US Exit from NATO?

[Tonitrus]

I think is that some expect Congress persons to also discuss things and not disappear. But the American Congress hasn't been a space for actual speeches in a wild and that hurts the opposition.

Well, that is true.  Most Congressional speeches these days are Senators/Congressman talking to themselves and a camera in the middle of the night to an empty room all for the purpose of putting their dribble into the Congressional Record for some unknown reason.

But to be fair...I've seen that often in the UK House of Commons as well...

[Valmy]

Yeah the idea that there is going to be intense debates over important legal, constitutional, and policy issues in the halls of Congress is just dead wrong.

[Grey Fox]

While wrong, I think it's expected.

[Sheilbh]

Well, that is true.  Most Congressional speeches these days are Senators/Congressman talking to themselves and a camera in the middle of the night to an empty room all for the purpose of putting their dribble into the Congressional Record for some unknown reason.

But to be fair...I've seen that often in the UK House of Commons as well...

Yeah I don't think that's necessarily the role of Congress either - I think the bigger problem is they're just not doing their job. I've said before but I think the fact that the US has a constitutional branch of government MIA is a big cause of many problems. I'm not sure Congress has ever been the place of great speeches or debates - I don't think that's its role historically - but it has in the past been a seat of great power and its abidcated that. I listen to a podcast on movies from the 90s where they start every episode with looking at the front page of the NYT on the day of release - and even then, in the 90s, it is astonishing how much more Representatives and (especially) Senators mattered.

Nowadays lots of MPs are actually just reading for their social media channels so if you actually watch parliament it's not good. Lots of non-sequiturs and actually questions or arguments getting repeated to be clipped up for social media, lots of MPs now reading their contributions (an alarming number of which I suspect are now AI generated - which I think should result in an immediate by-election) - and also they've moved to more family friendly hours which means the Commons no longer really controls its own timetable (also Speakers are more likely to grant urgent questions etc filling the time they have) to just let a debate run as long as it needs which leads to the Speaker imposing time limits. So you get the slightly absurd situation of an important issue, like the withdrawal from Afghanistan with the Speaker limiting everyone to two minutes, then one minute, then thirty seconds.

There are times when it "rises to the occasion" but it's normally one or two speakers sort of compelling attention - and often because the occasion sort of demands someone rise to it.

It could get worse actually. I've seen 2024 intake MPs complain that they have to sit in the chamber to be called in a debate which gets in the way of them doing important emails/constituency work and they would like to move to getting appointed speaking slots (like the US Congress). There's also proposals to move to fully remote voting. None of which sounds good to me - I think it's kind of missing the point of the purpose of a legislature.