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New Gang of Five Coalesce Around McConnell’s Excrement Sandwich

By: Daniel Horowitz (Diary)  |  December 20th, 2011 at 10:30 AM  | 

RESIZE: AAA

If I had voted for a bill that not only screwed my party, but also screwed the country, I would keep a low profile.  If I had passed a bill that was unworkable for businesses and helped preserve the entities that precipitated the housing crisis, I wouldn’t show my face in public for a while.  Evidently, there are five GOP senators, some of which have flirted with “No Labels,” who are unfazed by their vote for McConnell’s pathetic extenders package.  Worse, they are demanding that the House join them in helping their own reelection prospects at the expense of the rest of the country.

This, from CQ:

Republicans Scott Brown of Massachusetts, Dean Heller of Nevada, Richard G. Lugar of Indiana and Olympia J. Snowe and Susan Collins of Maine called on the House to change course, which Senate Democrats are gleefully noting. [...]

“I’m hopeful, maybe without basis, the House of Representatives will pass the bill the Senate passed and it will do so tonight,” Lugar said on MSNBC on Monday. “I’m hopeful that our majority, Republicans and Democrats today, will proceed, because it seems to me this is best for the country as well as for all the individuals who are affected.”

Snowe told Maine’s Portland Press Herald that it was “paramount at this point” that the payroll tax cut not lapse. Collins added, “At this point, we must act, as the Senate has done, to prevent a tax increase that will otherwise occur on Jan. 1.”

Heller said in a statement that [“There is no question we need to extend the payroll tax cut and unemployment insurance for the entire year..."]“there is no reason to hold up the short-term extension while a more comprehensive deal is being worked out.” Heller is set to face Rep. Shelly Berkley, D-Nev., in a close race next year.

“The House Republicans’ plan to scuttle the deal to help middle-class families is irresponsible and wrong,” Brown said in a statement. “The refusal to compromise now threatens to increase taxes on hard-working Americans and stop unemployment benefits for those out of work.”

Blocking a two-month extension that is untenable for payroll processors is “irresponsible,” Senator Brown?  Really?  You can’t think of any reason to hold up a short-term extension, Senator Heller?  We need another 99-wees of unemployment together with a tax cut, really?  This is really the best thing for the country, Mr. Lugar?  Or is this the best thing for your reelection?

The best thing for the country is to remove some of these political hacks, who hypocritically place their political ambitions ahead of the good of the country.

We can start by helping out Lugar’s primary opponent.

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COMMENTS

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  • APA Guy

    I’m almost ashamed that he is from my state. He had served us honorably up until recent years, so I thank him for that. However, this is off the deep end and in no way smart policy.

    • APA Guy

      I’m almost ashamed that he is from my state. He had served us honorably up until recent years, so I thank him for that. However, this is off the deep end and in no way smart policy.

      • jakeofalltrades

        it – all of it – will hit the fan.

        • mirac777

          Could any of this dog and pony show delay one single paycheck in America?

    • jakeofalltrades

      And of course, you did.

    • aurora1920

      Can’t blame a red-blooded all-American legislator for doing THAT can you??
      He’s facing Elizabeth Warren when he goes back home. He knows damned well that the only way he can stay in Congress is if voters back home don’tt find out he voted against extending the tax cut. The Senate gets that the jig is up–and Christmas is nigh. Republicans can’t give their lobbyists Keystone for Christmas.

      Why don’t we ask of our legislators that there be just ONE issue to a piece of legislation?? Make every legislator live/die based on his open vote for this/that piece of controversial legislation? Would automatically bring us term limits without having to make that a law.

      Why not?? Because both parties are totally corrupt and all they are interested in doing is voting to please those they’ve sold their political souls to while at the same time keeping that information from those who vote for them when the vote could hurt their re-election. Obfuscation is the name of the game they play.

      Republicans have just engineered these high stakes brawls once too often– tying something they REALLY WANT (Keystone) to something they know they have to cave on if they want to be reelected (tax cut). That debt-ceiling cliffhanger exhausted voter patience with these tactics.

