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This Do-Nothing Congress Is A Travesty
Investor's Business Daily ^ | 4/20/2017 | Staff

Posted on 04/21/2017 3:58:19 AM PDT by IBD editorial writer

Agenda: Shortly after Donald Trump won the election, House Speaker Paul Ryan said that Republicans had to "go big, go bold, and do things." So far, the GOP has not delivered.

"They have the House, they have the Senate, they have the presidency — and nothing's happening," lamented PJ Media co-founder Roger Simon earlier this week. "Nothing, that is, that Donald Trump doesn't do by himself. ... The Republicans in the legislature are a disgrace."

Congress did pass, and Trump signed, 13 bills to undo last-minute Obama administration regulations. And the Senate approved Trump's Supreme Court pick. But what about actually advancing long-awaited Republican legislative priorities, like ObamaCare repeal and tax cuts? Nada.

Ryan claims that he's working on yet another version of an ObamaCare repeal and replace bill — after the first attempt blew up — in hopes that he can get a vote on it before Trump hits his 100-day mark. But even if the bill wins approval in the House, nobody knows what the Senate will do, or when.

Now tax reform is slipping off the table, with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin saying that getting reform done by August is "highly aggressive to not realistic."

These delays could easily have been avoided. ObamaCare repeal and tax reform had been on the Republican agenda for years, and Ryan had already hammered out detailed "Better Way" proposals for both last summer. There was every reason to think that Republicans would have, in the words of Instapundit's Glenn Reynolds, bills "lined up like airplanes on a runway ready to take off in the new year."

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


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Editorial; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: congress; republicans
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1 posted on 04/21/2017 3:58:19 AM PDT by IBD editorial writer
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To: IBD editorial writer

Ryan is leading the charge to destroy Pres. Trump.

RYAN MUST BE REMOVED if the GOP is to be taken
seriously. Which it is not.


2 posted on 04/21/2017 4:02:07 AM PDT by Diogenesis ("When a crime is unpunished, the world is unbalanced.")
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To: IBD editorial writer
I'm not a big fan of Congress but this is complete B.S. by the IBD folks here.

Go back over the last 30-40 years and see how long it took some of the biggest legislative items -- for better or worse -- to get passed. Reagan was in office for a couple of years before his economic agenda was in full gear, and it wasn't until 1986 that a landmark tax reform bill was passed.

Even if you go back to the 1994 Republican "Contract with America," you'll find that it was very easy to pass it because every provision in that legislative agenda was practically a no-brainer that had very little opposition among voters.

3 posted on 04/21/2017 4:04:41 AM PDT by Alberta's Child
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To: IBD editorial writer

Trump needs to get on prime time tv and announce I’ve got a pen and I’ve got a phone. As infuriating those words were from emperor Hussein, now passing it down would be priceless.


4 posted on 04/21/2017 4:06:23 AM PDT by Recompennation
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To: IBD editorial writer

Paul Ryan is the female Chuck Schumer.


5 posted on 04/21/2017 4:12:31 AM PDT by mindburglar (When Superman and Batman fight, the only winner is crime.)
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To: IBD editorial writer

A trifecta majority means you have no excuses. What makes anyone think Washington politics ever wants a hint of responsibility in governing?


6 posted on 04/21/2017 4:13:07 AM PDT by blackdog
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To: Alberta's Child
Go back over the last 30-40 years and see how long it took some of the biggest legislative items -- for better or worse -- to get passed. Reagan was in office for a couple of years before his economic agenda was in full gear, and it wasn't until 1986 that a landmark tax reform bill was passed.

Reagan didn't have the House and the Senate.

7 posted on 04/21/2017 4:14:13 AM PDT by DoodleDawg
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To: DoodleDawg

Look at ObamaCare. Obama had the House and Senate, and he would have signed any piece of garbage Nancy Pelosi put on his desk. And yet it still took more than a year to get that thing passed.


8 posted on 04/21/2017 4:26:16 AM PDT by Alberta's Child
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To: IBD editorial writer

RINOs in league with the party of perversion.


9 posted on 04/21/2017 4:28:40 AM PDT by onedoug
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To: DoodleDawg
Reagan didn't have the House and the Senate.

Neither does Trump...

