Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Sequestration: Cuts are already threatening House seats
Politico ^ | 19 Mar 13 | DARREN SAMUELSOHN

Posted on 03/19/2013 6:53:32 AM PDT by SkyPilot

Rep. Bill Enyart might be a Democrat and Rep. Rodney Davis a Republican, but the two rookie lawmakers in Southern Illinois share one fear.

Sequestration could cost them their seats.

Enyart and Davis are three months into their new jobs — representing next-door districts — and constituents already are blaming them for not doing enough to stop the automatic spending cuts.

This week, 4,500 civilian workers at nearby Scott Air Force Base will receive furlough notices — a troubling reminder for Davis, who won his seat last fall by just 1,002 votes.

Enyart’s no better off: He pledged to protect Scott during his 2012 campaign, but at last weekend’s St. Patrick’s Day parade in his hometown of Belleville, several people shouted, “Stop the sequester!” as he walked by tossing green beads to children.

“Certainly, in my district, we’re in crisis stage,” Enyart told POLITICO after marching in the parade.

This tale of two districts is a reminder for some in Washington who still think about sequester as an abstract political fight. On the ground, the cuts are real — and so are the political consequences.

(PHOTOS: How sequestration could affect you)

Davis, who holds a part of Abraham Lincoln’s old district and the state capital of Springfield — is considered one of the best pickup opportunities in 2014 for Democrats. After all, he had the narrowest margin of victory last cycle for any successful Republican.

To Democrats, the thinking is that Davis’s constituents in rural Illinois and the college towns of Champaign, Normal and Springfield will be so upset with Republican leadership over the spending cuts that they will send him packing next November.

(Excerpt) Read more at politico.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Front Page News; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: 113th; 2014midterms; congress; house; military; sequestration
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-47 next last
The military is 18% of the budget, and it is enduring 50% of the Sequestration cuts, which exempt Entitlement spending that is the largest driver of our debt and deficits.

Anyone who spews rhetoric about the cuts being "only" 2.4% are preaching falsehoods. The cuts are not across the board. The cut to the DoD is 13%, and since military pay is exempt, the cut to Operations and Maintenance for the US military is massive (up to 50% for some services).

The GOP has "embraced" Sequestration, and is now going about crowing about what a "victory" it is.

Besides the betrayal to our military, the Republicans have tied their leaky rubber boat to a 2 ton anchor.

The GOP now wants to launch "hearings" as to why Tuition Assistance for our heroes is being cut. Ummmmm...because THEY cut military by $46 Billion in the middle of a Fiscal Year.

The military isn't posturing. These cuts are real, destructive, and deep - and the Republicans do not want to lift a finger to stop them.

The GOP will lose the House in 2014 because of their stance on Sequestration.

Mark my words.

1 posted on 03/19/2013 6:53:32 AM PDT by SkyPilot
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: SkyPilot

“The GOP will lose the House in 2014 because of their stance on Sequestration”

Bullcrap


2 posted on 03/19/2013 6:56:24 AM PDT by Perdogg (Sen Ted Cruz is my adoptive Senator, Rand Paul for President in 2016)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SkyPilot

The way the GOP has been ‘fighting’ on the sequestration is what’s the problem. As long as you have imbeciles like Boehner never challenging 0, you will lose the PR fight. All the cuts are because the President did not want to tackle true waste. That should be the message.


3 posted on 03/19/2013 6:57:12 AM PDT by ABQHispConservative (Only fake Christians are Democrats.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SkyPilot

The GOP will lose the house with or without sequestration. Until and unless we have nationwide voter id, the repubs won’t win any more elections. JMO


4 posted on 03/19/2013 6:59:01 AM PDT by Hattie
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SkyPilot
The GOP will lose the House in 2014 because of their stance on Sequestration.

No they won't.

You are blaming the wrong party.


5 posted on 03/19/2013 7:01:05 AM PDT by Uncle Chip
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Hattie

“nationwide voter ID” and not “national ID”

just to be clear


6 posted on 03/19/2013 7:01:40 AM PDT by GeronL (http://asspos.blogspot.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: SkyPilot

What nobody is discussing here is (why) we need sequestration:

Our jobs are being outsourced to China, and elsewhere. That is what is not being discussed.

