Posted on 07/22/2011 6:36:44 PM PDT by kristinn
White House officials thought, just hours ago, that they were very close to a deal with Republican House Speaker John Boehner. But all of the sudden, the speaker wasnt returning the presidents phone calls.
If Speaker Boehner had called back, Americans would have had a deal, a White House official told reporters after the president announced Boehner had pulled out of negotiations.
These officials said there were many zones of agreement, and that cuts to entitlement programs, other than a small disagreement over Medicaid, were settled.
The White House said congressional staffers were still calling today to negotiate details, but the speaker was not talking to the president.
On Thursday afternoon, Obama talked with the speaker. The president called again in the evening. That call was not returned.
The White House said the speakers office emailed at 3:30 p.m. Friday and said the speaker would call at 5:30 p.m. The presidents office called immediately and asked to talk to the speaker. Boehner did not come to the phone, but did call 5:30 p.m., telling the president he could not continue to negotiate.
According to the White House officials, there were only three major outstanding issues -- the president asking for $400 billion in additional revenue over 10 years, how deep cuts in Medicaid would be, and the speakers request that the individual mandate in the health care reform law be eliminated if the government could not approve all elements of the deal.
(Excerpt) Read more at blogs.abcnews.com ...
I think the term sphincter feeding regurgitators is more descriptive.
F Obama
So the President then has a hissy fit and calls a presser. Bambi is such a petulant liar.
Yeah, but what’s Boehner doing insisting that the individual mandate be removed from Obamacare?
Hotair has a column up by EE, from greta, that Cantor and the House of Representative are blaming the gang of 6 for blowing up the CC&B push.
There will be blame passed around naturally but the senate gang of 6 increases capital gains taxes and other nefarious gifts to the prez. If the House determines the purse strings then don’t they still hold the cards to the endgame?
I am of the belief that 40% of the voters have the memory of a moth. 12 more months of being trapped in Bambi’s socialist light fixture should just about get rid of them.
It isn’t worded well above, but as I understand it, the individual mandate would be eliminated if the cuts were not realized. Since Obamacare, and it’s individual mandate, is the jewel in Barry’s tiara, it would give incentive to follow-through with the cuts, a frequent problem with future promises.
Yeah, I’m highly suspicious of that move too. Kind of out-of-the-blue, isn’t it.
I just can’t make myself trust any of them. Especially since they don’t talk about repealing obamacare anymore. Is the GOP willing to accept it IF the individual mandate is gone?
ABC news....= BULL _HIT!
The republicans are in a no win position regardless of the outcome. There is no way the media is going to tell the truth.
Well, with nothing to lose best to go for the best deal possible. The only way to do tha is to take the ball home and go home.
I don’t see any method behind Boner’s madness either. If the individual mandate goes down, Obomneycare no longer can function.
Does the Speaker think he can pull a fast one on the President?
This is why Obama walked away.
Obama made it sound like he didn't move the goal post even though the White House officials admit he did.
I am of the belief that 40% of the voters have the memory of a moth
Which would be a good point if this was only an isolated incident. Every day there is yet another reason to sharpen the pitchforks. So the moths forget today's insanity, tomorrow there will be a fresh one to replace it.
“Congress is supposed to set the direction and Zer0 to ably administer.”
Durbin, Reid, Obama, Pelosi, all in on the act ...
One head hurts at the clusterf8888 possibilities.
What on earth is Boehner doing accepting $800 billion in revenues in the first place.
What on earth is Boehner doing accepting $800 billion in revenues in the first place?
Correct number is $0. Spending cuts only!
“I do not beleive these negotiations are being done in good faith. Politically-minded people have been predicting for months that the demos want, indeed insist on, a government shutdown, so they can play it as being the repubs fault, with the media spinning it that way, of course. Same playbook as 95 - 96. Nothing new here. Nothing Boehner can do to prevent it, except cave totally, which would accomplish the same thing for the demos.”
Well stated.
Nothing good comes from negotiating with Obama. You get a bad deal or you get no deal.
The BEST part of the Congressional republicans behavior has been the push for cut, cap and balance and the vote for it in the House and the Senate. Everything else has been a distraction away from that, as part of the media and Democrats agenda to get the GOP to capitulate.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.