10 posted on 04/21/2017 4:30:00 AM PDT by papertyger (The semantics define how we think.)
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To: IBD editorial writer
So, we hire the GOP to do the work of the people based on voluminous advertising of their planned good works and what do we get...?

An organization without a business plan!

The only viable alternative has a business plan ready to go.

Unfortunately, it involves the robbing and enslavement of the people.

We are so screwed.

11 posted on 04/21/2017 4:32:59 AM PDT by Aevery_Freeman (Dogs are being wagged!)
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To: Alberta's Child
Look at ObamaCare. Obama had the House and Senate, and he would have signed any piece of garbage Nancy Pelosi put on his desk. And yet it still took more than a year to get that thing passed.

But Trump said it was a simple matter to come up with a replacement. Not just a replacement but a replacement that is provides better coverage at a lower cost, covers more people, and gives them more health care providers to choose from. And he wants it done next week. No pressure there.

12 posted on 04/21/2017 4:33:21 AM PDT by DoodleDawg
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To: IBD editorial writer

Congress is mainly a group of quisling, gelding losers who couldn’t manage a lemonade stand. What pathetic “leaders”.


13 posted on 04/21/2017 4:42:49 AM PDT by hal ogen (First Amendment or Reeducation camp?)
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To: Diogenesis

Yep, but we should recognize that he wouldn’t be Speaker if the rot weren’t throughout the House GOP, at least.


14 posted on 04/21/2017 4:44:48 AM PDT by 9YearLurker
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To: DoodleDawg

The best thing about Trump is that he’s not a politician. Unfortunately, that has its disadvantages when it comes to managing expectations in a legislative process.


15 posted on 04/21/2017 4:45:48 AM PDT by Alberta's Child
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To: blackdog
What makes anyone think Washington politics ever wants a hint of responsibility in governing?

Most Dems are essentially Marxist ideologues, so they pass stuff. Most Reps are not ideologues and so have no genuine core agenda they work tirelessly to pass day in and day out, year in and year out.

But the #1 overriding goal of all congress critters of both parties is to make money for themselves, their families and supporters, and to keep getting reelected. That really is the be-all and end-all of being a member of congress. They make more money and get more perks being in the majority, which is why they fight for it. But to actually do anything worthwhile with it? Nah.

16 posted on 04/21/2017 4:48:15 AM PDT by Avalon Memories (Compromise is NOT a dirty word. It's how human society functions every day.)
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To: Alberta's Child

” Go back over the last 30-40 years and see how long it took some of the biggest legislative items — for better or worse — to get passed.”

Patriot Act 2001 - one month
TARP 2008 - 2 weeks
Affordable Care Act 2010 - one year
Voting Rights Act of 1965 - 5 months
Declaration of War December 8, 1941 - one day

Each of the above were major pieces of legislation.


17 posted on 04/21/2017 4:54:05 AM PDT by Soul of the South
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To: Avalon Memories

While I agree that congress sits on their behinds and has been doing so for a long time, the liberal bastards are doing everything they can to breakdown our entire government and country and no one is fighting back. The demodummies hate Trump and congress seems, at least some of them, to go along with that hatred. I am ashamed of the entire lot. While I do not want to turn the control over to demodummies, hopefully some of those in congress who are continually running on “idle” or have shifted to “park”, will be challenged at their next elections.


18 posted on 04/21/2017 4:54:50 AM PDT by DaveA37
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To: IBD editorial writer

A Congressman’s hierarchy of need is something like this: Get money to be reelected. Negotiate your vote(s) so you get the maximum amount of money. Be concerned with your popularity. Note, popularity is only a concern if you have failed to get WAY more money than a potential primary opponent. Now, having locked up plenty of money from interest groups, gotten a hospital or road funded with my name on it (popularity)...what was your party agenda again? Oh, okay. I’ll take it under advisement. Thank you for your time. Don’t forget my tip on the way out.


19 posted on 04/21/2017 4:57:48 AM PDT by Gen.Blather
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To: IBD editorial writer
"They have the House, they have the Senate, they have the presidency — and nothing's happening," lamented PJ Media co-founder Roger Simon earlier this week. "Nothing, that is, that Donald Trump doesn't do by himself. ... The Republicans in the legislature are a disgrace."

I heard that ryan went to Europe.

Quick someone, lock the damned door...!
20 posted on 04/21/2017 4:57:58 AM PDT by novemberslady
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