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Press Release November 4, 1998 |
Contact: 202/462-6262 |
WASHINGTON - The morning after the election, a top official at Consumers Union predicted that kitchen table issues could take on new significance in the next Congress.
"From health care to cable TV rates to used cars and bank fees, the record of the 105th Congress on votes that matter to consumers was pitiful," said Gene Kimmelman, co-director of the DC office of Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports magazine. "Too often consumers saw elected officials carry the water for industry special interests at the expense of consumers. By bucking history in yesterday's election, the voters may have sent Congress a wake up call to get back to business and start working on the kitchen-table issues that matter to America's families."
CU believes important consumer legislation will be revisited in the 106th Congress and lawmakers will feel pressure to heed voters concern that their elected officials are ignoring key pocketbook issues.
A new tally of "20 Votes that Matter" from the 105th Congress compiled by the DC office of Consumers Union illustrates how business in Washington, D.C. has been nearly devoid of pro-consumer action over the past two years. When many of the unresolved legislative battles get a return engagement in the next Congress, Kimmelman predicts the outcome could be far different thanks to the historic returns of the midterm election.
The last time the President's party actually gained seats midway through a second presidential term was over a century ago in 1822, when James Monroe was at the White House. The last time the party controlling the White House gained seats in all midterm elections was 64 years ago, in 1934.
"Votes that Matter" from the 105th Congress, a preview of many consumer issues that are likely come back in the next Congress.
