Free Republic

Bipartisan Effort to Enforce Reforms They Enacted in Wake of Hurricane Katrina. Washington, D.C. ­– Two years after enacting critical reforms of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Senators Russ Feingold (D-WI) and John McCain (R-AZ) are asking the Administration why little progress has been made to implement them. Those reforms, passed in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, made key changes to strengthen the Corps and ensure that it uses its limited resources wisely. One of those reforms was a requirement that the Corps’ planning guidelines, Planning Principles & Guidelines (P&G), be modernized. In a letter sent today to...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats and Republicans in Congress are working together to craft an immigration reform bill that could become law as early as next year, a senior White House adviser said on Sunday. That legislation could create a path to citizenship for the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants already in the United States, David Axelrod, senior advisory to President Barak Obama, told CNN's State of the Union with John King. "I think some good work is being done on both sides of the aisle to achieve that," Axelrod said, referring to the partisan divide on Capitol Hill.

(snip) Most of all, I remember five long decades when, for all our many differences, Americans nonetheless maintained a bipartisan commitment to the freedom and security of our allies. And together, we in the West kept faith with those on the other side of the walls of that world struggle, confident that they wanted the same things we did – liberty, equal justice, an opportunity to prosper by their own talents, and a chance to live under the rule of law, not under the thumbs of tyrants. This, my friends, is what today’s anniversary is all about. The Berlin Wall...

When Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced he would be pushing for a public option in the final health care bill, it looked as if he had given up on the possibility of a bipartisan agreement. Most Republicans have been steadfast in their opposition to the Democratic health care proposals. The only serious possibility for GOP backing has come from Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine. While expressing support for much of the Senate Finance Committee bill, she has said she would accept a public option only if private markets and new regulations fail to control costs and lower premiums. Reid's...

Republican Sen. John McCain, along with four of his colleagues on the Hill, yesterday introduced a bipartisan post-9/11 Troops to Teachers Enhancement Act, which expands and modernizes the current Troops to Teachers (TTT) program with the goal of having more troops continue their service in the classroom.

We, the American people, find ourselves in quite a conundrum. Our elected officials and the White House who have spent hundreds of hours working on health care reform have lost sight of its original purpose, which is to bring down the cost of health insurance and get as many people who are not currently insured the primary and preventative care that will help them stay well and live long lives. What Congress and the White House has created, however, is a circus of partisan bickering, scare tactics, unfair and outrageous accusations and thousands of pages of federal rules, regulations, fees...

McCain vows to continue effort to strip $2.5-billion for 10 additional planes from the defense bill. Obama and Gates also say the extra C-17s, which are assembled in Long Beach, are not needed. Reporting from Washington - The Senate on Wednesday shot down an effort to kill funding for Boeing C-17 military cargo planes that President Obama says are not needed, underscoring the turbulence the White House faces in trying to cut money for politically popular projects.

Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.) introduced a discharge petition last Wednesday that would compel House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to permit a vote on a House rule change that would force a bit of transparency on the Democrat leadership. House Resolution 554 would require that all major legislation be posted on the web for public review for a minimum of 72 hours before it could be brought to a vote on the floor of the House of Representatives. No more dropping thousand-page bills and hundreds of pages of amendments at the last minute barring not only the public but members of...

In the background, behind all of the noise around the Baucus bill and the endless appearances by Obama, is another healthcare bill that has been given little attention. A flawed bill this worrisome legislation appears to be waiting in the wings. The Healthy Americans Act (HHA), or Wyden-Bennett, was re-introduced to Congress in February, 2009. Written by Oregon Senator Ron Wyden (D) and Utah Senator Bob Bennett (R), it has a bi-partisan group of co-sponsors in the Senate. Will Wyden-Bennett be trotted out as another "grand compromise" piece of legislation? A coalition of Senators from both sides of the aisle...

(snip) McCain also spoke about the raft of national spending bills over the past year, including the $787 billion financial bailout of 2008, $700 billion for the stimulus plan and the $83 billion rescue of the auto industry. Taken with other measures, the spending would saddle the country with as much as $9 trillion of debt future generations would have to pay, the senator said. "What I'm wary about is that we're committing an act of generational theft," McCain said.(snip) He advocated for reforms of Medicare, saying the system likely would go broke within seven years if Congress and the...

