Senator Angus King on House Republicans: ‘They Hate Government. They Don’t Want Government To Work.’

[ProSense]

Senator Bashes House Republicans: ‘They Hate Government. They Don’t Want Government To Work.’

By Annie-Rose Strasser

Sen. Angus King (I-ME) tore into House Republicans on Saturday for roadblocking passage of government funding, saying that “they hate the government,” and are “holding the entire United States hostage” because they “don’t believe government can or should work.”

Speaking on MSNBC’s Up With Steve Kornacki, King also trashed the so-called ‘Hastert Rule,’ an informal agreement by Republicans including House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) not to bring a bill up for a vote unless it can win the majority of the Republican caucus:

KING: If (Bohener) brought the continuing resolution that we sent him yesterday… chances are it would pass. It would get most of the Democratic votes and enough Republican votes to achieve a majority, but they’ve got this rule that if they can’t have a unified caucus then nothing comes to the floor. That’s one of the things I think people should realize: Out of 535 people in Congress, this is like 120 or so that are — you know, it’s the tail wagging the dog.

The other thing that I think that’s important, and it didn’t come up in your earlier discussion, is there is a pernicious inner logic to what these characters are doing. They hate government. They don’t want government to work. They don’t believe government can or should work. Crashing the economy, crashing the government, is a kind of weird success and it’s very hard to reach agreement with people who don’t share a kind of basic appreciation of the institution. This is dangerous. We’ve never been here before.

On Friday, the Senate voted for a bill that would continue to fund the government at current levels — levels that include the sequestration cuts that Congress allowed to go into effect back in December of last year. But a certain set of House Republicans, along with Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Mike Lee (R-UT), are intent on blocking the legislation unless it includes explicit language to defund Obamacare.

- more -

http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2013/09/28/2696271/senator-bashes-house-republicans-they-hate-government-they-dont-want-government-to-work/

[geek tragedy]

1. Worries about King being another Lieberman have proved untrue thus far. He speaks the truth. nt

[phleshdef]

20. He looks to be closer to a Sanders than a Lieberman.

[kelliekat44]

2. No, they only hate the government that works to help working people. They just love the

government that subsidizes them and the war machine.

[cstanleytech]

13. Thats it in a nutshell really.

In fact I am willing to bet that they probably even have plans to defund the VA and cut the pay for those in the military down the road once they no longer have to fear losing that portion of their voting base once they are done gerrymandering the states.

[avaistheone1]

3. We all suffer as a result of a bunch of idiots placing Republicons

who don't believe in government in charge of government.

[Phlem]

8. Amen!

-p

[magical thyme]

4. proud to have voted for Angus

[spanone]

5. AND they deposit their federal government checks without a tinge of hypocrisy

[zbdent]

6. And yet, they want a career for life ...

you never hear the screams for "term limits" when it's a Republican in the office ...

Case in point ... Akron & Cuyahoga Falls Ohio.

Both mayors elected the very same day, took the oath of office the very same day (in 1987).

Both cities have various parts of the city where there is lousy housing/crime.

Yet, the Akron Beacon Journal gets letters calling for term limits for the mayor of Akron, but not for C.F. ...

[kestrel91316]

7. The RW are mostly anarchists now. Well, except for using government to oppress

women, minorities, LGBT, and anyone else they don't like.

[Phlem]

9. I hope this isn't new news to anyone.

Last edited Sat Sep 28, 2013, 07:39 PM - Edit history (1)

I think collectively we knew this a long time ago. It made all that bipartisanship chapter all that much more anguishing.

-p

[JDPriestly]

10. The Hastert Rule -- Let's explain what it means to voters and to

the press since they don't seem to have figured it out. (Too busy maybe?)

Our Congress requires that both Houses bring up a bill and consider it and pass it in order for it to go to the president for a signature.

