Republicans score key wins on spending (key was UNITY by Repugs)

[rodeodance]

Source: cms

Republicans score key wins on spending

By Gail Russell Chaddock Tue Dec 18, 3:00 AM ET

Washington - Heading into the last days of the legislative session, Republicans in Congress and President Bush are chalking up some surprising victories on federal spending.


That has put Democrats on the defensive. From a campaign pledge to change the course of the war in Iraq to tax and spending plans, Democrats are now having to scuttle key elements of their agenda. The extent of their retrenchment will become clear this week as Congress moves to pass key spending bills.

The secret behind the GOP's success? A show of unity between the minority party on the Hill and the White House.

"There's an interesting cultural argument to be made that Republicans as a party are simply more disciplined than Democrats," says Ross Baker, a political scientist at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, N.J. "There is also a very strong perception on the part of Republicans that the president is popular with the party base, and for that reason they don't want to desert him. The third factor is that you have a president with nothing to lose – and someone who has nothing to lose in this kind of showdown is going to win."

The White House said Monday it was encouraged by concessions made by Democrats over the weekend as they crafted a $500 billion-plus catchall spending bill. The year-end measure mostly sticks within Mr. Bush's budget even as it shifts billions of dollars into politically sensitive domestic programs he sought to cut.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20071218/ts_csm/aloyal

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dang it.

[SoCalDem]

1. United minorities often "win"

and the dis-united majorities who think they have it in the bag..don't..

[Robbien]

2. It is not unity of GOPers. It is that certain Dems are joined at the hip with GOPers

Democratic majority is a majority in name only.

With faux Democratic members scheming, planning and voting 100% with GOPers, the unity here is not of all GOPers sticking together, but of all corporate conservatives sticking together regardless of party lines.

[rodeodance]

3. But that strategy appears to have failed. Republican leaders have urged their caucus to stand togeth

The bill wraps together the budgets for every cabinet department except the Pentagon and is expected to pass Congress this week to allow lawmakers to head home for Christmas.

From the early days of their takeover of the 110th Congress, the new majority has aimed to peel off Republicans facing tough elections in 2008 – or build on issues so politically appealing that they could not refuse to support them.

But that strategy appears to have failed. Republican leaders have urged their caucus to stand together in the face of what they say is majority overreach.

For example, on the eve of votes last week on a sweeping energy bill, Sen. Ted Stevens (R) of Alaska appealed to his GOP colleagues to back him in rejecting a $22 billion tax package on a popular energy bill, because Senate Democratic leaders broke their word to him.

[rodeodance]

4. GOP leaders predict that they will have the votes to sustain the president’s objections to any bil...

GOP unity on energy bill
Despite Bush's opposition to the tax package, Democrats expected they had the votes to move the bill. Over months of negotiation, the bill had been carefully calibrated to meet regional needs. In addition to extending tax breaks for renewable-energy sources, the bill provided tax credits for wood-burning stoves, cosponsored by Sens. John Sununu and Judd Gregg, both Republicans from New Hampshire.

But despite the regional sweeteners, the New Hampshire Republicans voted "no" on a key procedural vote on the tax package, which had to be dropped from the Senate version of the bill. GOP leadership aides credit Senator Stevens appeal – and overreach by the Democrats – for rallying GOP votes against the tax package. The energy bill, without the tax package, passed the Senate 86 to 8.

GOP leaders predict that they will have the votes to sustain the president’s objections to any bill moving in the last days of this session. “Democrats have overpromised and underdelivered,” says Rep. Roy Blunt of Missouri, the Republican whip. He predicts that the last week in session will be “chaotic” and produce results that are “dramatically less than they intended to move through Congress this year.”

• Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.

[xxqqqzme]

5. hardly 'surprising' to anyone paying attention.

Sadlyit is what we are coming to expect.

I don't know why I'm out here walking precincts, volunteering, actively working within the CDP, when the reward is publican lite and &ass kisin'. I am ready to walk away. Why continue beating my head against the brick wall?

[msongs]

6. dear helpless victim Nancy - bush vetoes spending bills, just do NOT send him another one nt

[WhiteTara]

7. especially if they have a second branch

behind them. A slim majority on its own struggles.

[LynnTheDem]

8. There the republics go again; marching in lockstep.

Hey, it worked for those other rightwing lockstepping idiots.

For awhile.