Well, it didn't take long to find a miserable example of Republican infighting that will make it harder than it should be for the GOP to retake either Chamber of Congress in the 2022 midterm elections. See The January 6 Commission Vote Shows Republican Infighting Makes It Hard For GOP To Win The 2022 Midterms.
The case in point is that 17 Senate Republicans fell for the Biden bait & voted with all Democrats for cloture of the $1 trillion, 2,702 page, infrastructure bill that Democrats regard as a bipartisan down payment for Socialist Bernie Sanders' $3.5 trillion budget outline that Democrats plan on passing via reconciliation that requires a simple Senate majority in accordance with Senate rules concerning budget matters. The Sanders' outline is billed by Democrats as "human infrastructure" that includes spending on housing, education, healthcare, & climate change.
The shame of it starts with only a quarter of the additional spending going toward what most people think of as infrastructure - highways, bridges, airports, & tunnels. The other three quarters goes to Democrat spending priorities like the Green New Deal - for example, $21.5 billion for creation of the office of clean energy demonstrations, $2.4 billion for advanced nuclear reactor projects, $3.5 billion for carbon capture, $8 billion for clean hydrogen, & $5 billion for investment into energy related projects. And loosely regarding infrastructure there is $66 billion in new subsidies for Amtrak. Is any of this how you want your tax dollars spent?
The second shame is that the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) disagrees with the Democrat & Republican supporters of the bill's central premise that the infrastructure bill will pay for itself through marked increases in efficiency that will lead to economic growth. Rather than finding that the bill will be "fully paid for'' the CBO found that the infrastructure bill would widen the budget deficit by $256 billion over ten years. See The Significance Of The National Debt.
Here is the list that identifies the aforementioned seventeen Senate Republicans:
Blunt (MO), Burr (NC), Capito (WV), Cassidy (LA), Collins (ME), Cramer (ND), Crapo (ID), Graham (SC), Grassley (IA), Hoeven (ND), McConnell (KY), Murkowski (AK), Portman (OH), Risch (ID), Romney (UT), Tillis (NC), & Young (IN). Rounds (SD) did not vote.
Now the above list includes the usual "support the Democrats every chance they get Republicans" - Cassidy, Collins, Murkowski, Portman, & Romney. But Lindsey Graham brags about being a friend of Trump's & yet he supported the infrastructure bill in the cloture vote without one dollar being dedicated for the southwest border wall completion begging the question - just what do the Republicans get out of the bill?
But worse yet - Saturday, Schumer held another interim vote & not 17 Republicans but 18 Republicans voted for what had increased to a $1.2 trillion bill.
The 18 Republicans are as follows:
Blunt (MO), Capito (WV), Cassidy (LA), Collins (ME), Cornyn (TX), Cramer (ND), Crapo (ID), Fischer (NE), Grassley (IA), Hoeven (ND), McConnell (KY), Murkowski (AK), Portman (OH), Risch (ID), Romney (UT), Rounds (SD), Tillis (NC),& Young (IN).
Democrat Warnock from Georgia & these five Republicans did not vote - Barrasso (WY), Burr (NC), Graham (SC), Rubio (FL), & Scott (SC).
Then on Tuesday afternoon the final infrastructure bill passed the Senate with 19 Republicans in support. Lindsey Graham was back in along with newcomers Sullivan (AK) & Wicker (MS). Dropping out were Cornyn (TX) & Young (IN). Rounds (SD) did not vote.
The final Senate Republican tally was 30 in opposition, 19 in support, & one not voting. A pitiful display of unity handing Biden a victory after Trump, the supposed leader of the Republican Party, had pressured them not to support the bill.
Biden has an approval rating in the 30s regarding both the border chaos & crime which gives Republicans an opportunity to be aggressive. Record numbers of migrants, as they are now called, with a significant number carrying the Wuhan coronavirus being transported to every state in the nation & all 38% of the Republican caucus can do is vote for an infrastructure bill that sets the table for one socialsit project after another to be passed into law while they watch. Very uninspiring but a good example of why the socialist creep has gone as far as it has in America.
But the real game changer is waiting in the wings to follow immediately.
