Category: Democratic

Categories
Democratic Politics Republican Wisconsin Wisconsin Union Bashing

Wisconsin Fab 14 Returns to a Hero’s Welcome

Tens of thousands came out in support of the returning Democratic senators, who fled the state of Wisconsin almost a month ago to avoid voting on a bill aimed at busting the unions in the state. The bill was eventually signed into law without any Democratic votes, but the 14 Senate Democrats were welcomed back in Wisconsin today as heroes.

Paul Fieber, a retired state employee carrying a homemade sign declaring “Our Heroes” said, “before all of this occurred I wouldn’t have known a lot of their names, but that has changed for me and a lot of the population.”

The New York Times reports:

At a news conference on Saturday, the senators spoke, sometimes boastfully, about their pride in the outpouring of support, their dismay at the law that passed despite their absence and their eagerness to meet the protesters who have backed their actions.

“I’m one of the Fabulous 14 and I’m so proud,” said Spencer Coggs, who was first elected to the State Legislature nearly three decades ago. “We are back to unite and fight with our supporters. We gave them hope. They gave us inspiration.”

Though officially in hiding, the Democrats had been more visible then ever, given countless interviews from “undisclosed locations” around Illinois, where they stayed out of reach of the Wisconsin state troopers dispatched to bring them back to the Senate.

Fred Risser, a senate Democrat whose nearly six decades of service makes him the longest-tenured state legislator in the country, said he had never been so widely recognized. “I’m quite amazed at the number of strangers who come up and thanked me,” he said.

With the Democrats out of the state, Republicans on Thursday forced through the bill using an option that is considered by many as illegal. The state’s attorney general, who is also a Republican, is being urged to investigate the way governor Scott Walker signed the bill into law, and to determine if any laws were broken.

After the news conference the senators traveled to the Capitol square, where one of the largest protests in what has been a daily outpouring of union employees and supporters was under way. The spectacle was enhanced by a brigade of tractors that motored around the square.

The size of the crowd was particularly striking, coming a day after the battle over the bill was lost, though legal efforts are under way to block .

For weeks now the rhythmic chanting of protestors has filled this city like a heartbeat, proof that despite the lack of political power the political left in this state was still here. At the very moment that the noise was expected to fade in disappointment that thumping proof of life — “This is what Democracy looks like,” was the most popular of the chants — continued with renewed vigor.

Many in the crowd said the effect of the legislation had been to breathe new life into the disheartened Democrats, just months after Republicans gained control of the governor’s office and both chambers of the State Legislature, and to reawaken union solidarity at a time when membership numbers have been declining.

Not surprisingly, Republicans in the state held a different opinion of the 14 Democratic Senators. The NYTimes reports the senate majority leader, Republican Scott Fitzgerald, calling the Democrats “shameful.”

“Today, the most shameful 14 people in the state of Wisconsin are going to pat themselves on the back and smile for the cameras. They’re going to pretend they’re heroes for taking a three-week vacation. It is an absolute insult to the hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites who are struggling to find a job, much less one they can run away from and go down to Illinois — with pay.”

Given the tens of thousands coming out to greet the “Fab 14″ senators, it is very obvious that the Republicans are on the wrong side here. In fact, the term ‘shameful” has been used over the last 3 weeks to describe the manner in which Republicans have rammed the bill down the throats of Wisconsinites.

Read the Times report here.

 

Categories
Democratic Politics Republican Wisconsin Wisconsin Union Bashing

Did Little Scottie Walker Add To The Bill After Votes Were Held?

News coming out of Wisconsin suggests that Scott Walker added more language to the union busting bill after the votes were held, but before signing it into law. The news states that two items not mentioned in the vote on March 9th, were miraculously found in the bill on March 10th.

Thursday, the fiscal bureau was forced to correct its memo describing the bill, after unearthing some more buried treasure.  Seems there were a few things the original memo forgot to mention:

There are two items in the LFB’s March 10 document that are not reflected in the March 9 document.

1. The March 10 document includes a provision of the substitute amendment on the Earned Income Tax Credit (page 3, #1).

2. The March 10 document includes a provision of the substitute amendment on the Sale and Contractual Operation of State-Owned Power Plants (page 20, #1).

