Tag: John Boehner

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fail Mitch McConnell Politics

An Almost Impossible New Low For Congress, And We Have Republicans To Thank

When President Obama became President of the United States, something got triggered in Congressional Republicans. They all decided that this particular president must not succeed. Before Mr. Obama’s moving truck drove up and delivered the Obama’s personal merchandise to the White House, Republicans had already began their game plan – to fight, to argue and to disrespect the office of the President like no other time in this nation’s history.

So they fought and continue to fight. And they set new records for filibusters. And they criticize  President Obama, for everything from the price of gas and oil – that has everything to do with market speculators and nothing to do with the president – to jobs lost in a recession that began primarily because of Corporate greed and the policies of Mr. George Bush.

Yes, the Republican’s game plan was, and is, in full effect. Every time they succeed in stopping a jobs plan, and every time they filibuster tax cuts for businesses, and every time they try to cut American’s rights, or manage to take away benefits that Americans have paid into, Republicans believe that Americans would blame the President.

Well Republicans, your game plan is flawed. Yes, you’ve managed to create an atmosphere in Washington of no coorporation and no compromise, but your expectation that the public would blame the president is not working out the way you planned it.

This new poll shows the disgust Americans are feeling about the job both Democrats and Republicans in Congress are doing.

Only 10 percent said they approved of the way Congress was handling its job, down from 13 percent in January.

The previous all-time low from Gallup was 11 percent in December of 2011.

Congress’s approval rating averaged 17 percent in 2011, peaking at 24 percent in May — it has been slowly declining since.

But don’t expect Republicans to stop now. Don’t expect them to do the job of the American people who sent them to Congress. Republicans would continue pushing against and fighting this particular president because there is something inside them that commands them to do so. And what ever that something is, Congressional Republicans are prepared to go down with the ship if it means Americans might think the president is a failure.

But their game plan is not working. We the people are paying attention…

 

Categories
Domestic Policies Payroll tax Republican Tax Tax cut United States

President Obama Calls Boehner’s Caving “Good News”

In a statement, the President praised the “good news” that Boehner and House Republicans caved on extending the Payroll tax cuts for the middle class.

“For the past several weeks, I’ve stated consistently that it was critical that Congress not go home without preventing a tax increase on 160 million working Americans. Today, I congratulate members of Congress for ending the partisan stalemate by reaching an agreement that meets that test.

Because of this agreement, every working American will keep his or her tax cut – about $1,000 for the average family. That’s about $40 in every paycheck. Vital unemployment insurance will continue for millions of Americans who are looking for work. And when Congress returns, I urge them to keep working to reach an agreement that will extend this tax cut and unemployment insurance for all of 2012 without drama or delay.

This is good news, just in time for the holidays. This is the right thing to do to strengthen our families, grow our economy, and create new jobs. This is real money that will make a real difference in people’s lives. And I want to thank every American who raised your voice to remind folks in this town what this debate was all about. It was about you. And today, your voices made all the difference.”

Indeed.

Categories
Barack Obama Politics Republican Senate United States

Boehner Surrenders – Bad Politics Caused House Republicans To Cave On Payroll Tax Cuts

Chalk this one up as a win for the hard-working middle class families. Earlier today, John Boehner, under excruciating pressure from members of his own party, caved and agreed to the payroll tax cut bill the Senate passed last week – a move that would save  American families $1000.00 a year.

It was the kind of pressure that could make one appear red in the face!

Under a deal reached between House and Senate leaders — which Speaker John A. Boehner was presenting to the rank and file in an evening conference call — House members would accept the two-month extension of a payroll tax holiday and unemployment benefits approved by the Senate last Saturday, while the Senate would appoint members of a House-Senate conference committee to negotiate legislation to extend both benefits through 2012.

House Republicans — who rejected an almost identical deal on Tuesday on the House floor — caved in under the political rubble that accumulated over the week, much of it from members of their own party, who worried the blockade would do serious damage to the party brand heading into an election year. The new deal makes minor adjustments to make it easier for small businesses with temporary new caps on the wages that are subject to the tax relief.

On news of Boehner’s reversal, President Obama issued a statement, saying “Because of this agreement, every working American will keep his or her tax cut – about $1,000 for the average family. That’s about $40 in every paycheck. And when Congress returns, I urge them to keep working to reach an agreement that will extend this tax cut and unemployment insurance for all of 2012 without drama or delay.”

Categories
democrats Ohio Politics

Dumb Quote Of The Day: Today’s Contributor – John Boehner

After a bipartisan effort in the Senate where both Democrats and Republicans voted to approve a payroll tax cut for hard-working Americans, House Republicans led by John Boehner voted to raise those taxes. A move that would result in a $1,000 tax bill for every working poor and middle class American.

