Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn), you give Gov a bad name!

The Delta Queen steamboat, an icon on America's waterways since 1926, may end its historic service along the Mississippi thanks to your inaction.

Despite a stellar safety record, you Rep. Oberstar, are claiming that this registered National Historic Landmark is unsafe to operate as a passenger vessel. We're all for safety at sea, and are glad the U.S. supports the international SOLAS (Safety of Life at Sea) convention. But those rules apply to oceangoing vessels, whereas the Delta Queen operates solely in American waters, within a few yards of land at all times.

Most of your colleagues in Congress recognize that exempting the Delta Queen from the stringent SOLAS regulations is the right thing to do. The legions of passengers who sailed on this historic paddlewheeler have rightly and successfully petitioned for years to keep the Queen afloat. Even now, as the exemption comes up for renewal again, there's enough bipartisan support among Senators and Congressmen to keep Delta Queen sailing, not to mention preserve the 150 jobs of its crew.    

But Rep. Oberstar, as chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, you are blocking the bill from even reaching a vote. This seems strange, since in previous years, you voted twice to support the Delta Queen's exemption. What's changed? Did the riverboat suddenly get more dangerous in its 82nd year of operation? That seems odd, since the fire protection systems onboard have only gotten better over the years.

The only thing we can think of is that the Delta Queen changed ownership recently, and its new owners, the Majestic America Line, did not renegotiate a contract with the Seafarers International Union. A powerful union lobby that once supported the exemption but now opposes it couldn't have had any effect on your own change of heart, could it?

While 100 cities and towns have passed resolutions calling on Congress to extend Delta Queen's exemption, you've been quietly sticking to your story that the boat is unsafe. That's a tough case to make. The right thing to do is to keep this historic landmark afloat, and by doing so, preserve jobs at the cruise line, let vacationers continue to enjoy a slice of American history, and support the economies of small towns and cities along America's rivers. 

Rep. Steve Chabot (R-Ohio) and 17 cosponsors have drawn up the necessary legislation to give Delta Queen another 10-year exemption from SOLAS rules. Don't be the iceberg that sinks this historic vessel. Stop blocking H.R. 3852 and get it to the House floor when Congress reconvenes.