Preparations are already underway for when Indian Prime Minister Mano-a-mano Singh comes to town next month. Rediff reports:

Co-chairs of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans — US Representatives Gary Ackerman and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen — have written to House Speaker Dennis Hastert, urging him to convene a joint session of the US Congress (both the Houses of the American parliament) for an address by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during his visit to Washington July 17 to 19 at President George W Bush’s invitation.

Dr Singh will be on his first official visit to the United States.

It will be the first visit by an Indian prime minister in nearly five years.

Ackerman and Ros-Lehtinen, senior members of the House International Relations Committee, wrote that ‘an official invitation to address a joint session of Congress will send an unequivocal message to the government and people of India that the US stands in full support of their commitment to democracy, peace, and prosperity for all; and it will show the American people the enduring significance of the relationship between our two great nations.’

‘For this reason,’ the lawmakers said, ‘we would encourage a joint session of Congress to allow Prime Minister Singh to share his thoughts directly on India’s role as a regional power, its economic development, its progress toward religious tolerance, and the benefits of increased economic, security, and cultural cooperation between India and the United States.’

USINPAC’s website has more:

Sanjay Puri, Chairman of USINPAC said, “the first State visit to the United States by Prime Minister Singh has already generated excitement among the Indian American grassroots and on Capitol Hill. We are also pleased by the Bipartisan support.”

All out efforts are being made to ensure that Prime Minister Singh’s address to the Joint Session of the United States Congress becomes a reality. In this connection USINPAC is working closely with the House International Relations Committee (HIRC) and has briefed senior members of Congress, both Republican and Democrat.

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Today President Bush announced that Republican Congressman Christopher Cox would be replacing outgoing SEC Chairman William Donaldson pending approval by the Senate. Reuters and many others report:

President Bush on Thursday named Rep. Christopher Cox — a champion of curbing investor lawsuits — as the White House’s choice to head the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, prompting academics to predict a major shift in the market-regulating agency’s focus.

Rep. Cox’s current job is as Chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security. The House Republican leadership has not yet announced who will take over Cox’s empty seat. Bobby Jindal is part of the House Committee on Homeland Security. He is in fact Vice Chair of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on the Prevention of Nuclear and Biological Attacks. Now I am not ready to think that the Republican leadership would consider offering the chairmanship of the full committee to a freshman Congressman, but if John Linder of Georgia gets promoted to fill Cox’s seat then it could well end up that Jindal would take over chairmanship of the Subcommittee. Imagine that: A brown guy in charge of overseeing efforts to prevent nuclear and biological attacks against the U.S.

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