FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FMC Welcomes Reauthorization of the Modernization Committee
Many measures adopted in 116th Congress discussed in FMC’s “Congress at a Crossroads”
(Washington, D.C. – December 30, 2020) -- FMC, the association of Former Members of Congress, today welcomed the continuing authorization of the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress through the 117th Congress. The Committee was originally planned for only the first session of the 116th Congress, but its dozens of recommendations, all delivered with bipartisan support, have convinced Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) of its value.
“Chairman Derek Kilmer has welcomed the former Members who make up our organization as partners in the work of the Committee,” said FMC President Charles Boustany (R-La.). “He has briefed them personally on their progress, invited FMC Board Members to testify before the Committee, and we’re proud that many of the ideas we brought forth in ‘Congress at a Crossroads’ were present in the recommendations the Committee made.”
“Congress at a Crossroads” is a report authored by FMC, after interviewing dozens of departing Members of Congress, following the 115th Congress. It details the frustrations and challenges present for Members in today’s Congress. The New York Times’ Carl Hulse said, “[O]verall, it paints a grim portrait of an institution that has ceased to work as it should.” However, the report also shows opportunities for improvement in an institution that many feel has been rendered sclerotic by toxic bipartisanship.
“We were proud to welcome Congressman Tom Graves as a Sustaining Member of FMC, in part because of the work he did as Ranking Member of the Modernization Committee,” said Peter Weichlein, CEO of FMC. “The Committee talked to dozens of people, combed through thousands of pages of documents, including our own report, and delivered nearly 100 commonsense changes Congress can make to start moving itself in the right direction. I am very happy, and I know that our members are happy, that Speaker Pelosi has elected to continue the good work of the Committee.”
Weichlein also testified before the Committee, regarding better integration of their District Directors into the work of Members of the House of Representatives, which FMC has worked on throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
FMC is a non-advocacy, non-partisan group founded in 1970 and chartered by Congress in 1983. It is a voluntary alliance of former U.S. Senators and Representatives, working to strengthen Congress in the conduct of its Constitutional responsibility through promoting a collaborative approach to policy making; and to deepening the understanding of our democratic system.
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