The aforementioned Sanders' $3.5 trillion budget outline centers around giveaways that make people dependent on government including 1) expanding Medicare to the uninsured & widening coverage for seniors into dental needs as well as hearing aids & eyeglasses, 2) making community college tuition free, 3) providing universal pre-K child care to every 3 & 4 year old, 4) guaranteeing paid family & medical leave, 5) making sure there are enough doctors, nurses, & dentists in underserved areas, 6) providing nursing facility care in people's own homes instead of nursing facilities, 7) making investments in affordable housing to address homelessness, 8) providing a pathway to citizenship for undocumented people such as Dreamers & essential workers who remained employed during the pandemic (that is still going on), & 9) shifting America's energy system away from fossil fuels to combat climate change including creating a Civilian Climate Corps to protect our natural resources & fight climate change.
Many in the readership have told me the implementation of the Biden/Harris agenda is going too fast - but I think it is slower than I expected. I thought that by now the above infrastructure bill & items in Sanders' outline would have been passed & we would be well on our way to 52 states, 15 Supreme Court Justices, & that there would be no filibuster to protect the minority which we certainly are in. But thank heavens, just like with ObamaCare in 2009 & 2010, there are still a few congressional districts & states in the country that balk before going further down the road to serfdom that we are travelling.
Surprisingly, the House is a different story for the infrastructure bill. First Republican support is less assured than in the Senate & even more importantly Democrats have not signed on either. Pelosi has repeatedly said that the larger Sanders budget outline, known to Pelosi as an antipoverty & climate package, must be approved by the Senate before the House will take up the infrastructure bill. Pelosi is once again taking her marching orders from AOC in that the Squad has said that ten House Democrats will not support the infrastructure bill unless it is preceded by an approval of the Sanders budget outline becoming law which is expected this fall.
But there is more dissatisfaction than that within the Democrat ranks. Just like I personally think that Democrat things are moving slowly, activist liberal actress Suran Sarandon thinks things are moving too slowly & she blamed AOC by demonstrating in front of AOC's NYC office recently. Sarandon is considering a primary challenge to AOC who in turn is considering a primary challenge to Schumer.
Conservatives do themselves a disservice by thinking all that needs to happen is for the majority of Americans to wake up & realize what is going on with this giant statist plan. We cannot discount that a large portion of the American citizenry will be attracted to all the government giveaways as people always have been for thousands of years in their own particular societies but in this day of Critical Race Theory, Black Lives Matter, & #MeToo there will be even more than the usual number of people who think things are rigged against them & see themselves as oppressed victims who will gladly sign on to the Biden/Harris/Sanders/AOC socialist way of life.
We will get a gage on how this will play out in the 2022 midterms in the very near future. First, California Governor Gavin Newsome is involved in a recall election on September 14, a two step process on the ballot - if more than 50% of the ballots support Newsome he is safe & the recall process is over (Newsome is polling about 50% support after posting a terrible record by freedom loving Americans the past 18 months.) If Newsome does not receive 50% support in the first question he will be replaced by whichever candidate receives @ least a plurality from the 46 list of people on the ballot.
The good news is that libertarian Larry Elder, who would move California toward the sensible right, emerged as a front runner after entering the race but now slightly trails Democrat Kevin Paffrath, a 29 year old YouTube personality. One of the dangers of recalling Newsome to me has always been that Newsome may not have been progressive enough for residents of the once Golden State & someone to his communist left may win.
There are also governors' races in New Jersey & Virginia in November but between these three events we may get a good idea of where the country is heading. All three contests are in blue states but the margins could be telling if close even in defeat.
The bottom line is that America is on the ropes. What you see going on in our country is exactly what the Biden Democrats want - they just have to be careful not to rock the boat too much in going about getting it thereby tipping their hand.
As the great University of Chicago Professor Frank Knight wrote in his timeless book Risk, Uncertainty, & Profit - "The best we can hope is that a few people will learn the lesson & carry it forward to another historic juncture, when the 'other man,' who is, after all, likewise in humanity, the lover of truth & right, & of mutuality, & real co-operation, may get another chance."
People in this readership are the few who have learned the lesson Professor Knight was talking about. Do everything you can to make sure that young men & women of liberty get that other chance.
Republicans cave again.
ReplyDeleteI worry that all this debt that the Chinese are holding will become the final downfall of our Republic. It reminds me of how patient the Muslims are who hate America and are plotting its downfall; the Chinese may be playing this same patient game with holding our debt.