The lies of Mr. Walker are amazingly transparent. He introduced the original package stating that the very future of Wisconsin depended on passing this bill. After Wisconsin Democratic senators refused to show up for the vote, Walker and his Republican cohorts created a “nuclear” option by removing what they called, the “non-financial” part of the bill – the union busting measure – and held the vote.

And now that the two provisions were snuck into law as part of the “non-financial” union busting measure, it reeks illegality all around. Walker and his Republican congress should be tried in a court of law and let the justice system have its way.

Categories
Collective bargaining Democratic democrats Politics Republican United States Wisconsin Wisconsin Union Bashing

When The People Don’t Vote, The People Lose

After over 3 weeks of protests, sleep ins and push backs by the people of Wisconsin against a bill by Republican governor Scott Walker where the rights of union members were at stake, the fight abruptly came to an end tonight, when Walker and his Republican allys voted and passed the bill without any Democrat consensus.

In the beginning, the bill was presented as part of a package aimed at reducing Wisconsin’s deficit. Governor Walker, in his daily press conferences said, “we are broke! We are broke!” Mr. Walker claimed that busting the bargaining rights of the unions would fill the state’s $137 million deficit and will fix a projected $3.6 billion shortfall in the upcoming 2011-13 budget. The state’s Democrats however, saw the bill as something geared towards de-funding the unions – groups that give heavily to Democratic campaigns, – and they all fled the state. The people of Wisconsin supported the Democratic position and “kill the bill” chants became the daily slogan. The public opinion for the Republicans fell to an all time low.

Tonight however , given a chance to restore their positive standings with the people, and presented with the opportunity to give Wisconsinites what they have been protesting for all this time, Republicans took another path. They removed the union busting part of the bill from the rest of the package then held a vote on that  measure alone – a move that caused the Democratic Assembly leader to yell “illegal! Illegal!,” as the roll call was happening.

With no Democrats present to register their vote, the union busting part of the bill passed.  It now goes to the State’s assembly, where another Republican body controls the agenda and another vote will be held. Passage in the Assembly puts the bill on Walker’s desk where it will be signed into law.

Yes America, voting is important and when you don’t vote, you lose your rights. There is now a conscience effort by Republican governors all over America, to silence the negotiating rights of the working middle class American.

After hearing what Scott Walker had done tonight, I tweeted the following:

I received this reply:

So true that is. When the people don’t vote, the people lose!

Categories
Democratic Republican Teaparty

For The Teaparty, Happy Days Are Here Again!

Although the Republicans took over control of the House of Representatives in November and demanded an almost $1 trillion increase to the deficit to provide a tax cut to the rich, a recent poll suggests that the-government-is-spending-too-much-we-must-reduce-the-deficit Teaparty is now happier than ever before.

The poll, conducted by Pew Research Center finds that fewer people are angry at the government. Pew reports;

Overall, the percentage saying they are angry with the federal government has fallen from 23% last September to 14% today, with much of the decline coming among Republicans and Tea Party supporters.

Not surprisingly, the poll breaks down along party lines, with Republicans showing a more favorable outlook at the government. Back in September 2010, 33% claimed to be angry, as compared to 16% now. The excitement among the Teapartiers saw a 19 point increase, with their anger at government in September 2010 at 47%, but falling to 28% now. Democrats on the other hand showed a September 2010 anger level of 11%, and falling to 10% now.

Besides a $900 billion increase in the deficit, what else have the Republicans done to generate such happiness amongst Republicans and the Teaparty electorate?

Well, they really haven’t done much of anything else. What they have done is made a lot of promises! Apparently, these promises are enough for the Teaparty and their fellow Republicans. Among the promises;

  1. Repealing Health care, which will add another $230 billion more to the deficit according to CBO
  2. A promise to cut $61 billion from the budget, that would reduce services to pregnant women and, according to economist Paul Krugman, would “literally be stealing food from the mouths of babes.”
  3. John Boehner, the Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives has promised to slash jobs by as much as 200,000, and another 700,000 this year’s end.

