John Boehner

Japanese Politician and his Emotional Plea

Posted on by Bobby Broadway

This is hilarious, a Japanese politician being accused of misusing public funds and this is his press conference trying to explain what happened. Some of the misuse of funds were used for over 100 trips to a spa!

I wish we could see some our Senators and Congressmen in the US give this type of press conference. Imagine Charles Schumer, Ted Cruz, Lindsey Graham, Harry Reid, John Boehner, and Steve King looking so pitiful.

Oh wait…

 

As always….

If there is something to be said, “It’s On Broadway” to step up and say it!!

Takeover Thursdays – Did President Obama back down again??

Posted on by Bobby Broadway

NO, President Obama did the smart thing.

Those pundits (mainly Liberal) claiming the president once again “Caved in” to the GOP are completely missing the bigger picture.  Since the debt ceiling debates all we heard from Liberal pundits on how the dragged out debate hurt the country and how the focus was taken away from what is important, JOBS!

And now we have another dust-up where Pres Obama wants to give a joint session speech to Congress laying out his jobs plan; the problem is the president needs for both the House and Senate to agree on the date when Obama wants to agree on the speech.  Well, Speaker of the House John Boehner decided that September 7th was not a good day for the speech.  Some say it’s Boehner trying to embarrass the president and that could very well be the case, but I say who cares.

So what??

What’s more important right now? Day in and day out we hear that this country is in a crisis and both Democrats and Republicans have called out Obama for not addressing the problem.  So when the president decides to accept the new date suggested by Boehner, why are the pundits complaining?

The president is doing exactly what they wanted; the jobs plan is much bigger than dragging out an unnecessary fight about when to give a speech.  I will admit, I first reacted to the Boehner suggestion in a negative manner but then I realized what’s more important… The American people, those Americans that are out of work and struggling to get by.  Like the debt ceiling debate no one wants to hear about who is the bigger fish in the pond (Obama or Boehner).

Lets not forget the point of even having a joint-session of Congress; it’s about the economy and its about jobs.  If the pundits want to critique something save it for after the president’s speech; lets complain about the lack of a plan or maybe even the lack of support for the plan.

I think everyone from pundits, congress and the president need to remember one thing…  In the words of Mr Jones (Craig’s daddy in the movie Friday)

J-O-B…

As always….

If there is something to be said, “It’s On Broadway” to step up and say it!!

Takeover Thursdays – Anthony Weiner on the Health Care Repeal Debate

Posted on by Bobby Broadway

Anthony Weiner

Once again Rep Anthony Weiner (D-NY) hit a homerun while debating Republicans on the validity of the “Repealing the Job–Killing Health Care Law Act”. Republicans want to repeal the Health Care Law aka the Affordable Care Act, but why???

They say we should start fresh as the current law is just no good, as Rep Weiner clearly pointed out while speaking on the floor of the House… Republicans want to repeal the current law so that Republicans can put forth legislation that will do the following:

  • Coverage for pre-existing conditions
  • Help fill the donut hole that will help senior citizens pay for prescriptions
  • Give incentives for small businesses to supply

Ummmmm, wait a minute…..

Republicans want to repeal the current law so that they can put in place what the current law is ALREADY doing!!!!

It’s really simple folks, if you don’t believe me see for yourself; http://www.healthcare.gov/law/introduction/index.html

Republicans are correct when they say there are problems with the current law but there is no reason to start over; focus on the real issues with the current law like the 1099 forms that will have to be submitted by small businesses. This is an unnecessary administrative burden on businesses, there has to be an easier way, let’s focus on coming up with a solution for that.

Many Public Opinion polls are showing that the argument for repeal is 50-50 at best right now; more people are wanting the bill to do more as the support for outright repeal is diminishing.

My advice to Republicans, you better be careful before you are caught on the wrong side of the argument. Get your mind right Boehner and get your crew focused on what is more important like Jobs and the Deficit!!

Meanwhile, enjoy the latest rant from my favorite congressman….

As always….

If there is something to be said, “It’s On Broadway” to step up and say it!!

F-A-Natic Fridays – A Pledge to America, umm….

