Go around Sente procedural rules. Â Put video cameras in the Senate and the House and have them on — side by side — all the time. Let the American people literally see what is going on. Post the videos on Y-Tube.
Forget procedure. So what if Harry Reid says the Senate is no longer in session. Those Democrats with principles and who can independently think for themselves can stay behind with the Republicans and debate before the American People. Say what they think and why about Cut, Cap and Balance the budget. Show their faces and let their words and thoughts be known.
So when Reid will not even allow debate on the Cut, Cap and Balance the budget let’s hear his ringing words that this is terrible legislation.
And then when Reid dismisses the members to go home those Republicans and those principled Democrats (or scared about re-election) can stay behind and engage in debate.
So what that the Senate is not in session because of Reid’s political manipulations. Let the Democrats and Republicans engage in debate on the pluses and minuses of the Cut, Cap and Balanced Budget amendment.
Senate Blocks Vote on ‘Cut, Cap, and Balance’
July 22, 2011 11:59 A.M. By Andrew Stiles
The Senate voted today to block the House-passed “Cut, Cap and Balance†legislation from even being brought to a vote on passage. A procedural motion to “table†a “motion to proceed†on the measure passed 51 to 46 on party lines.
Reps. Tim Huelskamp (R., Kan.) and Jeff Duncan (R., S.C.) led a delegation of roughly a dozen House Republican freshman to the Senate floor to observe the proceedings during the vote.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) said Thursday it would be a “waste of the Senate’s time†to debate the measure any further, adding that he thought the bill was “perhaps some of the worst legislation in the history of this country.†Reid had initially schedule the vote for Saturday, but decided to move it up at the last minute.
“Senator Reid’s scramble to vote on this bill a day earlier than previously announced shows that Cut, Cap, and Balance is quickly gaining momentum,†said Rep. Jim Jordan (R., Ohio), chairman of the Republican Study Committee, which was largely responsible for drafting the legislation. “Senate Democrats should stop hiding behind a procedural vote to block a plan with two-to-one support from the American public. So long as it has the support of the American people, Cut, Cap, and Balance remains very much alive.â€
At a press conference moments before the Senate vote, House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio) and other House GOP leaders said if the Senate didn’t like “Cut, Cap, and Balance†as written, they should amend it and send it back. “Senate Democrats have defied the will of the American people who overwhelmingly support real spending cuts, caps on future spending, and a balanced budget to create a better environment for private-sector job growth,†Boehner said. “To help avoid a default, I urge the Senate to rethink their decision and immediately approve the responsible, balanced, House-passed ‘Cut, Cap, & Balance’ proposal.â€
“The Senate and the president are in meltdown,†Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R., Utah) told reporters. “They have not figured out what they’re going to do. They have no plan, they haven’t put anything on a piece of paper. And the clock is ticking.â€
UPDATE: Shortly after the Senate voted to kill “Cut, Cap and Balance,†Harry Reid announced that the he would not, as previously planned, keep the Senate in session over the weekend, citing the apparent progress in negotiations between President Obama and John Boehner.
Reid also suggested that the contingency plan he and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) had been discussing was no longer necessary because of these developments. “It looked earlier this week like the Senate would have to originate the legislation perhaps as soon as today to avoid default,†he said. “During the course of the week, circumstances have changed. The Speaker of the House and the President have been working to reach agreement on a major deficit-reduction measure. I wish them both very well.â€
Because the package under discussion includes tax increases as well as spending cuts, Reid claimed, and due to the Constitutional requirement that all revenue bills originate in the lower chamber, “the path to avert default now runs first to the House of Representatives…We in the Senate must wait for them.â€
Reid said he expects “all kinds of meetings going on†over the weekend, barely able to contain his bitterness for being left out of the negotiations.
UPDATE II: Sen. Jim DeMint (R., S.C.) vows to continue the fight and force another vote on “Cut, Cap and Balanceâ€:
The bipartisan House-passed Cut, Cap, Balance bill remains the only plan on the table, the only one that preserves our AAA rating, and is only four Democrat votes away from a Senate majority to end this debt crisis,†said Senator DeMint. “I will work to force another vote on Cut, Cap & Balance next week because the President and Democrats have not offered the American people any other viable solution.