These are just some of the promises the Republican electorate are elated about. Adding trillions to the deficit, increasing unemployment and causing what many economists call a slowdown in our economic recovery. These actions just tickles the Teaparty.

Just imagine their joy if we plunge into another great depression.

Categories
Democratic Politics Republican Party (United States) Wisconsin Wisconsin Union Bashing

Wisconsin Assembly Approves Anti-Union Bill

Early Friday morning, after three days of a Democratic filibusterer, Wisconsin State Assembly voted and passed the bill stripping union public workers of their collective bargaining rights. The bill still has to be approved in the state’s Senate, where Senate Democrats have been missing in action for over a week now.

State Assembly Democrats are not happy with how the vote was held. According to reporting from Huffington Post, many Democratic members did not even know the vote was being called. The report states;

After more than 60 hours in which Democrats threw out dozens of amendments and delivered rambling speeches, Republicans halted debate early Friday. In a matter of seconds, they had approved the bill. Only a few Democrats realized what was going on and managed to vote before the roll was closed.

The Democrats rose from their seats and rushed at the Republicans shouting, “Shame!” as the Republicans exited the chamber.

“I’m incensed. I’m shocked,” said Rep. John Richards, D-Milwaukee. “What a terrible, terrible day for Wisconsin.”

Republicans refused to speak to reporters, though Majority Leader Scott Suder, R-Abbotsford, did issue a written statement.

“The vote we took wasn’t the easy thing to do, but it was the right thing to do,” Suder said.

We are witnessing the dismantling of the constitutionally protected first amendment for Wisconsin public employees, where simply having their union representative sit at a negotiating table and speak on their behalf is slowly being taken away.

Read the report here.

Categories
Democratic Illinois Indiana Politics Republican Wisconsin

Democrats Win One. Controversial Union Language in Bill Dropped

No, I’m not talking about the language against unions in Wisconsin, I’m talking about the language against unions in Indiana. After the Republican majority in Indiana tried to pass the same anti-union bill being debated in Wisconsin, Indiana Democrats fled the state to avoid the vote. Well, it will appear that their antics worked, because according to reporting from The Wall Street Journal, House Republicans in Indiana have decided to dropped the language in the bill that would have reduced the amount of union members in the state. The Wall Street Jorunal Reports;

The speaker of Indiana’s House of Representatives said he and Republican colleagues are dropping a controversial labor bill that caused Democratic representatives to flee to Illinois, but the Democrats said they’re not returning to Indiana for now. Republican House Speaker Brian Bosma said the so-called right-to-work legislation is dead and will not be reintroduced during this session of the Indiana House. Democrats felt so strongly about that bill that they went to Urbana, Ill., Tuesday so that Republicans couldn’t achieve a quorum to vote on the bill.

But then again.  This could very well be a ploy by House Republicans to get the Democratic congress back in an effort to trick them into voting for the bill. Read the Wall Street Report Here

Categories
Democratic Politics Republican Wisconsin Wisconsin Union Bashing

Elections Do Have Consequences, As Seen In Wisconsin

Elections have consequences, and the people of Wisconsin are dealing with the consequences of electing a Republican governor, along with Republican majorities in both the Wisconsin Senate and House Assembly. The mid-term election started the ball rolling, and it is culminating in massive rallies by the people of that state, demanding a recall of the governor, Mr. Scott Walker.

The governor however, along with his Republican majority in both chambers are choosing not to listen to the will of the people and are going forward with their plans to pass a bill geared towards taking away the power from the working Wisconsinite.

What’s all the fuss about?  Unions

Unions are despised by Republicans for a number of reasons – the main ones being;

  • Unions represent a large section of the average middle class working American. A representation that includes negotiating with business owners, Corporations and government officials to secure better working conditions, better pay, holiday allotments, health care packages and in some cases, retirement options for their members. The very nature of these negotiations are to benefit the union member, thus, it is considered by most Republican as putting the business owners, Corporations or government officials at a disadvantage.
  • It is common knowledge that Unions represent the working middle class. Therefore, they support political candidates who look out for the best interest of their members. Almost all the time, those political candidates would be from the Democratic party.

