News analysis: Where are the Democrats?

House Small Biz Committee website shows only GOP members

Two months after Rep. Steve Chabot, R-OH, took office as the new chairman of the House Small Business Committee, the panel’s official website displays the names and photographs of only its Republican members.

It is one of only two House committee websites--out of 21 reviewed by Set-Aside Alert--that portrays neither the names nor photographs of Democrats among its members. Only one other committee-- House Education & Labor--also does not show any Democrats on its membership Web page.

Democratic lawmakers do serve on the small business panel and have their own website managed by senior Democrat Rep. Nydia Velazquez, D-NY.

However, until a few days ago, the committee’s official website had only a single inconspicuous link to “Minority site” at the bottom of the home page to locate the missing Democrats.

Chabot’s office declined to comment when Set-Aside Alert inquired about the absence of Democrats on March 27. However, a source in Chabot’s office said there were delays in obtaining the full roster of Democratic members of the committee. The most recent member, Rep. Seth Moulton, D-MA, was added within recent weeks, the source said.

Later in the day on March 27, a new link appeared at the very bottom of the committee’s “members” Web page, directing visitors to the Democrats’ website.

Even so, as of press time, there was no list of Democratic members’ names and none of their photos were displayed on the committee’s official website.

For the record, the Democratic committee members are Reps. Velázquez,D-NY; Yvette Clarke D-NY; Judy Chu, D-CA; Janice Hahn, D-CA; Donald Payne Jr.,D-NJ; Grace Meng, D-NY; Brenda Lawrence, D-MI; Alma Adams, D-NC; and Seth Moulton, D-MA.

More information: Small Business Committee: http://smallbusiness.house.gov/
Small Business Democrats: http://democrats.smallbusiness.house.gov/

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