At least 30 Dems vote AGAINST Extending Tax Cuts to Middle Class Only (test vote)

[Clio the Leo]

At least 30 Dems defect as test vote on tax cuts passes

By Jordan Fabian - 12/02/10 11:55 AM ET
At least 30 House Democrats broke with their party Thursday on a key test vote on a bill that would extend only some of the expiring Bush era tax cuts.

The House narrowly passed debate rules on the proposal 213-203. The vote allows the House to move to debate and a vote on final passage to extend only the Bush tax cuts for the middle-class, letting end the cuts for high income earners.

House Republicans -- who want all the cuts extended permanently -- framed the vote on the rule as a vote to raise taxes on small-businesses.

"On the floor right now, we are debating the Rule for House Democrats’ bill to allow a massive tax hike to hit American families and small businesses at the end of this month," Michael Steel, a top spokesman for Speaker-designate John Boehner (R-Ohio), wrote in an e-mail to reporters. "Voting for this rule is, in effect, a vote to raise taxes and destroy jobs, and yet another sign that Washington Democrats just don’t get it."

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/131663-at-least-30-dems-defect-as-test-vote-on-tax-cuts-passes

[TwilightGardener]

1. Wow, that's pretty fucking sad. And why is the Republican frame the only one

being publicized?

[niceypoo]

3. The republicans are in charge

They have been for the last two years.

[asjr]

2. I wonder how many bluedogs that didn't

get re-elected voted this way. Is it a "spite" vote?

[TwilightGardener]

5. Maybe it's a "keep donors happy so I get a lucrative job in January" vote.

[struggle4progress]

4. It's a vote on debate rules, no matter how Republicans want to spin it

[Freddie Stubbs]

7. Members of the majority rarely vote against the debate rules in significant numbers

And they usually only do it when they are strongly opposed to the underlying legislation.

[struggle4progress]

11. Could be. If you want to provide details on who voted how, and why you think they voted that way, do

feel free to do so. The broad claims and sweeping generalities, however, are simply uninformative noise

[rhett o rick]

18. The Senate Blue dogs voted against giving tax breaks to the middle class.

They voted with their brethren the fucking republicans.

Do you support the blue dogs voting with the 'CON'S?

[Name removed]

6. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[mtnsnake]

8. "House Republicans....framed the vote on the rule as a vote to raise taxes on small-businesses."

This is what really irks me. For way too long, Democrats have been letting Republicans lie through their teeth by framing the message in the way they want everyone to perceive it. When on earth will we ever put an end to letting Republicans be the only ones who know how to win by framing the message their way? The tax thing has killed us for decades because we STILL don't know how to frame the tax message in a way that the voters will actually get it. Too many voters equate Democrats with being evil people who only want to steal money from them by raising their taxes. This is sooo frustrating to let Repukes continue getting away with sending that message.

[struggle4progress]

12. Note also that the OP propagates the Republican spin

[Ganja Ninja]

9. This is why I'm more angry with the Democrats than with the Republicans.

I expect this from the Republicans.

And why are we calling this an "extension of the Bush tax cuts"? Why don't we call it "the progressive tax cuts for working America" or something like that? There aren't any loyal Bushies voting for it.

[ProSense]

10. There was/is a lot of maneuvering taking place

The House gets clever on tax cuts debate

by Joan McCarter

In case you missed it, David had a very good explanation of the House using procedure very cleverly in this morning's TIC.

The Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2010, Part III was originated in the House and passed back in March. (And remember, if there are going to be revenue provisions in this thing, it has to have originated in the House, so that's important.) It then went to the Senate, and sat around until September. When it came to the floor, the Senate amended it, passed the amended version, and sent it back to the House.

Now, the House plans to take up the Senate amendment, which it does under a rule governing debate, just as it would with any bill. And if you want to, you can write the rule for the bill to disallow any amendments to it, and that's just what they've done with this one. But writing a rule to disallow a motion to recommit is just not done. It could be done, but it would be a very, very serious infraction against the rights of the minority. So it's not done.

But guess what? Because this is a bill that's already passed and left the House, and the only changes in it are Senate-made amendments, it can't be recommitted, which means there can't be a motion to recommit. Why not? Well, when a motion to recommit passes, it technically sends a bill back to the committee that reported it out. But this bill has already left the custody of the House when it passed the first time. That material can't be recommitted, and neither can the Senate material, which was never in the hands of the House committee in the first place. So by definition, it can't be recommitted. The only thing that can happen is that the House can agree to the Senate amendment, disagree to it, or agree to it with additional amendments. That's it. No recommittal. And only the amendments the Rules Committee allows.

And what amendment will the Rules Committee allow? An amendment to strip out the current contents of H.R. 4853, and replace it with the new, Middle Class Tax Relief Act.

Ta-da!

And thus, we're getting a vote in the House on extending current tax rates for all but the top two percent. The tricky rule that allowed for this has passed, and with another procedural vote on the debate rules, the House is off to the races on doing the right thing with this vote. It'd be the simplest thing in the world for the Senate to take this bill, offer it on the floor, and dare Republicans to vote against it. Presuming that it passes the House, of course. Stay tuned.

People wonder why the vote wasn't held prior to the election. Evidently, Pelosi wants to ensure that is passes.

[Parker CA]

13. Thanks for that info! Been wondering how they were going to make this work. Big question now is

will the Senate knock this down? I can't envision any R's breaking ranks and voting for this, nor can I envision all the Dems holding together.

[Bluerthanblue]

15. wow, that sure gives this a glimmer of hope-

thank you for sharing.

[Aramchek]

14. what really sucks is that those who voted against it have nothing to lose

they have already lost their elections.

yet they are still too cowardly to do the right thing.

[niceypoo]

16. ALL the bush tax cuts need to go away

They have ruined the economy.

[Phx_Dem]

17. Interesting since I keep hearing it's all Obama's fault. n/t