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(Hard at Work image via tearbear.)

Well pups, it's time for the first report card for the 110th Congress. In Saturday's New York Times, some nice folks put together some statistics in an op-ed comparing the work product of the first 3 months of the 110th Congress (1/1/2007 to 3/31/07) with the first quarter of the 109th Congress (1/1/2005 to 3/31/2005).

And the results are actually pretty good. In almost every category measured, the new Democratic-controlled Congress has been more productive and more successful than the Republican-controlled Congress of 2005. Nice! How did this remarkable transformation come to be?

Congress is certainly working harder. The House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, and the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, have set five-day work weeks as the norm, not the exception, and both chambers have been in session much more frequently in the first quarter than they were in the comparable period of the previous Congress. All measures of activity have increased: committee markups, roll call votes, measures passed, and laws enacted and signed by the president. Of course, because most bills are still in process, just how bountiful or meager the legislative harvest will be remains uncertain.

Yes, Firepups, that's the magic. No special political calculation, nope, just good old fashioned showing up to work five days a week. Yep, rolling up the sleeves and actually doing the work the American people are paying you to do instead of jet setting off for an all expense paid trip to some swank Scottish golf course with Jack Abramoff.

I suppose we should not blame the GOP too much: look at the example the President has been setting, treating the most important work in the world like a no show job. Which may explain why during the first quarter of 2005 the Republican dominated 109th House was in session a grand total of 164 hours over 27 days. By contrast Nancy Pelosi has kept the House members nose's to the grindstone for 407 hours over 49 days.

These folks were not just punching clock. The Pelosi-led Democratically controlled House of Representatives has already held  213 roll call votes and passed a total of 176 measures as compared to the 90 roll call votes held in the House during the first quarter of the 109th  Cong. which managed to pass only 61 measures during that period. Can you say SLACKERS?

Over on the Senate side of the Capitol there are similar improvements. For example, Give 'em Hell Harry has presided over a Senate which has held a total of  230 oversight hearings in the first three months of 2007 (including appropriations and hearings devoted to the Iraq war), but the 109th Cong Senate held only 111 oversight hearings during the same period in 2005. 

Divided government has clearly helped Congress regain its position in the constitutional order. After years of inattention, Congressional oversight of the executive has intensified, most sharply regarding the war in Iraq. And hearings have appropriately focused more on policy and administration than personal scandal. The White House is being challenged on many domestic and national security matters it took for granted with the largely compliant Republican Congresses.

I don't know about you, but I like the idea of getting my money's worth from the folks we send to the Capitol to do our nation's business.

So, congratulations 110th Congress on the improvement in work ethic and work progress.  Keep it up.