BRING. THEM. BACK.

We are nuts, if we believe sending US industry to China will solve anything.

China is a communist nation, and is cannibalizing US growth and safety.

Bring back US industry now.


7 posted on 03/19/2013 7:04:06 AM PDT by Cringing Negativism Network
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Perdogg

“Furloughed”

The furloughed workers should be thankful they still have a job. Everyone should be able to get by for quite a while on 80% of their take-home pay.

Remember that the sequenteration isn’t reducing government expenditures — it’s just reducing their rate of increase, at least that’s what Hannity says.


8 posted on 03/19/2013 7:09:18 AM PDT by cymbeline
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: SkyPilot

Politicians who throw their constituents out of work can start polishing off their resume. The voters could pink slip them.


9 posted on 03/19/2013 7:09:37 AM PDT by goldstategop (In Memory Of A Dearly Beloved Friend Who Lives In My Heart Forever)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Uncle Chip
You are blaming the wrong party.

Correct, but ask anyone on the street and they will tell you otherwise. Many people seem to know that 0bama is a liar, but listen to him anyway, because the media reinforces him.

10 posted on 03/19/2013 7:27:54 AM PDT by The Sons of Liberty (It's not "GUN CONTROL"! It's "PEOPLE CONTROL"!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: cymbeline
Remember that the sequenteration isn’t reducing government expenditures — it’s just reducing their rate of increase. . . . . . .

__________________________________________________________

This is a true statement but terribly misleading. Sequestration takes half of its cuts out of the military. 18% of the budget has to take half of the cuts. For the military it is an actual “cut” not a reduction of growth. The reduction of growth is only to the budget overall. The budget over all does not have cuts, in fact wekfare and entitlement spending increases at the same rate or more than in previous years. Sequestration is an awful deal that was made in bad faith by the democrats who always think that the military gets too much of the budget.

In the 50’s when I was a kid the military was 67% of the budget. Our congress need to grow a set of gonads and cut welfare spending. We will never get a handle on deficit spending until we get a handle on entitlements.

The Democrats are acting like they are crying about the sequestration but they are really laughing it up pretty good.

Democrats, they are the most ill-informed people I have ever met. I have friends that are Democrats, they are stupid. They only know about MSM sound bites that paint Republicans as old people death wishers, queer haters and single mother haters.

Over 70% of our prison population were raised in single mother homes. Queers have a normal life expectancy of 42 years, old people in this country will be required to go home and just die under Obama care. Somehow, with all the above Republicans still get the blame for what is wrong in society. Like I said, Democrats are idiots.

11 posted on 03/19/2013 7:35:55 AM PDT by JAKraig (Surely my religion is at least as good as yours)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: SkyPilot
There is no sequestration causing any loss of jobs or political threatening seats. This problem in our Country is the result of the communists take over of government and destroying capitalism and the Constitution. It is getting close and we may never recover. Their purpose, with King Obama at its head, is to turn our Country into a dictatorship and like a third world Country.
12 posted on 03/19/2013 7:42:12 AM PDT by Logical me
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: The Sons of Liberty

The problem is that too many of those dependent upon the military coffers think and act like Democrats.


13 posted on 03/19/2013 7:45:38 AM PDT by Uncle Chip
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: Perdogg; SkyPilot

IMO the GOP will lose the House in 2014 but not because of
Sequestration. There may very well be 20 million new Democrat voters with the passage of amnesty and Obamacare will be fully funded and operational.


14 posted on 03/19/2013 7:52:34 AM PDT by Grams A (The Sun will rise in the East in the morning and God is still on his throne.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: SkyPilot

So Davis is sitting on his hands wimpering?

Davis should be at every event in his state making three things clear:

1. Sequestration was Obama’s idea/brainchild/solution and

2. Obama played political games instead of leading.

3. Obama personally ordered these particularl cuts, the type that hurt the most.

Just say this over and over again and the sequester goes away, along with the Democrats that brought it.