      No one really believes that all Republicans want is to give voters that tax cut for a whole year instead of 2 months–they know by this time there’s always a price to pay for anything Republicans vote for that masses of voters want. Keystone’s it–Senate bill doesn’t give ENOUGH on Keystone.

  • Adrian

    has been such an unbelievable disappointment. We’ve come a long way from when he was going to be the NO vote that saved us from Obamacare.

    I never expected him to be a die hard conservative, he wasn’t when he was a state senator and there was no reason to believe he would be in the US Senate either. He said as much when he promised “I won’t be an automatic NO vote for the Republicans.”

    We didn’t know then that meant he would be an automatic YES vote for the Democrats.

    On every issue that’s important to me, he’s gone the wrong way with his vote. The last straw for me was his opposition to the National Right to Carry bill. I sent him a lot of money (well it was a lot to me anyway) in 08 to help him defeat Coakley. He’s on his own against Warren in ’12. The line we’re fed up here by many of the local talk show hosts is “well isn’t he better than Martha Coakley would have been?” The answer I believe is no, he’s not. There is no functional difference between the two.

    • http://redmeatconservative.blogspot.com/ Daniel Horowitz

      I am doubtful that he would even support full repeal of Obamacare, even though it was the paramount issue of his campaign. The problem with Brown is not that he doesn’t toe the line on every issue; it’s that he has supported the very things that he railed against during his campaign.

      After his brief tenure in the Senate, I guess we can conclude that, indeed it is the Kennedy seat!

    • joecollins

      Scott Brown is in a difficult re-election bid, and he might not make it. Not sure if I care or not. Brown’s loss might send a message to other elected RINOs that they cannot expect our campaign support and then vote against us once elected.

      • virginiahiker

        72 hours ago Republicans were on the cusp of PR victory with an opportunity to spend 2 months challanging unions and the enviros about which of them would be thrown under the bus by the required Keystone decision. Today the House Republicans are trying to argue the Senate will be at fault if middle class taxes go up. Early polling indicates few if any voters are buying that line. Starting January 1, we will hear nonstop messages that Republicans will fall on their sords to protect tax cuts for millionairs but could care less about the working man. By the end of January, Republican leaders will drop Keystone altogether and beg for any deal they can get just to try to stop the bleeding. Our BEST case scenario coming out of this debacle is that it only hurts for 2-4 months and we are able to recover sufficiently by November to hold the House (although not with the margins we would have had otherwise), pick up the Senate (again with smaller margins) and eak out an electoral college victory. The most likely scenario if payroll taxes go up in two weeks is that we just lost all three goals and nancy can start planning to move back into her office.

        • heraklios

          The bill the Senate passed is a disaster (From what I’ve been told about it. I haven’t read and from what I can gather, neither did any of the Senators before voting on it). The bill gives a two month extension so we can keep getting hammered until February about this same issue. By voting against the Senate bill, Republicans can keep the focus on Keystone, and the fact that Keystone is the stumbling block to a compromise. Plus, the Senate bill cuts the pyroll tax for 2 months by adding fees to homebuyers. Since when does the GOP want to make home ownership more expensive? We need to settle this once and for all now rather than give the Democrats ammo to hit us all year. We should have settled this back in August with the debt ceiling but our Republican representatives didn’t have the spine.

          • earlgrey

            he won’t get support from Club for Growth unless he can show some of his own traction on fundraising.

            I grew up in IN, and was raised to love Dick Lugar. it would give me great pleasure to see him removed by his own party.

          • jakee308

            Dear Maine voters:

            What, pray tell, do Conservative Republicans have to do to get you all to kick one of these two Faux Republicans out?

            We will entertain any serious offers.

            Please reply ASAP.

            (either remove one or both of these two fruitcakes or we’re all moving to Maine in ’16. You’ve been warned.)

            Yours truly,
            Concerned Conservative Republicans of America

          • Kyle-MI

            It is the people who elected them. Just look at everyone else whom they elect. Maine is an open sore of liberalism dripping with socialist puss, as is almost all of New England. Leave them to their wretchedness. We should not waste resources on trying to get a conservative elected there. We should not need to with many more conservative friendly states where we should be running better candidates.

          • turningtables

            “Hit and runs” on conservative principles from Lugar.

            We’re growing tired of these crap sandwiches.

