Congress elevates snappy acronyms to a fine art

[patriothackd]

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002981441_billnames09.html


WASHINGTON — When Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., proposed a law on energy markets, she knew her bill would be competing for attention with hundreds of others. So calling it S. 2015 just wouldn't do. Two staff members devised something better. The result was a mouthful: the Electricity Needs Rules and Oversight Now Act. But it gave Cantwell's bill a snappy acronym with political punch: the ENRON Act.

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As gasoline prices began to soar, Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., announced plans to introduce the PUMP Act, for Prevent Unfair Manipulation of Prices. Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., named her bill to require labels on certain fragrances the SNIFF Act, short for the Safe Notification and Information For Fragrances Act. But lawmakers turned up their noses at the idea.

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Now, acronyms help explain what the bill is about. They are proof that even bill names have become part of Washington's all-consuming political spin ...

Some bill titles dare opponents to vote against them. That is what the drafters of the USA PATRIOT Act had in mind when they named the controversial anti-terrorism law. The title is an acronym for Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism. "Naming something the USA PATRIOT Act makes it sound like if you're against it, or have problems with parts of it, you're being unpatriotic," said Tim Edgar, a former lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union, which objected to certain provisions of the law.

[rodeodance]

1. or Healthy Forests and Clean Air acts!!

[WhiteTara]

2. or the death tax bill or No Child Left Behind

yep, they've perfected the spin

[uppityperson]

4. No Child Left Behind-failing schools get less money to work with

yup, that works.

[Ian David]

3. Or the Happy Penis Act, often over-looked in the media. n/t