Kevin McCarthy

The Republican Party And Debt Default And Government Shutdown: Constant “Hostage Taking” Tactics!

Ronald 1 Comment

Now that the “Fiscal Cliff” battle is over, and Barack Obama has won the battle on raising taxes on high incomes, a compromise at $450,000, instead of his original plan of $250,000, already the Republican Party, which lost the battle with only one third of them supporting it, but with Democratic backing and agreement to conduct a vote by Speaker John Boehner allowing it to pass, are creating a new crisis with reckless, irresponsible Republicans ready to fight on the issue of the raising of the debt limit, which must occur by the end of February. A new “Hostage Taking” situation is being created once again!

Among those Republicans who are arguing for a debt default and government shutdown are:

Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina
Senator John Cornyn of Texas
Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania
Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky
Senator Mike Lee of Utah
Congresswoman Michele Bachmann of Minnesota
Congressman Eric Cantor of Virginia, Majority Leader
Congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, House Budget Commitee Chairman
Congressman Kevin McCarthy of California, House Majority Whip

Among those arguing against it, but not in public office are:

Former Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire
Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich
Just about any sane Republican who held office in the past and is holding his or her head in their hands in grief at what their party has become!

Speaker John Boehner has said that we cannot renege on the debt, and he knows that the government shutdown in 1995 by the House Republicans under Newt Gingrich during the Bill Clinton Administration was a disaster, and helped Clinton win a second term, and public opinion polls backed Clinton during the debacle.

But Boehner, having lost support of a dozen House Republicans in the Speakership vote on Wednesday, is weakened, and has a massive headache with Tea Party radicals and others who should know better than to play games with the fiscal health of the American economy!

Boehner has already said he will not speak privately with Obama, and has already insulted Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid with foul language, which he has not apologized for.

This creates a very awkward situation as the deadline nears iin late February, and all it will do is boost the ratings of the Democrats and President Obama, and further degrade the Republican Party future. Obviously, their defeat in November has NOT changed the mindset of the GOP, and that spells tragedy for their political futures!

A thought that comes to mind is that Vice President Joe Biden might again have to be called upon to negotiate with Boehner and others, since Obama and Reid seem to have no possibility of private discussions with House leaders or Senate leaders. Biden may, again, save the day, for the umpteenth time!

The point is that the Republican Party is fighting a losing battle for public opinion, and if there are bad economic implications, they will be the ones to suffer for it in 2014 and 2016!

Republicans In Trouble:Todd Akin and Kevin Yoder— How It Could Hurt Mitt Romney And Paul Ryan!

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The Republican Party and the Romney-Ryan campaign are reeling from two controversies that could affect not only the party fortunes in November, but also their Presidential campaign.

Republican Senate nominee and Tea Party favorite, Congressman Todd Akin, who is opposed by Senator Claire McCaskill of Missouri, declared yesterday that there was such a thing as “legitimate rape”, but that women should still bring the pregnancy through to birth, causing an uproar, which has led some to demand that the Congressman resign as the Republican Senate nominee.

At the same time, it was revealed by Politico that a group of Republican Congressmen, while in Israel on a “fact finding tour’, got drunk at the Sea of Galilee, and jumped in the water partially clothed, including aides of Eric Cantor and Kevin McCarthy, who are part of the GOP leadership in the House of Representatives. But Kansas Congressman Kevin Yoder, a freshman member, fully stripped and jumped in, and now there arr calls for him to resign, in what has been seen as a major scandal by many! Yoder also has had an incident with a police officer, who stopped him for speeding, and Yoder refused a breathalyzer test, and paid a fine.

It is not that Democratic Congressman or Senators, or other Democratic officeholders, are incapable of similar incidents, but that the Republican Party professes a “holier than thou” attitude on moral issues, and then becomes involved in such controversies.

It will be interesting to see how the extreme right view of abortion, that under no circumstances should abortion be legal in any situation, will cause a controversy for Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan, now that they have declared that rape is an exception where abortion should be allowed, in reaction to the Akin controversy. It also contradicts Ryan’s public stand in his 14 years in the House of Representatives! So we shall see how this all works itself out!

Barack Obama And The American People Given A Christmas Gift By The Caving Of The House Republicans And Speaker John Boehner!

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The House Republicans, led by Speaker of the House John Boehner, caved in this afternoon, under pressure from the Wall Street Journal, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Karl Rove, and numerous Senate Republicans including a new convert, Senator John McCain of Arizona, and agreed to the two month temporary extension of the payroll tax cut, unemployment compensation, and delay in Medicare cuts to doctors.

The House Republicans were pushed into a corner, and this is a major victory for the American people, the Democrats, and President Barack Obama, who finally took a no negotiation stand and forced the hand of Boehner, Eric Cantor, and the Tea Party radicals.