The struggle by Republicans to silence Unions in this country and take away their negotiating privileges has been going on for decades, and now, what’s happening in Wisconsin is the envy of other Republican governors and state legislatures across this nation. Today, in a final vote that is expected to pass the Republican controlled government, Unions will in essence, be silenced.

What’s in the Bill?

The bill – which passed the Legislature Budget committee on Wednesday with all Republicans voting in favor and all Democrats voting against it – will, among other things,  require public workers to pay half the costs of their pensions and at least 12.6 percent of their health care coverage. It will also take away the collective bargaining rights of the unions representing these workers.

“I think the taxpayers will support this idea,” Republican Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald had the nerve to say. But taxpayers seem to feel a different way. Over the last 3 days, thousands have gathered in opposition of the measure.

Yahoo News Reports;

“I’m sad. Scared. Disappointed,” said Kelly Dzurick, a 31-year-old fifth-grade teacher in Elkhorn, who came to the Capitol on Wednesday night. “Nobody’s listening to what people say.”

Democrats have been powerless to stop the bill.

“The story around the world is the rush to democracy,” said Sen. Bob Jauch, D-Poplar. “The story in Wisconsin is the end of the democratic process.”

Yes, elections do have consequences, and what’s happening in Wisconsin is just the beginning of a dangerously empowered Republican party.

UPDATE:  Where Are The Democrats?

In a shocking turn of events, Wisconsin congressional Democrats have all disappeared, causing the final vote on this controversial bill by Republicans to be post-poned. The NY Times reports;

By noon, Ted Blazel, the sergeant-at-arms, began making his way through the Capitol building, packed with chanting protesters (elated at the development), in search of a Democrat — in offices, under desks, in corridors. “Nothing yet,” he said, his forehead drenched in sweat.

If none of the lawmakers were found in the building, the Wisconsin State Patrol would be assigned to begin searching for them elsewhere, said a Senate official.

Inside the Capitol, speculation swirled: Were the Democrats together somewhere, maybe even in another state by now?

The presumed reason for their disappearance is that Democrats — and thousands of teachers, state workers and students — vigorously oppose the Republican-backed bill that would sharply curtail the collective bargaining rights and slash benefits for most public sector workers, including teachers, in the state. Republicans control the Senate by a 19-to-14 margin, but 20 senators — and thus, at least one Democrat — are needed to vote on a bill.

At the time this post was written, the Democrats were found – all of them – in a neighboring state of Rockford Illinois. They have since disappeared again in an effort to give more time to the demonstrators to pressure Republicans into listening to the demands of the Wisconsin people.

Stay tuned…

Categories
Democratic Mitch McConnell Politics Republican

Is The Teaparty Turning On Scott Brown?

He seemed to be just another ordinary man, driving a pick-up truck, cruising around Massachusetts shaking hands and kissing babies. He was endorsed by the Teaparty and was poised to go down in defeat in a state that was often referred to as a liberal county – and after all, he was running a campaign to replace one of the most liberal members of Congress, the late Ted Kennedy.  At a time when Republicans only controlled 40 seats in the Senate and embraced the label “the party of NO,” Brown was seen as the automatic 41st vote against a Democratic controlled majority. The Teaparty powered his campaign with what seemed to be an unlimited amount of cash, and with the lack-luster effort of his Democratic rival Martha Coakley, Scott Brown won the Senate seat controlled by Democrats for almost 50 years.

The Teaparty rejoiced. Their 41st “NO” vote was in place and this was supposed to be the beginning of the revolution to “take their country back!” But something was different about Brown. He seemed to be putting the people of his state before the wishes of his party. He was not the rubber-stamp they expected and he even sided with Democrats on some very important pieces of legislations, like the New START Treaty, repealing Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, Financial Reform and the Jobs bill in 2010 – bills geared to increase America’s security and economic standing, but vastly different from the Teaparty’s ideas on where they wanted America to be.

Now, because of his stance on these and other issues, the Teaparty is trying to unseat Brown.