          • earlgrey

            My family are “old school” republicans and aren’t even aware there is someone primarying Lugar so they aren’t much good for information.

          • earlgrey

            My family are “old school” republicans and aren’t even aware there is someone primarying Lugar so they aren’t much good for information.

          • Kyle-MI

            We had the Dems on their heels with the Keystone pipeline. We had the Dems in the Senate openly defying Obama. We had Obama starting to walk back on a veto threat and burning political capital in doing so.

            And we had the chance to make them squirm again in another two months, choosing another delicious rider with which to make Obama and the Dems squirm again.

            But we blew it. I am not sure who to blame, but I am ticked off at everyone. The stupid party rides again. I am far from convinced that there is anyone here with a single brain cell left.

          • heraklios

            We need to decide what our position is and stick by it. I am against the payroll tax gimmick, because it is a gimmick, it blows a hole in the deficit or else raises fees on homeowners, and because it weakens social security for future generations. I am against extending unemployment benefits because it encourages people not to work. If the Republicans agree with me on this, then vote accordingly. If Barry O. and Harry Reid threaten and bluster, just rebut their smoke with the good arguments I have presented above and then shut up.

            The trouble with the GOP in D.C. is that we are so caught up in the gamesmanship and tactics that we lose sight of why we are there in the first place. Vote conservative principles every time and you cannot lose.

          • Kyle-MI

            Either play the game or don’t play the game. The GOP House wanted it both ways. They attached the Keystone pipeline to the bill THEY first passed on the SS tax cut extension. If they didn’t like it, they should have never advanced it in the first place.

            Then, after they had pretty much won, they decided they didn’t want to play the game. Why do that? They burned a ton of political capital AND let Obama and the Dems off the Keystone hook AND gave them a club to beat us with AND we are now worse off they if they had shot it down in the first place.

            By the way, people are not tired of it, no matter how much you or I want them to be. The Dems will be rewarded for playing this game. The GOP will be hurt because they botched it. And enough of the voters will drink the Dem cool-aide because the MSM told them to.

          • lastgopinillinois

            because the events are confusing to them. All they can understand is: House passes a bill, it goes to the senate, they thow it in the trash and start over, send it back to the house, the MSM reports that there is hope of a deral on the horizon, then the House rejects the Senate do-over at the 11th hour (according to the MSM).
            Soooo, immediately following the House votes today and the partisan commentary by House members, C-Span held a “call-in” program.

            Of the first three callers, two Republican voters vowed to NEVER vote Republican ever again. I turned it off.

            Clearly these people who call in to C-Span are politically braindead, but I think it is proof that some people are either tired of this stuff, or they just want the legislature to make a deal, any deal to extend the tax cuts.
            I disagree with all of it. The payroll tax funds social security which is already in trouble fiscally. Extending unemployment should be done with strict conditions attached, but I would rather see broad tax and regulatory reform and ending unemployment. The keystone pipeline will not become a reality under the 0-bama regime. He needs the environmentalists in his corner more than he does 20,000 union workers votes

          • Kyle-MI

            And the House GOP has now done Obama’s dirty work for him by voting down the whole bill.

            But getting back to the first point, how can we attack him on the pipeline? If we say he favors the pipeline to get environmentalist angry at him, he will say he is delaying the pipeline to make sure the environment is safe. If we say he favors the environment over the pipeline, he will say that hasn’t decided against it, just merely delayed it. Either of those positions sounds reasonable, but without him taking a stand all of the GOP criticism looks petty.

            And if we don’t attach it to something the Dems want, then Reid will never allow a vote on it in the Senate.

          • cbartlett

            They need to force Obama to veto the pipeline so it can be used against him. “Just delaying” will be his defense, even though we all know that he is totally against it. I thought the same thing about the off-shore drilling ban in the Gulf – killed thousands of jobs in several states. Obama should have been forced to veto instead of EO those regulations. He managed to sort-of, finally, kind-of re-instate the permits but he delayed it so long that it was more economical to move the rigs – mostly to FOREIGN waters. Now, that’s what I call real Hope N Change and job creation – duh!

          • conservative_dan

            if enough voters will drink the Dem kool aid because the MSM told them to, then we might as well give up. Right???