The effect of this victory is that Boehner has been weakened as Speaker; the Tea Party radicals have been shown to be destructive to the nation at large; Eric Cantor, Paul Ryan and Kevin McCarthy, the chief deputies to Boehner, have been shown for the deceit they practiced on Boehner in their mad rush to seize power from him; and this event has likely assured a Democratic majority in both houses of Congress!

The Republicans have, symbolically, shot themselves in the foot, and will have trouble convincing the American people that they care about the middle class, and that they are not beholden to the corporations and the top one percent wealthy in this country!

Barack Obama looks a lot stronger and more assertive as a result of this confrontation, and with Ron Paul rising in Iowa, and being exposed for his racist and anti Semitic past, and with the GOP in total disarray, the odds of Obama winning reelection have improved tremendously!

The Republicans Are Self Destructing Before Our Eyes, And The American People See It Clearly!

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The Republican Party is self destructing before our eyes, as House Republicans led by the “Young Turks”–House Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Virginia, House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy of California, and House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin–and supported by the 80 Tea Party Caucus members—are tying the hands of Speaker John Boehner, and making him look foolish!

Boehner had said an agreement of Senate Republicans led by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, and backed 89-11 in a bipartisan vote, allowing a temporary two month extension of unemployment compensation, the continuation of the middle class tax cut, and delay of cuts to Medicare doctors, was acceptable, with further action in January. But then, under pressure from the leaders mentioned above, he backtracked, and has brought about a situation where the continuation of the policies mentioned will be prevented, as the New Year comes on!

It is clear to anyone who watches what is going on, that Cantor, McCarthy, and Ryan are working together with the Tea Party supporters to paralyze the legislative process, and that their aim, ultimately, is not just to defeat Barack Obama for the Presidency in 2012, but also to remove John Boehner from the Speakership.

And as this goes on, a CNN poll shows Obama’s popularity has risen five points from 44 to 49 percent; the ratings of the Republicans have fallen six points from 49 to 43 percent; the Democrats ratings have stayed steadily at 55 percent; a majority now say they trust Obama more than the Congressional Republicans as compared to 44 percent before now; and dramatic gains among the middle class are being made by Obama, while Republicans continue to have the support of the wealthy.

So, Republicans, continue what you are doing and saying, and you are doomed to defeat in 2012 on all levels, as your arrogance and elitism are backfiring on your party!

The Tea Party Succeeds In The Emasculation Of Speaker John Boehner: The War Within The Republican Party!

Ronald 1 Comment

The House of Representatives has just passed a debt limit bill that is dead on arrival in the US Senate, and in the process have shown just how destructive and anti American the Tea Party radicals in the House are, and they have succeeded in the emasculation of Speaker John Boehner!

Boehner’s Speakership will NEVER be the same, after three long days of wrangling, pleading, pressuring, etc and yet, while winning a symbolic vote, lost 22 of the hardline right membership, who would not show loyalty and respect for their own Speaker!

This whole mess was a tremendous embarrassment to Boehner, and has destroyed any chance of him being effective, and it is predictable that, in the unlikely situation of a GOP House majority in 2013, that he will be pushed aside for Eric Cantor or Kevin McCarthy or Paul Ryan, the so called “Young Guns”, who can be blamed more than even the Tea Party radicals for undermining their own leader!

Since the Democrats only need 25 seats to regain the House majority, it now seems predictable that such an eventuality will occur. It is essential for every good person in this nation to get off his or her rear end, get out there and campaign for progressive change, contribute to the Democratic Party, and volunteer his time to convince the American people to overcome the corporate influence promoted by the Supreme Court Citizens United case, and save the nation from total disaster, the plan of the GOP to take away from the poor, the elderly, the sick and disabled, and other vulnerable groups, and redistribute income to the top two percent, who have had an unfair advantage since the administration of Ronald Reagan, but getting far worse under George W. Bush!

This is our country to save, and if the hard Right wins control of both houses of Congress and the White House in 2013 because of laziness, ignorance,or refusal to take the responsibility of voting seriously, then unfortunately we will get what we deserve–a plutocracy with fascist tendencies and no concern for the middle or lower classes in America!

Thankfully, the events in the House make it clear that the Republican Party is involved in an internal conflict which will, hopefully, rip them apart and save the country from these economic terrorists who are a threat to all of us in the name of profit and wealth!

The Knives Are Out For John Boehner And Mitch McConnell: Extreme Right Wing Coup Likely In Republican Party In Congress!

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Republican leaders John Boehner, Speaker of the House, and Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader, are in deep trouble within their own party, having angered Tea Party radicals and right wingers in their own chambers, and it is clear that the knives are out to take away their leadership, if not immediately, which would be difficult to achieve, but certainly in 2013 when the new Congress convenes!

