Some Republicans Take a Scorched-Hill Tack

[ashling]

Leaving Budget Decisions
To Democrats Could Disrupt
New Leadership's Agenda
By DAVID ROGERS
December 6, 2006; Page A8

WASHINGTON -- ***
Already, the Republican leadership has moved to saddle the new Democratic majority with responsibility for resolving $463 billion in spending bills for the fiscal year that began Oct. 1. And the departing chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, Rep. Bill Thomas (R., Calif.), has been demanding that the Democrat-crafted 2008 budget absorb most of the $13 billion in costs incurred from a decision now to protect physician reimbursements under Medicare, the federal health-care program for the elderly and disabled.

The unstated goal is to disrupt the Democratic agenda and make it harder for the new majority to meet its promise to reinstitute "pay-as-you-go" budget rules, under which new costs or tax cuts must be offset to protect the deficit from growing.

****
http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB116537033474441872-E98_ty2LKTJimA6Xl79YKGamKmg_20070105.html?mod=tff_main_tff_top


"There are individuals who want to blow up the tracks, and there are more of those individuals in the House," said one Senate leadership aide.

The collapse of the appropriations process will be felt soon in the Justice and Commerce departments, food-safety agencies and veterans' health care. "It's not just a mess. It's a mountainous mess," complained Wisconsin Rep. David Obey, the next House Appropriations Committee chairman.

*****


"It's a demonstration of the irresponsibility of Republicans that they would leave this country with this mess," said the next House speaker, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.). "But we won, we will deal with it."

*****

"What a sad mess," said Sen. Robert Byrd (D., W.Va).

[Judi Lynn]

1. We'll have a chance to see how industrious the press is if they treat this story

with nearly the same degree of feverish excitement they attached to the "missing "W" keys" on White House keyboards" story, reveling in the lies cranked out about the filthy mess left behind by the West Wing occupants for the new ones to clean up.

You recall there was no decent retraction when it was finally admitted that there was no inordinate, unusual clutter of any kind whatsoever.Someone admitted it, some one printed in quietly, and the slobbering right-wing half-wits continued to rave on about their precious little Prince's staff having to move into a befouled White House.

Congressional leaders should make a big, stern noise about this again and AGAIN and AGAIN until EVERYONE has heard about what their Republican legislators have been doing during the last few years.

[CarbonDate]

2. Republicans took a big shit in the hallway....

...and are now going to scream at Democrats for not getting rid of the odor quickly enough.

[zulchzulu]

3. Load up the Subpoena Cannons and aim at the White House

If the Repigs dare want to play dirty pool, then a full frontal attack on the White House with subpoenas and a slew of investigations must begin immediately.

Hell, I hope we were going to do that anyway...but this is the perfect opportunity to begin.

[Joe Bacon]

12. Yeah, start firing the subpoenas at Guckert!

I want to know what the male hooker did during those 200 "unchaperoned" White House visits!

[gratuitous]

15. That occurred to me, as well

There are surely a lot of rocks to turn over for the last six years of Republican misrule, but part of me would like to see a full airing of Mr. Guckert's activities, how he came to be a "reporter" for Talon News, why he was granted a press pass, and just how often he was at the White House, who he saw, and so forth. I'd like to hear from Ari Fleischer as well as Mr. Guckert. Let's see, Andy Card would probably have some information. Who else should be subpoenaed and have to testify?

[wake.up.america]

4. The Demos better make it clear that the country is in a mess...

Clear, concise report about the disarray of the nation.

[Lasher]

5. Hey, there's a good side to this

All spending decisions that have not so far been made by Congress will be controlled by the new Democratic majority.

Democrats could simply extend the stopgap resolution again in February and set themselves up as a budget appeals court of sorts, to which the administration will have to come for relief. "I think we can work through it, but it is not our preference," said White House budget chief Rob Portman. But the administration admits it could yet pay a price if the spending issues become entangled with President Bush's spring supplemental-spending request for military operations in Iraq.

I for one would be thrilled if I had a chance to help Congressional Democrats go through that supplemental request. I can't tell from having read the article, but I assume programs that would have been easiest to cut - like Junior's Maginot Line in the sky - have already been passed by the neocon/cronyist/elitist Republican leadership.