          • heraklios

            We need to decide what our position is and stick by it. I am against the payroll tax gimmick, because it is a gimmick, it blows a hole in the deficit or else raises fees on homeowners, and because it weakens social security for future generations. I am against extending unemployment benefits because it encourages people not to work. If the Republicans agree with me on this, then vote accordingly. If Barry O. and Harry Reid threaten and bluster, just rebut their smoke with the good arguments I have presented above and then shut up.

            The trouble with the GOP in D.C. is that we are so caught up in the gamesmanship and tactics that we lose sight of why we are there in the first place. Vote conservative principles every time and you cannot lose.

          • tomatin

            I’m really mad that the GOP leadership picked the wrong fight.

          • mirac777

            Let’s not forget one critical bullet point also added to the fake Senate tax relief bill- The doc fix- now we are being held responsible for Obamacare’s taking medicare funding away from Seniors? Senate progressives from both parties have tried to force a real scam onto the taxpayers once again, and some parrots want to bash the House GOP…. for protecting the taxpayer.

        • geoph

          And declare victory?
          Just like our House representation has been victoriously advancing legislation all year!
          Get real!

          • wonkish1

            The only reason why anybody would oppose this is because they don’t understand what the G rate(or G-fee) is.

            I was actually rooting for that increase before this bill was ever mentioned. And now you have some folks who had no idea what the G rate even was acting with disgust that congress would increase an artificially low guarantee for mortgages that shouldn’t have even existed in the first place.

            The G rate is the percentage Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae charge to guarantee a mortgage a lender makes. Its practically the exact same business AIG was in with CDS. Today guarantees for those two GSEs plus FHA essentially represent off balance sheet risk for the federal government. Leading up to the crisis the G rate was an amazingly low 20 to 30 basis points. So if defaults spiked at all the entities were bankrupt which is precisely what happened.

            I doubt there is anybody here that would more like to put a bullet in these entities than me, but probably the best way to do that given the current situation and the massive portfolio they are sitting on is to increase the G rate so that revenue increases to mortgage giants(and therefore reduces their reliance on the federal government and making spinoffs easier) and increasingly more banks decide to forgo agency backing allowing the portfolios to wind down.

            So a rise from an average of 30 basis points to 40 basis points is a good thing. And I wouldn’t stop there. Once it hits about 60 basis points you’ll start to see Fannie, Freddie, and FHA(which is the vast majority of the market and likely on the verge of bankruptcy unless they get bailed out next year) slowly extricate themselves from the industry.

            Increasing the cost of an artificially government created service that adds extra risk to the federal government is not a bad thing. On the contrary its one of the smartest things you can do.

            And PS I would easily take this deal in a heartbeat. Once you realize that raise of the G rate is the conservative option(not the liberal one) then you realize there is on the whole a win for us not the other way around.

          • http://redmeatconservative.blogspot.com/ Daniel Horowitz

            Conservatives don’t disagree with the policy in itself, if that were the only option for dealing with Freddie/Fannie. We agree that increasing the G-fee would provide better capitalization and reduce taxpayer risk and exposure.

            However, our problem is that relying on them for spending offsets will make it harder to close down the GSEs. Maybe if you or I were running the show it would be a good idea bec. we would use the extra funds in house. Unfortunately, those funds would just go into general revenues, while the GSEs would continue to remain insolvent and engender further bailouts. The fees would be used for spending offset. The only outcome would be that we would be accused of reneging on the extenders deal were we to wind them down. Either way, there is no way this will make them more autonomous from the federal gov’t.

          • jtlfromfredmd

            “fogged-up” head. What, then do we want? What is the way out of this or, is there no way out? I’ll admit to some confusion on this one.

          • http://redmeatconservative.blogspot.com/ Daniel Horowitz

            They should pass a clean 12-month extension of the payroll tax (whether we agreed with the original idea or not, at this point, it is too late), which will give the Senate no excuse to oppose it. Then pass the reforms, riders, and offsets in the bill that extends unemployment, albeit for a shorter duration. This will allow conservatives to negotiate hard against more entitlement spending without fear of being blamed for a tax increase.

            more here

          • wonkish1

            Clearly the Dems want the payroll tax cut and that gives us leverage to get things we want(granted the GOP needs to get better at the communications front when it comes to this).

