Why the right shouldn’t be bragging about the Dems’ legislative setbacks

December 19, 2007

It’s fair to say, looking back, that 2007 hasn’t turned out quite the way the new Democratic congressional majority had hoped. After an impressive, surprise victory in November 2006, in which Americans delivered both chambers to the Dems, the first year hasn’t produced the legislative victories anyone had hoped for.

For most political observers, there’s no great mystery here. A combination of Republican obstructionism, White House intransigence, and all too often, Democratic hesitation on matters of national security, have contributed to unmet expectations.

But it’s a little jarring to see the right take a victory lap. National Review’s David Freddoso published a piece this week practically taunting the Democratic majority for losing multiple legislative “battles.”

1) The first and biggest Republican victory comes in the form of the omnibus spending bill, which funds nearly every government agency. Not only does the bill, which was handed down yesterday morning, match President Bush’s funding levels, but it also contains none of the so-called “policy-riders” that Republicans had most feared, such as the abolition of the government’s Mexico City policy and even an expected expansion of union-backed “prevailing wage” rules. […]

2) …The bill currently includes only funding for the Afghanistan war, but by the time it passes it will include full and unconditional Iraq supplemental funding, ending yet another legislative crisis in the Republicans’ favor. […]

3) On the Alternative Minimum Tax, Democrats have already lost this one through inaction. They are damned if they do and damned if they don’t. Senate Democrats, who already agreed to fixing this broken portion of the tax code on Republicans’ terms (without raising taxes to compensate), are watching impatiently as their House colleagues refuse to acknowledge that they lost this issue weeks ago. […]

4) The Energy bill currently before Congress represents an utterly valueless hodgepodge of regular corporate welfare (ethanol mandates) combined with “green” corporate welfare and penalties to consumers (increased fuel-economy standards). […]

5) One of the Democrats most promising issues this year has been the State Childrens’ [sic] Health Insurance Program (S-CHIP). They have sought to turn the Clinton-era program, a subsidy for poor children, into a free lunch for the middle class. Republicans, who hoped merely to extend the current program beyond the next election, were pummeled rhetorically for their resistance to the change. Yet after last night’s negotiations, sources on the Hill say that they are about to get exactly what they wanted — another extension of the program, as it exists, through March 2009.

OK, let’s take these one at a time.

1) Yep, White House obstinacy and misguided Republican priorities forced cuts in popular social programs. For that matter, Republicans’ embrace of earmarks was so shameless, Club for Growth mocked the minority party of moving to the left of the Dems on spending. That makes the GOP look worse, not better.

2) Yep, Bush is getting his money for the war, thanks in large part to congressional Republicans who wouldn’t allow a vote on anything but a blank check. This, too, makes the GOP look worse, not better.

3) The Republican handling of the debate on the AMT was absurd, as was David Freddoso’s understanding of it. Dems wanted to pass an AMT fix that didn’t raise the deficit; Republicans insisted that they would only allow a vote on an AMT fix that did raise the deficit. Worse, the GOP fought like crazy to preserve special tax breaks for hedge-fund managers, whose income is held to a lower bracket that everyone else’s. This, too, makes the GOP look worse, not better.

4) Freddoso dismisses the energy bill as “valueless,” but it’s worth noting that the legislation raises fuel efficiency for the first time since cars had eight-track players and included valuable mandates on alternative fuels. It would have gone further, but Republicans refused to allow votes on renewable electricity generation and expanded investment into conservation and development of renewable fuels. Besides, the Dems’ bill is a hell of a lot better than the pathetic energy bill the GOP passed in 2005. This, too, makes the GOP look worse, not better.

5) And on S-CHIP, Freddoso said the measure could have passed with some “good-faith negotiations.” He might not have been paying attention to current events this year, but the S-CHIP bill Bush vetoed (twice) was the result of “good-faith negotiations.” The only reason Congress couldn’t override the veto was because of fabricated talking points run in publications like the National Review. The result will be fewer low-income kids with access to healthcare. This, too, makes the GOP look worse, not better.

I’m not saying there haven’t been setbacks, and I’m certainly not saying congressional Dems have handled their legislative agenda as well as I had hoped, but before conservatives pop the champagne bottles, they may want to remember that their congressional allies haven’t done the right any favors.

All the GOP is showing is that there are still too many Republicans in Washington.

