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Capitol Journal - Perceptions of Congress
Hodding Carter, Mr. Rumsfeld, you ve looked at this now, I think, from as many angles as possible to see issues in Washington. When it really gets down to it, how does a Congressman vote on something like this? And why does he vote? Donald Rumsfeld, Well of course it is a host of things. It is the information he s received from all sources. It s the platform that he ran on. It s the sense he has of his constituents. It s his conscience and his judgment about the world and the responsibilities of the President, which are different from those of the members of the House of Representatives. And he tends to use, most of them, tend to use their judgment as opposed to some sort of an instant public opinion poll and then being blindly obedient to what the mood in a district might be at any given moment because moods change.
Capitol Journal - Perceptions of Congress
Hodding Carter, Congressman I can t imagine that when you ran for the Congress for your first term, you talked a great deal about the MX. Was that an issue that you had to explain your stance before you got elected or when you got here you had to make up your mind? Representative Joseph DioGuardi (R - New York), Hodding, it was a very big issue in my campaign. You won t find me voting against the President too many times. In my campaign we had twenty five debates in forty days and at least a half dozen of those debates where on national security. And it was the, MX was the issue, the only issue, that I took in a sense against the administration. I just felt, listen I m for a strong defense, but I m not for a spendthrift defense. Here s a weapon system that we were talking seven perhaps eight years ago, it was supposed to be on mobile systems and we are now putting it in a hardened silo. It seems strange to me that that is what we are doing in a time when the Soviets are deploying an SS24 and talking about an SS25. Both are very similar to MX and their mobile.
Capitol Journal - Perceptions of Congress
Hodding Carter, But the President is the Commander and Chief and did he call you up and say Congressman I need your vote? How do you reply to that when you start arguing about whether you need this missile or that missile and the President has said I need you? Representative Joseph DioGuardi (R - New York), Well there were some very persuasive arguments made by the President himself, as you probably know I was here to see him on Friday, and also by Mr. Kampelman. But I campaigned in a very tough district. I was elected by a slim margin. I made the case against MX and I think a keyword for me is credibility. Hodding Carter, But what about credibility of the nation for instance? Isn t that a hard argument to overcome? Now you undoubtedly used it when you were at the White House in that defense. What is a Congressman supposed to say to a President, Mr. Rumsfeld, when the President says the nation depends on you and the Congressman is saying no? Donald Rumsfeld, I think that the nation expects that the President is generally going to be given the benefit of the doubt. And I think that Presidents need to be given, generally, the benefit of the doubt. We can t have the foreign policy and national security policy of the United States of America run by a committee of 535 members of the House and Senate. There has to be the ability to provide some steerage way for the country. That doesn t mean that the President is always right. It doesn t mean that there aren t gong to be votes against him. But I think that in answer to your question for the most part the country is well served if members tend to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Capitol Journal - Perceptions of Congress
Hodding Carter, Let me interrupt both of you very quickly for one question. Does party politics play a part? Donald Rumsfeld, Sure it s a political system. It s the way our country is designed, by saying that it isn t an evil or bad thing. Hodding Carter, But then that means that sometimes neither conscience nor appeal of the President may have something to do with it. It comes down to the discipline of a larger group called a party says. Is that right? Donald Rumsfeld, I wouldn t have answered yes that way, because party politics is one thing, party discipline doesn t exist in the House and Senate to any great extent. Representative Joseph DioGuardi (R - New York), I don t believe in playing party politics with national security. If one makes a thorough analysis of a position as I did. And I m not saying we shouldn t have a strong defense. My feeling is we should have accelerated the Midgetman. It s a one warhead mobile system and now we re going to have both. Can we afford both? That s what I m saying. I m a fiscal conservative as well by the way.
Capitol Journal - Perceptions of Congress
Hodding Carter, No party discipline. A vote up and down the line for the President. Gentlemen thank you very much for being here today. I m Hodding Carter and this is Capitol Journal.
Capitol Journal - Perceptions of Congress
Credits Roll.
Capitol Journal - Perceptions of Congress
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Capitol Journal - Perceptions of Congress
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