            So generally getting what we want for a 2 month extension(which doesn’t bother me anyway) should be better than getting what we want for a 1 year extension unless I’m missing something here.

            If we can get the FHA to lose mortgage market share then I consider that a win. And my attitude is “what else can we get out of them in 2 months?”. This next time I hope they are better prepared.

          • westcoastpatriette

            is the 2 month extension leaves businesses holding their breath and not being able to move forward because they don’t know what the future holds. At least a full year extension will give more confidence to the business community and provide them with a clearer vision for the next year.

          • wumingren

            Payroll departments across the nation are waiting for the final cut on the current legislation. Some of these dedicated people will be doing overtime and may even miss Christmas, just because they’ll be stuck fixing the formulas for calculating payrolls and getting correct paychecks out to employees. They should be getting ready for year-end tax reconciliation and processing tax information for IRS reports and sending out W-2s to employees. Instead, they’ll be juggling this tax gimmick. It’s going to be a lousy year-end for payroll departments everywhere.

            Then, after all that crap, they’ll be forced to do it again two months later. All this is going to do is increase the cost of doing business in the short and long of it.

          • wonkish1

            That G-Fee hike should go to GSEs so that they can get the increase in revenue to wind down. Granted the increase in the G-Fee would mostly go to the federal government anyway, but it would at least improve their balance sheet so that opportunities to break up and spin off or IPO and drop its government backing or wind down are a little easier.

            But the increase still will drop guarantee volume to the two GSEs and particularly(and thank God because its becoming a serious problem) FHA. That less demand will also help wind them down as well.

            And I don’t really think that it will be substantially more difficult to get them away from the government because of this deal. In a future break up the government loses its revenue, but it also loses its exposure and gains on its preferreds. That isn’t that different from losing its exposure and gaining on its preferreds now and not having the revenue go directly to treasury(but instead pass through).

            Personally, to make things even easier though the GOP should just reproduce the exact same bill with the G-Fee going to the GSE’s and FHA directly.

          • tomatin

            The problem is the GOP leadership let it sound like the payroll tax cut deal was done. Boehner should have refuted that loudly from the start but didn’t.

            Any attempts to save face now by saying they want to extend the cuts longer ring hollow.

            No matter what we think the GOP looks like it’s in disarray over this which it is.

          • tomatin

            Bravo!

          • ihateliberals

            The stopgap continues to be a costly item in the congress. If a stopgp is passed in 2 months we will be doing this again and then in 2 months again and finally it wil get to a position for Obama to use it as a campaign item. By forcing it to a 1 year deal it takes it out of the running and puts it past the elections. The problem with this is that Boehner (The RINO) should have consulted the party members before he made a commitment and he didn’t then the Senate took the opportunity to bite him on it because they wanted to go home for Christmas. I’m just glad it is screwing up Obama’s vacation plans.

          • funwithknives

            Playing small ball and continually looking to the next 60 days only feeds dis-satisfaction for any thinking Voter.
            Why does the GOP leadership continually fall for this? It’s not like they do not know Reid is a snake and will always be their worst nightmare. he and his ilk live for this stuff ,and just as nice as you please, in walks what is termed “Leadership”, in our illustrious Congress.
            {“There’s Snipers in them thar’ rocks, sir! I’d be real careful-like, iffin I was you-all …. MEDIC!! }

        • tomatin

          Boehner and the Republicans in the House cave mightily on the omnicrap bill but don’t pass what voters will only see as a tax increase.

          It’s abjectly insane. The Senate got the genius Keystone XL language to force Obama’s hand and increase in Fannie and Freddie fees to pay for it in the bill. The Dumbocrats caved on increasing taxes.

          How can anyone not see how the GOP leadership blew this?

          • sowa1

            the right thing for all of us and it is time we stand with them. The House has passed over 15 job creating bills, passed a Budget and the Senate has thrown them in the do nothing pile. We put House Republicans in office to do what is right for the American people. Too bad we have people who only think of themselves complaigning all the time.

