Payroll tax fight leaves Hill Republicans divided and angry

[alp227]

Rosalind S. Helderman, Washington Post

Congressional Republicans leave Washington for the holidays divided and embittered over the last round of December’s payroll-tax fight, and their lingering unhappiness could complicate negotiations starting in January on a deal for a full-year tax holiday.

Some House Republicans say they feel sold out by their counterparts in the Senate. For their part, Senate Republicans had worried that their House colleagues were harming the GOP’s chances of winning back their chamber by risking a tax increase if House members didn’t get concessions they wanted.

In the House, some rank-and-file House conservatives are deeply disappointed in their own leaders, who in the face of intense political pressure Thursday accepted a two-month deal that House Republicans had almost unanimously rejected just days earlier.

Perhaps no one was more dismayed at the outcome than the nearly 90 freshmen Republicans who came to Washington in January on a tea party wave promising to change the town. Many felt that the year ended with a temporary tax fix that was the epitome of business as usual.

full: http://www.washingtonpost.com/senate-approves-deal-on-payroll-tax-cut/2011/12/23/gIQASUaVDP_singlePage.html

[napoleon_in_rags]

1. That was a really interesting and complex situation.

I heard Rick Santorum, arguing against merging the funding for social security with everything else, and in a pragmatic way I actually somewhat agreed with him. But politics just isn't pragmatic in this day and age. Republicans were going to get hammered if they held that up. I had my OP in mind, showing them defending tax cuts for the rich all year and then raising taxes on like 90% of Americans. It was a soft ball nobody could resist, including me.

The thing is that they floated the "get rid of social security balloon" and it got shot down hard by their base. They depend on welfare. Check out this post from DU's fine Washington State forum:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/108252
Seriously, check it out. Also, check into the home reaction they got from the idea of raising the taxes on middle class to keep SS separated from what Santorum called with derision and dread "Welfare".

Republicans are caught in a deep contradiction. They structured critiques of liberalism in a manner similar to old school critiques of the bourgeoisie (limousine liberals) and thus find themselves in bed with the rural proletariat. If their funding gets cut off, this tenuous situation collapses. This is what the freshman tea party is encountering: That farmer who built his fortune by hard work and the sweat of his brow, singing Tea Party praises, is actually totally dependent on government subsidies. 80% of them are. Cut it off for real, make them pay for the programs they enjoy, and they will have a revolution on their hands, with only the 20% real successful business owners left alone in support of the reduced taxes.

To me, its all a sign that its time for a realignment in politics, a reconsideration of everything. What we need right now frankly is a shakeup, a come-to-Jesus, (as the evangelicals say) a time to get back to truth. Because I feel the politics of this time are too deeply rooted in illusions of the past that no longer apply to who we are.

[existentialist]

2. Yes

I agree wholeheartedly with your analysis.

I think the Republicans are in more trouble than they understand because their rhetoric and actions are out of touch.

Of course many Democrats are out of touch too, but not to the same extent.

[lumberjack_jeff]

6. The dynamic is kind of fascinating.

Republicans keep getting elected by flying their crazy flag. Democrats, having little success with simply being the not-crazy party, respond to it by circling Republicans' flank; "Let's give a big Social Security tax cut, and backfill it with money that we borrowed to fund the general fund!". It's a winning strategy because crazy always wins.

How do Republicans combat this? After exhausting all the other alternatives, by resorting to rationalism.

Further commingling SS with GF borrowing is a very questionable thing.

[napoleon_in_rags]

12. "Crazy always wins" I feel that.

That really nails it. You get excited because people are getting riled against Stalin, then discover its because they say he's so much of a capitalist and refuses to wear a moustache. Who do you side with then?

[A Simple Game]

16. Merging SS and the GF is indeed a questionable thing.

Wait and see what happens if the Democrats somehow get the surtax on millionaires passed. The first dollar from the surtax won't be in the GF before there are claims from the Republicans of subsidizing SS. I feel it will be playing into their hands.

