Dems won unexpected GOP support for climate bill

The Hill ^ | 07/04/09 | Jared Allen

[Delacon]

House Democrats were surprised at the number of Republican votes they won on the razor close climate change vote, which allowed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to let a few more Democrats cast their own no votes.

In what Democrats are readily admitting was their toughest vote since they took back power in 2007, the eight Republican votes proved critical to letting Pelosi hand out as many free passes as she could to members who thought that it would be too difficult to selling the bill in their districts.

 

The climate change bill passed 219-212, by just two votes more than were necessary for passage. Forty-four Democrats bucked their leaders and voted no on the legislation.

Republicans have been relentless in attacking Democrats who supported the bill, which would set up a carbon cap and trade system to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and that Republicans have tried to label as “cap and tax,” citing studies that many consumers could see their local utility rates increase.

Some of the Republicans also cast their votes early, as dozens of Democrats were holding off on making their decisions.

“The early yes votes from them surprised us,” said a Democratic leadership aide. “We had assumed that Republican leaders had asked their yeses to hold their votes until the end.”

Instead, at least two Republicans voted yes very early in the 15-minute voting window, including Rep. Bono Mack (R-Calif.) and Rep. John McHugh (R-N.Y.), Obama’s choice to serve as Secretary of the Army.

Democrats, who whipped the bill for weeks and right up until the last minute, had counted on winning over anywhere from two-to-four GOP members.

And the majority wouldn’t have been surprised if Republican support had been limited to a single yes vote from Rep. Mary Bono Mack (R-Calif.), the lone GOP supporter of the bill as it fought its way through the Energy and Commerce Committee.

In spite of that, Democrats contended that they had enough votes of their own to pass the bill, but used the GOP cushion to allow some members to go ahead and vote no and other members who had promised Pelosi they wouldn’t let their no votes sink the bill keep their no votes in place.

Aides would not say who those members were, but said there were as many as six Democrats who were prepared to switch their votes at the last minute in order to save the bill from failing if necessary.

 

“We knew that if we had that many Republicans, then we had more people who wanted to vote no who could vote no,” a leadership aide said. “There were a few of them who told us that they didn’t want the bill to go down from their no votes.”

No Democrats changed their recorded votes.

Democrats credited the stronger-than-expected GOP showing to the Speaker’s direct outreach to a hand-picked group of moderate Republicans in the week leading up to the vote.

Through two meetings in her office – one a listening session and the second an education effort – Pelosi, bill authors Reps. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and Ed Markey (Mass.) and conservative Democratic Rep. Rick Boucher (D-Va.) were able to convince many of moderate Republicans to support the massive climate change bill.

The Republicans who cast yes votes – Bono Mack, McHugh, and Reps. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), Mike Castle (R-Del.), Dave Reichert (R-Wa.), Leonard Lance (R-N.J), Frank LoBiondo (R-N.J.), and Christopher Smith (R-N.J.) – spent the week getting blasted on conservative talk radio.

Throughout the 111th Congress, House Republicans have put up a number of united fronts against the Democratic agenda, often denying Pelosi and Obama even a single vote in support of their legislative priorities.

But despite a intense whipping effort and a rousing floor speech against the bill by Republican Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) that won widespread praise throughout the conference, Republicans couldn’t hold their line quite so intact.

“There was never a who’s with me, who’s against me count,” Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammill said of the Republican outreach. “It was just a genuine attempt at listening to their concerns and explaining to them how we were able to address those concerns. A lot of what they were concerned about had been taken care of by [Agriculture Chairman Collin] Peterson.”

[Delacon]

Barf alert. No so much because some lib wrote it but because it shows how bad off the GOP is. The GOP gets played at every turn.

[Delacon]

ping

[doc1019]

Idiots

[ChicagoConservative27]

Unreal huh?

[NordP]

They weren't the only ones that were surprised...

My husband and I made phone calls for 3 hours that morning, --- heard the phones were crazy against the Bill, and yet....they never read the Bill (again) or listened to us.

We weren't surprised, we were shocked that Republicans would act that way... Vote 'em all out!!!

[soycd]

Traitors and idiots all of them. A collective IQ of negative eight.

A pox on them all.

[PhiKapMom]

How come we never hear about the 44 Dems that voted NO.

Still believe if those 8 turncoats had voted NO, Queen Pelosi would have found eight votes from the 44.

[cleveland gop]

Sorry for the idiots but they won’t have the same success in the Senate...

Screw the stupid 8. They will get theirs soon enough.

[mrsixpack36]

you know it was a bad bill when even Kucinich votes against it. Meanwhile Al Gore is grinning ear to ear counting his money on this snake-oil scam.

