Should you invite a token Republican to a bipartisan event?
Feb 22nd, 2010 by David Anderson
Governor Markell and the Democrat Governors were pushing the bipartisan jobs bill and decrying the partisanship in Washington. Markell said to Foxnews, Republican lawmakers have effectively put Obama on his heels by blocking Democratic initiatives. “The challenge has been to get through the clutter of ‘No,”‘ he said.
Interestingly, he ignored that Republicans did not block the bill nor did they have the votes over the last year to block anything. The problem is the bill’s biggest obstacle is the Democrat majority leader who escaped criticism. The press conference also seemed to leave out any Republicans. Is it just me or does bipartisanship imply that you actually include the other side?
Not to be outdone, the White House seems to be pushing a healthcare bill so partisan that it can’t even get all of the Democrats on board. This is their opening offer. It is worse than the bills that already passed. It has the senate abortion language and LA and FL deals, and much of the controversial house provisions. This proposal can not even get moderate Democrat support and yet it is suppose to be a serious out reach to Republicans at the summit. Ha. Orwell would see his fiction coming to life in today’s ruling regime.
Congressional leaders have scrambled for a way forward on healthcare since a surprise Republican victory in a special Massachusetts U.S. Senate election cost Democrats their crucial 60th Senate vote and brought negotiations on merging their two bills to a halt.
One option would include a budget process called reconciliation that requires only a simple majority — 51 votes in the Senate — and would bypass Republicans.
But it is unclear if Democrats can muster even that many votes on the unpopular healthcare bill, with congressional Democrats anxious to turn to job issues ahead of November congressional elections that could see Republicans challenge for control of Congress.
Very sad for the Dems who remind me of the average third grader who always blames someone else despite reality.
The votes were simply not there for the super majorities in both the Senate and House. They still have a super majority and can’t pass squat.
Too bad Markell can’t focus a bit on matters at home rather than politics outside the state.
Mike Protack
They will try to pass the bill through reconciliation. Of course, that will doom most Democrats in November, but the leadership doesn’t care. They have the chance to forever socialize the American economy, a hundred-year dream. From then on, the debate won’t be socialism/capitalism, but rather, what degree of socialism…just like Europe.
This is what irks me about the 912′ers or the ‘Patriots,’ et. al. They just may be a day late and a dollar short. Sure, it’s great that they finally woke-up and underwent a political epiphany- but, where the hell were they when it really mattered?
It may be just a bit too late. America is starting to look like the Universal State as described by Toynbee (A Study of History)- like Rome, existing only to perpetuate its own existence in the twilight of its life. I hope I’m wrong, but it appears that we’re following precident.