Senate Dems form circular firing squad over Obamacare, tax reform
Merry Christmas, Mitch McConnell!
Chuck Schumer (D-NY) might just be the worst Democratic Policy and Communications Center head of all time.
Or, the best, depending on how invested you are to Congressional Dems’ current messaging strategy.
Yesterday, Schumer stood up at the National Press Club and unequivocally threw President Obama and his coalition under the bus for pressing forward with health care reform at the expense of more “middle class”-oriented programs.
The “mandate” voters had provided Democrats with their 2008 victories, Schumer said, was put on the wrong problem.
“After passing the stimulus, Democrats should have continued to propose middle class-oriented programs and built on the partial success of the stimulus, but unfortunately Democrats blew the opportunity the American people gave them. We took their mandate and put all of our focus on the wrong problem – health care reform,” Schumer said.
“The plight of uninsured Americans and the hardships caused by unfair insurance company practices certainly needed to be addressed,” he added. “But it wasn’t the change we were hired to make. Americans were crying out for an end to the recession, for better wages and more jobs — not for changes in their health care.”
Sure, Schumer was one of Obamacare’s biggest cheerleaders, but that was then and this is now, people!
Meanwhile, things are only getting worse for Democrats’ actual policymaking efforts. In an effort to push through tax reform before the end of the year, Majority Leader Reid was prepared to drop permanent tax breaks for low-income families in exchange for making breaks for corporations, students, and other groups permanent.
Obama objected and responded in an unusual way yesterday. The White House issued a veto threat before lawmakers released the plan publicly, siding with progressive groups and advocates for a lower budget deficit over his own party’s Senate leaders.
“The president would veto the proposed deal because it would provide permanent tax breaks to help well-connected corporations while neglecting working families,” Jen Friedman, a White House spokeswoman, said in an e-mail yesterday.
Barack Obama knows that making a deal with Republicans now will put him in a difficult situation come January, when Majority Leader-elect McConnell takes the gavel and starts swinging; but to publicly threaten a veto—something that’s usually launched at Republicans who talk about repealing Obamacare—against his own party before a deal even comes together is proof positive that Democrats are more shaken by the midterms than they would like to admit.
Meanwhile, everyday Americans who don’t have the opportunity to play politics know that not extending these tax breaks equates to a tax hike. It’s one of those situations where the real world consequences are set to be much, much uglier than those of the circular firing squad in Congress.
Congress gets back to work on December 1.
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Comments
My wife not only lost her health insurance thanks to Obamacare, but she lost her HSA, too because you can’t contribute to a HSA unless you have health insurance. Thanks alot Chuckie!
Is it just me, or is 0bama’s veto threat “before a deal even comes together” simply more proof that this President is far more directly involved in Congressional matters than he probably should be?
Or, as an alternative, that maybe one of the reasons for all the “Republican obstruction” we hear about is that this President has a habit of open hostility and bullying when they might not provide the legislation he wants?
Either way, Congressional Democrats, take note: President 0bama is not on your side; his loyalty is only to himself and his
egoagenda. He supports neither Democrats nor Republicans, unless they are willing and able to do what he wants. He’ll shelter you if (and only if, and only as long as) you can and will deliver – if not, you’ll be the first under the bus, regardless of your party or what you’ve done for him in the past. To him, you are expendable. To your voter base, you are replaceable. No person can serve two masters; make sure you’re serving the right one.I see it differently: the progressive Dem Senators are rattled and afraid that the modestly more centric Dem senators are going to side with the Pubs to put through the tax bill. The progressives don’t want it in any way, shape or form but they don’t want to go out publicly on this without support. So they whispered to Champ and Champ obligingly threatened to veto.
Champ is on the side of the most progressive Dems in Congress. The rest, not so much.
Can we please call them the most “left” dems in Congress, or the most “destructive” dems in Congress? “Progressive”?!?! Please!
Closer to: the most anti-american representatives in American history.
tax breaks for low income families ? that is impossible since low income families pay zero income taxes …
Not sure which taxes they are discussing, but they do pay Social security and related payroll taxes.
Which in and of themselves are quite burdensome.
So what?
Those taxes fund programs that will eventually cover the payer. Not the same thing at all.
What is truly ‘burdensome’ is bearing the burden for all the untaxed benefits, from food stamps to welfare to Medicaid.
Don’t be scammed by this – see it for what it is… a pivot to set up 2016 for Big Wampum Warren. Don’t be fooled by the snake oil salesman Schumer. He’s completely untrustworthy, but it doesn’t make him a fool.
I’ve been waiting for this.
When Obama leaves office, Obamacare will be repealed.
Won’t matter who the new President is or how many Senate seats R’s control either.
Obamacare has been a massive drag on the D’s for three elections now and there’s plenty of them that can’t wait to get rid of it. The only thing holding them back is O still being POTUS.