Nearly a year after the presidential race came to an end, it's a subject Arizona Sen. John McCain still can't avoid: Sarah Palin. Appearing on the Tonight Show With Conan O'Brien Wednesday, the former presidential candidate was asked, as he has been several times before, whether he was shocked Palin chose to resign her post as governor of Alaska two months ago. "Yeah I was because she didn't call me ahead of time," McCain said to laughter in the audience. "We all have families, we all have challenges, we all have issues in our lives. She did have huge legal...

CLEMSON — U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who has earned a reputation for reaching across the aisle with Democratic colleagues on various issues, said President Barack Obama and the Democratic controlled Congress should adhere to that same bipartisanship concerning health care. “There will be some in the Democratic Party that will want to do it alone and that would be a mistake,” Graham said during a speech at the Clemson Rotary Club’s weekly Monday meeting. “Health care is one-sixth of our economy, and this needs to be passed with support from both (Houses).” Graham said both parties should collaborate on...

CLEMSON — U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham said Monday that he would never support a government-run public health insurance option and hoped President Obama would seek a bipartisan plan that included tort reform and insurance reform. He said he supports an individual tax credit for health care. An employer option could remain, but he said he believes the individual credit would provide more cost savings. “The idea of a public (health care) option … will never get my vote,” Graham said. Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, spoke to members and guests of the Rotary Club of Clemson at the Ramada...

(NECN: Dorchester, Mass.) - The reigning Republican leader as the party's 2008 presidential nominee, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), joined those speaking at the memorial service for Senator Edward M. Kennedy -- a Democrat. Sen. McCain has lauded Kennedy's bipartisan efforts and, in death, labeled him as "irreplacable" in the United States Senate. "He was the most reliable, the most prepared and the most persistent member of the Senate. He took the long view -- he never gave up," Sen. McCain said. "He taught me to be a better senator."When the Senate resumes following its summer recess on after Labor Day,...

If the Democrats decide to use budget reconciliation rules to try to pass the health care overhaul — a strategy that would allow them to push through the most contentious changes with a simple majority, rather than 60 votes — expect to hear Sen. John McCain of Arizona draw a lot of comparisons to the fight he helped lead four years ago to preserve judicial filibusters. In 2005, McCain was the Republican co-chair of the “Gang of 14,” a bipartisan group of senators who blocked a Republican plan to stop Democrats from filibustering President George W. Bush’s judicial nominees. The...

Colleague and Friend Says Senator's 'Word Was His Bond.' BY KATIE ESCHERICH Sen. John McCain, who knew Ted Kennedy for more than a quarter-century, said he will remember his friend and colleague as "a happy warrior" on the Senate floor. "Many times there was no need for the microphone system, we all heard him very clearly," McCain said on "Good Morning America" today. Kennedy died late Tuesday from brain cancer at the age of 77. He will be buried Saturday at Arlington National Cemetery. "A great part of the legacy of Ted Kennedy is his passionate advocacy," McCain said. "Whether...

Senator John McCain of Arizona, the Republican presidential nominee last year, today praised Senator Edward M. Kennedy's willingness to work with Republicans on issues facing the country. "Ted Kennedy had this unique way of doing hand-to-hand combat on the floor of the Senate," McCain said on CNN. "And as soon as we stopped our speechmaking, he'd come over and put his arm around you and make everybody appreciate that we had our differences, politically, but personally we could be friends and work together as colleagues and friends for the good of the country." "Probably the most overrated aspect of the...

Senator McCain Poised to Snatch Defeat from the Jaws of Victory August 24, 2009 BEGIN TRANSCRIPT RUSH: Try this, ladies and gentlemen. State-controlled Associated Press: "Senator John McCain says that President Obama will have to drop proposals for a government-run health insurance option if he hopes to reach congressional agreement on health care reform." So far, so good. I'm still reminded of last week. I was laughing myself silly when news came out and how big news it was that McCain was voting with Republicans. (laughing)Our nominee, our presidential nominee, and there was a huge story, about it: "Ah,...