  • All the GOP is showing is that there are still too many Republicans in Washington.

    Exactly right. Hopefully, this will be rectified in November 2008.

  • Bragging about non-productive measures, whim and caprice should prove embarrassing to any self-respecting small “d” democrat – but alas, the modern Republican party and its leadership have proven themselves so craven they have no sense of embarrassment. Mr. Bush has helped make our nation and its democratic heritage into clownish caricatures for all the world to see. -Kevo

  • I yearn for someone in the Democratic party to find him- or herself a camera and a microphone and say this:

    ”From 2001 until 2007, the majority Republican party refused to even allow the minority Democrats a seat at the legislative table. We were not invited to committee conferences, we were threatened with the so-called nuclear option if we even said the word ‘filibuster,’ and all kinds of legislation and amendments were allowed to pass with a simple majority.

    When Democrats assumed the majority in January, 2007, the Democratic leadership was determined that it would not conduct the country’s business in the same way; Republicans had were given full access and ability to participate in the legislative process, which we believed was the right thing to do. As a result, on issue after issue where a majority of the American people – the Democratic and Republican constitutents – told us they wanted change, the Republican minority chose to ignore those pleas, and blocked more legislation than any Congress in history.

    When the American people ask why the deficit continues to grow, why our men and women continue to be deployed to Iraq again and again and again, why children who cannot qualify for Medicaid and cannot afford health insurance have been denied coverage under S-SHIP, why it is more important to preserve tax breaks for the wealthy than to give average Americans a break from the daunting task of paying their bills, I hope they will remember that it was Republicans who decided that they liked things just the way they were, who chose party loyalty over the will of their constituents, and who, for some reason, think this is something to be proud of.”

    Pigs will likely fly before we hear that – but that’s what I intend to tell anyone who wants the Democrats to take all the blame for what hasn’t been accomplished.

  • Nobody should be happy with this Congress’ lack of accomplishments and increased partisanship.

  • “Worse, the GOP fought like crazy to preserve special tax breaks for hedge-fund managers”

    Since when did Chuck Schumer join the GOP???

  • My god these republicans ignore reality so easily it boggles the mind. Being celebrant about the most obstructionism in the history of the senate for purely partisan reasons is something to be ashamed of not to celebrate.

    “Look guys, we’ve finally done it. We’ve proven that we can get elected and make sure government won’t work. Even when a clear bi-partisan majority passes a bill we can still keep it from passing… every single time. Pop the corks and pour the champaign.”

    In spite of help from a few centrist traitor dems these smart ass republican authoritarians have condemned themselves to being eliminated from the governing process. We’re done with their obstructionism and can’t wait to vote them out of office. ’06 didn’t teach them a damn thing. The country is much smarter now and much more progressive about the direction we want to head in and these dinosaurs of pork…the porky pigs…are done bankrupting our nation at the sacrifice of the common good of its citizens. They are done. One year left to tolerate them and then the next wave of republicans to be ousted will be complete. “Drink, drink, drink away…gonna get lots to drink that way”…but that’s all you’ll get besides unemployed. (from David& David)

  • Of course they’re going to celebrate the fact that they’ve blocked the tax and spend Democrats and that 29% who support them regardless of what they do will applaud. The bills we see as productive and crucial they see as undermining our country.

  • I’m going to have to disagree with the headline on this one. Let therse clowns and their imps brag. Let them boast of this to the high heavens—just videotape and sound-record everything. Keep word-for-word quotes on it all.

    And when they try to regain the Hill next year by blaming the “accomplishmentally-challenged Dems”—break out every one of their boastful “confessions.”

    But for crying out loud, give a Dem WH, an expanded Dem majority in the House, and a Lieberman-proof Dem majority in the Senate something better to work with than the deranged TeleTubbies hiding behind those Reid/Pelosi costumes!

  • Yes, let’s take these one at a time.

    1) Yep, White House obstinacy and misguided Republican priorities forced cuts in popular social programs. For that matter, Republicans’ embrace of earmarks was so shameless, Club for Growth mocked the minority party of moving to the left of the Dems on spending. That makes the GOP look worse, not better.

    And the Dems promise to reform earmarks was a total lie. There was no reform. Both parties look bad, but the Dems said it promised it would improve things here and didn’t even try. By the way, calling Republican priorities “misguided” is simply an opinion.