It is outrageous that every Senate Democrat voted against even allowing a debate on balancing the budget within 10 years, a plan supported by two-thirds of Americans with wide support across all party lines. Why are Senate Democrats so afraid to debate a balanced budget? Cut, Cap, Balance is the compromise plan that passed the House and can end the wasteful spending that caused this debt crisis. It gives the President the debt limit increase he has asked for in return for immediate spending cuts, enforceable spending caps, and a constitutional amendment to force Washington to stop spending more than it brings in.
“The President and Democrats have been beyond reckless in this debate, refusing to offer any serious solution to our fiscal crisis. The only plan the President has offered would increase our debt by $10 trillion and push our nation into bankruptcy.
I urge Republican leaders to stop letting the President to drag you back like children into secret meetings where he pretends to do something constructive. The President created this crisis by irresponsible spending and borrowing that has left our economy in shambles, and if he’s unwilling to simply agree to balance the budget in 10 years then he is not a credible negotiating partner.
No more closed door meetings, no more phony compromises that don’t solve the problem, no more useless commissions. We have a balanced approach supported by a bipartisan House majority that ends our debt crisis if just four Senate Democrats would keep their promise and support a balanced budget.
We must pass Cut, Cap & Balance to keep our nation from falling off a fiscal cliff.
UPDATE III: Speaker Boehner delivered a rare speech on the House floor in response to the Senate’s actions. His remarks:
Mr. Speaker, there is a huge gulf between Washington, D.C. and the American people. They are dealing with tough times. They’re struggling to pay their bills. And they look to Washington, they see politicians who can’t stop spending money – their money.
Listen, we’re broke. We need to stop the out-of-control spending spree that’s going on in Washington, D.C.
The House has acted. We passed a bill that raised the debt limit, cuts spending, puts in place real reforms in place, and requires Congress send to the states a Balanced Budget Amendment. It’s called ‘cut, cap, and balance.’
We’ve done our job. The Democrats who run Washington have done nothing. They can’t stop spending the American people’s money. They won’t and they refuse.
The Senate Majority Leader says they still won’t offer a plan to cut spending. Or a plan to raise the debt limit. Frankly, that’s irresponsible.
Mr. Speaker, where is their plan? “President Obama talks about being ‘the adult in the room.’ But where is his plan to cut spending and raise the debt limit?
We’re in the fourth quarter – and we’re fighting for jobs, we’re fighting for the future, we’re fighting for the American people.
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COMMENTS 45
COLLAPSE
SORT Newest FirstOldest First
madisonian
07/22/11 15:14
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Someone named Hyena says we should “read the posts before responding”, and cites a vote tally of 56-41.
Maybe Hyenas are dyslexic. (Seinfeld: “Not that there’s anything WRONG with that!”)
51-46, doggy. As Snoopy Dogg-Dogg, or whatever his tag is, likes to say: “Bow-wow-WOW”!
Yippee-Kay-Aye, Mo’ Fu%#ie! Follow thy advice?
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madisonian
07/22/11 14:47
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Did Boehner really start a speech in the House with, “Mr. Speaker”? Decorum run amok?
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Order66
07/22/11 14:51
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I’m glad you asked that…it seemed a little [FILTER!?!?] kweer to me.
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madisonian
07/22/11 15:08
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Say what we will about the well-endowed grandNanny, I don’t ever remember her starting with, “Madame Speaker, I rise today …”
Ah, well. CAPTCHA (on A Friday, no less): “Lager frenzy”
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Order66
07/22/11 15:21
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Have a Yuengling [figuratively] on me. 🙂
(Yuengling Lager and Marlboro Reds…favorites of both BHO and me. Who says we don’t share common ground?)
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Ironfistvelvetglove
07/22/11 14:35
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Has anyone seen a roll call of the Senate vote?
I have read that McCain did not vote. If true, why not?
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ECWonk
07/22/11 14:20
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Now I want to see how many stories run in the MSM about the Democrats in the Senate being “obstructionists” and “the party of NO”. Not that I’m holding my breath…
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Ironfistvelvetglove
07/22/11 14:37
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I hope the GOP Senate stay in town and work.
Think the Democrats are fleeing DC like rats off the Titanic. They learned this trick from the Wisconsin fleebaggers.