Eric Cantor, House Majority Whip, is very obviously angling to seize the leadership from Boehner, and is likely to be backed by the “Young Guns”, such as Kevin McCarthy of California, the Majority Whip, and House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin! Also, don’t be surprised if there will be a challenge to Boehner in his Ohio district in the Cincinnati area by a Tea Party radical in the primaries next year!

McConnell has a safe seat to his next election in 2014, but is likely to face opposition then in the primaries by Tea Party radicals, and Jim DeMint of South Carolina, and his own fellow Kentuckian, Rand Paul, who he has very little in common with, are certainly no friends of his, much like Marco Rubio of Florida and Mike Lee of Utah, who also flirt with Tea Party types and are young and very ambitious! One of these individuals will try to take away the Senate leadership from him in 2013!

It is a sad scene that the GOP leaders cannot control their own membership, but it demonstrates how extremist the Republican Party has become, and the danger it represents to the American future, even more so with the possible Presidential candidacy of Michele Bachmann, herself one of the original Tea Party favorites and organizers!

This nation needs help to avoid the disaster that the Tea Party represents, not only to the GOP, but to the country at large!

The Torment Of John Boehner: Being Pressured By Tea Party Crazies And Eric Cantor!

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Speaker of the House John Boehner is under the greatest pressure he has ever faced in public life.

Having attained his goal of being Speaker, Boehner has been surrounded by Tea Party crazies, a group of 87 House Republican freshmen, most of whom came to the chamber with an attitude of hating government and wishing to destroy it in their quest to prevent ANY tax increases EVER, and to tear down the social safety net of the New Deal and Great Society, epitomized by Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid!

Surrounded by overly ambitious House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, and Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, all being at least a decade younger than Boehner, they have made it clear that they back the looney freshmen, and are making Boehner’s ability to lead, and at the same time be responsible, nearly impossible!

Boehner used to say that the raising of the debt ceiling was not essential by a certain date, but now he is agreeing with President Obama on the importance of raising the debt limit by August 2, realizing the long term economic damage that would occur if the Congress were so reckless as to refuse to raise the debt ceiling, something that has been done without controversy numerous times over many years!

Obama is winning the public relations battle, while Boehner is mightily squirming, as to how to get his caucus of loonies to do what MUST be done!

If he fails to get them to do what MUST be done, he will go down in history as responsible for a very damaging economic collapse!

But IF he does, somehow, get the mission accomplished in some form, he will most certainly face a rebellion within his party ranks, led by Eric Cantor, and will lose his Speakership!

Which is more important, the national economy or the Speakership of John Boehner? These next few weeks are the true test of courage and leadership, and if Boehner is a good patriot, if need be, he should sacrifice his future leadership for the greater good of doing what is right about the American economy and future!

The Tea Party Movement Revealed: Radical Anarchists Of The Far Right!

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The Tea Party Movement has now been revealed as what it is: radical anarchists of the FAR Right, a dangerous group that will brook no compromise, and now plans to challenge Speaker of the House John Boehner in the 2012 primaries, because he had the gall to make a compromise deal with Barack Obama and the Democrats to avoid a government shutdown at the last possible moment last evening!

Obama and the Democrats agreed to about $39 billion in budget cuts from the original budget sent by the President, a record amount, which Barack Obama claimed was a victory for common sense.

Actually, the Democrats and Obama gave in too much, but they held out for protection of the environment, the funding of the President’s Health Care law, and continuation of miniscule funding of Planned Parenthood.

Boehner has been in an impossible position having to deal with House freshmen who are totally irresponsible in their demands for massive budget cuts, and have been, unfortunately, assisted in their recklessness by House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, who has been undermining Boehner all along, as he and Congressman Kevin McCarthy have been working to push Boehner into an untenable position as Speaker.

If one thinks Cantor and McCarthy are “friends” of Boehner, one has to be absolutely blind! We will now see a large negative vote on the permanent budget for the next six months, when it comes up for a vote next week, and Boehner is in great danger of a revolt led by Cantor and McCarthy, and he might wish he had not been elected Speaker! To imagine that John Boehner might be seen in a sympathetic light by some shows how far right the GOP is going!

And if there is a true “Rasputin” of the Far Right, it is Congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, who has recklessly and irresponsibly promoted a radical attack on Medicare and Medicaid in the fiscal year 2012 budget and beyond, in his role as Chairman of the House Budget Committee!

What Ryan proposes is to make Medicare a voucher system, and put Medicaid under block grants that state governors decide how to dispense, all of which means the total destruction of both programs for future generations of elderly, sick, and poor people, all this at the same time as the plan to defund the President’s Health Care program for all Americans not covered under either plan now!

All this while tax cuts down to 25 percent top rate from 35 percent for the ultra rich top two percent, and also cuts in corporate taxes further, which means an attack on the middle class and the poor, as America is transformed more than ever into a plutocracy, rather than the image of a democracy, in which we have government of, by, and for the people, not the elite rich!

