Mike Pence is one of the good guys.
Posted on 03/20/2010 3:12:22 PM PDT by jazusamo
As Democrats frantically tried to cobble together votes to pass their sweeping health care reform legislation Saturday, House Republicans began a victory lap of sorts.
First, in a meeting of the House Republican Conference, the GOP’s leadership rallied the troops with flourishing rhetoric about regaining the majority in the fall.
“I don’t know, quite frankly, whether victory will come on the third Sunday in March or on the first Tuesday in November, but victory will come,” House Republican Conference leader Mike Pence of Indiana told Republicans Saturday afternoon.
And when they emerged from the room to speak to the media and a crush of video cameras, House Republican leaders were met by a boisterous crowd of citizens screaming “kill the bill” and nodding in unison to their promises to continue the fight to derail the legislation.
Saturday’s schedule gives an idea of how confident Republicans are feeling. Republicans opened up their closed conference meeting to television cameras and reporters, GOP lawmakers were hosting telephone town halls in Democratic swing districts and Republicans were whipping undecided Democrats to vote against the legislation they’ve been wrangling over for more than a year.
This all comes after a week where House Minority Leader John Boehner of Ohio gave a series of interviews expressing confidence that Republicans could take back the House in November.
“There are more activities going on than you would see in a normal campaign,” Boehner told reporters.
Boehner, who helped orchestrate the 1994 GOP takeover of the House, was somewhat of a rock star Saturday. He ditched his black SUV for a trip back from the Cannon House Office building to the Capitol, crossing Independence Avenue on foot to waves of cheers. He posed for a photo – the unfortunate gentleman’s camera was full – and even kissed a woman on a motorized scooter.
Perhaps the most stunning – and unscripted – moment for Republicans came when they emerged from their conference meeting to a stakeout point that’s typically filled with a handful of Capitol Hill reporters. Roughly 100 citizens gathered in the Cannon rotunda – held back by Capitol Police officers – cheering the GOP’s leadership.
The rhetoric was hardly new – Republicans rehashed many of the same lines they’ve been using for about a year. But judging by the crowd’s response, it seemed as if the party’s leadership had spontaneously topped Shakespeare.
“It’s important that they understand that its not the president’s House, that it’s not the speaker’s House, that it’s the people’s House, and this weekend House Republicans will stand with the American people and do everything in our power to defend their freedom and bring about health care reform that gives them more freedom and not more government,” Pence said to cheers.
Even Rep. Paul Ryan, the wonky top Republican on the Budget committee, got his moment.
“They don’t now have the votes for it and I sure hope they won’t,” he said.
They struck a populist tone, much to the delight of the crowd. Boehner said he was trying to coax House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to force her members to go to the floor and before "God, their countrymen and their constituents," and unveil how they would vote.
“I thank all of the Americans that have come here to join us in this fight – the fight is nearing an end, but if we continue to work hard and listen to the American people, we can defeat this bill,” House Minority Leader Eric Cantor of Virginia said.
Perhaps he was feeling the energy from the crowd, but less than an hour after he told his conference that they couldn’t stop the bill, even calling Sunday Armegeddon, Boehner had a new message for the crowd gathered in the Cannon Rotunda.
“This health care bill would ruin our country,” he said. “It’s time to stop it.”
One person in the crowd responded, “That’s right.”
What the **** is this guy talking about? Have the ‘RATS finally lost it totally?
If this bill fails, Boehner could be the most popular man in America.
The audio/video from that roll call exercise would be worth much in the Fall.
Regardless of this tyrannical take-over, in November I will be doing whatever it takes to make sure CONSERVATIVES win. I care not what party they belong to.
And, quite frankly, the way the GOP flipped the bird at Rush and the conservative base and shoved McCain down our throats, I kinda hope they lose to independents who are strong conservatives.
Looks like Sherman is showing his sarcastic RAT colors.
When these commie rush through immigration reform and make illegals legal by early fall with every dirty trick not even in the book yet, November will be very different story.
November is politically a lifetime away.
This was our last chance in my opinion.
I will add, I BLAME BUSH FOR HIS TOTAL LACK OF FIGHT AND LEADERSHIP HIS LAST TERM. HE LET THESE RATS GET POWER AND DEFINE HIS PRESIDENCY.
Tough pill to swallow for some here, but the truth non the less.
This time tomorrow this country and it’s constitution will have died a thousand deaths.
Go Pubbies and a huge THANK YOU to all our great Americans that made the sacrifice to travel to DC and stand up for our freedom.
God Bless you everyone.
We have a leadership problem on the right side and I’m not talking about one leader as in a Preidential candidate but rather what organinization is going to take the lead and get things going in the right direction and get through some conservative legislative initiatives. On any given day it seems like Fox news, talk radio, or Tea Party activists are carrying the ball. Where is the leadership coming from our elected GOP folks?
Considering their plans to steal our 401(k) and 403(b) accounts, I'd be happy to dip into my retirement to fund real conservatives who want to stop the socialists. If America loses in November, I won't be permitted to keep that money anyways (at least not without another civil war).
I’d like to believe it..but I’m not convinced until they pull the vote because they don’t have the votes to pass it. Guess I’m suspicious this is a media driven trick to get people there to go home.
Not needed. You just need an audio of a solemn sounding voice which APPEARS to be a reading of the roll call. The main anchor could say "Here is how XYZ voted in Washington when it came to a vote for killing babies" and then cut to the audio.
I believe the Republicans might be able to kill the health care with one action. That action is to announce that the #1 plank in the party platform going forward is that any national health care system be imposed uniformly on ALL CITIZENS (including presidents and former presidents).
I just hope they keep alert. Pelosi is evil and sneaky. We cannot trust her to follow any rules or ethical guidelines at all.
But it may be a bit early for a 'victory lap', and I don't think thats a proper characterization of what this idiot saw.
Jake sounds a tad bitter. LOL.
President Boehner...has a nice ring to it.
Mike Pence is one of the good guys.
He is future presidential material...wonky or not....I like him lots!
Agreed, he sure did a number on Zer0 at the WH.
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