here's the catch. Obama's Executive Branch cannot do it on their own.
Seat belt laws, the drinking age, and other issues cannot be forced directly upon the states. To get around the Bill of Rights provisions protecting state sovereignty, the federal government has to strong arm the states into passing the legislation on their own. With an amazing amount of work this year, it is doubtful that Congress will be able to act on this issue. Certainly the GOP and conservative Democrats will oppose this assault on states' rights.
Texting while driving is dangerous, probably more dangerous than taking three shots of whiskey and heading out directly onto the highway. Few people disagree with this. How about this for a solution? Instead of inviting a hundred or more nabobs to Washington to party on the taxpayer dime, send a representative to each state capital in the next year. Have them talk to each state legislature and quietly urge passage of a no texting while driving bill. Even better, instead of sending people, ask the congressional Democrats from each state to suggest passage of such a bill. I guarantee no one would fight it too strenuously. That would actually be easier than asking an overworked Congress to act on it.
But we have to do things the old Washington way. Get a lot of people drunk and fed, put them up in nice hotel rooms, and waste even more money. Meanwhile we strongarm the states and violate the spirit of the Constitution.
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