ReplyDeleteAlso, with 19 Republican Senators voting for this 1.2 trillion dollar bill, I think many Republicans when the 2022 midterm elections come around will be very discouraged and decide not to vote. Why bother if Republicans are as eager to spend to oblivion like the Dems. Sure wish McConnell would have shown leadership with this bill.
TLG - Yes - the Chinese may use exploding debt to withdraw Treasuries and tank the $, and replace it with yuan. This may happen quickly (like within months, even weeks). Results may be: dollar collapse, extreme inflation, inability to pay majority of entitlements, etc. This may also be a welcome opportunity (but loaded with pitfalls). If we are smart and follow the Laws of Economics, we may then finally get our Economic House in order again. Economics is arguably the most quantitative of social sciences, but psychology is part of that too -ex: timing of when to pull out of $ as most helpful to China, another nation, or coalition of nations. But the quantitative part (ex: US Total Debt approaching 1.5 times GDP) dramatically increases odds of a $ collapse
DeleteDoug
ReplyDeleteYour analysis is spot on; per your previous posts, this is no surprise over GOP cowardice and economic naivetés.
How to get out of this ‘abyss’ per Mark Levin’s perspective of where we are:
I encourage all to read Mark’s American Marxism book. He well defines the American variant of Marxism and how it took many decades to get to this point. His last chapter well details how to respond to this predicament. A major point is that a productive, winning response must be internal, similar to the Tea Party. We have the numbers and we must be heard, champion free markets and constitutional freedoms, plus detailing how the Laws of Economics are being broken and how we can fix them ASAP as ‘time is of essence’. Mark strongly recommends we run for public office and/or get involved in the political process as a means to transform our political system from political hacks with very little private work experience to a new political class more representative of our citizens. We must remain civil as MLK did in his drive for freedoms. Mark states we must challenge CRT in school boards, create ‘majority’ local collectives refusing to support paying local taxes for CRT training …. I added the word ‘majority’. I further elaborate: If the IRS or other organizations illegally attack this movement (like IRS did to Tea Party), we must intensify our efforts.
Time is of essence:
Challenge Dems by running for Congress and Senate. Challenge Republicans like Lindsay Graham in primaries. Run for state and local office. Contribute to Judicial Watch (is Federal Tax Deduction), that relentlessly challenges Marxism in the Courts. Contribute to Larry Elder for California Governor. Many more -- Our nation is at stake.
I too was disappointed in those Republicans! Especially Graham! How do they ever trust the word of the Democrats? Infrastructure is a cover for all their wallets. I’m glad you believe their agenda is progressing slower than they hope. I believe that Our Lady will protect our country and that is my fervent prayer.
ReplyDeleteHi Doug - Just read your latest post and wanted to let you listen to some of the elected officials of NC in a meeting of the Council of State with gov. Roy Cooper. They get it. But the gov is a dirt bag! He needs to get the Cuomo treatment! (Maybe someone can dig up a woman who will claim harassment so we could be rid of this man) He is ruling the state by his "emergency powers" granted to him in the State Constitution. That by the way does not have an expiration date. When it was written into the State Constitution back when; no one thought to put a time limit on it.
ReplyDeleteI really don't know how NC elected him with Trump and the Republicans winning the state and the legislative majority. It was all down ballot except when they got to the Gov?? A shame.
Clarification - Pelosi & AOC intend to withhold support for the infrastructure bill in the House until the Senate passes legislation based on Sanders' $3.5 trillion budget outline. The Senate in & of itself cannot pass legislation into law.
ReplyDeleteHi Doug: Great article. Agree with you on everything. We are in for a very rough ride in the weeks, months and years ahead. Where are our Republicans that we put in office? I will be 92 on the 17th of this month, so I won't have to put up with this crazy bullshit. I'll just go along and enjoy whatever good years the good lord gives me. Hope all is well with Carol and yourself
ReplyDeleteDoug - I keep thinking about your post, have another reply: If 1 of the 2 Georgia Marxist Senator candidates would have lost in Jan 4 run-off elections, we’d have a 51-49 Senate with GOP advantage and less Socialist spending and better economic prospects. However, elections have consequences. But how in hell did Georgians vote for 2 Marxists? Did Georgia’s flawed election policies (or policies that were against what were on the books) the tipping point?