Scott Wheeler, a Republican activist whose Political Action Committee invested “hundreds of thousands of dollars” in Brown’s election campaign is livid! In a recent article Wheeler wrote called, “Why Scott Brown Must Be Defeated,” Mr. Wheeler said;

An organization I run, The National Republican Trust PAC, raised and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to help Scott Brown win the Massachusetts special election to fill the seat vacated upon the death of Ted Kennedy. That organization will now do everything possible to see that Brown is defeated by a primary opponent when he faces reelection in 2012. Why? Because there is no difference between him and a Democrat.

Brown is caught between a rock and a hard place. His party is turning against him, his Teaparty supporters are turning against him, and with his re-election coming up in 2012, Democrats will prefer seeing one of their own reclaim the seat once held by Ted Kennedy. Mr. Brown is feeling the uprising from all sides.

In a meeting with his constituents, Newsweek describes Brown’s opening statement to the audience as he explains the dilemma he faces;

The strain of walking such a fine line must be getting to Brown, because as soon as he finishes his initial round of pleasantries, he launches into a peevish rant about how unfair conservatives are being when they criticize him. “The Democrats are in charge!” he shouts, his voice reaching the high, strained register that teenagers typically use when they don’t want to take out the trash. “Does that mean I’m supposed to do nothing? That I’m supposed to vote with my party every single second of every single day? Why? I haven’t done it for 15 years in the state legislature. All of a sudden I’m supposed to be an ideologue? I’m not quite sure what the mystery is, folks. When I hear some of the comments…I don’t know what the mystery is. I said I was going down there to be a Scott Brown Republican, not someone who works for Harry Reid—or Mitch McConnell!” It’s as if Brown is no longer addressing the people in the room—again, they’re mostly Democrats. Instead, he seems to be fending off foes in Washington, real or otherwise. Unsure of how to react, the crowd quietly pokes at its meatloaf.

This dilemma is real, and Scott Brown knows it. If he fights for the people and does what he believe is right, then the Teaparty and the Republicans in Congress will continue to do all they can to take away his GOP membership card. If he becomes a Republican rubber-stamp, then it is very likely the citizens of Massachusetts will make their voices heard in 2012 and reward the seat to someone who puts them first. And if he aligns himself more with the Democrats, then Democrats accuse him of playing politics, just to get re-elected.

Scott Brown doesn’t need any advise from me, a simple blogger, but if I were to advise him, I would tell him to continue doing what is right for his constituents. Let the Teaparty, Republicans and Democrats fight among themselves. But knowing how the Republicans demand their caucus stick together in opposition to President Obama’s initiatives, its only a matter of time before they make Brown fall into line.

Categories
Democratic Nancy Pelosi Politics Republican

Pelosi to Cantor – No Thank You, I Already Have A Date

The new Republican House Majority Leader Eric Cantor invited House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to sit with him tonight for the State Of The Union Address, but according to a tweet from Mrs. Pelosi, she turned him down. The tweet read;

“I thank @GOPLeader for his #SOTU offer, but I invited my friend Rep. [Roscoe] Bartlett from MD yesterday & am pleased he accepted.

And maybe it is fitting that Nancy chose another date for tonight’s ball. Reports from The Hill recalls Mr. Cantor as recently as Monday, criticizing Nancy Pelosi for not meeting with him regularly, or as often as he would like. The report quotes Cantor as saying;

“I would love to have the opportunity for her to engage in some type of working relationship so that we can actually deliver results. Thus far it seems she is continuing to drive the ideological agenda just the same as she did over the last four years.”

If asking Nancy to be his date tonight was Cantor’s way of making up, Pelosi wasn’t having it. Her spokesman Nadeam Elshami released a statement defending Mrs. Pelosi, saying;

“It’s important to set the record straight. The fact is, Leader Pelosi has met with Speaker Boehner on numerous occasions both as Speaker and since he became Speaker, and offered to hold regular meetings. Democrats remain committed to working with Republicans to create jobs, strengthen the middle class and reduce the deficit.”

Next time, maybe Cantor should just send flowers!

