The poison-pill tactic worked

August 4, 2006

[tag]Republicans[/tag] pulled out all the stops, twisted every arm, and pushed as hard as they could, but in the end, enough Dems held firm and blocked the GOP’s cynical ploy.

Senate Democrats blocked a Republican bid to combine a tax cut for the wealthy with a wage increase for the working poor last night, adding a volatile economic issue to this fall’s congressional campaigns.

GOP leaders fell three votes short of the 60 needed to cut off debate and bring the package to the Senate floor, where it was considered certain to pass on a simple-majority vote.

Here’s the final roll-call vote. In the end, four Dems broke ranks — Byrd (D-W. Va.), Lincoln (D-Ark.), Nelson (D-Fla.), and Nelson (D-Neb.) — and two Republicans voted against the GOP measure — Chafee (R-R.I.) and Voinovich (R-Ohio). Bill Frist officially voted against it, but only for procedural reasons (by voting against it, he reserves the option of bringing the bill back to the floor later).

Last night featured all of the predictable rhetoric and arguments, but my nominee for the dumbest comment of the debate comes by way of Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas): “[W]e are turning our back on the middle-class and poor people in this country who depend on the [tag]minimum wage[/tag] and [tag]death-tax[/tag] relief.”

First, if Hutchison and the rest of the GOP are worried about low-income workers who need a minimum-wage increase, they can join Dems and support a free-standing bill. Second, if Hutchison can find a single poor person who depends on “death-tax relief,” I’ll campaign on her behalf.

As for the political implications, Republicans are feeling pretty good about themselves.

“I believe Americans will remember that Republicans worked hard to reach a true compromise here that would raise the standard of living for all American families,” Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) said. “I think they will remember that after years of rhetoric, Democrats proved they were all talk and no action.”

Maybe, but I don’t think so. Republicans control every branch of government and were given an option to pass a long-overdue increase in the minimum wage. They instead chose to play a cynical game.

The GOP plan is to hope voters aren’t paying any attention. They’ll say, “We tried to boost the minimum wage, but the mean ol’ Dems wouldn’t let us.” To put it mildly, this is a long-shot.

Kudos to the Dems for taking an unyielding stance against the GOP’s nonsense. A special thanks to Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), who did the right thing despite some very aggressive targeting by the Republican leadership. She could have folded and told the Dems it wouldn’t have affected the outcome, but instead, Cantwell stood her ground and rejecting a bad bill.

The Dems playing up the political gamesmanship and coprruption of Washington will do much better than the Republicans “WHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!! We wanted to raise the minimum wage but they wouldn’t let us!”

CB is spot on. The GOP only looks more and more stupid (as do thier blind sheep) the more they try to link disparate positions and claim obstructionism.

If I were runnig the national Dem campaign strategy for congress my motto would be – Give us both houses and see how much can be accomplished with a majority.

  • I don’t think most Americans will remember anything about this except that Congress is again doing what it does best: wasting time and putting their own personal politics ahead of the public interest.

    I agree with the special kudos for our own first-term Maria Cantwell. If this display of courage from a first-termer doesn’t distance her from her Republican opponent ‘s sleaze, I don’t know what will. He’s being sued by members of the Safeco Board, which he served as CEO, for accepting a $28.4 billion dollar “retirement gift” from Safeco after agreeing to resign and run for the Senate — clearly a Bush Crime Family way for Safeco to make an illegal contribution to the Republican campaign to unseat her.

  • Ed, that should be $28.4 million. What’s a factor of 1,000 between friends?

    I know Republican corruption is out of control, but let’s not get carried away.

  • This seems like a fine time for the Dems to run a television ad on the theme “Hey America — do Republicans think you’re stupid? They think you wont notice what they did on the minimum wage bill?”

    But more tactful.
    Maybe.

  • CB: my nominee for the dumbest comment of the debate comes by way of Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas): “[W]e are turning our back on the middle-class and poor people in this country who depend on the minimum wage and death-tax relief.”

    my head just exploded again.

