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29 Jan 2012 12:17

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U.S.: GOP: We’ll make this payroll tax cut extension work, we swear

  • There is broad agreement on doing the payroll tax holiday through the end of the year … The problem is paying for it. … (Democrats) just don’t want to cut any spending. That is what made it problematic. But we will get it done. We will get it done before the end of February.
  • Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell • Emphasizing that the payroll tax cuts that proved a thorn in the GOP’s side back around Christmas will get extended through the new year, no matter how many arms McConnell has to twist. The thing is, though, he’s not the guy who has to do the hard work. It’s Boehner in the House, who pissed off his rightward-leaning members by ignoring their wishes to score a deal. However, even Boehner is confident: “I’m confident that we’ll be able to resolve this fairly quickly,” he said. The tax cuts expire at the end of February, but there’s no word on how they plan to pay for this. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink


25 Jan 2012 10:43

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Politics: Michele Bachmann, after tough presidential bid, running for Congress again

bachmann0125
Despite the belief among analysts that her skills might better be suited for Fox News, the Tea Party Caucus leader will stick with Minnesota’s 6th district for now. It’ll be Bachmann’s fourth term if she wins. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink


22 Dec 2011 20:08

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Politics: A rare concession: House GOP loses on payroll tax-cut issue

  • The GOP lost one. The tell-tale signs were everywhere. On a day where John Boehner lost support from the GOP establishment on blocking a payroll tax-cut plan — which mind you, was just for two months, and otherwise would’ve been a big GOP victory because of the Democratic concessions made — the political kayfabe finally gave way to inevitability. Here’s how it went down. (Photo by Gage Skidmore, that guy who takes all the GOP politician photos on Flickr)
  • cause For months, Republicans were soft on the idea of extending payroll tax cuts into 2012, a key issue for Democrats, because they thought it didn’t stimulate the economy. Eventually, the Senate passed a limited extension, but the House wouldn’t go for it.
  • reaction For days, House speaker John Boehner faced significant pressure over the House’s stance, and eventually his own party started criticizing the late-December move, which they believed could give the Democrats major leverage in 2012.
  • result Today, Boehner  gave in, with the House speaker allowing for a voice vote on the issue. “We have fought the good fight,” Boehner said. “Why not do the right thing for the American people even though it’s not exactly what we want?” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink


13 Dec 2011 20:39

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Politics: House passes payroll tax-cut bill … with a Keystone-shaped catch

  • If Sen. Reid wants to hold up the jobs bill, he will go on Santa’s naughty list.
  • Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) • Offering a somewhat … uh, interesting take on the House’s passage of a payroll tax cut, which Republicans pushed through with a fairly large caveat — it would speed up the process of approving the Keystone XL pipeline, which was delayed until 2013 to give some time to examine environmental issues brought up by critics. The bill is expected to die in the Senate, and even if it weren’t, Obama would most likely veto it. The divided Congress is under the gun to pass a payroll tax cut and a spending bill to fund the government beyond Friday. Sounds like a fun week, all. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink


25 Sep 2011 11:04

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Politics: House GOP shows weak points after failing to pass shutdown vote

  • While it is widely expected that the parties will eventually reach a compromise to avoid a shutdown, Wednesday’s 230-to-195 vote showed what can happen when the GOP majority operates with no more than minimal Democratic support.
  • Washington Post writers Rosalind S. Helderman and Paul Kane • Correctly pointing out the weak spot in the GOP’s House leadership — that the GOP members aren’t all on the same page, so as a result, the leadership can push for one thing, but have it taken in a different direction by far-right members of the party. (In this case, the bill passed the House only with the addition of some timely anti-environmental-funding rules, then died in the Senate.) And with no help from Democrats, it becomes harder for GOP leaders to push their agenda without making room for compromise. And this isn’t even considering the Senate and president, who provide blockades of their own (unless you’re Obama and you compromise). source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink


23 Sep 2011 07:52

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Politics: House passes shutdown-averting spending bill … with a catch

  • yeah … The House passed a bill preventing a possible government shutdown, and in the process paying for emergency management funding for the recent spate of natural disasters (like the Joplin tornado and Hurricane Irene). As recently as Wednesday, it didn’t look like it would pass. So what happened?
  • … but Well, the bill includes a politically-charged measure removing funding for green energy projects, like the much-maligned Solyndra debacle. It literally seems like they passed it only because House Republicans could score points off of this. As a result, it likely will not pass the Senate in its current form. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink


28 Jul 2011 23:23

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Politics: An update on the debt ceiling shenanigans

  • boehner’s bill falls short: After a chaotic day of vote-whipping, vote-delaying, and vote-switching, John Boehner has decided to postpone the vote on his debt ceiling bill. Despite multiple assurances that it would be brought to a vote before tomorrow, at the end of the day, Boehner didn’t have enough votes to ensure the bill’s passage (and he wasn’t going to embarrass himself by introducing a bill that was sure to fail). In an unusual alignment, conservative Tea Partiers and House Democrats all pledged to vote against the bill, albiet for different reasons. While the legislation has virtually no chance of passing the Democratic-controlled Senate, Boehner’s ability to shepherd it through the House is seen by many as the first real test of his leadership abilities. If he doesn’t eventually pass it, there’s a good chance he’ll (eventually) be deposed as Speaker. But it’s not over yet–sources say Republicans plan to tweak the bill a bit, and re-introduce it tomorrow.  source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink


 

19 Jul 2011 20:35

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U.S.: House passes doomed “Cut, Cap and Balance” bill

  • 234-190 on rigid partisan lines; duh source
  • » The odds of this passing the Senate? Zero. The House has been known for their symbolic votes this term — ones which please the base but not won’t do much else. The bill cuts many Democratic investment priorities — but most notably, takes a long-term hatchet to Medicare. Not so much, kids. Not so much.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink


15 Jun 2011 16:40

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U.S.: North Carolina moving towards axing Planned Parenthood’s funding

  • veto The Republican-controlled House in North Carolina passed a provision attached to their budget which strips Planned Parenthood of all federal and state funding. Democratic Governor Bev Perdue vetoed the budget to avoid the funding being axed.
  • override The North Carolina GOP has voted to override the veto, sending the budget along to the state Senate, which will likely follow suit. This is horrible news for women’s health concerns, as a funding halt would especially limit health care for low-income women. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink


24 May 2011 20:45

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Politics: Elizabeth Warren subcommittee hearing devolves into pissing match

  • What time was Elizabeth Warren supposed to leave? We’re not completely sure, but she seems pretty angry about being held up by GOP Rep. Patrick McHenry (on top of having the meeting rescheduled repeatedly). Warren, the Harvard professor helping to launch the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for Obama, faced a tough line of questions from Republicans on the House Oversight subcommittee — questions which showed they didn’t even seem to know basic facts. It got so bad that Democratic Rep. John Yarmuth had to say this in her defense: “The questioning of your veracity when there is documented evidence that you are being totally truthful indicates to me that this hearing is all about impugning you because people are afraid of you.” Word on the street is that Warren may take on Scott Brown in his upcoming Senate race, which is a stupid idea because Brown is a moderate Democrat in every respect but party affiliation. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink


 
 
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