Wu: ‘We need Merkley so the Senate is not the place where good legislation goes to die’

DENVER -- U.S. Rep. David Wu (D-Portland) addressed the Oregon delegation Tuesday morning and urged them to elect more Democrats to Washington D.C. so that a Democratic dominated Congress could pass legislation that had been caught between branches of government during the last eight years.

“We need Jeff Merkley so that the Senate is not the place where good legislation goes to die,” Wu said at the delegation breakfast meeting Tuesday.

Wu was talking about the Paycheck Act, a piece of legislation he had worked on in the Democratic-dominated house that he says would even out pay inequalities between men and women in the workforce. He said it had passed the House, but the Senate had not yet acted on it. Wu believed that by adding Oregon House Speaker Jeff Merkley (D-Portland) to the Senate, Democrats would be able to push more legislation through.

It was one of several topics that Wu touched upon. He addressed labor concerns, military concerns and education issues that he felt had taken a backburner during the Bush administration.

“The Obama administration will take major steps toward reversing this,” Wu said. “Senator Obama is the substance and symbol of change.”

Wu also told delegates about his visit to Iraq, and what he saw as the privatization of the military that was occurring.

“I always thought this administration would privatize everything except the Marine Corps,” Wu said. “Then I went to Iraq. And there were these guys in fishing vests, holding guns, and not answering any questions as to who they worked for. Defense should be a public function.”

“Later, I was reading a story in the Washington Post about how one of these hired out guards got mad at his co-worker, and emptied 11 or 12 rounds at him,” Wu said. “The good news was, he didn’t hit him. But never have I seen such a combination of malice and incompetence.”