Congress Away, Russia (and World) Play

The timing of the August war in Georgia could not have been better for Russia - practically the entire American political establishment was not in Washington to pay due attention to the escalating conflict and its aftermath. Our entire elected body - the Senate and the House of Representatives - were in the midst of August recess and the Presidential election activities.

This is the way Congress operates - August is designated as the time when elected members go back to their districts and states and engage their constituents. Absent was the usual prudence with which Members of Congress take on Russia-related issues such as human rights, lack of transparency in elections, or Russia’s treatment of its political opposition. The August war received full attention only from the White House, two Presidential candidates and a select few Congressmen and Senators who were members of either chamber’s Foreign Relations or Armed Services committees.

In essence, when 535 Members of Congress re-convene in early September, the ground action in Georgia will be over; Russia will support the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia (and their eventual absorption into Russia proper); Russian military will be in full control of a “buffer zone” around South Ossetia; Georgian economy and military will be gravely affected; and Western Europe will offer commentary that is barely above a whisper.

Only a select few Members actually got involved in this war - Senators McCain and Obama; their allies and surrogates such as Senators Biden, Lieberman and Graham; as well as Congressmen Howard Berman (Foreign Affairs Committee) and George Miller (Democratic Policy Committee). If you were an average American citizen wanting to find out what your elected official is doing about this war, you would likely be treated to dated information on the politicians’ websites dating back to Aug. 1, or a standard message from his/her office that “We are monitoring this situation, we are gravely concerned for the citizens caught in the conflict, we want the Russian action to stop and all sides to return to the negotiating table …”

In other words, an average American would not get any direction from the vast majority of Congress since the elected officials were in their districts tending to domestic issues or participating in the congressional elections that had nothing to do with a short and ominous war in the Caucasus.

The world never stops when it comes to wars, conflicts, accidents and emergencies - but US Congress stops working for a full month out of the year. Considering that Congress is the most important parliamentary body on the planet, it is surprising that there is a developed expectation – almost an entitlement - that US politicians can hit an imaginary “PAUSE” button and resume work on global issues once they are back in Washington.

Case in point - the message on the House Foreign Affairs Committee website is that once Congress is back in session, due attention will be finally given to providing assistance to Georgia. What if it’s too late by that time? What if the situation on the ground changed so much against Georgia and her people that such assistance will be like applying a small band-aid on a gaping, bleeding wound?

At present, this issue raises more questions than answers. As the leading democratic parliamentary body in the world, does the US Congress have an actual responsibility to – and for - the rest of the world? Obviously, the few aforementioned politicians who paid attention to the war in Georgia can be excluded from such uncomfortable scrutiny, and we can discuss successful Congressional efforts on other global conflicts like Darfur. But if our Congress takes it upon itself to debate and attempt to solve global crises, can it then afford to take an entire month off expecting the world to resume its activities where Members left off on Aug. 1?

President George Bush did not call an emergency session of Congress when dozens of Republicans refused to leave for the August recess, forcing the energy debate to continue all month, affecting the Democratic and Republican positions on this crucial domestic issue. And if he took no action on an issue that is now deemed as part of national security, then Georgia had no chance.

What would it take for our elected officials to return to Washington in the middle of August? Probably a real national emergency or global catastrophe or perhaps an attack on a “worthier” ally like a country in Europe or Taiwan. Prior to Aug. 1, the prevailing attitude in Washington was that while Members of Congress are back in their districts, select few Democratic and Republican leaders can continue their work if a foreign policy emergency arises, while helped in that task by numerous Washington think tanks and policy centers that work on international issues.

But the message coming from Russia over the last three weeks exposed American actions altogether as ineffective and dangerous to the already-fraying US-Russia relations. In other words, the sentries have left their post, giving Russia a unique advantage of not trying to counter the usually-forceful Congressional attitude.

Both Senator Obama and Senator McCain promise change in Washington if either is elected in November. The issue of Georgia is already part of their campaign lexicon and will surely be part of the presidential and vice presidential debates. The real test of this “change” that either candidate seeks to implement would be how each sees the role of America and US Congress in engaging the world – throughout the year and during the month of August.