After raising your taxes, Boehner had this to say;

“We’ve done our work for the American people,”… “Now it’s up to the president and Democrats in the Senate to do their work as well.”

I guess we should all thank Mr. Boehner for doing what we all wanted, to have our taxes raised.

Categories
Barack Obama Politics White House

President Promises To Veto Bill With Entitlement Cuts Alone

As the middle class continues to suffer, another Washington showdown has begun.

Last week, John Boehner made a statement in which he advised the Super Committee to keep taxes off the negotiating table, “it’s a very simple equation,” Boehner said, speaking to the Economic Club of Washington,”tax increases destroy jobs. And the Joint Committee is a jobs committee. Its mission is to reduce the deficit that is threatening job creation in our country.”

Boehner’s claims of course, are unfounded. Over the last 11 years, taxes on these “job creators” have been lower than in previous administrations, including the Clinton White House, where they paid more in taxes, and the economy flourished. If lowering taxes was the answer, the economy would be better now than it was under Clinton.

But back to the showdown…

After Boehner made his statement trying to influence the decisions being made in the Super Committee, whose job is to come up with another $1.5 trillion in deficit reduction by Thanksgiving, Senior White House officials told the Huffington Post that President Obama will veto any agreement that has only cuts in entitlement programs and no tax increase on the wealthy.

“[W]hat the president is saying is he is not doing [beneficiary reforms] if the Republicans are unwilling to ask the wealthiest Americans and biggest corporations to pay their fair share,” explained a senior administration official. “What they can’t do is send something to us with the things we propose and without the stuff on the revenue side because we will veto that.”

In a speech today, the President will also outline a proposal to ask the top 3% of millionaire Americans to contribute at the same tax rate that middle class Americans pay.

If we are to draw a conclusion from previous showdowns between the White House and the Congressional Republicans, calling this a win for the no-compromising-Republicans would not be far-fetched. However, the Super Committee’s decision is above the influence threshold of Boehner and the Republicans.

Built into the agreement to raise the debt ceiling is specific language that governs how the Super Committee functions. And part of that language states that the President maintains his veto rights and can use those rights if he disagrees with the Committee’s recommendations. But if an agreement is not reached by the members of the Committee, a trigger mechanism automatically goes into effect, cutting funds from programs both Democrats and Republicans adore.

Hmmm, maybe the President did win the debt ceiling debate after all…!

 

Categories
Ohio Planned Parenthood Politics

The Teaparty Challenges John Boehner’s Seat In Ohio

Although Republican House Speaker John Boehner has lived his life according to the teachings of the Teaparty, with his no compromise, no middle class jobs, no Obama second term, ‘Yes’ to the rich stance, the Teaparty is still not happy with him. On Monday, another Teaparty member will announce his intention to run against John Boehner to represent Ohio.

Mr. David Lewis, Boehner’s next Teaparty challenger, released this statement;

“I used to believe in John Boehner until I found that his words were empty promises. In June 2010 Boehner stated, ‘When human life takes a back seat to other priorities — personal comforts, economics — freedom is diminished…we have a moral obligation to defend the defenseless. And nothing is more defenseless, or more innocent, or more pure, than an unborn baby.’ But this was not enough for Boehner; he solemnly declared, ‘There is no cause more noble than the defense of human life. There is no mission more critical. No debate more urgent.’

“In his first nine months as House Speaker, John Boehner has had several opportunities to defund the largest baby killers in America — Planned Parenthood. But Boehner caved in to Obama, and gave Planned Parenthood taxpayer’s hard earned dollars. Neither pro-lifers nor Tea Party activists should ever forgive John Boehner for lavishing our money on Planned Parenthood.

“It is clear from the facts that Planned Parenthood is not only the largest killer of unborn babies in America, but also that they have become a criminal syndicate covering up the crimes of rapists, sex traffickers, and pedophiles.

“Concerning Obamacare, John Boehner could have stopped it dead in its tracks by refusing to fund it; instead, he passed a meaningless piece of legislation to overturn Obamacare, knowing that it would be dead on arrival. Ohio voters are not stupid; time and again we see clever campaigning made of empty words and broken promises. John Boehner is the quintessential establishment insider; John Boehner is no friend of the Tea Party, and no friend of the pro-life movement, and it’s time for him to enjoy the retirement that he so richly deserves.”

Categories
Politics

Republicans Reject Jobs Bill – No Jobs For You

Back in August when President Obama announced his intentions to present a jobs bill when Congress returned from their vacation, the entire world knew that bill would be rejected by Republicans – dead on arrival. Well sadly, everyone in the world got this one right. Republicans just announced that getting Americans back to work, is not their main priority.