With the concessions made by Obama and the Democrats this time, in the next round there can be NO concessions, as this is a battle for the future of the entire nation, and the plutocracy that has developed MUST be stopped dead in its tracks!

And realize finally that this is not just an economic struggle, but also a social struggle, as the Tea Party Movement has its ugly desire to intervene in people’s private lives, as related to abortion, gay rights, and women’s rights. This is a battle for economic and social justice, the battle fought by progressives and liberals for more than a century, and a constant struggle that one can never rest from, as the far right continues its determination to dictate the continued dominance of an evil, selfish, greedy plutocracy!

The House Of Representatives: How Many Seats Will The Republicans Gain?

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It is time to start assessing and prognosticating how the election results will play out this coming Tuesday!

It will likely take a few days to be sure of the final results in all 435 races for the House of Representatives.

As the author sees it, there is no question that the opposition party will win seats, as that is traditional in a midterm election.

The question is whether the Republicans will be able to gain a net total of 39 seats, with the expectation that the Democrats will win 4-6 Republican held seats, which effectively means that the GOP will have to gain 43-45 seats.

Predictions are between the low 30s and the very high number of 60-70 seats if there is a total collapse of the Democrats on Election Day.

The belief of the author is that, after all the votes are in, the Republicans will gain a net total of 33 seats, six short of a majority, meaning a House of Representatives with 224 Democrats and 211 Republicans!

Of course, with such a small margin, it is always possible, after the fact, that six or seven Democratic survivors who are more moderate to conservative could switch over to the Republican party, and have an effect on organization of the House in January!

So, imagine a Democratic held House by a small margin where a few Democrats votes to back a Republican Speaker of the House!

So will Nancy Pelosi be Speaker of the House in a closely divided House, or will she bow out and even possibly resign from her seat?

The prediction is that to manage to keep the small Democratic majority, she will resign and be replaced by her deputy, seen as somewhat more moderate, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland!

And should the GOP gain enough seats to win control of the House of Representatives, will John Boehner become Speaker of the House? Don’t bet on it, as one must watch the “Young Guns”, led by House Minority Whip Eric Cantor, Kevin McCarthy, and Paul Ryan, who are overly ambitious and much more aggressive, and planning for future leadership in the House. So if Boehner ends up as the Speaker, he will know he has these younger members sniping at his heels, ready to undermine him if he does not tow to their line!

So in summary, neither Nancy Pelosi nor John Boehner will have an easy time if either is the potential Speaker of the House in the 112th Congress!

It is more likely that Steny Hoyer or Eric Cantor will be the ultimate beneficiary of these congressional elections two days from now!

The Coming Conflict Within The Congressional Republican Party!

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Assuming that the Republican party wins control of the House of Representatives this November, and even possibly the Senate, does this mean a united GOP against President Barack Obama in 2011 and 2012?

The clear answer is NO, as younger and more right wing conservative members now, and newly elected, will be desirous of grabbing power and going in a more extreme direction in policy and philosophy!

It is hard to know which new House members will become leaders of a “revolution” in the House, but one can be assured that Eric Cantor, the House Minority Whip from Virginia; Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, who is seen as the ideological leader of major conservative oriented reform; and Kevin McCarthy of California will lead the charge for change, and just might challenge John Boehner’s leadership.

Cantor, Ryan and McCarthy are publishing a book called “Young Guns: A New Generation of Conservative Leaders”, and it is a clarion call for moving away from the stodgy, unimaginative leadership of Boehner, who is from the Newt Gingrich era, and a lot older than them! And they fail to even name him in their book!

Will libertarian, Tea Party Movement supporters who are elected this fall move to oust Boehner in favor of Cantor? No one can be certain, including Boehner!

And, as stated elsewhere by the author, IF a whole group of libertarian oriented Tea Party types are elected to the Senate–Rand Paul, Sharron Angle, Mike Lee, Ken Buck, Joe Miller, Marco Rubio, Pat Toomey, and Linda McMahon–or most of them–it could be a very uncomfortable time for the old line Republican leadership of Mitch McConnell and other traditional conservative Republicans in the upper chamber!

Imagine this internal set of battles going on as the GOP tries to make a case for its nominee to challenge President Obama, and with Sarah Palin possibly complicating the battle by becoming a burden to the other GOP presidential possibilities by either deciding to run, or trying to influence who IS the nominee!

Will the GOP be able to accomplish anything in the 112th Congress, and make a case for their keeping control and for a Republican President in 2012?

It might actually be better for them to be unable to gain control, but come close, so that the burden of governing is still left in the hands of the Democrats! It would make it easier for them to build a case for a GOP majority and a Republican President in 2012!