ReplyDeleteI cringe whenever pundits predict huge 2022 gains for GOP. Recent elections suggest that voter fraud may be an increasingly factor. The Marxist (formerly Democrat) party may do all it can (again and better than before) to ensure they remain in power. I pity the GOP politicians in Summer / Fall 2020 who stood perplexed and did nothing while the Marxist party changed election laws illegally. I pity the Courts (including Supreme Court) that did nothing about this. We must at grass roots levels, and in civil way, do all we can to restore respect for our laws on the books and the Constitution. NO TO VOTER HARVESTING. VOTER ID A MUST !!!
With regard to the January 5 Georgia's two senate elections - the run off election & special election - see post dated June 10, 2021: Trump talks powerfully but since 2016, under his leadership, Republicans lost the House in 2018 & the Senate & Presidency in 2020 & more pathetically the two Georgia Senate seats on January 5 when the stakes were precisely known - namely, retaining Republican control of the Senate if only one of the two Georgia Republican candidates had won. None of the Biden anti-American assault could have happened if Trump would have campaigned for Loeffler & Perdue instead of whining about his presidential loss during campaign stops in Georgia supposedly on their behalf. And Republicans are continuing & perpetuating this mistake, as if they can't learn, & Trump does not help by threatening any incumbent or challenger who does not show loyalty to him.
DeleteHi Doug
DeleteI agree Trump had negative role in Jan 2021 Georgia Senate race, repeating charges of election fraud. Prior point was clearly made. 100% focus should have been on Supporting GOP candidates. However, likely other negative roles were Georgia Election practices with varying signature validations and voter harvesting. It is likely the Dems did everything possible to ensure They won - legal and illegal. After all in Nov 2020 POTUS election suitcases loaded with ballots were pulled out and counted with no poll watchers.
I worry Dems have other new creative voter fraud tricks planned for 2022 Congressional elections. They already know ballots in suitcases caught on camera, trucks dumping 10’s of thousands ballots late at night while stopping counts for few hours, and physically blocking poll watchers have little or no consequences for them, even if courts intervene.
2022 election May come down to how much faith majority of electorate has in our voting system. We need a majority to aggressively demand our state officials adhere to all election rules on books and above all - voter ID.
Hey Doug - related to extra spending threatening our economy is what has happened to our energy policy:
ReplyDeleteBiden has not been challenged on his energy policy - not by Press, not by GOP. This is a travesty.
Consider
Biden eliminates KeyStone pipeline and ANWAR and Alaska drilling 1st week in office.
So one could then have argued that he has accurate Green Deal projections indicating green energy was about to significantly replace the lost fossil fuel promptly and exceed its energy make-up. This is despite the US has best environmental fossil fuel production in the world. Then Biden allows Nordstrom to complete pipeline to Europe with less environmentally safe fossil fuels. That automatically decreased our fossil fuel revenue to Europe while enriching Russia. Net result: 10’s of thousands US high paying jobs were lost + $billions to our trade deficit.
A few months pass and US looses its energy independence attained in 2019, after struggling 5 decades to regain it so US would not be reliant on energy from countries that hate us.
Also energy prices rise 40%. Biden pathetic also asks OPEC to increase energy production instead of reopening clean Alaska fossil fuel production.
Point blank Biden must answer how his energy policy benefits the US. His answer or non answer may be most telling.
As you know from American Marxism Biden is not trying to benefit the U.S. in energy policy or any other way. The Marxists are against America & want to tear it down every way they can. From the above post "What you see going on in our country is exactly what the Biden Democrats want - they just have to be careful not to rock the boat too much in going about getting it thereby tipping their hand."
DeleteHi Doug
DeleteI share your above sentiment. So how can we properly address this?
As Mark Levin stresses in American Marxism, we must thrive at the grass roots level. We must relentlessly confront and challenge the Marxists on all of their policies. This may result then in their tipping their hand. I hope that FOX journalist Peter Ducey pressures Biden Press Secretary Jan Psaki with following: Does President Biden support Marxism over Capitalism? Then follow-up to answer of “no”: then why does he strongly support self-proclaimed Marxist group BLM and their CRT?
One more: some influential GOP or well know free market capitalist write an Op-Ed in WSJ with gamut of questions to Biden, which if answered can lead to Biden tipping his hand?
It is Sunday night and I look forward to more advise from Mark Levin’s show.