Republican Straight Jacket puts Public Interest and freedom at Risk.

Like dogs, Republicans like to mark their territory. They would like to lock all future politicians into their one-size-fits-all austere, Dickensian policies. Flexibility to shape public policy…forget it. We might as well call it the “United ‘Straight Jacketed’ States of America.”

I can’t think of one person, one family, one business that would ever take away their options, their ability to adapt, and their freedom to act in their own best interest...period. Freezing policy is the antithesis of “freedom,” isn’t it?

Freezes and other budget gimmicks make work so easy, no decisions, when you're a freeloading Republican. But still, why would our Republican House members try to hurt American’s by taking away their freedom to recover from disaster?

Regulations Freeze: Republicans voted (Ryan, Sensenbrenner, Petri, Duffy, Ribble), 245-172, to bar new federal regulations having an impact of $100 million or more on the economy from taking effect until the U.S. jobless rate drops below 6 percent. Presidents could waive the ban to meet emergencies. A yes vote was to pass HR 4078.

This arbitrary decision to freeze regulation at some random point has dire consequences for the public:

Weather-Related Regulations: Republicans (Ryan, Sensenbrenner, Petri, Duffy, Ribble) defeated an amendment to HR 4078 (above) to prevent interruptions in regulations protecting the public from "extreme weather, including drought, flooding and catastrophic wildfire." A yes vote was to sustain weather-related regulations.

What about the very building block of life, water?

Clean-Water Regulations: Republicans refused (Ryan, Sensenbrenner, Petri, Duffy, Ribble), 188-231, to exempt rules ensuring safe drinking water from the freeze that HR 4078 (above) would impose on major federal regulations until the jobless rate drops below 6 percent in a given quarter. A yes vote was to sustain clean-water regulations.

And the simple matter of disclosing important information to investors about climate change, just to be on the safe side?

Climate-Change Guidance: Voting 245-171, Republicans (Ryan, Sensenbrenner, Petri, Duffy, Ribble) barred the Securities and Exchange Commission from issuing guidance on when companies should make disclosures to shareholders and investors on the effect of climate-change developments on their businesses.