Posted on by Bobby Broadway

It only took less than 48 hours for Republicans to already start tripping up over their “Pledge to America”.  As I have stated in previous posts I am willing to give Republicans a fair shot at governing, if you have followed my blog you know that I have been critical on the way Democrats handled the majority they hand in both the House and Senate.  I also understand that Democrats and Republicans HAVE to work together to get this country back on track; in my opinion this country is not Liberal or Conservative… it is Moderate!

So healthy debate between Democrats and Republicans is necessary…

As a “Conservative” Liberal I am hopefully (silly me, ha) that the now Republican majority in the House will be about something and focus on the challenges facing this great nation; but I am not an idiot!

Republicans time and time again obstructed President Obama agenda; not saying they have to always agree but I would expect (hope) they would be able to put politics aside and do what is best for the country.  While in the minority Republicans in my opinion did not act in good faith.  They put forth a destructive strategy that focused on getting them back into power, and it worked!

With that power comes responsibility and with their “Pledge To America” there were SOME signs that they might actually mean business… albeit the pledge was a little vague but it was a plan and I was willing to listen.

Well…….

So far they have not impressed me at all, actually I take that back I am impressed!  I am impressed in how FAST they were able to break their own pledge…

In “A Pledge To America” Republicans said they would,

  1. Read the Constitution out loud in congress so that everyone knew what was actually in the Constitution
  2. Cut $100 Billion dollars of federal spending in the 1st year (50 billion)
  3. Open Rules will ensure the right to debate and the ability to offer amendments on legislation (no the case for repeal bill)
  4. Implement cut-as-you-go, repeal of health reform would add $230 Billion to the deficit. Republicans will not cut anything for this legislation.
  5. List the names of each member in attendance at a committee hearing, behind closed doors they did away with that
  6. Promise each bill will include a clause citing the specific constitutional authority allowing you to do what the bill is said to do; so none of the 3 bills introduced met that criteria

This is only a sample of what the “Pledge To America” is about, but the above were points that Republicans highlighted leading up them winning control of the House.

So how are they doing so far in keeping this pledge?

  1. The Constitution was read out loud in congress, unfortunately only the “GOOD PARTS” were read. For whatever reason there was no mention about a slave only being 3/5 a person aka The Three-Fifths Compromise.
  2. Since Republicans blocked the Omnibus Spending Bill that funds the 2011 federal budget, Republicans had to reset their proposed spending cuts.  As of yesterday they were saying they would cut $50 Billion but there is word it will be even lower possibly $30 Billion.
  3. The first bill presented by Republicans to the House will be the Repeal Bill; the bill would repeal health-care reform.  Eric Cantor has already gone on record saying that Democrats will NOT be able to debate of offer any amendments.  Cantor will not allow Open Rules for this legislation, I might be mistaken but that sounds like CLOSED RULES!
  4. Cut-As-You-Go rules; any spending legislation introduced in the House will be required to be pay for by cuts in other areas.  Except if Republicans repeal health-care reform the Congressional Budget Office aka CBO (non-partisan) has already stated that repealing health-care reform would add $230 Billion to the deficit.  currently Republicans have yet to announce $230 Billion worth of cuts to pay for this spending.
  5. In a closed-door meeting Republicans decided that listing the name of each member in attendance at a committee hearing was not a great idea so that pledge was simply scratched
  6. So far Republicans have introduced 3 bills and none of the bills have met the criteria of citing the specific Constitutional Authority that allow the bills to do what they are proposed to do.

Hmmm, at this rate Democrats will be back in control quick fast, all Democrats need to do is keep their heads low and be smart about legislating.  If this is any indication of the next couple of years… Republicans will be consistently shooting themselves in the foot!!

As always….

If there is something to be said, “It’s On Broadway” to step up and say it!!

Takeover Thursdays – Republicans resume control of the House…

Posted on by Bobby Broadway

Nancy Pelosi hands over Majority Speaker of the House to John Boehner

So here we go folks, “The Boys Are Back in Town”…

Republicans are once again in control of the House Of Representatives and this time things will be different!