Related articles
Categories
Barack Obama Chuck Schumer Democratic Mitch McConnell Politics Repeal Senate vote

Republican Minority Tries To Control Democratic Majority In Senate

Republican Minority Leader, Mitch McConnell

Over the last two years of the Obama administration, Republicans went on a rampage, setting a record for the most filibusters – the process of debating an issue with the eventual outcome of slowing down or stopping the policy from being voted on – in one year since the practice began back in the mid 19th century. That record, set by the 111th congress is 132 filibusters. Now that the Republicans are the majority in the House of Representatives, they are demanding that the Democratic controlled Senate vote on all the bills the House votes on.

The particular bill that Republicans are demanding the Senate to vote on is their measure to repeal the Health Care Reform bill, the single most important piece of legislation instituted by Democrats. The House of Representatives voted last week to repeal the bill by a vote of 245 to 189, and now Mitch McConnell, the Republican Senate minority leader is promising “No”, insisting that the Democratic Senate vote on the issue and do the same. But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has stated he has no interest in bringing this repeal issue to the Senate.

In a television appearance on Fox News yesterday, Mr. McConnell assured the viewers that he will make sure the Senate votes to take away their health care. When asked how he intends to override Harry Reid’s decision not to bring the bill to the floor for a vote, Mitch said;

“I’m not going to discuss how we’ll do it from a parliamentary point of view here. If that does not pass, and I don’t think anyone is optimistic that it will, we intend to go after this health care bill in every way that we can.”

As minority leader, Mitch McConnell cannot set the agenda for the Senate, but the belief among other congressional leaders is that the Republicans in the  could offer the repeal bill as an amendment to another bill, thus, forcing the Senate to have the vote. Democratic Senator from Illinois Dick Durbin discussed this possibility;

“If some Republican senator wants to offer it as an amendment at some point, it’s possible they will. It’s possible we’ll face that vote. But having spoken to my members in the Democratic caucus, with Sen. Reid, we feel there’s still strong support for health care reform.”

The lies and scare tactics used by Republicans in the Health Care debate of 2009 have caused a split among the American people. In early polls, taken when the bill was being debated in congress, as much as 60% of the public believed the Republican propaganda  against health care reform. But recent polls have shown a change in the public’s perception of the law. According to a recent Associated Press-GFK poll, only 1 out of 4 (25%) Americans are now asking for Republicans to repeal the bill. With poll numbers like these, Democrats are feeling optimistic that the bill will stand up against any amendment trick brought on by  the senate. Chuck Schumer, Democratic Senator from New York appeared on CBS, and expressed his optimism;

“If the Republicans offer an amendment on the floor, then we will require them to vote on the individual protections in the bill that are very popular and that even some of the new Republicans House members have said they support. So in the end, their repeal bill is going to be so full of holes it looks like Swiss cheese.”

Individual parts of the bill that have shown strong support among the American people include: allowing young adults to remain on parent’s policy until the age of 26; ending pre-existing conditions for children that went into effect in 2010; ending pre-existing condition for adults that will go into effect in 2014; helping to close the “donut hole” for seniors needing prescription drugs; providing preventative care screenings among others.

The individual mandate in the bill, which requires everyone to obtain health care insurance, is the major contention with the American people. Democrats argue that this mandate is necessary to ensure the improved level of care required in the bill.

If Republicans succeed in getting Senate Democrats to vote on an amended bill with health care repeal as an attachment, the bill will need 60 votes to pass. Democrats control the Senate with 53 votes, with Republicans in the minority with 47. If 13 Democrats crossed party lines and voted with Republicans to achieve the needed 60, the repeal bill then goes to President Obama’s desk for a signature. The President, however, has promised to veto any repeal bill that makes its way to the White House.

Related articles
Categories
Democratic Mitch McConnell pay Politics Republican United States Wall Street

GOP Payload Rolling in from Wall Street

Seems like Wall Street has found a friend in the Republican Party.  According to a research done by The Center for Responsive Politics, Wall Street has moderately increased its donations to Democrats, while drastically increasing the payout to Republicans in congress. The Boehners of the world are finally seeing the rewards of their fight against Financial Reform materialized.

