Posted on 03/08/2011 3:06:55 PM PST by Justaham
West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin ripped President Barack Obama on his budget proposals in a Senate floor speech Tuesday, a rare rebuke from a freshman Democrat who clearly is worried about the politics of deficit spending as he faces a tough reelection in 2012.
Manchin charged the president with failing to lead the way in reducing spending, while also criticizing Republicans for offering “partisan” and “unrealistic” budget proposals.
“Why are we doing all this when the most powerful person in these negotiations — our president — has failed to lead this debate or offer a serious proposal for spending and cuts that he would be willing to fight for?”
The full-throated rejection of the president’s spending proposals by a politically vulnerable Democrat is just the latest worrisome sign for Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who have yet to rally their party around a unified spending plan. Indeed, Democratic leaders are having trouble just keeping moderates on board — Sens. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) and Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) also have expressed skepticism that Democrats are willing to cut enough spending to satisfy voters and make a dent in the deficit.
Manchin will vote against both the Senate Democrats’ proposal, which will cut $10.6 billion below current spending levels and the House Republican version of the continuing resolution, which would cut $61 billion. The Senate is expected to vote on both this week, perhaps as early as Tuesday, and neither is expected to pass.
(Excerpt) Read more at politico.com ...
Rat criticizing Rat. I love it.
Failed to lead on the budget. Failed to lead on national security. Failed to lead on unemployment. Failed to lead, failed to lead, ... FAILED!
This should read: Freshman Democrat Joe Manchin: Obama has 'failed to lead' on budget on every issue
No, failed to lead. period.
He was a failure from the day he was born in a fly ridden mud hut in Kenya. A failed abortion by a local tribesman using an elephant tusk didn’t take and a failure was born.
Looks like Bammy gave Joe Manchin a “Hall Pass” to roam off the Democrat Plantation for a few days.
You’re just now figuring that out Joe?
“Whaddaya live under a rock?”
0 couldn’t lead a starving man to a hamburger. In fact, he couldn’t decide which hamburger chain to lead the man to.
Wrong. He hasn’t failed to lead. He has lead to fail.
Hypocrite. Watch him vote with the rest of the Dems.
...must mean there's "blood in the water".
I think Joe made his statements for two reasons, both for domestic consumption. Joe is a camera hog. When our 29 miners died in a very bad underground explosion at a coal mine Joe was in front of the camera at the mine in less than eight hours. There is nothing that a governor of a state could do to help rescue those men. But he could get some good PR and some good face time on national TV, so that is what he did. He likes the camera.
Joe today made another calculated move today by seemingly criticizing the Prez, knowing this would bring some attention and face time to the local TV news. He got it.
He knows that he is tied to Obama, if Obama’s numbers slip so will his. He is trying to put some distance between himself and Obama. Ol’ Joe is trying to be like Clinton and triangulate. Joe is trying to sound like a moderate/conservative while being a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat. Let’s hope the rest of West Virginia sees through his antics.
When Joe starts doing the right thing and manning up to reality and costing zerobama support and votes then I will pay him attention.
You beat me to it.
Unfortunately, they haven’t seen through his actions so far.
Unfortunately, Obama has been a resounding success.
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