I feel that the payroll tax cut was a poor way to get money into peoples hands because it does little to help the people that need help the most. If the money is coming out of the GF anyway, giving a quarterly lump sum to everyone, especially the people on SS and unemployment, would have helped much more.

[airplaneman]

17. K&R you got this one right.

It burns me to no end they had to link SS to GF debt. Link it to something else. The other thing is that a SS cut gives someone making 10K a year $200.00 but the someone with 100K gets $2000.00 The make work pay credit was off your taxes (a GF giveaway) and paid both the 10K person and the 100K person $800.00 each - Much more fair in my mind and helping the poorest person the greaatest %. Obama wrote a book before his election about this. Why only do it for one year and he is talking about cutting SS 50% instead of 17% Grrrrr...
-Airplane

[Vincardog]

8. How are the Corporate created tea bagger freshmen supposed to "Change the Government" movement? Who

is THAT supposed to fool?

[rocktivity]

18. DING DING DING! Napoleon, you're our grand prize winner!

Last edited Sun Feb 15, 2015, 04:41 PM - Edit history (5)

...(T)hey floated the "get rid of social security balloon" and it got shot down hard by their base...(M)ake them pay for the programs they enjoy, and they will have a revolution on their hands...

"Do the ends justify the means?" is a perfectly legitimate question. But in the hands of the Rethugs, it gets contorted into "Do the ends mean that our richest supporters get richer?" If privatizing social security, protecting the rich from paying taxes, or getting Obama out of office no matter what means "shooting down" their own base, so be it.

That's GOP's blind spot: they don't seem to notice that they're starting to destabilize their base. Even worse, they don't seem to realize that they got the majority in the House precisely because the Dems destabilized THEIR own base!


rocktivity

[napoleon_in_rags]

23. Amen brother, you are aware and awake.

There is a large and natural split in their base, between people who are poor standing for what they consider to be the cause of liberty, and Wall street guys who couldn't care less.

What's healthy for this country is to tear these old alliances up, and move forward fearlessly into a new picture. Its time for this country to put the nation, the people first and let come what may from politics after we stand up for truth and freedom.

[LiberalEsto]

3. Oh no! We made Baby Boehner cry!

Of course, practically anything makes Baby Boehner cry, like being late for Happy Hour.

[SmittynMo]

11. There will be no happy hour for the GOP

Awwwww. Isn't it just a shame.

[yellowcanine]

4. "Congressional Republicans leave Washington for the holidays divided and embittered..." So how is

this news? Isn't "divided and embittered" the normal state of affairs for House Republicans?

[customerserviceguy]

9. You haven't seen anything yet

Both establishment Republicons and tea party ones alike will be home, hearing from at least their richer constituents. They're going to learn just how humiliated they all were to the entire country, and I expect them to come back not only embittered, but spoiling for a big fight in their caucus. The Weeper of the House may not survive.

[bemildred]

5. So they are sticking with what they do best. nt

[47of74]

7. I loved the Happy Holidays picture of the weeping Boehner...

...on the front page!

[SmittynMo]

10. OMG, The pic made my day!!!!

Let em cry. And again, they are out to screw the middle class. They prove it over and over, on a daily basis. I hope they find a turd in their punch bowl tomorrow.

[rocktivity]

13. Rachel Maddow's take

rocktivity

[CatWoman]

14. Rock - excellent, excellent video

thanks bunches

[RoccoR5955]

15. Divide and conquer

That's the way to defeat them!

[barbtries]

19. awww, poor babies.

babies are more mature. damn i hate them.

[Fearless]

20. 'Scuse me whilist I warm up the band...

[freshwest]

21. Don't worry, they'll be back to slinging feces in 60 days. Don't be surprised when they do.

[tavalon]

22. Good to see the Weeper of the House doing his job

Weeping, I mean.

[Major Nikon]

24. The wingnuts are divided between the crazies and the batshit crazies

Kinda sad when Mitch McConnell is the voice of moderation in the GOP.