If the House, under the Hastert rule, when it has a Republican majority can only bring up to the floor for a vote those bills that are certain or nearly certain to win a majority of Republican votes, THEN LOGICALLY, NO BILL CAN PASS THROUGH CONGRESS AND REACH THE PRESIDENT FOR SIGNATURE OR VETO UNLESS THE MAJORITY OF REPUBLICANS AGREE TO VOTE FOR IT.

THAT MEANS THAT IF YOU HAVE A MAJORITY OF REPUBLICANS IN THE HOUSE, THERE CAN BE NO TRULY BIPARTISAN PASSAGE OF BILLS, NO PASSAGE OF BILLS THAT ARE SUPPORTED BY LESS THAN A MAJORITY OF THE REPUBLICANS AND A SHARE, BUT NOT NECESSARILY ALL OF DEMOCRATS.

As long as Republicans have the majority in the House, all bills must be supported by a majority of Republicans.

This Rule makes a joke of bipartisan cooperation, especially in a House in which the Democrats might have nearly half the seats.

This rule disproves the Republicans' and Media's claim that both Democrats and Republicans are equally to blame for the obstruction of action in Congress, that neither the Democrats nor the Republicans are willing to let the majority rule. Clearly, Republicans are only willing to allow those bills to pass in the House for which there is a majority of Republican support.

This rule means that the deadlock in Congress is strictly on the Republican side. Democrats do not vote in a rigid block like that. The media should explain this to voters before the 2014 election.

Electing a Republican majority in the House means that there can be NO bills passed that have some Republican and a lot of Democratic support. That pretty much makes compromise difficult on anything.

This is not democracy. It could happen that a large minority of Republicans and all the Democrats would vote for a bill if it came to the floor. That alternative is foreclosed. A dictatorship by the majority, not all, of the Republicans is thus, created.

That needs to be clearly explained to voters before they vote. The best way to demonstrate it is through a white-board cartoon. I don't think I have said it well. It is more suited to visualization than to linguistic explanation.

Perhaps someone else can explain it more clearly and succinctly.

[mountain grammy]

15. You just did a pretty good job of explaining it to me..

[Mr.Bill]

11. It all starte with their god, Ronald Reagan

saying government was the problem.

And yet strangely, he wanted to be in charge of it.

[calimary]

12. They want what they THINK they see in Somalia.

So I say we pack 'em all up and ship 'em over there! AND LEAVE THEM THERE!!!!!!!!!!!

[mountain grammy]

14. K&R for the Honorable Senator from Maine.

[Tx4obama]

16. Angus King VIDEO on the link below

VIDEO here: http://www.mediaite.com/tv/senator-house-republicans-hate-government-crashing-the-economy-is-success-for-them/

[ProSense]

17. Thanks. n/t

[JHB]

18. Their entire base of power rests on maintaining a lockstep Party Line vote worthy of...

...the Soviet Politburo.

[Cha]

19. K&R

[4bucksagallon]

21. Good job Angus, that's my Senator....... Susan Collins can go....

take a flying leap off Cadillac Mt. for all I care. At least we don't have Olympia Snowjob any more. Then when we get rid of Maine's, one term, T'Bagging Gubnor Paul LiarPage and things will improve.

[mainer]

22. Proud to call him both a friend AND my senator

You don't have to be a Democrat to think like a Democrat.

[yuiyoshida]

23. Some Republians..

[freshwest]

28. That's the perfect image, even better than the Nero fiddling while Rome burns the ancient meme.

*steals*

[sheshe2]

24. K&R!

[randome]

25. They simply hate to work.

They accept a high government salary then do as little as possible to earn it.

Is there anything on this planet lazier than a Republican?
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font][hr]

[gopiscrap]

26. he's right they do hate government

[freshwest]

27. Pure wisdom from Angus. Plus this:

He also took a swipe at the GOP’s demands for raising the debt ceiling, saying they’re asking for everything short of a “statue of Ayn Rand.”

Who is their spiritual leader, no doubt about it. And the baggers talk about death panels and culling the herd. Sorry, you just put the guys in charge who are doing that now. And what goes around, comes around.