Kaine calls Dems' bluff:

[otohara]

How I miss Howard Dean...


'I don't think they're willing to drive off a cliff'
By Michael O'Brien - 12/10/10 07:34 AM ET

House Democrats won't be willing to "drive off a cliff" in the tax debate, their party's chairman said Friday.

Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Tim Kaine called the bluff of recalcitrant congressional Democrats who have vowed to vote against the tax cut compromise proposed earlier this week by President Obama.

"I don't think they're willing to drive off a cliff, because no one wants to get to Jan. 1 and see anyone get hurt," Kaine said on "The Early Show" on CBS.

Obama's faced a revolt in Congress by members of his own party, who gripe that his tax cut deal makes too many concessions to Republicans, concessions they argue that Obama made too quickly.

The White House and the DNC have launched an all-out effort to sell the tax cuts and create momentum for their passage by the end of the lame-duck Congress, since the tax rates would spring up at the beginning of next year without congressional action.

Kaine's been willing to serve as an enforcer of loyalty to the president over the past two years in his capacity as DNC chairman. At the height of the campaign season, when a number of endangered incumbents were looking to distance themselves from Obama, Kaine went out and warned Democrats that they were making a big mistake to do so.

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/133047-kaine-calls-dems-bluff-i-dont-think-theyre-willing-to-drive-off-a-cliff

[Oceansaway]

1. all the lapdogs are gonna

trot out....Durbin will step in line too.

[Enrique]

2. they keep threatening opponents of the deal

"they wouldn't want to see anyone get hurt..." Talk about hostage taking.

[BeyondGeography]

3. Obama showed his hand to the GOP so this is the best deal we can get

Everyone should/will realize that. But I don't blame anyone for being pissed at the way he did it or the outcome.

[wryter2000]

4. "serve as an enforcer"?

Would have been nice if he'd done a little enforcing with Nelson et. al during health care reform or anything, for that matter.

Enforce this, Kaine. :evilgrin:

[Phx_Dem]

5. Good. What's so ridiculous about the House Dems' hyperbolic relation

by saying, NO WAY!, UNACCEPTABLE! and writing that ridiculous letter from the Dem caucus, is that many of them will end up voting for it and then they'll be the ones who CAVED after drawing their line in the sand and calling the President names and refusing to go along. We've seen this movie before.
:popcorn:

And if it doesn't pass, the next Congress will pass something that's less acceptable, continue to block DADT, DREAM, START, and the Dem caucus will be responsible for allowing it to happen by not dealing with the tax issue all year, and then voting against this compromise. They've put themselves in a lose-lose position.