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Watertight
07/22/11 14:00
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I smell a squeeze play by Reid and his gang.
I like the House negotiating position. And have the Krauthammer gambit as a fall back.
Wow!
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Numbercruncher
07/22/11 13:53
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Here is what I would propose. $50 Billion debt increase, just enough to pay the debt service and expenses that are third rail of politics. Pass it every month. Obama wants a comprehensive plan, he isn’t getting one unless it is cut-cap-balance. In the interim give the government just enough so that it can pay its obligations and the stuff Americans will flip out over if they don’t get paid. Everything else is on the table.
If you are fat, you still need to eat, if you eat less you lose weight. Force the President’s hand. If he veto’s the bill then he gets the blame. The POTUS is in a corner, keep punching – the moment you cut a deal with him he escapes…I am not against cutting that deal, but the deal better be the right one!
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matthew8787
07/22/11 13:07
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I agree that Reid made a tactical mistake, but I also note that he let his caucus go home — something he could not risk during the Obamacare fight.
It is now up to the good people of Nebraska, West Virginia, Ohio, Missouri, Florida, Pennsylvania, Michigan and other key states to give their Democratic senator an EARFUL this weekend.
CALL them, all of the them.
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Richard Diver
07/22/11 13:06
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Ok, the orchestrated Kabuki theater is finished. I’m guessing this will continue to play out with no grand bargain, but rather the McConnell plan which in hindsight is the only plan that ever had a chance. Republicans can get a deal 100% on their terms in 2012, provided they can beat the world’s most beatable incumbent. I do, however, question whether said Republican candidate would suddenly lose his/her fervor for cost-cutting once Frodo’s ring is slipped firmly on the finger. Prreeecciiioouuusssssssss – must not throw in the fire!
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MReed53
07/22/11 12:52
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Reid’s decision to schedule a procedural rather than an up-and-down vote is a major tactical, if not strategic error. Instead of killing the bill, he has kept it alive.
Republicans should spend the weekend and every day thereafter hammering the senate for refusing to vote on the bill’s merits while assigning sole blame for the failure to address the debt ceiling on senate Democrats.
It sounded yesterday as if Reid was worried enough about the bill gaining traction that he was willing to hold a record vote in order to squelch additional debate. You have to wonder if his decision to duck a straight vote represents some genuine concern that some of the vulnerable Democrats facing tough, red state re-elections might have been going wobbly on him.
Republicans, who finally seem to have found their voice on this issue, need to stick to their guns rather than surrendering meekly and moving on to some compromise. Use the time to continue educating the public about what the bill contains, since everything in it is supported by big majorities of poll respondents. Hang the inaction and continuing stalemate on senate Democrats, who obviously have no interest in any action that does not amount to tax and spend.
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MarkW
07/22/11 13:42
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That depends on the ability of the Stupid Party to actually get out there and start informing the citizens.
The Republicans have passed a plan.
The Democrats not only have not passed a plan, they refuse to permit a vote on the Republican plan.
Such a message is pure gold for the Republicans, should they try to use it.
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Hyena
07/22/11 12:47
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Considering that it actually has zero support from the Senate GOP, the measure is doomed anyhow. You’d see a different dynamic if the Democratic Party called Boehner’s bluff by allowing the bill forward. The whole point of GOP votes in the Senate is that the measure will be defeated without them, so they can posture rather than make mea culpas to their constituents.
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MarkW
07/22/11 13:41
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The bill has no support. That explains why Reid refuses to let the bill be voted on. He knows it will be defeated and that defeat will embarass the Republicans.
Knock me over with a feather, I never knew that Reid cared so much about the future of the Republican party.
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Hyena
07/22/11 15:07
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Reid didn’t table it, the Senate voted to table the measure. It was a 56-41 vote; do read the posts before heading to the comments.
It has been voted on. It’s dead.
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Order66
07/22/11 13:59
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Sarcasm, well implemented, sir.
With the number of GOP Senators, only a select few Democrat Senators would have been able to run for cover *while* not providing enough overall votes to pass the bill. It would have been like a gaggle of weasely dudes in headscarves fighting over Titanic lifeboat seats. “Mrs. Snowe, Mrs. Collins…may we have your seats?” LOL!
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Abilene
07/22/11 14:11
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There are a few democrat senators who would be advised to vote for the bill. It may save their jobs in 2012.
