(May 20, 2008 - Photo by Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images North America)
Don’t let the title fool you. At this point in this legislative session, I have all but chalked up “bipartisanship” to being a complete an utter waste of time – and the American tax payers’ hard earned money. If this group of self-interested political vagabonds can agree on anything, I fail to see how anyone could want it. Neither party has a foundation in any remotely recognizable principle at the current hour, so I am inclined to believe that any mutually agreed upon common ground would likely be nothing more than a bastardized version of something nobody wants and everyone pays for. By everyone, I really only mean Republicans – well Republicans and the American people.
What incentive do Republicans have to attach themselves to anything proposed by this group of Democrats? History will judge this Congress and its out-of-control spending and misspent time waxing ideological over health care reform for what it is worth. Wouldn’t Republicans be better served embracing their position on the outside as those who opposed every bit of it? So what if they’re called the “Party of No.” Is “No” such a bad response if all the questions are poorly worded?
But I am just a humble observer of the actions of “greater men,” so who am I to judge the inner-workings of such a higher class? So, they want to embark on this road to “bipartisanship” – awesome. I assume that the very nature of bipartisanship includes TWO sides coming to a bargaining table from a relatively equal position of power… or am I assuming too much? President Obama and Congressional Democrats have repeatedly stated – since the State of the Union – that they wanted to “work with Republicans” to solve the problems facing our great nation. The President visited a retreat on invitation from House Republicans; he has even proposed a “bipartisan” health care summit for later this month; a bipartisan jobs bill was making its way through the Senate. Could this really work? Could both sides lay down their guns and equally perverse self interests to actually get some work done for a change?
Who are you kidding? Bipartisanship is as foreign to this Congress as the true meaning of the words “deficit reduction.” Just like they believe that spending now saves money later, bipartisanship to these clowns is about spending a little political capital now to gain from it at a later date. There is no unified agreement that something must be done here. Democrats want one or two foolish Republicans to sign their name(s) to legislation, so that the whole Party can share in the blame from its failures at a later date. Even as Republicans reluctantly stumble to the health care summit Pelosi and Reid are plotting the course to turn to Reconciliation. Even as Republicans attempt to work with Democrats to formulate a jobs bill, Harry Reid scraps the deal and proposes his own legislation… How’s that whole “bipartisan” thing working out for ya?
“Bipartisan” Jobs Bill Dumped
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid decided to pull the plug on a “bipartisan” jobs bill yesterday choosing instead to offer an alternative plan that strips the bill of “concessions” made to Republicans who supported it. Many on both sides of the aisle have been left scratching their heads over this move as it is being perceived as nothing more than good old fashioned Washington politics. Reid made the decision with the cover of a lower bottom line, but even that slimy little toadstool can’t hide the fact that he saw this as an opportunity to once again stick it to Republicans and paint them as the “Party of No.” Dumping a proposed bill that had at least some Republican support for one of his own creation will inevitably lead to zero Republican support when it eventually makes it to the floor – leaving Republicans in that unenviable position of voting against a jobs bill that also comes at a “lower cost” – before all the markups, riders, and earmarks are tacked on that is…
“We are going to move a smaller package than talked about in the press,” the Nevada Democrat said. “Republicans are going to have to make a choice. We have a bipartisan bill that will create jobs, according to the CBO, immediately.”
But it is far from clear if that package really will be “bipartisan” because the smaller package jettisons some key provisions, namely a popular package of tax extenders that Republicans are keen to renew.
John Ward at the Daily Caller posted the “fundamentals” of the Reid proposal…
Jobs Payroll Tax Exemption: offers an exemption from social security payroll taxes for every worker hired in 2010 that has been unemployed for at least 60 days. There would be an additional $1,000 income tax credit for every new employee retained for 52 weeks to be taken on the employer’s 2011 income tax return ($13 billion over 10 years).
Section 179 Expensing: helps small businesses grow by allowing them to write off more expenditures ($35 million over 10 years).
Highway Trust Fund Extension: extends existing highway programs which provide states and localities with the certainty they need to make decisions on projects. It allows for billions more to be invested in infrastructure throughout the nation and saves one million jobs.
Expanding Build America Bonds: allows state and local governments to borrow at lower costs to finance more infrastructure projects and put people to work ($2 billion over 10 years).
Ed Morrissey at Hot Air thinks this may be the final nail in the coffin for Harry Reid – with voters and with the White House who loves to “force” Dems into “retirement.”
Michelle Malkin seems to agree….