 House Republican leaders say they are rejecting President Barack Obama’s jobs proposals to rebuild schools and blighted neighborhoods, and help keep state and local employees on the job.

In a memo to GOP lawmakers that was also issued publicly and reprinted in The New York Times, House Speaker John Boehner, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., and other Republican leaders also objected to the president’s proposal for a temporary reduction in payroll taxes, in order to boost consumer spending and increase demand.

The GOP leaders say such a temporary reduction means taxes will go up later when the reduction expires in 2013.

“While employees would see an additional temporary benefit from this proposal in 2012,” they wrote, “they would experience a larger effective tax increase 12 months later when the payroll tax reverted back to its full level.”

Oh really?

So Republicans have decided not to put middle class America back to work. Here are their concerns: One of the benefits of the jobs bill will be a payroll tax cut. That tax cut will temporarily reduce taxes from their current rate and is designed to trigger more hires by the private sector. After the temporary payroll tax cut expires, the rate goes back to what they are right now, not more than they are now, but the same rate you’re paying this very second.

This is what the Republicans are calling a tax hike, and this is their reason for rejecting a bill that has the potential to put millions of Americans back to work.

The politics at play here are sickening. The ideas outlined in the President’s jobs plan were previously submitted by these very same Republicans, but now, because of their agenda to make this president fail, these Republicans have decided to finish what Bin Laden started, and that’s to destroy the American economy.

Republicans, Al Qaeda, Taliban… they’re all the same to me.

Categories
Barack Obama Politics

President Obama To Republicans – Put Country First

After detailing his plan to get Americans back to work in a joint session last Thursday, President Obama sent his proposal to Congress to officially begin the process.  The bill will cost $447 billion dollars, and will include infrastructure spending and tax cuts to small businesses and middle class workers.

The President held a press conference in the Rose Garden of the White House today, where he was surrounded by middle class workers like Teachers, Police Officers and Construction workers – the type of workers the President said the bill will support. He repeated his call to Congress to “pass the bill now,” saying “this is a bill that will put people back to work all across the country.”

Mr. Obama also addressed the Republicans in Congress, and asked for them to put country ahead of party, saying, “The only thing that’s stopping it is politics. We can’t afford these same political games… Let’s get something done. Let’s put this country back to work.”

Republicans on the other hand are already paving the way to put up a fight against the President’s jobs bill. House Speaker John Boehner hinted at various spending bills enacted in the previous Democratic controlled congress, suggesting the additional spending may be an issue for Republicans. He said;

“The record of the economic proposals enacted during the last Congress necessitates careful examination of the president’s latest plan as well as consideration of alternative measures that may more effectively support private-sector job creation,” Boehner said. “It is my hope that we will be able to work together to put in place the best ideas of both parties and help put Americans back to work.”

President Obama has said the $447 billion jobs bill will be paid for through various ways, including;

  • — A limit on itemized deductions and certain exemptions for individuals who earn over $200,000 and families earning over $250,000. That limitation would raise roughly $400 billion over 10 years.
  • — Treat carried interest — that’s the interest earned by investment fund managers — as ordinary income, rather than taxing it at the capital gains rate. That would raise $18 billion.
  • — Policy changes to a number of oil and gas provisions, revoking their special status, which collectively raise $40 billion.
  • — A change to the corporate jet depreciation rule so that corporate jets are depreciated over seven years, like commercial jets, rather than five years. That raises $3 billion.

If the past is any indication, expect Republicans to fight this jobs bill with everything they have. Keeping Americans unemployed is their main priority – just another case of party over country.

Categories
Politics

Boehner And Biden Caught On Open Mic At Jobs Speech

Boehner's Birdie

While President Obama tried to bring his jobs plan to the floor of a joint congress Thursday night, the important thing on John Boehner’s mind was not the American people and their plight, but about the birdie he missed during a golf game.

The video below shows a ‘hot mic’ situation, where the Vice President approached Boehner saying “we gotta heck-of-a-lotta work to do here…,” but Speaker Boehner wanted to talk about something more important to him. He abruptly interrupted Mr. Biden, telling him about a golfing misfortune, right before President Obama came to the floor of Congress.

Just goes to show who’s really working for the American people, and who’s the real elitist in the room.

A Hot Mic Moment

Categories
MSNBC Politics

Al Sharpton Angry Over Disrespect Republicans Show President Obama

An obviously angry Al Sharpton couldn’t believe what the House Speaker, Republican John Boehner was trying to do. The politics being played by the House Speaker while real Americans went without jobs was just too much for the MSNBC television host, and Sharpton tore into one of his guests.

