the Morning Briefing every morning at no charge.
1. Hold Fast In the Face of Fear
2. God and Oslo
3. House Republican Leaders Cave in Less Than 24 Hours
4. The Unanswered Questions for GOP Leaders from Freshmen
5. Dear Kelly Ayotte, Ron Johnson, Mike Lee, Rob Portman, Rand Paul, and Marco Rubio
6. Putting Saxby Chambliss, Mike Crapo, and Tom Coburn in Perspective
7. House Republicans Should Not Rely on Democrats For Votes on the Debt Ceiling
1. Hold Fast In the Face of Fear
I’ve gotten lots of calls about compromise this weekend. Senators have called. Congressmen have called. Staffers have called.I try not to be too committal on these calls because I like to have a bit of time to think.Here’s my response: don’t compromise. I’ve thought about it. I don’t think you can get any compromise worth supporting because like an alcohol refusing to admit he has a drinking problem, Washington politicians are refusing to admit they have a spending problem. When they cut spending, they do it dishonestly — through accounting tricks and cuts to growth rates, not actual cuts. We can’t send Congress to rehab. We cannot allow yet another Washington deal.We sent you there to end Obamacare and cut Washington spending. Don’t fail on both fronts, please.Please click here for the rest of the post.
2. God and Oslo
Friday, I filled in for Neal Boortz on his syndicated show and was live on air as the news was breaking from the horror in Oslo, Norway.With Al Jazeera, international news networks, and domestic networks all raising the link to an Islamic radical Norway was deporting, I put on twitter that the odds were it wasn’t an angry Lutheran doing the bombing and shooting and noted on the radio the possible links to Islamic radicals.Turns out, the now captured shooter, who I think we can probably say is connected to the bombing, lists himself as a conservative Christian on a Facebook page.I was wrong. But the reaction to me and others being wrong and to how the news is handling this event is quite instructive.In the Arkansas army shootings and the Ft. Hood shooting and a host of others, the media and the left have sought to downplay any possible connection to Islam the attackers or would be attackers have had. And when those of us on the right have pointed it out, we’ve been accused of racism and those on the left have demanded to know why it even mattered.Contrast that with the coverage of the Oslo shooter and already the New York Times is making sure in its first few paragraphs everyone knows the guy described himself on Facebook as a “conservative Christian.”It reminds me of the left-wingers who always point out that Eric Rudolph and Timothy McVeigh were Christians. They ignore the fact that McVeigh himself described himself as at best an agnostic, though more clearly an atheist, and Rudolph’s FBI file showed he belonged to an extremist cult more Aryan than Christian.But why all the angst from the left on this.There are a few instructive points.Please click here for the rest of the post.
3. House Republican Leaders Cave in Less Than 24 Hours
This is embarrassing.On Fox News Sunday, John Boehner began the day saying that he wanted a deal that kept to the principles of “Cut, Cap, and Balance.”He concluded Sunday by telling House Republicans that Cut, Cap, and Balance was off the table due to Senate opposition.Twice the House GOP has staked out a position. Twice they have been shot up and beat to hell by the Democrats for daring to do so. Twice their leaders then threw in the towel on their plans. First on Paul Ryan’s plan and now this.No wonder so many House Republicans are privately expressing so much anger at their leadership.To make it worse, Republican Leaders on Capitol Hill are offering up what is being called a “Super Congress”. In this plan, 3 Democrats and 3 Republicans would get together, come up with an agreement to make spending cuts and raise taxes. Then neither house in Congress would be able to stop those reforms — no filibuster could be used.We’ve seen these sorts of commissions throughout American history. We always wind up with the tax increases. We never get the spending cuts.In the last thirty years there have been 17 deficit commissions. The deficit has gone up $13 trillion. The cuts are always accounting gimmicks.House Republicans should hold the freaking line. They should say “Cut, Cap, and Balance” or no deal. They should not succumb to fear. They should not be in such a race to avoid August 2nd that they get a bad deal.History shows us how this will end up: taxes will go up and spending will go up.It’s time to stop pouring alcohol for the alcoholic. It is time to stop raising the credit limit so the spendthrifts can spend some more. It is time to hold the freaking line.Cut, Cap, and Balance is the only plan that can be passed by August 2nd. It needs just four more votes in the Senate where it is tabled, not dead.Please click here for the rest of the post.
4. The Unanswered Questions for GOP Leaders from Freshmen
Forget the tax issue or the timetable for a moment; any proposed “spending cut” deal that fails to slash funding for discretionary spending and welfare programs to pre-Obama levels, as proposed in Paul Ryan’s budget, is worthless. As Congressman Dennis Ross (R-FL) tweeted earlier today, “debt “deals” that count on 10 years worth of spending cuts are the Mr Snuffleupagus of budget tricks. No one sees them except pols.”If House leaders fail to stand by their own budget, freshmen members like Ross might pose the following question: was the entire Republican majority of the 112th Congress a waste of time?Please click here for the rest of the post.
5. Dear Kelly Ayotte, Ron Johnson, Mike Lee, Rob Portman, Rand Paul, and Marco Rubio
Welcome to the Senate.It ain’t easy, is it?Here’s the thing you need to know. Right now, you are probably telling yourself you need to be reasonable. You are probably telling yourself you need to cut a deal.I’m willing to bet you are telling yourself you should do something short term and in six more months or whenever, after everything has calmed back down, revisit the issue.Senators, you are fooling yourselves. And I bet you know it.Please click here for the rest of the post.
6. Putting Saxby Chambliss, Mike Crapo, and Tom Coburn in Perspective
This is really sad and pathetic. I can only guess they have struck such a bad deal because they negotiated from a position of fear. You never get a good deal when you are negotiating because you are scared.The Senate Budget Committee is sending around an email pointing out some of the horrors of the Gang of Six’s gangrene plan.Consider this: Saxby Chambliss, Mike Crapo, and Tom Coburn agreed to raise capital gains taxes from 15% to 28%.Likewise, employers would no longer get a wage credit for keeping activated military reservists on the job.Please click here for the rest of the post.
7. House Republicans Should Not Rely on Democrats For Votes on the Debt Ceiling
I think conservatives need to draw one more line in the sand on the debt ceiling.There is a growing worry that John Boehner and Eric Cantor will come up with a deal with the White House that will require Democrat votes to get through the House of Representatives. This would be a replay of the continuing resolution fiasco that cut little and cost much.If Republican leaders come up with a debt ceiling deal that requires Democrats to vote for it in order to get to 218, the Republicans who put those leaders in power should boot them out of power. It’s that simple.Please click here for the rest of the post.
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