ESTES PARK — Bipartisan political leaders strolled through Rocky Mountain National Park this morning studying beetle-kill trees and changing vegetation patterns — and agreed that nuclear power must be part of any comprehensive climate-change legislation.Sen. Mark Udall, an Eldorado Springs Democrat, and Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona are holding a formal hearing in Estes Park later today concerning global warming and its impact on national parks. McCain called on President Barack Obama to come forward with a climate-change proposal to get the discussion started in Congress.

Negotiations on health care reform are starting to remind me of a scene from one of my favorite movies...it appears that the Democrats may be on the verge of taking their ball and going home to mother — or Obama, as the case may be. This piece in the New York Times breathlessly announced that the majority party is sick and tired of trying to get the GOP to abandon their first principles and bargain away their souls. The Democrats will now seek to pass reform legislation without the minority. Steve Benen looks upon this news as progress

A growing sense in the Republican Party that health care reform of any kind is the enemy, and attacks on the Massachusetts plan from Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty, appear to have prompted Mitt Romney to launch a defense of his legacy in that state, which now insures far more of its residents than any other. Romney defended his plan on the Early Show this morning...

Sen. Lindsey Graham was the sole Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee to vote in favor of Sonia Sotomayor. A few days later, he co-signed an op-ed in The Washington Post with six Senate Democrats and four other Senate Republicans that began, "We refuse to let partisanship kill health reform." If there's a deal to be made on health care, he'll probably be at the center of it. Graham (S.C.) spoke with The Post's Ezra Klein about reform, the pitfalls of bipartisanship and the difference between buying a car and having a heart attack.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – As negotiations over a health care reform bill drag on in the Senate Finance Committee, Sen. John McCain says he is not in favor of the approach most likely to be put forward by a bipartisan group of six senators negotiating on the committee. . . . . . McCain does not favor a pure public option run by the federal government and the Arizona Republican says he also does not favor insurance co-operatives – an alternative to government-run, single-payer insurance that has been proposed by North Dakota Democrat Sen. Kent Conrad who sits on the Senate...

WASHINGTON -- Sen. John McCain said Sunday President Barack Obama has failed in his effort to be a bipartisan leader. McCain, who lost the election to Obama last year, says the success of Obama's initiatives in Congress shouldn't be mistaken for bipartisanship. As one example, McCain said the health care bill was written without Republican input. McCain said that while Obama has managed to pick off a few Republican votes, the president has failed to change the partisan climate in Washington as he said he wanted.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – The “Blue Dogs,” a group of moderate to conservative House Democrats who have worked to limit the price tag of health care reform legislation, are taking a hit from a prominent Republican who is suggesting that the group will ultimately prove ineffectual. “The Blue Dogs, they always bark and they never bite,” Arizona Sen. John McCain said on an interview that aired Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union. “They almost always – in fact, always, roll over and then play dead.”

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Sen. John McCain has some advice for Democrats: have a “true sit-down” with Republicans on health care reform legislation. “Well, first of all, unfortunately, there was no input by Republicans in the writing of the bill,” McCain said of the version of the legislation that came out of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. “It was all a Democrat proposal. That’s not the way you want to begin if you’re really interested in a true bipartisan result.” “It's got to be a true sit-down,” McCain added. “OK, what are you going to concede … how...

(CNN) — Despite his campaign-trail promises, President Obama has failed to change the partisan tone in Washington, Arizona Sen. John McCain said Friday. "I'm afraid they have," Obama's former presidential rival told CNN's John King when asked if the administration has 'failed' in delivering on its repeated pledge of bipartisanship.

An emerging consensus among a bipartisan group of senators is poised to shift the dynamic in the congressional debate over health-care reform and could lead to a final product that sheds many of the priorities that President Obama has emphasized and that have drawn GOP attacks. Three Democrats and three Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee are expected to wrap up their arduous multi-week talks in the coming days, and Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) said he expects a panel vote before the Senate recess, which will begin Aug. 7. Assuming the fragile committee coalition holds, the legislation it...