[ChicagoConservative27]

I bet it wasn’t commie enough for Kucinich. If there is such a thing.

[CharlesWayneCT]

If the vote was 219-212, that means 6 more democrats could have abstained from the vote, or three more could have voted no.

[MHGinTN]

It is not nor was it ever intended to be a climate bill. It is the newest way democrats have devised for taxing the nation into servitude to the federal oligarchy the democrats run and the feckless Republicans serve. In a bygone era, these criminal bastards would be lined up against a wall and sent to their father in Hell, or carted to the blade for lopping.

[cleveland gop]

The only reason idiots like Kucinich voted no was because the bill didn’t go far enough for his purposes. That’s why you don’t hear Stretch whining about all the D’s that voted no. She knew they had enough RINO’s to pass it.

[Delacon]

Forgetting the fact that we could have respected not only the 8 but the whole house GOP for having its act together in trying to stop THE LARGEST TAX INCREASE IN US HISTORY unified in their resolve. But these 8 handed re-election to 8 dems somewhere else as well.

[ChicagoConservative27]

That area of Cleveland must be full of Moonbats.

[PhiKapMom]

That’s what infuriates me is the fact hat 8 Dems got to vote NO and we would have had them on record as voting yes.

Far as I am concerned all 8 need to go in the primary or least get a real scare.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Queen Pelosi would have found eight votes from the 44.

Yeah but the Dems would have totally owned the bill.
Just goes to show you how brain-dead some Republicans are.

[LouD]

Vote 'em all out!!!

Really? All of them?

Why don't we just throw out the ones that voted for this POS?

[afnamvet]

As a consolation prize , the GOP has won unprecedented scorn from its constituency in 2010.

[Pikachu_Dad]

Correct.

As it is, Congress Melancon (D-La) gets to pretend that he was against the bill.

He will probably run against Senator Vitter (R-La) in the next election.

Look for the D’s to try to take another R Senator out through foul means.

[Lancey Howard]

Still believe if those 8 turncoats had voted NO, Queen Pelosi would have found eight votes from the 44.

Absolutely.
The article even says as much:

"...the eight Republican votes proved critical to letting Pelosi hand out as many free passes as she could to members who thought that it would be too difficult to selling the bill in their districts."

All these GOP cowards did was help the rats in the next general election.
The selfish punks could care less if the GOP regains the majority.

[PhiKapMom]

You nailed that — braindead is 100% correct!

[PhiKapMom]

That is what burns me up — Dems who would have had voting YES hung around their necks. As far as I am concerned those 8 are traitors.

[NordP]

Sorry, ...meant all the bad ones.

[SuperLuminal]

These GOP sellouts must be run (campaign wise) into the ground....

[CdMGuy]

No doubt, those Republicans allowed 8 Dems to vote No. I received an Independence Day email from Mary Bono. I replied with my own email telling her that her vote had Sonny rolling over in his grave and that my wife and I would NEVER vote for her again and hoped that the Republicans ran a good candidate against her in the primary.

[Republic_of_Secession.]

Which will be followed by: Republicans Loose Voter Support Over Climate Bill. Seems like the Republicans in the Congress want to be fewer in number.

[ExTexasRedhead]

The Republicans that voted for that POS are toast!

[El Cid]

The Republicans that voted for that POS are toast!

Hopefully so. I sure wouldn't give these RINOs a free pass.
Unfortunately I live in a solid leftist Dem district - and I don't even get the chance to flush a RINO ...

[Prokopton]

The selfish punks could care less if the GOP regains the majority.

With GOP Reps like this what good would it do for the GOP to regain the majority. When they had the majority they acted just like the big government, big spending, liberal Democrats. Being GOP means nothing. The liberal Marxists from both parties must be defeated. It should be easier for conservatives to defeat the liberal Republicans than the liberal Democrats. That should be their first goal.

[dsc]

“With GOP Reps like this what good would it do for the GOP to regain the majority?”

IMO the gop is hopelessly corrupt. It fills the position of an opposition party, but does not effectively oppose. It is time not for a third party, but for the death of the gop and a new second party.

[airborne]

The GOP gets played at every turn.

It's likely that those 8 GOP got PAID, not played.

"RINO's for sale".

[101voodoo]

There is absolutely NO question that if the 8 RINO’s had voted NO that Pelosi would have still had the votes to pass the thing, even if by a single vote.

[RushLake]

"House Democrats were surprised at the number of Republican votes they won on the razor close climate change vote, which allowed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to let a few more Democrats cast their own no votes."

Above is an example of pure undiluted bulls#it. The democrats knew exactly what they were getting from those losers.