    2) Yep, Bush is getting his money for the war, thanks in large part to congressional Republicans who wouldn’t allow a vote on anything but a blank check. This, too, makes the GOP look worse, not better.

    Every few months or so, Bush has to go to Congress with a dollar figure on how much it will cost to fund military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. The provided funding isn’t a blank check because if it were, Bush wouldn’t have to go to Congress for the funding, would he? What a tired old meme.

    3) The Republican handling of the debate on the AMT was absurd, as was David Freddoso’s understanding of it. Dems wanted to pass an AMT fix that didn’t raise the deficit; Republicans insisted that they would only allow a vote on an AMT fix that did raise the deficit. Worse, the GOP fought like crazy to preserve special tax breaks for hedge-fund managers, whose income is held to a lower bracket that everyone else’s. This, too, makes the GOP look worse, not better.

    Actually, Blue Dog Democrats wanted the AMT removed with an increase in taxes elsewhere. Nobody wanted the AMT to remaiin, but it was more the fault of the Blue Dogs than anybody else that stifled things, not Republicans. Not only that, there was never any talk by anybody about cutting spending. Kind of shows the hypocrisy of both parties, don’t ya think?

    4) Freddoso dismisses the energy bill as “valueless,” but it’s worth noting that the legislation raises fuel efficiency for the first time since cars had eight-track players and included valuable mandates on alternative fuels. It would have gone further, but Republicans refused to allow votes on renewable electricity generation and expanded investment into conservation and development of renewable fuels.

    Only the extremists will not see this for what it is: a compromise. That’s what a Congress without a veto-proof or filibuster-proof majority has to do. Get over it.

    5) And on S-CHIP, Freddoso said the measure could have passed with some “good-faith negotiations.” He might not have been paying to current events this year, but the S-CHIP bill Bush vetoed (twice) was the result of “good-faith negotiations.” The only reason Congress couldn’t override the veto was because of fabricated talking points run in publications like the National Review. The result will be fewer low-income kids with access to healthcare. This, too, makes the GOP look worse, not better.

    No, the only negotiations were done by Democrats and their operatives in the mainstream media on how to hurt Bush and Republicans on this. Redefining “low-income kids” to be those with parents who can (and do) afford employer-provided health insurance, instead of the poor, is very dishonest, and makes Dems look worse. Besides, are the Dems going to start buying cigarettes for every American in order to pay for it?

  • I think they should be popping the champagne bottles. They’ve proven that they can beat the daylights out of the Democrats even as the minority party. So why should anyone trust the Democrats to play hardball in the international community, with our national security at stake?

    Let’s remember, too, that the Republicans have a completely different set of objectives from the Democrats, and their agenda is going forward, while the Democrats’ platform is going nowhere. The wars are going strong, military spending is going through the stratosphere, they’ve got the Bush tax cuts still in place, they’ve checkmated the Democrats into another unfunded tax cut (AMT), killed health care for useless poor kids whose parents should be pulling themselves up by their bootstraps and not whining for more government handouts, kept corporate welfare humming, killed the attempt to eliminate giveaway tax cuts to the oil companies, thwarted aggressive action on global warming etc. etc. etc.

    Yup, they’re popping champagne corks while we’re crying in our beer, complaining about what a bunch of meanies they are.

  • “Only the extremists will not see this for what it is: a compromise.”

    Stevell, There’s more than a few of the “extremists” in these here parts. They don’t realize its the independents and moderates from both parties who ultimately sway the national elections. Heck just listen to the disdain for Hillary and the crys of “I won’t vote if she’s our nominee (add a deep breath, crossed arms and a scowl to get their point accross).” Compromise is not an option for them, just like its not for the Bible Thumpers on the right.

    We’re at the point, no one is willing to give an inch on anything. Hence the disfuctional Congress or better called:

    Worst. Congress. Ever.

  • Whatever, we should not be gloating that all their obstructionism they make themselves look even worse. I would have been happy if the Democrats had obstructed some of the more destructive bills that the Rethugs had pushed through.

  • JRS: “We’re at the point, no one is willing to give an inch on anything.”
    Obviously, enough of the democrats are still giving inches, indeed tens of meters, or else the Republicans wouldn’t be getting as much as they have.

    I’d sum this up as Republicans 3, America 0.

    • Comments are closed.