Seriously, Boehner and the Republicans promise this will not be a repeat of 1994 when they took control of the House during the Clinton presidency.  They will not make the same mistakes that was made back then as they understand that the House is for the people and not a toy for career congressmen.  Yesterday (1/5/2011) Speaker Boehner officially became the Majority Speaker of the House and during his address to the House laid down a framework (Rules Package) for a “New Congress”.

“No longer can we fall short… No longer can we kick the can down the road… The people voted to end business as usual and today we begin to carry out their instructions.”

“The American people have humbled us; they have refreshed our memories to just how temporary the privilege of serving is.  They have reminded us that everything here is on loan from them…”

Boehner focused on the following key points:

  • An emphasis on ‘REAL’ transparency
  • Greater accountability
  • A renewed focus on the constitution
  • Legislators and public will have 3 days to review bills before they come up for vote
  • Implement Cut-as-you-go; in order to introduce any spending you must first make cuts in other areas to pay for the spending
  • A fair an open process
  • You will always have the right for a debate to make your case and offer alternatives on legislations

Hmmmm, I have to admit at first glance the above framework for running the House SEEMS to be impressive… BUT it took Republicans less than a day for them to already break one of their “RULES”.  During Boehner’s speech he made sure to point out that a Nancy Pelosi run House did not allow for real debate and that would not be the case under his watch.  Well I guess Eric Cantor must have missed the memo; Cantor has already stated he will put forward a repeal bill (repeal health-care law aka Obamacare) but he will not allow amendments from the Democrats.

Um, that doesn’t sound like a…

fair an open process or a debate allowing everyone the chance to offer alternatives on legislation!!

This is the “New Congress”?

I am more than willing to give the Republicans a chance to do their thing but come on guys, at least let the dust settle before you start breaking your own rules.  It’s still early but the GOP is not showing me anything; they rather work on repealing Obamacare as they call it instead of focusing on the deficit and creating jobs.  Speaking of deficits, I thought Republicans and the Tea Party were serious about controlling spending and running a fiscally responsible government?

If that is the case, why would they not include tax cuts as part of their Cut-As-You-Go program?  Republicans made sure that tax cuts were exempt from Cut-As-You-Go; this will allow the House to present tax cut legislation that could be unpaid for and add to our already $14 Trillion dollar National Deficit.

I don’t know John Boehner this looks a whole lot like “Business As Usual”

but I guess “We can disagree without being disagreeable….

As always….

If there is something to be said, “It’s On Broadway” to step up and say it!!

Republicans nothing but double-talk bullsh*t….

Posted on by Bobby Broadway

Back in August John Boehner went on Meet the Press and could not answer a simple question from host David Gregory, “are tax cuts paid for or not?”

As David Gregory clearly points out; you can’t be for cutting the deficit and for cutting taxes that are not paid for.  No matter how many different ways David Gregory phrased the question Boehner did everything he could to avoid the question.  If Meet the Press can trip up Boehner why is the President having so many issues doing the same?

Democrats need to pull this video up every time and point out the Republican BS; they cannot allow Boehner and his cronies to get away with this.  What’s so insane is that Boehner in one breath talks about controlling spending but 2 seconds later talks about extending $700 billion dollars worth of unpaid tax cuts for the wealthiest 2%.  There are so many video clips like this of Republicans double-talk Robert Gibbs (White House Press Secretary) should have a moment during his daily press conferences where he shows all of this BS.  I would love to be that guy researching all those video clips…

I am officially offering my services to the White House, I think I can serve the role as Czar of BS; LOL!!

As always….

If there is something to be said, “It’s On Broadway” to step up and say it!!!

Talking Points Tuesdays – Once again, Unemployment Benefits…

Posted on by Bobby Broadway

Today Republican leadership (Sen. Mitch McConnell, Rep. John Boehner, Rep. Eric Cantor) met with President Obama to begin discussions on an agreement/compromise concerning the extension of Bush Era Tax Cuts.  More specifically extending tax cuts for the upper wealthy 2%. 

I’m not writing this to once again exhaust the tax discussion; I want to shed light on the disdain Republicans seems to have for the working class.