The research, that focused on the 2009 and 2010 donations by Wall Street, found in 2009 when the talks about Financial Reform were just talks, Democrats received the majority of all donations from the Finance, Insurance and Real Estate Sectors.

The Center also looked into the donations of Commercial Banks and Securities and Investment companies, and found the same to be true. Democrats were happy in 2009.

Then 2010 rolled around, and so did Financial Reform legislations. And the GOP, led by the Boehner, increased their opposition to any regulations of Wall Street. In one of his more famous speeches, the Boehner told American Bankers Association to fight!

“Don’t let those little punk staffers take advantage of you and stand up for yourselves. All of us are hearing from our friends and constituents on lack of credit, you can’t get a loan, the more your government takes and taxes, the more regulations you have to comply with the more cost you have there and less amount you are going to have available to loan to customers.”

Boehner however, wasn’t the only GOP congressman working hard for his increased donations from Wall Street. Mike Pence, (R) for Indiana’s 6th Congressional District had this to say;

“This bill can be summed up in two words: ‘government control’ and it will serve as the latest piece of the president’s job-killing agenda.  This represents another defeat for Hoosier families, small businesses and family farms, who continue to wonder when Washington Democrats will set aside their big government programs and work with Republicans on ideas that can actually put Americans back to work.”

And Mitch McConnell, the Republican Senate Minority Leader did not want the Senate to even talk about Wall Street Reforms. In one of his more mind boggling statement on the subject, McConnell said;

“We can solve this problem. But we wont solve the problem if we vote for cloture tonight. A vote for cloture is a vote that says we’re done listening to the American people on this issue. And a vote against ending this debate is a vote for bipartisanship.”

Huh? In other words, if we continue to filibuster this issue, we will somehow eventually became bipartisan or the Financial Reform issue will die. Either way, McConnell earned his pay-raise from Wall Street.

It’s a simple equation. Democrats voted for the American people and Financial reform and saw no real change in their donations. Republicans went to bat for Big Banks and Wall Street and received their pay in the form of huge donations from Big Banks and Wall Street.

The report shows the following:

2009/2010 – 1st Quarter: Financial Sector:-

  • Democrats donations from Financial, Insurance and Real Estate went from $10.1 million in 2009 to $10.5 million in 2010. In the same quarter, this sector’s payout to Republicans went from $5.1 million in 2009 to $16.9 million in 2010

Commercial Banks:

  • Democrats went from $747,000 to $862,000 while Republicans pay increased from $505,000 to $1.4 million

Securities/Investment:

  • Democrats went from $2.8 million in 2009 to $3 million in 2010, while Republicans went from $881,000 in 2009 to $5 million in 2010

Download the full report here.

When Democrats fight for the American people, the American people win. When Republicans fight for Big Banks and Wall Street, Republicans win.

Categories
Anthony Weiner Democratic Politics Republican United States

Anthony Weiner expose G.O.P’s Bull. (Video)

The GOP is doing all they can to make sure that President Obama and the democrats fail at governing. This is not news, everyone knows it, except those viewers of Fox News and listeners of conservative radio shows. And yes, there is a way to behave on the congress floor. But Anthony Weiner has had it up to here, and he ain’t gonna take it no more!

Rep. Anthony Weiner

The GOP Filibusters are now the norm in Congress. Even the bills and legislations they wrote, or once voted in favor of, are now filibuster to death simply because the Democrats are proposing these legislations.

The most recent filibuster by the GOP or the party of NO was their effort to stop a proposed tax cuts to small businesses, but it was their attempted filibuster of the 9/11 Health Compensation Act that got Mr. Weiner riled up.

The 9/11 Health Compensation Act would:

  • Provide long-term federal funding for:
    • Medical monitoring and treatment of those affected by 9/11
    • Scientific research about 9/11-related health conditions
  • Re-open the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund for people exposed to the World Trade Center (WTC) disaster.

We see the state of the economy, but for these Republican politicians, politics comes first. Americans can go to hell in a paper bag for all they care, as long as they win the next election.

Continue reading “Anthony Weiner expose G.O.P’s Bull. (Video)”
Exit mobile version