The Newport News congressman will have a heightened role when Democrats take over the House in January
U.S. Rep. Robert C. “Bobby” Scott walked into the Daily Press’ offices less than two weeks before Election Day ready to unload a heap of frustration.
The Newport News Democrat felt discussion about substantive issues was falling by the wayside, even as pre-election furor was reaching a crescendo across Virginia.
His district was unusually quiet, though, because his quest for another term was unchallenged on the Nov. 6 ballot.
Rep. Scott will have both an audience and a venue to discuss issues vital to his district’s residents come January when he will be in line as the next chairman of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
By having a seat at the head of the table, he will have a say over the committee’s agendas, discussions and debates all the while representing his constituents in Hampton Roads.
The chairmanship will be a change of pace for the congressman — who has gained 25 years of institutional knowledge while serving in Congress — and we are lucky to have him remain our representative for another term.
Yes, luck has everything to do with it, especially considering political winds among the American people shift so sporadically that just 44 of the 432 current congressmen and women have served longer than him.
In the new role, the Newport News congressman will have opportunities to directly challenge the labor- and education-related regulations supported by President Donald Trump that often times run at odds with the view of Rep. Scott and his Democratic colleagues.
During his 25-year tenure, Rep. Scott has favored stronger worker protections and substantial increases in spending for education, criminal justice reform and the nation’s infrastructure.
He will also be in a position to influence legislation over minimum wage rates and education funding.
The congressman’s agenda includes legislation to raise the federal $7.25-an-hour minimum wage to $15 an hour, even though it is a measure Republicans have widely opposed. Committee members must compromise to create a reasonable proposal to take to the Republican-led Senate.
Student aid was on the forefront of the congressman’s mind when we met Oct. 26, specifically, legislation passed on a party-line vote by the House Committee on Education and the Workforce that would cut $15 billion in federal student aid, make it harder to pay off student loans and remove regulations placed on for-profit educational organizations.
A Democratic alternative Rep. Scott touts would allow students to get a four-year degree and graduate without any debt if they work a minimum amount of hours during their schooling.
The congressman is also seeking to join the House Judiciary Committee. It’s an assignment where he had worked to reform the criminal justice system, including greater emphasis on prevention and rehabilitation and ending mandatory minimum sentences for many offenses. His experiences in Congress and his passion for criminal justice reform will make him a worthwhile contributor to the panel.
What’s particularly noteworthy when you meet the congressman is he understands the context of what Congress is trying to do now compared to the body’s efforts several decades back.
He easily recites the financial successes — to run surpluses and pay down the national debt — of the Clinton administration. He remembers the fiscal impact of past GOP tax cuts and Congress’ inability to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, which led to budgetary shortfalls. And he can compare those financial decisions to more recent legislation.
Rep. Scott opposed last year’s Republican tax overhaul bill, arguing it raised the federal debt to give tax small cuts when the money could have been spent elsewhere to meet more immediate needs, such as infrastructure.
It’s that context that will help him legislate ongoing debates over topics such as health care, student safety and prison reform.
Rep. Scott said he was baffled that Republicans could vote for the American Health Care Act of 2017 that wiped away government-funded health insurance for millions of people.
He also believes more debate is needed surrounding the ability of states to use federal funding from the Every Student Succeeds Act to arm teachers. Revising that legislation would require more language to limit how states can use the funding; they now have a wide latitude to use it how they see fit.
Ultimately, Rep. Scott will be in a position to oversee the passage of legislation that is palatable to his Democratic colleagues, the Republican Senate and the president.
It will involve compromise and cajoling, but it is a role he has prepared for over the past 25 years.