While wealthy Republican congressmen fight to protect their fortunes as well as the fortunes of their millionaire/billionaire buddies; 2 Million Americans will potentially lose their unemployment benefits at the end of the year as congress was unable to workout an extension.  Those Americans struggling to find work will once again be slapped in the face by the government they voted.  At the same time they will be labeled as lazy folks looking for a hand out.

REALLY??

I don’t understand how anyone could call the majority of Americans on unemployment lazy.  If you ever been on unemployment you would know going from a $60K (annually) job to receiving $405 (before taxes) a week is NO lap of luxury. 

Weekly unemployment benefits by state (2/2009)
State  Maximum State  Maximum
Alabama $255 Montana $407
Alaska $370 Nebraska $308
Arizona $240 Nevada $362
Arkansas $409 New Hampshire $427
California $450 New Jersey $584
Colorado $475 New Mexico $455
Connecticut $519 New York $405
Delaware $330 North Carolina $494
District of Columbia $359 North Dakota $385
Florida $275 Ohio $372
Georgia $330 Oklahoma $392
Hawaii $545 Oregon $482
Idaho $362 Pennsylvania $539
Illinois $385 Rhode Island $528
Indiana $390 South Carolina $326
Iowa $443 South Dakota $285
Kansas $423 Tennessee $275
Kentucky $415 Texas $378
Louisiana $284 Utah $444
Maine $496 Vermont $409
Maryland $380 Virginia $378
Massachusetts $628 Washington $541*
Michigan $365 West Virginia $424
Minnesota $566 Wisconsin $363
Mississippi $230 Wyoming $387
Missouri $320    

Who can feed a family and pay bills on $628??

The economy is SLOWLY recovering but there is not enough job creation to support the amount of unemployed Americans on the market. 

It is time for us to do the right thing and help those who NEED the help and not worry about tax cuts for RICH MOFOS!!

As always….

If there is something to be said, “It’s On Broadway” to step up and say it!!!

Takeover Thursdays – Republicans, “JUST SAY NO….”

Posted on by Bobby Broadway

Rep John Boehner (R) and Sen Mitch McConnell (R)

When President Obama took office on Janurary 20th 2009 the Republican Leadership (John Boehner and Mitch McConnell) decided they were not going to do anything to help this president or a Democrat controlled Congress move this country forward. Any legislation that was sponsored or strongly backed by Democrats the Republicans would immediately be on the side of opposition. It did’t matter what the legislation was, for it to pass Democrats would have to pass with a “Super Majority”

Republicans would force the “Super Majority” with the threat of a filibuster

Since Democrats took control of both the House and Senate in 2007 Republicans have used the filibuster approximately 152 times (112 times from 2007-2008)!! The use of filibuster exploded in 2007 once the Democrats took over; in the previous year under a Republican controlled congress the filibuster was only used 54 times by Democrats.

So what does this all mean for the everyday person?

That means the people suffer while Republicans focus on their political futures; if you think I am being too harsh take for example the debate of extending unemployment benefits. While millions of Americans unemployment benefits ran out Republicans stood by and debated if it was a good idea to extend the benefits. Poll after poll favored extending but the majority of Republicans stuck to their guns; it was clear that the GOP did not care about anyone else but themselves.

What I can’t understand is how a rational thinking person could possibily support this Republican way of thinking; according to a Gallup Poll released on August 30th 51% of registered voters preferred a Republican run Congress!!

As I have been saying since before the summer for this congress to produce good/great legislation it will take both parties working together. The more divided we are the less effective we will be; unfortuantely the Republicans are set to continue their obstructionist ways until they can regain some control of congress. When the mid-term elections occur in Novemeber we will more than likely see Republicans win control of the House; if that is the case the “Right” will then have to change from obstructionist to legislators. There is an interesting power that comes along with controlling the House of Representatives; Subpoena Power!

Having subpoena power allows the party in power to investigate suspious activity within governement; best believe Republicans would take advantage of that power to investigate the Obama Administration. What they will have to becareful of is not going too far with investigations. We could see a sceanrio where the House will be so involved in investigations that no real legislation will be enacted; and in these econiomic times the last thing we need is a lack of focus on creating jobs.