  • my nominee for the dumbest comment of the debate comes by way of Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas): “[W]e are turning our back on the middle-class and poor people in this country who depend on the minimum wage and death-tax relief.

    Unfortunately, I know too many people who buy into the idea that the ‘death tax’ is somehow taking their money. It’s a misconception that’s been repeated enough times that people are buing into it.

  • The estate tax will cut billions in federal revenue

    Federal revenue is necessary to keep funding our national security

    Cuts in national security means America is more vulnerable to attack, and unable to support overseas operations

    Therefore, I can only conclude that the GOP hates America, and wants to see it destroyed

  • Man! That death tax is killing me!
    The sick part of this is that to replace the revenues lost by repealing the estate tax, you need look no further than minimum wage earners.
    My mother tells the story of when she first registered to vote. Her grandmother pulled her aside and said, “You can vote for whoever you want, but remember this: No republican has ever done anything for the guy who is paid by the hour.” 60 or so years later, it still rings true.

  • So Byrd broke ranks…

    That is unforgivable…

    The repugs BOUGHT his vote by offering some mine safety legislation. And the pooh-bah went baaa-baaa for it…

    Shameful.

  • Byrd, Lincoln, Nelson and Nelson really did come off like turds, didn’t they? Broke and joined the GOP and then lost anyway. Weasels AND losers — the worst of both worlds.

    Here’s hoping we can still hold ranks when Video-Diagnoser and Constitution-Amender Frist brings this back from under his rock next September.

  • Kay Bailey Hutchison must have inadvertently taken LSD. When has she ever been sympathetic to working families? Could this be an election year?

    Gas jumped up to $3.19 a gallon this morning here in Minneapolis – St. Paul. Somehow I’m not worried about reducing the estate tax.

  • Someone from the Senate now needs to walk over to the House, and ask the Democratic Caucus a simple, 7-word question.

    “We held the line. Why couldn’t you?”

  • I am embarrassed by our Congress, both sides. I’m sure the average minimum wage earner will understand this: “Dems: you see, we would have voted for the minimum wage increase, but we would have had to repeal the estate tax, which doesn’t hurt you directly, but might indirectly affect next year’s budget, and by the way we had to beat the Republicans at their own game you see, because we don’t want them to get credit for doing something good, so we can beat them in November and take control, and then WE can sit around and take credit for not getting anything done.”

    This is ridiculous. The average guy on the street isn’t going to get much further than “Democrats voted against the minimum wage.” So the plan is to tell people to vote for Democrats because we voted down the minimum wage on principle, so we can elect a majority, and then next year we can pass a minimum wage bill that gets vetoed?!?! Tell Mr. $5.15 an hour how big of a raise he gets because the Democrats voted their principles. Are Democrats so bitter now that they won’t even compromise?

    Our government is just embarrassing.

  • Republicans to the poor: “We’ll give you more money, but only when we plan on taking it right away.”

    It is not my responsibility to fund the tax breaks to Paris Hilton and her ilk.

    How is this good for business anyway? Isn’t that what these fools are supposed to be concerned with? It would’ve forced the to pay more without increasing the purchasing power of the workforce.

    Thank sanity it didn’t pass.

  • “[W]e are turning our back on the middle-class and poor people in this country who depend on the minimum wage and death-tax relief.”

    Kay Bailey Hutchinson and John Cornyn are classic Texas Republican technicolor barfblowers. Find me someone in the middle class, even upper-middle class that would benefit from the “death” tax.

    BTW, Thanks Blanche for the Arkansas Dem. support. Not.

  • The Democrats can respond to any specious criticism with this: “The Republicans and Paris Hilton tried to hold your wage increase hostage so they could dodge taxes again.” Since Bu$h is actively trying to politicize the auditing division of the IRS it seems the Repukes will have little in the way of assertions to the contrary.

  • I really hope the Republican candidate for Senator in Nebraska wins in November. That way it will be Real Clear Who The Enemy Is. Calling Ben Nelson a “Democrat” makes me want to puke every time I hear it. That turd makes Lieberman look good.

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