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The GOP did just fine
American Thinker ^ | 4-9-2011 | Thomas Lifson - Commentary

Posted on 04/09/2011 1:25:50 PM PDT by smoothsailing


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April 09, 2011

The GOP did just fine

Thomas Lifson

There is more good in the budget deal than is revealed in the budget cut number agreed on last night. Measured against the size of budget cutting necessary for the future, the numbers are small, to be sure, but this number was a tactical, not a strategic engagement. The key to the matter is momentum, principle, and precedent, which set up the strategic environment for 2012.

Andrew Stiles at NRO correctly points out the extent of the Harry Reid cave-in.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) didn't want to cut anything at first. But bowing to political reality, eventually ponied up about $4.7 billion in cuts. He ended up with $33.8 billion less spending than he wanted. And he called it an "historic" accomplishment. (Not surprisingly, the left is appalled).

House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio), on the other hand, initially proposed $32 billion in spending cuts. House Republicans, led by an undaunted freshman class, bumped that number up to $61 billion ($100 billion off the president's budget), before settling on $38.5 billion.

That's $6.5 billion more than Boehner asked for to begin with, and $5.5 billion more than the $33 billion that Vice President Joe Biden and Senate Democrats claimed had been agreed to less than two weeks ago. 

A.J. Strata highlights the much bigger win that has been foreordained by the fine print, not conveyed in the number alone:

The budget number is pretty good, mainly because it kills programs instead of lowering their budgets for 6 months. so those 6 month numbers expand and grow in the coming year (snip) [emphasis added]

Obama even admitted in his speech infrastructure projects were being ‘delayed' (i.e., de-funded in 2011). Once de-funded, they will not be back any time soon. As fox News reports, this is a lot farther than the Democrats said they would be willing to go when this all started. (snip)

However, Boehner must have had an incredible stick in those negotiations, because Reid and Obama agreed to put things to vote in the Senate which everyone deemed impossible just last week. That is the truly amazing part of what Boehner pulled off yesterday:

The agreement reached with Senate Democrats guarantees a Senate debate and vote on legislation that would repeal President Obama's government takeover of health care in its entirety. The House passed such legislation in January as part of the Pledge to America.

...

The agreement with Senate Democrats guarantees a Senate debate and vote on legislation that would end federal funding for Planned Parenthood.

The last thing Reid or Obama want is a vote in the senate on Obamacare (or Planned Parenthood). But now they are going to have to vote and this is huge. If this happens, and 4 of those 23 red-state Democrats up for reelection in 2012 vote against Obamacare, then the President will have to veto a bipartisan bill that lines up with the overall will of the American voters. What could be better than isolating Obama and Obamacare from the will of the people and Congress heading into 2012?

The conclusion is inescapable that the Democrats realized they would be blamed for a shutdown, at least as much as the Republicans. The ploy of holding the troops' paychecks hostage stands as one of the dumbest political moves of the Obama presidency (and that is saying a lot). Sure there would be pictures of families turned away from the Washington Monument, but these would pale in comparison with the pictures of families near military bases unable to pay the rent or buy groceries, going into paycheck advance lenders and payting 22% interest in order to put food on the table.

One thing the American public will not tolerate is using our brave military heroes as political pawns. A.F. Branco summed up the politics thusly:



Congratulations to Speaker Boehner, who, with "one half of one third of the government" pulled off a victory.


Page Printed from: http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2011/04/the_gop_did_just_fine.html at April 09, 2011 - 03:11:01 PM CDT


TOPICS: Editorial; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; US: Ohio
KEYWORDS: budget; ohio
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1 posted on 04/09/2011 1:25:51 PM PDT by smoothsailing
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To: smoothsailing

Looks like the professional Republican gurus are on board with the professional Republican RINOs.

After all, they all went to the country’s top universities together, didn’t they?

National Review at this point is virtually worthless.


2 posted on 04/09/2011 1:30:45 PM PDT by Cicero
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To: smoothsailing

Yeah,a trillion added to the debt for the rest of this short year, another trillion plus next year, and then end this congress with another trillion to the debt...thanks boehner...


3 posted on 04/09/2011 1:31:46 PM PDT by Gipper08 (www.travishankins.com...a real CONSERVATIVE)
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To: smoothsailing
That's $6.5 billion more than Boehner asked for to begin with

That tells me that Boehner needs to put somebody else in charge of negotiating. When you underestimate the strength of your own hand, you should get somebody else involved who knows how to play the game better.