          • mirac777

            In some folks small world an increase in 90% of all Mortgages in America- fees isn’t seen as a tax increase? Explain that logic? Some people are quite comfy in parroting Liberal talking points while bashing GOP House leadership.

        • sowa1

          to Washington and pass the year long extention. Republicans have it paid for and are doing the right thing. Obama and the Dems in the Senate want to use this as a campaigning tool. If we don’t let them, they will not win.

        • sowa1

          to Washington and pass the year long extention. Republicans have it paid for and are doing the right thing. Obama and the Dems in the Senate want to use this as a campaigning tool. If we don’t let them, they will not win.

    • geoph

      Come on, he was ONLY elected because he was NO vote #41.

      To believe a Massachusetts politician would hold non-liberal views and could truly fit in with “Republican” ideology, would be absurd. Just be thankful he isn’t attempting to become the face of our Party – imagine just what kind of a nightmare THAT would be! Oh, wait…..

      • Glaucon

        We should not forget these Senators during the next Primary.

    • tomatin

      But he’s got good political instincts which means he knows this will be a PR disaster for Republicans.

      Saying he’s not different than Coakley is pure hyperbole.

    • politicalqrm

      What Scott Brown doesn’t realize is that many conservatives in Mass came out of their caves for him. They knew he wasn’t a true conservative, but in that state he was the closest thing to it. That’s why he got elected.

      But now that he’s voting like a Dem, they’re going to stay at home. He kicked their votes in their faces.

      The GOP can write off that race. Warren will probably win it.

      Another prime example of GOP moderates thinking they have to “reach across the aisle”

  • earlgrey

    From Mourdock’s website.

    The Indianapolis Star reported just 4 hours ago that Senator Dick Lugar has placed a radio ad buy laughingly claiming that he has been battling President Obama’s liberal policies.

    Senator Dick Lugar has served honorably for 35 years now, but it’s a hard sell to say that “Barack Obama’s Favorite Republican” is now his chief opponent. I know you won’t be fooled, but we are going to need to hit back against his big spending and make sure Hoosier voters aren’t deceived by Lugar’s millions.

  • earlgrey

    From Mourdock’s website.

    The Indianapolis Star reported just 4 hours ago that Senator Dick Lugar has placed a radio ad buy laughingly claiming that he has been battling President Obama’s liberal policies.

    Senator Dick Lugar has served honorably for 35 years now, but it’s a hard sell to say that “Barack Obama’s Favorite Republican” is now his chief opponent. I know you won’t be fooled, but we are going to need to hit back against his big spending and make sure Hoosier voters aren’t deceived by Lugar’s millions.

  • bassethound

    Wasn’t he the one who played Quark the Ferringi bartender on Star Trek Deep Space Nine?

    He reminds my husband and me of this character.

    • http://impudent.edublogs.org/ kyle8

      most reminded me of, Sleepy or Dopey?

  • ihateliberals

    re-elect RINO’s and in the case of Snowe and Collins straight out Liberals. These 5 and McConnell have no business even being called Republicans. The GOP has been taken over by the moderates and leftist of the Party and are shutting out the conservatives. Are there nay of us left. I have been a devout conservative for over 50 years and i feel so alone right now. I am not welcome in my Party and I’m not sure where to turn to. We have lost this election short of a Miracle to the Obamanites again. Much worse we have lost a country!

  • daniel22

    He can keep on running. He could also change party affliiation.

  • sgtcajones

    pick our candidates election after election, this is what we will get. Political parties are interested in one thing, winning elections.

    The Republican Establishment is willing to compromise principles to win elections, and so we get Snowe, Collins, Brown and others.

    Conservatism wins whenever it is tried; the Republican party doesn’t even try anymore. Conservatives must regain control of the party if We The People are to regain control of our country.

    • http://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress.com nathanalbright

      Ending up with Snowe and Brown and so on isn’t so bad because they are in New England. I believe William F. Buckley’s rule of supporting the most conservative candidate possible in a given area is a sound rule. We ought not to accept such candidates in a solid Republican area, but ought to recognize them as the lesser of evils in an area where good cannot be elected. And the establishment only picks candidates if we the people let them. If we do, that responsibility lies on us.