Washington state lawmakers criticize Sanders' disparaging of Ex-Im Bank

[bigtree]

After denigrating "Ex-Im" in Sunday's Democratic debate -- calling it the "bank of Boeing" -- Sanders has found himself "Berned" by Washington lawmakers who fought to renew the agency, which guarantees financing for U.S. exports.

"The Ex-Im Bank is a vital tool that has assisted hundreds of Washington state companies, large and small -- from agriculture to aerospace to electronics and wine making," Gov. Jay Inslee said Monday.

"The bank allows these companies to compete in the world market, export their products, grow their business and supports tens of thousands of jobs."

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., who sits with Sanders on the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, was sharply critical of Sanders without naming her colleague:

"I was proud to stand up and fight back against the misguided attempts to shut down the bank, and hurt local workers and small businesses, and I will keep working to make sure that those who want to kill jobs and hurt the economy in Washington by closing the bank don't win this critical debate."

U.S. Rep. Denny Heck, D-Wash., who fought for the bank on the House Financial Services Committee, said: "Candidate Sanders doesn't fully understand the impact of this tool and how it supports American manufacturing and jobs."

Rep. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., added: "It's disappointing to hear some lawmakers disparage a program that helps hundreds of small- and middle-market businesses in our state -- and at no cost to taxpayers."

The Export Import Bank is an antithesis of corporate welfare. It runs at a profit, returning more than $650 million to the U.S. Treasury in 2014.


http://www.seattlepi.com/local/politics/article/Sanders-doesn-t-fully-understand-agency-that-6875387.php?cmpid=twittersocialflow

[auntpurl]

1. k&r

[FrostyAusty]

2. I'm from wa

And I agree with sanders on this 100%. I voted for inslee and other dems but they have all but bent over to big business in this state. Boeing always threatens to leave or relocate unless they get what they want and we the people of Washington have to foot the bill. It's unacceptable, I'm tired of these democrats selling out their constituents for votes and turning their backs on us once they get in to office. I'll definitely be looking to vote for more progressive alternatives in this state going forward .

[VulgarPoet]

4. +1.

Apparently to this New Democratic party, their constituency are poker chips to splash the pot with.

[Vinca]

3. I agree with Bernie on this one.

There's one thing I've noticed about bills like this. They always include a tiny perk that might benefit the average person. I'm certain they put the provision in as cover. They can go on the stump and tell us how small business is benefitting, when, in fact, it's the fat cats getting the lion's share of the goodies. It's just more corporate welfare.

[pampango]

5. The tea party reps tried hard to kill the Ex-Im Bank. Democrats finally got it passed. n/t

[bigtree]

6. yep

Rep. Deb Dingell & Rep. Tim Ryan hit Sanders for voting with Tea Party republicans to kill the Export-Import bank:

[frazzled]

7. Indeed, and it was created by FDR as part of the New Deal

From its creation 81 years ago as an early part of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal, through all the decades under Republican and Democratic administrations until about two years ago, the Export-Import Bank had been a presumptively necessary-and-beneficial part of U.S. economic and business strategy. Like the agencies that built highways or sponsored basic research, it was seen by both parties and all presidents as part of the public infrastructure that improved the conditions in which private businesses could operate. Its operating costs have been small and, by some calculations, it has been returning more money to the Treasury than it has cost.

Even in 2012, a House of Representatives already held by the GOP gave landslide approval to ExIm’s three-year reauthorization. That’s what you see in the chart at the top of this page. But since then, an alliance of libertarian-absolutist think-tank figures and anti-government absolutist figures from the Tea Party have kept re-authorization from coming up for a vote in the House (which they knew ExIm supporters would win). That’s what has made the impossibly boring-seeming ExIm showdown actually an illuminating proxy for debt-ceiling fights, government shutdowns, and all other struggles between the radical-change faction of the GOP and its “well, there’s an actual government to run” wing.

http://www.theatlantic.com/notes/all/2015/09/the-defunding-of-the-export-import-bank/406873/

Sanders was the sole Democratic senator to align himself with this group of libertarian, anti-government, and Tea Party absolutists. I think it's indicative of his kind of rigid, broad-sweep ideological thinking that fails to see the forest for the trees.