4 posted on 04/09/2011 1:32:58 PM PDT by vbmoneyspender
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To: smoothsailing

The GOP did fine, but the media is relentless in their spin.


5 posted on 04/09/2011 1:33:27 PM PDT by Red6
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To: smoothsailing

SSDD


6 posted on 04/09/2011 1:34:05 PM PDT by Diogenesis ("The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people''s money." M Thatcher)
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To: smoothsailing

“What could be better than isolating Obama and Obamacare from the will of the people...?”

Um... defunding it before it does even more damage to our country?


7 posted on 04/09/2011 1:37:06 PM PDT by Qbert ("I seem to smell the stench of appeasement in the air" - Margaret Thatcher)
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To: smoothsailing

The GOP did just fine ... by rolling over to this idiot's brilliant leadership

8 posted on 04/09/2011 1:37:31 PM PDT by Zakeet (If Obama had half a brain, his butt would be lopsided)
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To: smoothsailing; All
How quickly we forget about THIS...

Video: Boehner says GOP will keep its $100 billion pledge

Boehner's a liar.

9 posted on 04/09/2011 1:38:23 PM PDT by Virginia Ridgerunner (Sarah Palin has crossed the Rubicon!)
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To: smoothsailing

Kills Programs??? What programs?


10 posted on 04/09/2011 1:39:23 PM PDT by screaminsunshine (Obama Sucks and so do the RINOS.)
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To: smoothsailing
House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio), on the other hand, initially proposed $32 billion in spending cuts. House Republicans, led by an undaunted freshman class, bumped that number up to $61 billion ($100 billion off the president's budget), before settling on $38.5 billion.

A promise he NEVER intended to keep ..he got the scratch (as opposed to a cut) he wanted and by the end of the year those freshman will learn their place and vote for re election

11 posted on 04/09/2011 1:40:16 PM PDT by RnMomof7 ( "But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden His face from you,)
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To: smoothsailing

These creeps are simply getting used to living on their knees.


12 posted on 04/09/2011 1:41:31 PM PDT by Caipirabob ( Communists... Socialists... Democrats...Traitors... Who can tell the difference?)
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To: Diogenesis

You got it


13 posted on 04/09/2011 1:41:55 PM PDT by RnMomof7 ( "But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden His face from you,)
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To: RnMomof7

People in OH need to take a course in politics to see if they can be informed. But they would probably demand Boehner and Kucinich as their teachers.


14 posted on 04/09/2011 1:42:30 PM PDT by Theodore R. (John Boehner just surrendered the only weapon with which he had to fight. What does OH see in him?)
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To: Caipirabob

Yep and it is not pretty ..


15 posted on 04/09/2011 1:42:58 PM PDT by RnMomof7 ( "But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden His face from you,)
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To: smoothsailing

There, there, just drink this and everything will be fine...


16 posted on 04/09/2011 1:46:10 PM PDT by brushcop
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To: Cicero
Watching people respond to these political insiders is like watching wrestling...The audience cheers on their masked heroes, as they take turns performing rehearsed acrobats for the audience of ignorant believers.

The ignorant audience will never see the unmasked combatants gather after the "fight" over dinner, drinks and laughs.

These are government insiders are all riding in the back of the same limousine.

17 posted on 04/09/2011 1:46:56 PM PDT by dragnet2 (Diversion and evasion are tools of deceit)
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To: smoothsailing
Boehner could have learned from another Republican...

Be sure you put your feet in the right place, then stand firm.

Abraham Lincoln

18 posted on 04/09/2011 1:47:35 PM PDT by AmusedBystander (I'm sure that Obama loves his country, I'm just not sure which country is his.)
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To: Gipper08
Boehner NEVER promised to get trillions in cuts in 2011; I'm surprised at the number of Freepers who were expecting it.

This budget was not the Repubs'...it was the Dems' budget. There was no time for hearings, etc. They were thrust into an ad hoc situation because the Dems did not pass a budget (exactly because they wanted to confuse the Repub base which is happening).

The trillion dollar cuts are now laid out in Ryan's 2012 budget. This is where the serious cuts will begin to be made. Even then it all won't happen in a year...but we are on the right track.

19 posted on 04/09/2011 1:51:27 PM PDT by Siena Dreaming
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To: Gipper08

idk im realy disappointed about the deal. we started out at 100 billion then prorated to whatever then down to 60 billion then down to 30 something and then it’s 30 including the 2 CRs. i mean come on. that sucked.


20 posted on 04/09/2011 1:57:36 PM PDT by exist
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