Traverse City Record-Eagle

Op-Ed Columns

December 25, 2011

George Weeks: Camp in another pivotal role

By George Weeks, Syndicated columnist ----

For the third time in about 20 months, 11-term 4th District U.S. Rep. Dave Camp, R-Midland, has been named as a key player in Washington's trumpeted efforts to deal with deadlocks on money issues.

My bet is that Camp, a collaborative fellow who is joined by two other Michigan congressmen in the current effort, and Congress will finally sort this out.

In March of 2010, Camp, then the ranking Republican on the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, was appointed as one of six House members of the bipartisan 18-member National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform created by President Barack Obama.

The commission, headed by ex-Sen. Alan Simpson, R-Wyoming, and Democrat Erskine Bowles, former chief of staff for President Bill Clinton, met in a number of private sessions and widely televised sessions before coming up with recommendations, including a document titled "$200 Billion in Illustrative Savings," that went nowhere.

Camp voted against them in large part because they raised revenues.

"Despite generally heading in the right direction on tax reform ... the proposal would impose higher taxes to cover higher spending," he said.

Then, in August of this year, Camp, by then chairman of Ways and Means, was named to the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction -- later dubbed the Supercommittee -- that was created by Congress and Obama. It was charged with issuing a formal recommendation by Nov. 23 on how to reduce the deficit by at least $1.5 trillion over the next 10 years.

The committee was comprised of six Democrats and six Republicans -- three members of each party from the Senate, and three members of each party from the House.

Among those named by House Speaker John Boehner were Camp and 13-term Rep. Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee that was long ruled by 29-term Rep. John Dingell, D-Dearborn, dean of the House.

After the Supercommittee flubbed, Camp vowed to "redouble my efforts as chairman of the Ways and Means Committee to enact pro-growth tax reform that makes our tax code simpler, fairer and more competitive to generate the economic growth and jobs America needs."

So now comes the third act for Camp as a go-to guy on fiscal reform.

After failure of the Simpson-Bowles commission and the Supercommittee, there will now be a House-Senate conference committee that early next year, upon the return of Congress, will try to resolve differences on the payroll tax.

Once again, Boehner has named Camp and Upton to his conference team. The Democratic team will include Rep. Sander Levin, of Royal Oak, ranking member of the Ways and Means Committee.

Camp has had a collaborative relationship with Levin on auto industry issues and on fair trade issues with other nations, as he has had with Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow, of Michigan, on Great Lakes issues.

Last week, Congress passed, and Obama signed, a two-month renewal of payroll tax cuts after the GOP-ruled House retreated from its demand for a full-year extension. Camp called it a "short-term patch" and said "when the Senate returns to work in January, we must finish the job."

Camp, Upton and Levin will have pivotal roles in that quest.

In World War II, Michigan, because of its factories, was the Arsenal of Democracy. There later was a time when Michigan was an engine of the U.S. economy.

Now, as noted by Camp spokeswoman Megan Piwowar, Michigan is flexing "a lot of weight in Washington" on the fiscal front.

Carr to run for Congress

In November, I noted that Bob Carr, a businessman and historical preservationist from Traverse City and Mackinac Island who was the 1996 Republican nominee against 1st District U.S. Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Menominee, said he was "seriously exploring" seeking the Democratic nomination to challenge freshman Rep. Dan Benishek, R-Crystal Falls, in the same district.

Carr said he wanted to get assurances about the potential for grassroots support and fund-raising.

Former state Rep. Gary McDowell, D-Rudyard, who lost to Benishek in 2010, seeks a rematch. Also seeking the Democratic nomination is Derek Bailey, chairman of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians.

While there has been no formal announcement, Carr, from a motor home on a blitz of the district, sent a lengthy "My epistle, my decision" email last week that cited assorted planned initiatives in Traverse City, Petoskey, Marquette and elsewhere and then concluded:

"... please tell your readers, please tell the Beneshek (sic) campaign, the McDowell campaign, the Bailey campaign that Bob Carr is coming! Merry Christmas everyone!"

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