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JakeTaylor
07/22/11 13:18
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So, every GOP senator voting to discuss the bill = “zero support” in your mind. Scary. And if that’s truly the case, wouldn’t you think Reid would be smart and call the bluff, make the GOP vote? But I guess that would ruin your pretty little fantasy in which the GOP is somehow to blame for Reid, Obama and the Democrat’s utter cowardice and failure.
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Hyena
07/22/11 15:30
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The GOP did vote, it voted against tabling the measure.
The dynamics here are simple: Democrats *must* vote against the bill and they have a majority, this leaves the GOP free to vote *for* the bill as a bloc. The move allows the GOP to curry support with their base while not having to face the consequences of radical proposals.
You saw this dynamic on full display when Democrats voted “present” on the RSC budget, causing several Republican Reps to change their vote to “no”. The GOP needed the Democrats to kill it for them so they could take a symbolic vote, Hoyer denied them it.
And that is how this game is played.
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madisonian
07/22/11 12:40
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“I urge Republican leaders to stop letting the President to drag you back like children into secret meetings where he pretends to do something constructive.”
“[I]f he’s unwilling to simply agree to balance the budget in 10 years then he is not a credible negotiating partner.”
Stark relief never hurts.
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PoliticalScienceFiction
07/22/11 12:33
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“Reid said he expects “all kinds of meetings going on†over the weekend, barely able to contain his bitterness for being left out of the negotiations.”
Seriously? He doesn’t have a proposal to negotiate, yet he’s the roadblock to anything that has been proposed and even passed in the House.
Reid is horrible on so many levels.
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Ironfistvelvetglove
07/22/11 13:29
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I think this is the comedy portion of the soap opera this week.
The title of today’s act:
“Harry Has a Hissy.”
I love this.
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Scott Wilson
07/22/11 12:45
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“Reid is horrible on so many levels.”
I hate to beat a dead horse, but the selection of Sharon Angle to challenge Reid continues to bite the GOP on the behind. Reid was the proverbial fish in the barrel, and Angle still couldn’t pull it off because she was a HORRIBLE campaigner. To beat an incumbent, especially one that is the sitting Majority leader, you need to be a competent campaigner, no matter how strong the wind is at your sails. Angle wasn’t.
Had the GOP fielded better candidates in DE, CO, WA and perhaps even AK & NY, the tenor of this entire debate would be entirely different. When you have a deliberative body with only 100-members that controls half the legislative process, every vote really does matter.
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SteveR
07/22/11 14:33
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You’re sounding like the Obama “blame Bush” canard. Fight the fight we’re in now…spilt milk stinks if you don’t wipe it up and move on.
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Shawn
07/22/11 13:15
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Scott, I think the inescapable reality was Angle had foot in mouth, and a lot “out there” statements that would’ve sank her regardless how competent a campaigner she was.
And that illegal immigrant ad in the closing weeks may very well have singlehandedly doomed her! There is a way to appeal to the anti-illegal crowd, but that was about as subtle as a hammer to the head!
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Scott Wilson
07/22/11 13:30
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Yes, I agree. I should clarify that when I categorized her as poor campaigner, I was including her strange statements that were made prior to the start of the general in that categorization.
She was deeply flawed even before the actual general election began, and she just made her job that much more difficult with her countless mistakes during the actual campaign.
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Shawn
07/22/11 13:14
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Scott, I think the inescapable reality was Angle had foot in mouth, and a lot “out there” statements that would’ve sank her regardless how competent a campaigner she was.
And that illegal immigrant ad in the closing weeks may very well have singlehandedly doomed her! There is a way to appeal to the anti-illegal crowd, but that was about as subtle as a hammer to the head!
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bandmom
07/22/11 13:05
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Really, you blame Harry Reid on Sharron Angle? Even in one’s worst scenario, she could NOT be worse than this pathetic, scrawny, doubledealing, scumsucking, backstabbing, Uriah Heepish, rat Reid.
Blame the unions and the casinos for this situation. They are the ones who turned the tide back to Reid. Someone up above said blame Steve Wynn. That is absolutely correct. If the casinos would have supported Angle or at the least stayed out of it, there would be no more Senatewh%re Harry Reid. And the country would be so much better off.
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