I like the sound of that budget appeals court. Ooooooo, how about the prospect of tuning into CSPAN to watch Lord Vader groveling before Bobby Byrd to beg for funding to perpetuate Junior's adventure in Iraq? You could resolve all the spending shortfalls just by putting that on pay-per-view.

[Demeter]

6. The Obvious Solution Is: Defund the Wars

Stop throwing money down the rathole that is Iraq, bring home the troops. Seriously consider doing the same with Afghanistan, and there should be plenty of money to straighten out this snafu.

[Sherman A1]

10. Agreed

and cut at least half of the Pentagon's budget. We might find a bit of savings there for such things as the USS GHW Bush and the follow on USS Gerald Ford (the next two Carriers in the pipeline).

[classysassy]

16. In the pipeline

One tugboat,one garbage scow.Tugbow for Rummy,Scow for Dubya.

[Lasher]

14. Ending the war in Iraq is not quite enough

The deficit for FY 2006 was $401.01 billion. Eliminating military and reconstruction expenses for Iraq and Afghanistan would have reduced that deficit by $111.83 billion, to $289.17 billion. If you also eliminate Junior's 2001 and 2003 tax cuts you save another $294.58 billion. If you make both these changes you end up with a budget surplus of $5.42 billion.

In this simple overview it's plain to see that our fiscal problems would not have existed if the Idiot in Chief and his corrupt cronies had not come along. But a little fine tuning would be in order.

I'm personally in favor of getting out of Iraq right now, but looking realistically at expenses associated with Junior's adventure we probably should leave something for reconstruction. And it wouldn't be a good idea to write Afghanistan off.

Insofar as the 2001 & 2003 tax cuts are concerned, I would eliminate tax cuts just for the richest 5% of taxpayers, which are those making at least $154,000 a year. This would amount to a saving of $145.78 billion - still not chump change.

But wait, there's more. Act now and you'll receive....oops, I've been watching too many commercials.

I haven't even touched overall military spending, which needs to be slashed. There's more treasure to be found by getting rid of corporate tax breaks and estate tax reductions. All things considered there's plenty savings to balance the budget without the shameful cuts in our social programs like food stamps and veterans' benefits. We could even pay unemployment compensation to all of Halliburton's senior management and still have a surplus left over to again start paying down the national debt.

But don't take my word for it. Here is the National Budget Simulation where you can balance the budget yourself.

[Gman]

7. Just more of the same from thw worst Congress in my life

more irresponsibility.

[xchrom]

8. of course this is what they've done. quelle surprise.

the republick party hasn't yet morphed into the schwarzennegger, giulliani, lieberman, bloomberg moderate free marketeer globalist yet.

these guys are the never say die, hair on fire conservatives who cannot fathom that like the dinosaurs -- they and their world are dying.

they will attempt to blow up dems and their own party centrists for some while -- holding as many hostages as they can to their own rigid visions.

[aquart]

9. They are leaving as they came: selfish, irresponsible, and untrustworthy.

Which, of course, is why they are leaving.

[trof]

11. Repugs - The wovlerines of the political zoo.

Wolverines are solitary animals except during the breeding season. They are notorious for raiding traps and food caches of hunters. They are territorial and do not tolerate individuals of the same sex in their territories. They mark their territory with secretions from anal scent glands and urine. To discourage other animals from raiding their food caches, wolverines mark their caches with scent gland secretions. With the exception of occasional grunts and growls, wolverines are rarely vocal.

The wolverine diet ranges from small eggs to caribou calves. Although the wolverine is capable of bring down prey that is five times bigger than itself, it obtains much of its food by scavenging. It will scavenge the kills of moose, caribou, or sheep after the original hunters have abandoned their meal.
http://itech.pjc.edu/sctag/wolverine/Wolverine.htm

Basically, if a wolverine can't eat an entire carcass at one sitting, he will try and destroy the rest or make it inedible for another scavenger.

If that ain't a repuglican I don't know what is.

[SpiralHawk]

13. Why do Republicons hate America?

They will not do what is best for the USA?

What a bunch of unpatriotic chickenhawk cronies.