Federal Judiciary

Cantor's Uppercut -- By: Robert Costa

In 2006, with a flashy, YouTube-mimicking cover, Time magazine declared you -- ?Yes, you,? they wrote -- their Person of the Year. Frank Rich of the New York Times called it a ?cover stunt,? one that revealed the dead-tree weekly?s ?desperation? to ?appear relevant and hip.?

House Republican whip Eric Cantor has been subject to similar eye-rolls from the Left for YouCut, his office?s anti-spending overture to plugged-in Americans. But while the program is a tad gimmicky, it?s also politically and technologically savvy.

Cantor debuted YouCut earlier this month. Its premise is simple: Each week, Americans can vote for their favorite of five potential spending cuts on the web (or via text message to 68398). Cantor works to bring the winner to the House floor. With one click, you can help to shape the House GOP agenda.

?It allows us to focus on out-of-control federal spending, the number-one issue for millions of Americans,? Cantor says. ?For us, it is an unprecedented online project. So far, we?ve received over 500,000 votes. The response has exceeded all of our expectations.?

Some critics, such as economist Mark Lieberman of Fox Business Network, have criticized Cantor for ?ceding? power to ?Internet browsers? and ignoring the argument of Edmund Burke that legislators should be strong figures, not simply delegates who act according to the popular will. But YouCut is hardly the start of direct democracy in Washington. Instead, it is a way for the House GOP to prick the Pelosi machine, hand in hand with frustrated citizens.

?It is important for Republicans to demonstrate that we want to engage with the public,? Cantor says. ?The public wants to participate. This country, and the rest of the world, is now communicating 24-7, so you have to embrace that; you can?t avoid it.? Every day, he adds, he becomes more involved with social-media tools such as YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter.

?YouCut?s focus like a laser on spending is why it has been wildly successful,? says David All, the founder of TechRepublican.com. ?People are deeply interested in this, and there is a hunger out there to be involved and at the table. They want to know, and change, what?s happening in Congress. YouCut?s ability to adapt to the quick news cycle -- a new winner and resolution every week -- says a lot about where House Republicans are at.?

Not surprisingly, some Democrats have slammed YouCut. They seem quite nervous about the GOP out-hustling them in the wired arena. ?First, this is not American Idol or Dancing with the Stars,? snapped Rep. Alcee Hastings (D., Fla.). ?This is America?s legislature. For all we know, on YouCut, Osama bin Laden could be voting. Please know that a handful of organized, gotcha Republicans are not going to control this legislature.?

But some conservatives are skeptical as well. RedState blogger Ron Robinson doesn?t like the initiative because, he reasons, any YouCut proposal will probably be ?instantly shot down by the House majority,? making it a ?PR gimmick? that ?really does nothing.?

Indeed, YouCut hasn?t produced any successful legislation yet. Last week, the first YouCut winner, a $2.5 billion cut in welfare programs, went down by a vote of 177 to 240. A resolution on the topic of this week?s proposal, to freeze nonmilitary federal salaries for one year, saving $2 billion, has not yet come up for a procedural vote.

Robinson and others also lament that the proposed cuts deal with only a small part of federal spending. Chris Edwards of the Cato Institute notes that the cuts up for consideration last week amounted to just 0.017 percent of the budget. He thinks the ?conservative party in Congress could do much better.?

To be sure, the initiative isn?t going to balance the budget. Still, YouCut is more than just another website. It?s an important next step in making the GOP a well-oiled, open, and user-friendly political operation.

?Some Democrats call it a gimmick, but they know that Republicans now have an army of e-mail activists who can be thrown at them during any major legislative fight,? says Patrick Ruffini, the former electronic-campaign director at the Republican National Committee and webmaster of Bush-Cheney 2004. ?Remember, gimmicks can work. YouCut is generating a ton of traffic.?

And even if YouCut proposals don?t win votes, the site?s sudden success is prompting Democrats to take note of the public?s desire for spending cuts. According to the Hill, House majority leader Steny Hoyer (D., Md.) told a Wednesday morning meeting with committee chairmen that he and Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) intended to hold them to a Friday deadline to submit detailed lists of their own spending-cut ideas. ?You need to produce something on this,? Hoyer bellowed, according to a person in the room. ?You all need to find some programs to cut.?

With YouCut, Cantor may have caught a little flak for his flash; but in a world where viral videos rule, a little flash, and a half-million clicks, can?t hurt.

-- Robert Costa is the William F. Buckley Jr. Fellow at the National Review Institute.

Full post as published by Bench Memos - National Review Online on May 28, 2010 (boomark / email).