I have to admit I am not very hopefully that we will see much out of the Republican party; John Boehner and Mitch McConnell still have not produced a plan to set this country back on the right path. All I am seeing and hearing is a lot of stupid discussion about Ground Zero Mosques and how the President is a supporter of Islam.

Both parties need to wake up and get it together, they need to focus on the word for today…

THE WORD FOR TODAY IS JOB, J-O-B-S!!!

As always….
If there is something to be said, “It’s On Broadway” to step up and say it!!!

Talking Points Tuesdays – Democrats need to get the RIGHT message out…

Posted on by Bobby Broadway

It’s time for the Democrats outside of the President to step to the forefront and start conveying the message needed to hold off a Republican takeover. Democrats are caught in a catch-22 right now as there best speaking voice happens to be an unpopular speaking voice; President Obama. Currently Democrats are trying to figure out the best way to use the President on the campaign trail; while the President received a raucous welcome at the University of Texas there was no sign of Democrat Bill White who is running for Governor of Texas. If Democrats want to hold onto control of the House (not likely) and Senate the likes of Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, Charles Schumer, and Barney Frank have to start putting their stamp on the message. Republicans like John Boehner and Mitch McConnell are always in front of the cameras; I know this because their foolish comments are always great material for political satire for shows like The Daily Show, Countdown (Keith Olbermann) and The Rachel Maddow Show.

If the Democrats want to generate excitement they have start making their presence felt daily; I feel like the only consistent message I get from Democrats is from the White House, Robert Gibbs specifically. The message should be real simple for Democrats to voters; REPUBLICANS HAVE NO PLAN!!!!!

Well I shouldn’t say they have no plan; they have actually come together and agreed to say NO to anything Democrats want to do.  Even if that means making the less fortunate suffer; for example Republicans decided they could not support extending unemployment rates BUT they could support extending Bush Tax Cuts that only affect the top 2% in America.  And how do Republicans plan on paying for those Bush Tax cuts??? Well at first they said they shouldn’t have to be paid for as the tax cuts will generate growth.  That explanation was quickly dismissed by many economist including Conservative economist, so Republicans decided to ok lets float the idea of raising the retirement age…

WTF, so Republicans want hard-working middle/working class Americans to break their backs until they are 70 so that they could retire and earn social security.  The current early retirement age is now 62 for those wondering. 

Does this make any sense to anyone???

Does it make sense for working/middle class Americans to work longer so that the likes of Bill gates can get a tax cut??

This is what Democrats need to talk about, President Obama wants to continue giving 95% of Americans a tax break while Republicans would rather turn their back on the working/middle class!!

Other Talking Points Democrats need to focus on….

  • Republicans talk about supporting small business but they are blocking legislation that would help small business.  The Small Business Jobs Act would create a $30 billion fund for community banks to lend to small businesses. It would also increase limits on existing Small Business Administration (SBA) loans and give small businesses additional federal tax breaks.
  • Republicans tried to block the passage of $26.1 Billion State-Aid Package that would save the jobs of 161,000 teachers and 158,000 public works employees (cops, fire fighters etc..).  Republicans referred to teachers, cops and fire fighters as special interest groups.  The bill also helps states going broke to fund Medicaid.
  • Republicans wanted to protect BP; the company that caused the oil spill in the Gulf.  While Democrats wanted to raise the cap for damages from $75 million to an amount that would actually cover the cost.  $75 million is not nearly enough, but Republicans wanted to protect the Big Oil Companies.
  •  Republicans who run on the platform of repealing the 14th Amendment are insane, HA!!!!  Constitutional Amendments are very very difficult to pass; a perfect example of this is the Equal Rights Amendment aka ERA.  It was first proposed in 1923 to affirm that women and men have equal rights under the law; it is now 2010 and this is still not an amendment.  Any Republican pushing the idea of changing the constitution is a nutbag.

In my opinion if Democrats talk about these basic Talking Points no sane individual could possible support the current Republican agenda.  In all honesty it’s not like Democrats have it all figured out but at least I can see some kind of a plan.  Now if we can get Republicans (except Paul Ryan) away from just saying no and actually presenting some ideas then maybe we can start making real progress.

As always….
If there is something to be said, “It’s On Broadway” to step up and say it!!!