The point of Harry Reid’s plan is to save Harry Reid’s hide. And that, praise be, looks more hopeless than ever.
Dems Planning Reconciliation if Feb 25 “Summit” Doesn’t Go Their Way?
Pretty hard to say that the February 25 “bipartisan” health care summit is anything more than a trap for Republicans, or that their distrust of the event is completely unwarranted, when the news slips out that the Pelosi-Reid brain-trust is already making plans to use Reconciliation in the Senate if the “summit” doesn’t their way…
Some Democrats are readying a health care reform “Plan B” in case negotiations at the half-day televised forum on Feb. 25 go nowhere. The plan would involve passing part of the imperiled health care bill using reconciliation, a controversial procedural maneuver that would allow the package to pass with 51 votes, as opposed to the usual 60 required to overcome a filibuster.
“I think a decision has just been made — we’re just going to go ahead,” Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, told reporters.
A senior Democratic Senate aide clarified that Democrats are heading in that direction, though they are waiting to see what happens on Feb. 25 before making a decision.
Under the Plan B, the House would pass the version of the health care reform the Senate passed on Christmas Eve. From there, the Senate would use reconciliation to pass certain changes to the health care bill to keep it more in line with House Democrats’ wishes. Finally, Congress would tackle other non-budgetary issues, like abortion funding, that cannot be addressed in the reconciliation process.
Via Memeorandum
“Bipartisanship” is bull****!
Seriously! Who does “bipartisanship” help besides the politicians? Do conservatives vote for people to go to Washington to help pass socialist schemes? Do progressives vote for people to go to Washington to repeal socialist legislation?
“We the people” send these nit-wits to Washington to represent us, not to make deals. Personally, I don’t want a little bit of socialism, I want the laws repealed! So yes, right now, the Republican Party should wear the “Party of No” flag with pride!
Fully agree CL. The objectives of this Congress are reprehensible when stated and morally repugnant reserved. Being painted as the “party of no” in this political climate may become a virtue rather than a vice.
I’d call it a virtue at any given time! The best thing government has ever done in my lifetime, is when they were “shut down” for a few days during the Clinton administration.
Thank God for gridlock!
The left is great at this, especially when the MSM tries to cover for them. They say one thing, do the exact opposite, and then rely on the MSM to ignore it. It’s worked wonders in the past. However, with the alternative media out there, it might just blow up in their faces. There are simply too many ways for people to get information anymore.
I truly don’t think they worry about how the public perceives anything anymore. I firmly believe that they are of the mindset that they know what is right for all of us and care not about what we think about it in the short term. That may get right to the heart of progressivism altogether. They believe once the government wraps its “loving” arms around you permanently, you will see the benefit of your sacrifice. One that will surely be made at the alter of Liberty.
When Harry Reid worked and manipulated the Senate to get a health care reform bill passed on Christmas Eve, there was no end to the stories about how great of a legislator and negotiator he was. The mainstream media and his fellow Democrats lauded his efforts to do so. This latest move by Reid makes me question what he is up to now, but there is no doubt it will not bode well for the Republicans. I don’t trust Harry Reid, not even a little.
It also gives me pause to think at why the Republicans would even attempt to work at bipartisanship on this jobs bill, when what they wanted included had nothing to do with jobs to start with. If they were going to make the effort, they should have insisted on something that was worth their while. Instead, it looks as if they were trying to pack the bill with pork for special interest groups. They should be held accountable for it.
Concerning the Democrats efforts to use reconciliation to pass their version of health care reform, it is an underhanded attempt to push their agenda on the American people. You would think it would bother them that they are trying to do something the majority of the country does not want or need, but they are evidently past those feelings. If they get it done, I hope there is a way to change or repeal it when they lose their majority in Congress, come November.
There will always be a way to repeal it. Will that be easy? Certainly not. Entitlements by their very nature are close to impossible to overturn. They hinted at trying to include a provision that would prevent its repeal – which everyone on both sides of the aisle agreed would be prima facie grounds for its unconstitutionality. I pray that they are not so narrow minded to venture down that road. I do believe it would do a great disservice to the institution that is the Legislative Branch.
As for the jobs bill, I think you are absolutely correct. I have not the slightest idea what Grassley and the lot were up to on this one. I understand that the politics of being on the NO side of a jobs bill is difficult but seriously… was this the proper course? Get one foot in and decided to strap on a few takeaways to appease the constituents when they wonder how/why you were involved with such a thing? Not the most brilliant course of action – and certainly not the conservative one.
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