His guest for the Tuesday evening segment was liberal talk-radio host Bill Press and a consultant for the Republican party, Matt Mackowiak. Already upset by the apparent contempt President Obama receives regularly from Boehner and the Republican party, Sharpton put Mackowiak in his place when the Republican said that President Obama was disrespecting Nancy Reagan by trying to hold his speech on the same night the Republicans were having their debate at the Reagan Library.

“You’re really not going to say this to me now,” Sharpton shouted, bringing a stop to Mackowiak’s statement. “You know you’re on PoliticsNation … that is patently ridiculous what you just said!”

Watch the video below.

Categories
Politics

Boehner Listens To His Leader – Rush Limbaugh

The American people need jobs and they need them now. So there is literally no better  day to present a massive jobs proposal than on the first day Congress returns from their August vacation. President Obama requested a joint session of Congress to present his plan to create jobs, but Republicans have already decided to play politics with this issue… again!

The day the President is requesting is September 7th, the first day congress returns to work. But September 7th is also the day the Republican presidential misfits come together onstage and hold another debate. The President’s choice to use the first day congress comes back to announce his plan to get Americans working again, pissed off the leader of the Republican party, and he made his disgust known. No, we’re not talking about John Boehner, we’re talking about the conservative radio personality, Rush Limbaugh.

Limbaugh went on his radio show today, and demanded that Boehner deny the President the opportunity to make a joint address to present his jobs plan. Limbaugh, gasping for breath as he yelled into the microphone, said;

“Why should the Republicans grant the president a joint session of Congress to make a political campaign speech on any date? Why should the Republicans handcuff themselves that way?”

“Speaker Boehner must say no to this request. He can say no to this. It is up to the Speaker of House. The president just can’t say ‘I’m showing up. Put everybody in the audience, I’m coming over to make a speech.’ Boehner can say no to this. He should say no,”

So what’s a Boehner to do when his leader is demanding he stop his President from announcing his jobs plan? Like a good follower, Boehner did what was expected and wrote the President suggesting that the CIA will not be able to effectively do their job in sweeping the Chamber for security threats, and he asked the President to use September 8th instead. Boehner wrote;

“As the Majority Leader announced more than a month ago, the House will not be in session until Wednesday, Sept. 7, with votes at 6:30 that evening. With the significant amount of time, typically more than three hours, that is required to allow for a security sweep of the House Chamber before receiving a President, it is my recommendation that your address be held on the following evening, when we can ensure there will be no parliamentary or logistical impediments that might detract from your remarks.”

We all know that the President’s safety is not a concern for Boehner or his Republican friends. We also know that politics is at play here. If September 7th wasn’t a Republican debate, then this would not be an issue for Rush Limbaugh, and he wouldn’t have any reason to command Boehner to deny the President.

And just for the record, this would be the first time in our history that a President gets denied an opportunity to present a joint address.

Categories
Ezra Klein michael steel Politics

John Boehner Says No To Job Creation Plan

The nation is suffering. People are in desperate need of work. With an unemployment figures now standing at 9.2%, every concerned party is trying to come up with a plan to put Americans back to work. President Obama has said he will present his plan when Congress returns to work in September, and other Democrats are trying to come up with solutions as well.

One plan being floated around by John Larson, a Democratic Representative from Connecticut, would include jobs creation as part of the duties of the newly formed Super Committee. Larson’s plan would demand the Super Committee, in addition to their main task of coming up with $1.5 trillion in savings, come with a plan to create jobs and lower the unemployment to 5.5% by 2014.

Seems like a great plan. Instead of passing bills through the regular congress and having those bills die in the Republican controlled House of Representatives, Larson’s plan will leave job creation up to the Super Congress, knowing that if this body fails, then the same “triggers” will be activated – cutting from both the military and entitlement programs, as well as revenue increases. This trigger will hurt both Democrats and Republicans, thus a true effort to compromise will be made.

But John Boehner is already pulling the breaks on this plan. Ezra Klein posed the question to Boehner’s office on Friday and filed this report;

 I ran Larson’s proposal by House Speaker John Boehner’s (R-Ohio) office on Friday afternoon, and it was immediately shot down. The response: Deficit reduction will spur job creation and, therefore, the super committee does not need to take on an additional mission.

“As every economist and every rating agency has made clear, getting our deficit under control is the first step to help get our economy growing again and to create jobs,” said Michael Steel, spokesman for Boehner. “Without knowing the specifics of this proposal, my concern would be this is some sort of new window-dressing for the same tired old, discredited Washington stimulus spending proposals.”

But this reaction is obvious – If Americans work, Republicans lose. So Republican’s job now is to make sure America stays unemployed. That way, they hope to win in the next election.

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