WASHINGTON – A bipartisan group of senators agreed tentatively Tuesday on a plan to squeeze an additional $35 billion out of Medicare over the next decade and larger sums in the years beyond, according to congressional officials, a step toward fulfilling President Barack Obama's goal of curbing the growth of health care spending.

Our health care system must be reformed and this is as an historic opportunity to achieve the changes that Americans need, now more than ever. The health care industry accounts for nearly one-sixth of our economy and affects every American family and household budget. As Americans, we are fortunate to have the highest quality of health care, one that draws patients from around the world who seek the best medical care. And while we can all agree on the need for reform, it’s not the quality of care that needs to change but rather the cost. Health care reform must...

(snip) BLITZER: One of your colleagues, Orrin Hatch, Republican of Utah, he said today he was dropping out of these negotiations trying to come up with a bipartisan solution. He said: "I decided to withdraw because I'm having difficulty with the high costs of a number of the situations that I think they're ultimately going to come up with." Is there any hope at all that health care reform cannot only get Democrats on board, but Republicans alongside? GRAHAM: I don't think there's much hope for a public option. They have 60 Democratic senators and a 40 Democrat seat majority...

(snip) Since Democrats have enough votes to shove almost anything they want through the Senate, why suddenly all this talk about seeking "bipartisan reform"? Because Democrats can't tell the truth. They know socialized medicine will cost enough billions to lower the standard of living for millions of Americans, but they have to pretend they believe otherwise, that it will somehow "save money." They can't run for re-election in 2010 -- any more than they could run in 2008 -- on an honest platform of, "We'll raise your taxes to the sky and borrow the nation into bankruptcy to get to...

In an interview with Comrade Olbermann, the former DNC chairman declares an end to bipartisanship. [VIDEO runs on original article.] Wait, 72% of the American people want government to control health care? Which polls are you tracking, Comrade Dean? And you’re upset that 40 Senators can obstruct or thwart this plan? How about the fact that 60 elitist Senators–that won’t be required to participate in the plan–can ram it down our collective throats? And thanks for the clarification, Comrade. Call Webster’s: bipartisanship (n.) – when liberals make policy and demand conservatives to sign onto it; a good thing when both...

(snip) "He has the great ability to get people together, and negotiate to get a consensus," said Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona. (snip) Hatch, who has collaborated with Kennedy on major healthcare bills such as the Children’s Health Insurance Program, said that a month ago he had an "extensive, hour-long conversation" by phone with Kennedy. The Massachusetts senator promised to work with him on healthcare, he said, but instead the committee came out with a partisan bill that had “done away with bipartisanship." "If Kennedy had been here," said Hatch, “the first thing he would have done is pick...

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Sen. Olympia Snowe, a key figure in shaping federal health care legislation, said Monday that a government-run plan that would take effect if the private insurance market fails to deliver affordable coverage could bridge the partisan divide that threatens to derail President Barack Obama's efforts to reform the system. Snowe, R-Maine, said she's working with Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to establish that kind of a framework in the bill expected to emerge next month from the Senate Finance Committee. In an Associated Press interview in Portland, Snowe said it would be unfair to include a government-run...

Bipartisan Amdt Expected Tuesday to Stop Obama's Tax-Funded Abortions in DC Washington, DC -- Lawmakers from both political parties are working together to offer an amendment to a Congressional spending bill that includes President Barack Obama's request to fund abortions in the nation's capital. A House committee is expected to vote on the amendment on Tuesday. See http://www.LifeNews.com/nat5191.html ACTION ALERT: Calls needed ASAP to stop tax-funded abortions. Click link above for more.

Link only, per FR copyright rules

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama will meet Thursday with a bipartisan, politically diverse group of lawmakers to begin discussing a rewrite of U.S. immigration laws. But the effort faces stiff headwinds: a Washington agenda already packed with other priorities; a recession making Americans nervous about the job market; and the sidelining of the most vocal champions of an immigration overhaul. "Greater presidential leadership is going to be needed," said Clarissa Martinez, director of immigration policy at the National Council of La Raza, the largest Latino advocacy group. "It's an absolute necessity." The White House meeting will bring together lawmakers who...