15 posted on 03/19/2013 7:53:04 AM PDT by 1010RD (First, Do No Harm)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Uncle Chip

Yes, but more importantly, the MEDIA is blaming the ‘Pubbies. That means that LIVs are probably going to take it out on the Republicans, in which case, SkyPilot is right.


16 posted on 03/19/2013 7:59:22 AM PDT by Little Ray (Waiting for the return of the Gods of the Copybook Headings.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: Little Ray

The media always blames the pubbies.

The LIVs always vote for Democrats.

So what’s new about that???

The military should quit their whining and cut the fat and while they are doing it demand that the fat in the DOE, DOE, DOJ, DOL, and other departments do the same.


17 posted on 03/19/2013 8:05:03 AM PDT by Uncle Chip
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]

To: The Sons of Liberty
Many people seem to know that 0bama is a liar, but listen to him anyway, because the media reinforces him.

I say this over and over again and probably sound like a broken record but our problem is the stranglehold the liberal media has on the information received by a majority of the citizens and voters in this country. It does not matter what your "message" is if it doesn't get out there through media channels. Yes, you can spend oodles of money to buy media time but by spending that money, you are robbing Peter to pay Paul meaning you are not able to spend it on other activities needed to help win elections. This isn't even taking into consideration the natural bias in news organizations that run contrary to conservative principles.

Many will say how Reagan bypassed the media. That was then, this is now. The media has completely sold out to the democRAT party the past 15 or so years.

Until conservatives make larger inroads to the large media outlets, it will continue to be a struggle to get out any "message". Just my two cents worth which is probably overpriced...lol.
18 posted on 03/19/2013 8:11:00 AM PDT by copaliscrossing (Comparison is the beginning of discontent.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: SkyPilot
let me make sure I clearly understand your meaning.

Are you suggesting the DOD budget is 13% LESS this year than last year?

simple question. No hidden meaning or agenda.

19 posted on 03/19/2013 8:14:48 AM PDT by saywhatagain
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: saywhatagain
Are you suggesting the DOD budget is 13% LESS this year than last year?

Absolutely.

I have discovered that most Freepers do not understand how deep or devastating these cuts really are. I can only imagine what that translates to for the general population of low information Americans, but I guarantee it is in the single digits.

The cuts were originally slated for $109 billion this year, but after the fiscal-cliff deal postponed the sequester for two months by finding alternate savings, the sequester will amount to $85 billion over the next 10 months. In 2013, nondefense programs will be cut by nine percent, and defense programs will be cut by 13 percent. If carried out over 10 years (as designed), the sequester will amount to $1.2 trillion in total.

___________________________________________________________________

The first installment of the sequester — $85 billion worth — affects the remaining 7 months of fiscal 2013, when ends September 30. Spending will decrease during this time by roughly 9% for domestic programs and 13% for defense programs. Social Security, Medicare benefits, and Medicaid are spared this budget axe."> I can even post for you the actual OMB letter in PDF format that re-states this.

The military has been under a triple fiscal assault.

1. The $487 Billion in real cuts that began in 2011

2. The Continuing Resolution that froze funding and has left the services short Billions in funds

3. The final knife across the the throat - the Sequester, which cuts so deeply into Operations and Maintenance because other funding lines are exempt or off limits (i.e. military pay).

Look at these slides. Look at them well.

This is a factual presentation that only highlights the devastation to the Navy. I guarantee you that all the services are in the same or worse shape.

http://www.navyleague.org/files/sequestration_presentation.pdf

The problem I see is that too many Freepers and Conservatives are listening to people like this regarding the Sequester.

He knows less about Sequestration than my house cat.

And that is saying something.

This is one of the best articles I have encountered that spells out, in very direct terms, the evisceration of the military caused by the triple fiscal assault.

In sequestration, president and Congress undermining military

20 posted on 03/19/2013 9:05:23 AM PDT by SkyPilot
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-47 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson