This is the OFFICIAL BLUE DOG!
Posted on 08/28/2005 11:23:00 AM PDT by RightDemocrat
Blue Dog Coalition 12-point reform plan for restoring fiscal sanity
1. Require a balanced budget.
• Blue Dogs support a Constitutional amendment to require a balanced budget every year except in times of war or national emergency.
• Blue Dogs believe a Balanced Budget Amendment is the only way to ensure fiscal discipline in Congress.
• The Blue Dog Balanced Budget Amendment would require a three-fifths vote of both the House and Senate to increase the debt limit or to waive the balanced budget requirement.
• In addition, the Blue Dog Balanced Budget Amendment protects Social Security from benefit cuts and forbids increases in Social Security payroll taxes in order to balance the budget.
2. Don’t let Congress buy on credit.
• Thanks to irresponsible spending, our nation’s budget deficit in 2004 was the largest in recorded history--$413 billion.
• Blue Dogs want to restore the budget rules that Congress once lived by, including, most importantly, “pay-as-you-go” budgeting.
• Known as “PAYGO,” this means that any new spending must be paid for by cuts in other programs or by new revenues.
• Restoring PAYGO will end irresponsible deficit spending and put our nation back on track toward fiscal responsibility.
• The Blue Dog budget package would extend PAYGO rules through 2010.
3. Put a lid on spending.
• From 2001 to 2003, total government spending soared by 16 percent.
• Blue Dogs want strict spending caps to slow the growth of runaway government programs.
• Blue Dogs propose holding the line on discretionary spending for the next three fiscal years at 2.1%--the percentage increase proposed this year in the President’s fiscal 2006 budget.
4. Require agencies to put their fiscal houses in order.
• According to the Government Accounting Office, 16 of 23 major federal agencies can’t issue a simple audit of their books.
• Worse, the federal government can’t account for $24.5 billion it spent in 2003.
• Government auditors should be doing a better job of tracking taxpayer dollars.
• Blue Dogs propose a budget freeze for any federal agency that can’t properly balance its books.
5. Make Congress tell taxpayers how much they’re spending.
• Many spending bills slide through Congress on a voice vote with no debate and many members vote on bills without knowing their cost.
• Blue Dogs propose that any bills calling for more than $50 million in new spending must be put to a roll call vote.
6. Set aside a rainy-day fund.
• Under current law, almost any spending can be designated an “emergency,” and so-called “emergency spending” has turned into a giant loophole for non-emergency spending.
• Blue Dogs propose closing this loophole by defining emergency and requiring Congress to have a separate vote on items that are designated “emergency” spending.
• Blue Dogs also propose creating a rainy-day fund—something that 45 states currently do.
7. Don’t hide votes to raise the debt limit.
• Current House rules allow for automatic increases in the debt limit if Congress passes a budget resolution that increases the public debt.
• Since its establishment in 1980, this rule has been used to shield as many as 12 separate increases in the debt limit from a vote.
• Blue Dogs believe that increases in the public debt limit shouldn’t be hidden from public view.
• Blue Dogs propose to change the current rules so that every increase in the public debt limit must be subject to a rollcall vote.
8. Justify spending for pet projects.
• Every year, Congress spends billions on wasteful pork-barrel projects, such as $50 million for an indoor rainforest in Iowa and funding for the Paper Industry International Hall of Fame.
• Since 1991, Congress has spent $185 billion on pet projects for members of Congress, and in fiscal 2004 alone, pork-barrel spending totaled $22.9 billion.
• While many of these projects may be worthy of taxpayer support, many are not. Blue Dogs propose that members of Congress must provide written justification, available to the public, of any earmarked spending for pet projects.
9. Ensure that Congress reads the bills it’s voting on.
• Over the past few years, some of the largest spending bills in American history have been voted on after only a few hours of consideration.
• For example, the Medicare prescription drug bill, now estimated to cost $720 billion over the next ten years, went to a vote barely a day after the final version of the 500+ page bill was made available to members of Congress.
• Blue Dogs propose that members of Congress should be given a minimum of three-days to have the final text of legislation made available to them before there is a vote.
10. Require honest cost estimates for every bill that Congress votes on.
• Both taxpayers and members of Congress should be aware of the price tag for any legislation passed by Congress, and there are no current requirements that bills be accompanied by an honest and objective estimate of their fiscal impact.
• Blue Dogs propose that every conference report and bill that comes to the floor of the House be accompanied by a cost estimate prepared by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
11. Make sure new bills fit the budget.
• The Budget Committee can play an important role in making sure that new legislation passed by Congress lives within the rules agreed upon by Congress in the annual budget resolution.
• Blue Dogs propose that the Budget Committee strengthen its oversight role by preparing budget compliance statements for every bill that is reported out of committee for consideration by the full Congress.
12. Make Congress do a better job of keeping tabs on government programs.
• Blue Dogs believe that one way to restrain growth in federal spending is to ensure that taxpayer dollars are spent wisely.
• Blue Dogs also believe that Congress can do a better job of carrying out its oversight responsibilities.
• Blue Dogs propose that each committee be required to submit reports at least twice a year, available to the public, that provide an update on how each committee is fulfilling its oversight duties.
the Blue Dogs are FINALLY getting off their **** and getting some press!!??
What is happening to the communist DNC? Meltdown?
This country does have a chance of surviving the next 10 years then!
Warning though ... IF this is the true re-emergence of the Blue Dog Democrat movement, you will see them leaving the RNC and going back to the Democrat Party (NOT the DNC - big difference)
I guess we can remove at least one here from Tennessee.
Rep. Harold Ford, Jr. (TN) - isn't he under indictment?
And Mike Ross from Arkansas *WAS* a Blue Dog but now only spouts the DNC radical party line and has done so since the last election when 'wet-willie clinton' came down here to raise money for him --- pay back is expensive!
The Blue Dog Coalition is a group of 35 moderate to conservative Democrats in the 109th Congress.
Rep. Joe Baca (CA)
Rep. John Barrow (GA)
Rep. Marion Berry (AR)
Rep. Sanford Bishop (GA)
Rep. Dan Boren (OK)
Rep. Leonard Boswell (IA)
Rep. Allen Boyd (FL)
Rep. Dennis Cardoza (CA)
Rep. Ed Case (HI)
Rep. Ben Chandler (KY)
Rep. Jim Cooper (TN)
Rep. Jim Costa (CA)
Rep. Robert E. “Bud” Cramer (AL)
Rep. Lincoln Davis (TN)
Rep. Harold Ford, Jr. (TN)
Rep. Jane Harman (CA)
Rep. Stephanie Herseth (SD)
Rep. Tim Holden (PA)
Rep. Steve Israel (NY)
Rep. Mike McIntyre (NC)
Rep. Jim Matheson (UT)
Rep. Charles Melancon (LA)
Rep. Mike Michaud (ME)
Rep. Dennis Moore (KS)
Rep. Collin Peterson (MN)
Rep. Earl Pomeroy (ND)
Rep. Mike Ross (AR)
Rep. John Salazar (CO)
Rep. Loretta Sanchez (CA)
Rep. Adam Schiff (CA)
Rep. David Scott (GA)
Rep. John Tanner (TN)
Rep. Ellen Tauscher (CA)
Rep. Gene Taylor (MS)
Rep. Mike Thompson (CA)
The leadership of both parties have been out of touch with mainstream America. There are a lot of conservative and moderate rank and file Democrats who are for fiscal responsibility, pro-life, pro-traditional values and pro-gun rights. I think that we are beginning to see these conservative Democratic voters challenge the party hierarchy.
I am not very familiar with Mike Ross of Arkansas. Harold Ford, Jr. of Tennessee has never been indicted - it was his uncle State Senator John Ford who was indicted. In fact, Harold Ford, Jr. is running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Bill Frist. Ford is well-respected on both sides of the aisle. The conservative African American blog Booker Rising http://www.bookerrising.blogspot.com frequently mentions Harold Ford - they think very highly of him.
My favorite Blue Dog Congressman is Gene Taylor of Mississippi. Gene Taylor is a solid deficit hawk, strong on national defense, pro-gun rights, pro-life, a supporter of family values (co-sponsor of the constitutional amendment banning gay marriage), a member of the House Immigration Reform Caucus (chaired by Tom Tancredo) and a econonomic nationalist who opposes "free trade" agreements.
Stop picking on the poor old Blue Dog and straighten out some of your yellow dog Republicans like Lincoln Chafee !
Mike Ross was a definite Blue Dog Democrat - that's why I voted FOR him when he was running against an idiot, typical lazy politician that thought that he had the conservative seat in this area all sewed up just because he was a republican.
Ross was good representing this area at first,but just before the last elections, he began to sound like a southern voice of Ted Kennedy and lately parroting Howard Dean.
I guess once you take the pieces of silver from Clinton and his minions, all you are is a puppet that must obey the masters.
Fiscal conservative? Look up how many million$ he brags about bringing to rebuild the bath houses in Hot Springs! All you hear now is PORK! and he was selected WHIP?
He is 100% against saving social security - as long it is the republican idea maybe.
The idea behind the Blue Dog movement is honorable and good - unfortunately the members need to dig out the DNC weeds and PUBLICLY announce their intents and goals.
You might be surprised at the reaction from voters.
All anyone hears from the democrats now is the communist radical Dean, & Kuchinic and the other extreme left kennedy and clinton types that want only to take everbody's money so they can distribute it as THEY see fit to keep their power.
You have a long long hill to climb to get up from the depths that the DNC has dragged our country.
ps ... the RNC is almost as guilty as the DNC in dragging us down away from our capitalist constitutional republic and now shares totally in the blame since THEY have been in power for over a decade (congress has more power than the prez) and little good has been done.
They are notable because they're the only Democrats in Congress who have proposed anything at all.
Some of them are only in the group for publicity. No one can claim that Loretta Sanchez and Dennis Moore are moderates.
I think that we do have a lack of strong and courageous leadership in both parties. Unless one of the major parties gets their act together soon, I think that the public will be angry enough to support a third party movement. The Democrat establishment is too politically correct liberal on the social issues and the Republican leaders seem to only care about Wall Street. If folks cannot afford to fill up their SUV's and get to their jobs, I think that there will be an outpouring of anger never seen before in American politics.
And I guess the Blue Dogs have become more "inclusive" since so many of the original members changed parties. At least half of the members on your list are so pro-abortion they voted against a ban on partial birth abortion. Between a member's support for Saddam and so many who support abortion up until the time of natural birth, I'm surprised I don't see Cynthia McKinney's name up there as a "Blue Dog."
"Blue dog" is just another attempt to fool voters into thinking rats can be trusted. They can't.
(Denny Crane: "Sometimes you can only look for answers from God and failing that... and Fox News".)
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