WASHINGTON (CNN) — You can't call John McCain a sore loser. Seven months after Barack Obama defeated him in the U.S. presidential election, the Republican senator from Arizona said Sunday he thinks his former Senate colleague is making things happen in the White House. "I think he's done well," McCain said on the CBS program "Face the Nation." "He has achieved literally every one of his legislative accomplishments," McCain noted in reference to the economic stimulus package and other measures passed by Congress in recent months. However, McCain said, the same partisan divisions remain in Congress despite Obama's campaign pledges...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two of President Barack Obama's top priorities -- healthcare reform and reducing global warming -- are in disarray on Capitol Hill, with no sign of bipartisan consensus, Senator John McCain said on Friday. The Arizona Republican, who was defeated by Obama for the presidency last November, said in an interview with Reuters that climate change legislation "is just dead in the water. It's not got momentum." Efforts to overhaul America's costly healthcare system need to begin anew after the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office said a draft bill would cost $1 trillion and insure only 16 million of...

My Friends, Health care is a problem of growing importance across America. From kitchen tables, to state governments, to our government here in Washington, the growing cost of health care and the shortcomings of the current system are issues of extreme concern. With polls showing that a majority of Americans now support Congress enacting a major overhaul of the U.S. health care system, it is clear that we must begin working towards a bi-partisan solution to address the need for reform. In the coming weeks, Congress will begin the hard work of debating health care legislation that will provide all...

The NRSC sure knows how to pick ‘em. Fresh off of their beclowning via the Specter Switch, they rushed to endorse Charlie Crist over Marco Rubio, citing “winnability”, and general crossover appeal. Well, now they get to see exactly what they endorsed: a squish that would’ve gone along with Specter and the Maine Sisters in voting for Porkulus: Speaking to a politically mixed crowd in Daytona Beach, Crist emphasized his support for the bill as practical and pragmatic, though it would have meant crossing party lines. Only three Republican senators backed the stimulus bill, and Martinez wasn’t one of them....

 

Rep. Eric I. Cantor, R-7th, has come under fire from a watchdog group and Democrats for using taxpayer-funded staff to work on a new policy organization he has set up. A spokesman for Cantor said the House minority whip has done nothing wrong and that policy organizations are common in Congress. The complaints center around the National Council for a New America, which Cantor helped establish recently. It is designed to develop policy through a series of town-hall meetings. When it was announced, Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, the 2008 Republican presidential candidate, said it would be bipartisan, but the initial...

(snip) VAN SUSTEREN: She is shaking things up a little bit in the Republican Party, bringing a little youth to the Republican Party, which has been thought as not exactly -- the younger crowd hasn't been attracted to it. MCCAIN: She is. And I am very proud of her for that, because she is like her father. She is very straight talking. She is very genuine in her beliefs and what she is trying to do. And there's -- it's wonderful. It is remarkable. And I think she is doing not only a great job, but I think she has...

Sen. John McCain said Sunday that his party needs to be “inclusive” without betraying its “fundamental principles.” . . . . . Asked if being inclusive meant welcoming candidates and voters who support abortion rights or gay marriage, McCain said: “It means that we can have people in our party who do not have the same views on specific issues, as long as we share common principles.”

Key lawmakers from both parties have held tentative talks about overhauling the Social Security system, and Congress could turn its attention to the federal retirement program as soon as this fall if a bipartisan concensus emerges, House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer said yesterday. "I am hopeful. It's a tough issue," Hoyer (D-Md.) said in an interview. . . . . So far, Democrats have found a willing partner in the Senate, where Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) has stated his desire to work with President Obama to make changes to keep Social Security solvent. . . . . Graham...

WASHINGTON (CNN) – As part of his answer to whether he would reach out to Sen. John McCain as part of a renewed effort on immigration reform, the president said "we reach out to — to Senator McCain on a whole host of issues." . . . . . However, McCain spokeswoman Brooke Buchanan also said that the White House mostly reaches out to the senator on issues where they have clear agreement, and she underscored a theme he brought up on the Senate floor just today — that he believes President Obama and Democrats don't really want to compromise...