Tea Party Era Begins With Refusal To Debate Dems' 'Omnibus' Spending Bill

[Soul Crusher]

 
 Howard Fineman fineman@huffingtonpost.com | HuffPost Reporting Become a Fan
Tea Party Era Begins With Refusal To Debate 'Omnibus' Spending Bill
First Posted: 12-16-10 09:53 PM   |   Updated: 12-16-10 09:53 PM


   
 WASHINGTON -- The new, more Republican Congress won't arrive in town until next month, but the Tea Party Era unofficially began on the Hill Thursday night.

Republican leaders in Congress, blindsided by grassroots fury over the tax cut deal they made with President Obama, are now scrambling to show their allegiance to the anti-federal, anti-debt movement.

The GOP brass, led by Senate party leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), did so tonight by eagerly backing the successful efforts of Tea Party favorites to block debate on a $1.1 trillion "omnibus" spending bill that would fund the entire federal government until next October -- but which contained billions of dollars in "earmarks" Republicans, including McConnell, once stoutly defended.

The omnibus bill also contained the spending priorities of the Obama administration and the soon-to-be-ended Democratic-controlled Congress.

GOP senators, let by Tea Party acolyte Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), had demanded the entire 2,000 page bill be read by the Senate clerk -- a formality that is almost always dispensed with. Most of DeMint's colleagues privately dismiss him as a grandstanding freelancer who backed extremists who lost seats the GOP should have won. But McConnell and the rest of his team not only didn't want to challenge DeMint on the spending bill, they were glad to join him in showing their newfound distaste for earmarks.

Senate aides say it could have taken 50 hours to read the entire bill aloud. Democratic leader Sen. Harry Reid would then have invoked cloture and, assuming he wins the vote, there would be 30 more hours of debate. That could push a final vote on the measure -- which would still have to be approved in the House -- until Christmas Eve.

But Reid announced Thursday night that he didn't have the votes he needed to block the maneuver or ensure debate after the reading of the bill. The reason, he said, is that nine Republicans who initially promised to support him had changed their minds.

Game, set, match Tea Party.

In the meantime, Congress now must pass another temporary stop gap "continuing resolution" to fund the government at current levels -- a measure that would not reflect any new Obama programs or policies, but which also would not have any new earmarks.

[George Whorewell]

Most of DeMint's colleagues privately dismiss him as a grandstanding freelancer who backed extremists who lost seats the GOP should have won. But McConnell and the rest of his team not only didn't want to challenge DeMint on the spending bill, they were glad to join him in showing their newfound distaste for earmarks.

I hope the lowlife who wrote this column is caught having an incestuous relationship with his grandmother.

Terrific objectivity and the use of unnamed sources -"colleagues"; It's like the journalistic equivalent of playing the race card.

[Soul Crusher]

Good.  I read that tea party people were puTting tons of pressure on the gop to kill this thing.

[magicuser]

I am amazed most citizen would think of the obama tax hike as good thing, especally with 800B of spending behind it, no governemtn cuts, and no money to pay for it so all goes on deficit!!!

how in heck can obama and dems not get it?

we are broke, jobless, and your massive unemplyemtn handouts if ended would probably cause some real fun, like people having to get a job!!!

[Soul Crusher]

Ha ha ha- meltdown. 


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/16/tea-party-era-begins_n_798036.html#comments

[blacken700]

I am amazed most citizen would think of the obama tax hike as good thing, especally with 800B of spending behind it, no governemtn cuts, and no money to pay for it so all goes on deficit!!!

how in heck can obama and dems not get it?

we are broke, jobless, and your massive unemplyemtn handouts if ended would probably cause some real fun, like people having to get a job!!!

  two different things

[Soul Crusher]

 

[MCWAY]

 
 Howard Fineman fineman@huffingtonpost.com | HuffPost Reporting Become a Fan
Tea Party Era Begins With Refusal To Debate 'Omnibus' Spending Bill
First Posted: 12-16-10 09:53 PM   |   Updated: 12-16-10 09:53 PM


  
 WASHINGTON -- The new, more Republican Congress won't arrive in town until next month, but the Tea Party Era unofficially began on the Hill Thursday night.

Republican leaders in Congress, blindsided by grassroots fury over the tax cut deal they made with President Obama, are now scrambling to show their allegiance to the anti-federal, anti-debt movement.

The GOP brass, led by Senate party leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), did so tonight by eagerly backing the successful efforts of Tea Party favorites to block debate on a $1.1 trillion "omnibus" spending bill that would fund the entire federal government until next October -- but which contained billions of dollars in "earmarks" Republicans, including McConnell, once stoutly defended.

The omnibus bill also contained the spending priorities of the Obama administration and the soon-to-be-ended Democratic-controlled Congress.

GOP senators, let by Tea Party acolyte Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), had demanded the entire 2,000 page bill be read by the Senate clerk -- a formality that is almost always dispensed with. Most of DeMint's colleagues privately dismiss him as a grandstanding freelancer who backed extremists who lost seats the GOP should have won. But McConnell and the rest of his team not only didn't want to challenge DeMint on the spending bill, they were glad to join him in showing their newfound distaste for earmarks.

Senate aides say it could have taken 50 hours to read the entire bill aloud. Democratic leader Sen. Harry Reid would then have invoked cloture and, assuming he wins the vote, there would be 30 more hours of debate. That could push a final vote on the measure -- which would still have to be approved in the House -- until Christmas Eve.

But Reid announced Thursday night that he didn't have the votes he needed to block the maneuver or ensure debate after the reading of the bill. The reason, he said, is that nine Republicans who initially promised to support him had changed their minds.

Game, set, match Tea Party.

In the meantime, Congress now must pass another temporary stop gap "continuing resolution" to fund the government at current levels -- a measure that would not reflect any new Obama programs or policies, but which also would not have any new earmarks.

There's a problem with that! Don't get me wrong; I'm GLAD the Omnibus is gone. The problem is that it may have died TOO quickly. A SLOW death to Omnibus would have virtually insured that DREAM, START, and DADT repeal died with it.

Reid basically put the bullet to Ominbus bill's head, to make room to vote on this other garbage.

[The Showstoppa]

But i thought 240 said the Tea Party people were just going to cave in on everything?

[George Whorewell]

He also said that the Tea Party had no pull, that they were irrelevant, that Sarah Palin is from Jupiter and faked the moon landing-- Nobody pays serious attention to anything he says.

[240 is Back]

But i thought 240 said the Tea Party people were just going to cave in on everything?

they'll fight on some hairbrain shit like this... then they'll let obama and boehner raise the debt ceiling by a trillion+ bucks.

Penny wise, pound foolish.  And their defender will say "but they VOWED to fight!"

And the ceiling will raise, which predicates everything.  You stop that from rising - and you stop ALL of the obama waste

[Emmortal]

Good.  I read that tea party people were puTting tons of pressure on the gop to kill this thing.

I don't know where you heard that, there's only about 20 tea party supporters in congress.  Not anywhere near enough to have much of an influence.  Where the tea party does have influence is in their locality, not in Washington.

[Soul Crusher]

Omnibus crash: Another Tea Party win
9 hours, 9 minutes ago

http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Omnibus+crash%3a+Another+Tea+Party+win&articleId=475733b3-6d2e-4020-8e42-64cf413f492d


________________________ _________________



The Tea Party movement did America another huge favor last week.

The Democratic leadership in Congress had managed to go a whole year without passing a federal budget bill. As it did with the health care bill and others in the past two years, the party had manufactured a "crisis" with a sudden deadline (the government might shut down!) in hope of passing a humongous spending bill.


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The trick might've worked thanks to Republican fondness for pork-barrel spending. Senate Democratic leadership won over lots of Republicans by rolling GOP pork projects (earmarks) from previous bills into the larger one.

But Republican leader Mitch McConnell, already chastened by the Tea Party last month for earmark support, saw a path to victory. He gave Republicans an alternative to the two choices Harry Reid was offering (a government shutdown or the 1,900-page spending bill). McConnell offered a one-page continuing resolution that would fund the government until next year, when Republicans take over the House. It worked, and the spending bill died.

The Tea Party gets another win, and the taxpayers save billions of dollars. For now. What happens when Republicans take control of the House next year is anyone's guess.

The truth is that without the constant vigilance currently provided by what can loosely be called the Tea Party movement, Republicans would be just as happy as Democrats to squander taxpayer money. They are only acting frugal now because they know they're being closely watched, so keep watching.