Al Franken email, re: vote on Bush tax breaks - "The hardest vote I've taken"

[pinto]

Dear pinto,

A lot of people are unhappy that the President punted on first down, and I'm one of them. Extending the Bush tax breaks for the super-wealthy will explode our deficit over the next two years without doing anything to help our economy. It's bad policy.

But for Minnesota's middle class, struggling to get by in a tough economy, there's a lot in this bill that will really help: tax cuts for working families, a payroll tax holiday, energy tax credits, and the extension of Recovery Act initiatives that are already making a difference.

And for the Minnesotans truly suffering right now—men, women, and children on the edge of economic disaster—the alternative is simply unacceptable. If we let Republicans block unemployment benefits, even temporarily, there will be a lot more pain for working families, a lot more homeless kids spending Christmas in a shelter or a car.

If this is the prelude of a permanent extension of the Bush tax breaks for the super-wealthy, we're in big trouble. We'll lose our ability to make the investments we need to grow our way out of long-term budget deficits: education, infrastructure, and research and development. And I am taking the President at his word that he will fight harder to put an end to these wasteful tax breaks in 2012 than he did in 2010.

This isn't a great deal by any stretch of the imagination. But I got into this line of work because I wanted to stand up for Minnesota families trying to put food on the table and build a better life for their kids. And, for them, the only thing worse than a bad deal would be no deal at all. That's why I voted yes yesterday—and why I will continue my fight for economic policies that create jobs, address our deficit problem, and build new opportunities for Minnesota.

All the best,
Al

[ZombieHorde]

1. Recommended. nt

[gratuitous]

2. Well, at least you're not telling me it's raining, Sen. Franken

But goddammit if you aren't pissing down my leg, too.

[n2doc]

3. Yeah, well at least Al gets to keep more of his book residuals

And his Senate colleagues get to keep more of their income, seeing as all of them are rich by any standard.

What are you going to do next year at this time, Al? What are you going to agree to then to keep UE benefits going? It is a very slippery slope. And you are sliding down it....

[woodsprite]

4. So, essentially they have the middle/poor classes by the balls. n/t

[Angry Dragon]

5. Obama had no right to lump together all this shit

into one package.
He did it behind closed doors ....... no thank you mr president
And yes I will blame him

[AndrewP]

10. Yeah, I don't put nearly as much of this on Sen. Franken n/t

[avaistheone1]

11. Obama never should have

packaged it as he did.

[Brickbat]

12. OMG I love that graphic.

[avaistheone1]

16. Isn't it grand!

:kick:

[hfojvt]

6. Dear General Washington

"Love to my country actuates my present conduct, however it may appear inconsistent to the world, who very seldom judge right of any man's actions."

sincerely,
Benedict Arnold

[lumberjack_jeff]

7. We can't allow Republicans to shoot the hostages.

We don't want to be responsible for the resulting suffering. I can't live with that on my conscience.

:sarcasm:

There's no light at the end of the tunnel. 49% of elected officials will always be elected to do their worst. It's like being governed by arsonists and firemen. Everyone knows what everyone's going to do, but at the end of the day, the carnage is firemen's fault. I guess that's the definition of codependency.

[Hawkowl]

8. I sympathize but....

The deal is essentially helping out a few million people now, while guaranteeing that even MORE people will need more help very soon. The number one thing that really pisses me off is throwing the 99ers under the bus, because that is a hint to what is going to happen to the rest of these people. Give them a 13 month extension, and THEN SHOOT THEM. The deal just buys a little time for some people who are destined to be thrown under the bus.

I understand Senator Franken's position, but he would do well not to take Obama at his word.

[saracat]

9. At the end of the day many of them are politicians first and humans second.

[Cleita]

13. There was a line in "G. I. Jane" where Anne Bancroft,

who is playing a senator in the movie, says to Demi Moore, something to the effect that she had to make decisions every day that would have Solomon shitting golf balls and that half of those decisions were political. I think this describes pretty well the dilemma facing our senators, the ones with a conscience any way. I understand his angst.

[PoliticAverse]

14. "And I am taking the President at his word"

"that he will fight harder to put an end to these wasteful tax breaks in 2012 than he did in 2010."

Good luck with that.

[Still a Democrat]

15. I think Al's blowing smoke up your

The cuts for the wealthy are 13.5% of the package. He should have used that fact.

[Better Believe It]

17. Senator Franken .... do you have anything to say about the bills attack on Social Security?

Did you somehow manage to miss that?

[laughingliberal]

19. Now, really. He won't be needing SS to survive in his old age.

I like him but he can't say anything to justify this sellout to me.

[deaniac21]

18. He's Good Enough, He's Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People

Like Him!

[EmeraldCityGrl]

21. Just like Kucinich voting for the healthcare bill

They talk the progressive talk but when it comes down to
the critical vote they fold. Under the wire Al, you're forgetting
who voted for you and contributed to your campaign when
it looked like you were hanging by fingertips.

[GeorgeGist]

20. Short term thinking ...

isn't going to help anyone. Sorry Al is a schmuck.