From other posts I've read on this site, its pretty apparent that most here don't contribute to things like the RNC, RSC, RCC, etc. When they call my house they don't even get a polite no, they hear a dial tone. If they can't discipline the scum bags in their ranks, not one dime.

[mrsixpack36]

ahh and i thought by chance a ray of intelligence was beaming down on Denny...my fault.

[Thermalseeker]

How come we never hear about the 44 Dems that voted NO.

My 'Rat Congresscritter, Lincoln Davis, was one of the 44 who voted against it. I was surprised because this guy is a dim bulb at best and usually goes along with whatever Pelousy tells him to do. His district is smack dab in the middle of TVA coal country. So, maybe he answers to someone besides Pelousy, but it certainly is not his constituents. I have yet to figure out why the voters of the 4th District of Tennessee keep sending him back. He claims to be a "Bluedog", but his votes show otherwise. He voted in the affirmative for TARP and Porkulous. Maybe that will be enough to send him home come November of 2010.

Politicians and diapers need to be changed often and for the same reason. Flush Congress in 2010!

[xcamel]

FReepmail me to get on or off

Ping me if you find one I've missed.

---

[Theodore R.]

During the 1960s, Everett McKinley Dirksen of liberal IL similarly time and time again provided crucial votes to pass failed Great Society measures.

[Theodore R.]

People in south LA really like Melancons, for there are so many of them.

[Recovering_Democrat]

Yes. Well, we won’t forget those 8 idiots, either.

[ExTexasRedhead]

You can still stir up a hornet’s nest. I call Pelosi, Feinstein, and Boxer continually. Their staffers are arrogant, rude, and obnoxious, but I still call. Take names!

[OKSooner]

Craven, venal, self-serving Republicans.

Who'd have thought it... /s

[PhiKapMom]

Hopefully the district will send him back to TN. Republicans need a large turnout this time and a lot of grassroots support.

Sessions, who heads NRCC, said they are not going to let the DemocRATs go unchallenged this time. Hope you have a good candidate for this District.

[ding_dong_daddy_from_dumas]

I replied with my own email telling her that her vote had Sonny rolling over in his grave and that my wife and I would NEVER vote for her again and hoped that the Republicans ran a good candidate against her in the primary.

I hate to say this, but she probably laughed all the way to the "Green Bank" to get her 30 pieces of silver. Please punish her in the primary if she has the nerve to run.

[Munz]

turncoats

[Thermalseeker]

Sessions, who heads NRCC, said they are not going to let the DemocRATs go unchallenged this time.

Yeah, lets hope so. In recent election cycles, really ever since the districts were gerrymandered last time and Wamp went to the 3rd District the Republicans have only put up token candidates for not only Congress, but for the state legislature seats, too. Last election the first time I saw the Republican Congressional candidate's name was on the ballot the day of the election. That is sad commentary on the part of the Tennessee Republican Committee folks. This is a rural and very conservative area and there should really not be any Democrats in high elected office and there wouldn't be if the 'Pubbies would only get in gear and put up good candidates and at least spring for some yard signs. Thus far, that has not been the case. Several candidates I've met on the Republican side have told me that they got little or no support from the state Republican folks...

[PhiKapMom]

I believe that about the State Party people in EVERY state. I honestly think some have cut deals with the Dems on seats — we won’t run here if you don’t run someone there.

Time for the grassroots to work and help fund candidates. The powers at be tried to do it to Coburn but it didn’t work in 2004. He was not the chosen candidate — mayor of OKC held that title including a mailout in the primary showing him at the WH with President Bush. That did not go over well with the grassroots so with the help of Club for Growth (Coburn’s fundraising had been shut off by the good old boy network) and a ground game made up of grassroots activists we helped him win the primary and then the general.

It takes a good candidate and a lot of elbow grease from the grassrots to tell the State Party to get on board or get the h*ll out of the way. If we are going to get good conservative candidates elected across this Country, we have to decide right now that we are going to spend our energy and any extra resources to do just that. Boots on the ground is priceless energy for the campaigns.

[Thermalseeker]

If we are going to get good conservative candidates elected across this Country, we have to decide right now that we are going to spend our energy and any extra resources to do just that. Boots on the ground is priceless energy for the campaigns.

Amen! And, it should start with the primaries. As far as I'm concerned, I'd like to see any Congressional incumbent that voted for TARP, the Porkulous bill or Cap and Tax challenged in the primaries. I think that would send both parties scrambling and let them know we mean business, even if they don't.....

[steelyourfaith]

Thanx again. Delacon!

 

Beam me to Planet Gore !