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Bunning burns out

Posted: Mar 2, 2010

Bunning has accepted an offer originally made last Thursday (the day he started his one-man filibuster). He'll stop his filibuster in exchange for one vote on an amendment by him regarding how to pay for the 30-day unemployment extension. He didn't take the deal last Thursday because he knew he didn't have to backing to get it passed. Now he's folding under the pressure from dems and republicans alike and taking the offer to try to save some face.

I wonder how much government money was wasted for this guy's grandstanding? How much extra work will go into covering retroactively what should have happened? I don't think we'll ever know the dollar amount, but his antics came at a price both in our tax money and in the press coverage of what NO can do and has been doing.

Obstructionism isn't going to be as easy as it was before with the public eye turned to it.

;

I was really hoping he would hold out - sm

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Now what is the lamestream media gonna do. They had so many more sob stories to tell. Oh well, maybe now they will start reporting on Rangel or other corrupt democrats wasting government money. Nah, fat chance in h___!

I know of people (single) who are unemployed, - benefits

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on unemployment and food stamps, and live in an apartment for which the monthly rent is over $ 1,000.--, and this for a single person!

He/she gets most probably also government subsidies to pay the rent.

This makes me really wonder!

I find that very hard to believe. - Unemployment benes are based on earnings....

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It may be possible that this isolated case could be someone who qualifies for special funding of some sort. Rent subsidy for Katrina survivors has ended, but there could be some other housing subsidy available under a state program. However, this is not likely either since you are talking about a single person, who I am assuming does not have children, since you did not mention them.

Unemployment benefits are based on two quarters worth of earnings that predate the claim by two quarters. It could be that he or she had high earnings two quarters before the Recovery Act and has been able to receive extensions without having to file a second regular claim, but those Tiers exhaust eventually, and if the person stays unemployed for longer then a year, they would not qualify monetarily for a renewed claim.

In Texas, a single or couple household without chlidren cannot qualify for food stamps if they are on unemployment, since most benefit amounts are over the maximum allowed. It would be helpful to know what state you are talking about.

What I posted is true, as she is my neighbor. - UB

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She is a single mother, in her 30s, 1 child, never married, she lives in a 2-bedroom apartment, rent is way over $ 1,000.--, unemployed already for 13 months, drives a car, gets UB and food stamps.
I am not sure if she gets rent subsidy, but how else would she manage?

Unemployment benefits vary according to the states one lives in from 46 to 72 weeks!

Now there is a motion going on to extend UB for additional 27 weeks, bringing it up to 99 weeks unemployment benefits.

Still begs the question - what did the Senate mean - when they adopted the pay-go rule?

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The grandstanding was apparently all on the part of the Democrats, who never had any intention of abiding by pay-go.

Hypocrisy isn't going to be as easy as it was before with the public eye turned to it.

Let's hope you're right - NJ

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Hypocrisy, thy name is Republican Party.

But seriously, in response to your subject line here's one post explaining it. There were more and you'll find them if you just scroll down.

Basically, the law allowed exemptions for emergencies. Perhaps you don't thing the current economy and joblessness is an emergency. Plenty of dems and republicans alike would dispute that with you. I'll gladly give you more links to posts from conservatives on this board talking about the urgent state of joblessness/unemployment. Just hollar if you need help finding them.

This is not rocket science. PayGo has emergency provisions. - Evidently, UI benes qualify.

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You cannot predict what comes next, but I suspect dems will be turning the tables on Bunning soon enough and offset spending with pub pet projects in equal measure with dem programs. Turnabout is fair play, after all. Then we will hear some real squealing and another round of pub hypocrisy and obstruction will ensue. One thing we have learned from HCR is that dems are darned if they do and darned if they don't, so they have evolved into calling bluff and exposing bluster.

As for the rest of your absurdity, Bunning is the grandaddy of grandstanding and he displayed his ugly imagine long enough to have it seared into he public consciousness. In the meantime, night after night after night, pub hypocrisy is being exposed on cable news outlets. Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings, but as long as there is such a seemingly endless supply, that is not likely to change anytime soon.

Bunning made it quite clear that he would vote for it - if they broke the UI extension out separately.

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But you see, the Democrats cast EVERY appropriation as being about "jobs" (what appropriation doesn't affect jobs?) and therefore eligible to be considered an "emergency".

Doh!

There's $400 billion left over in the stimulus bill...why not pay for it with that? - Anon

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Or is that the Democrats' own personal slush fund to use in the upcoming elections?

Can you please explain - Lillybell

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I heard today that Harry Reid was for the Paygo plan, but now he's not. Is this true? If so, do you know what has changed his mind? Sorry, but I'm doing lots of searches but not finding any real explanation of this.

1 2 3 red light! - NJ

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An analogy:
It's against the law to go through a red light. Emergency vehicles can, though. To legislate that they couldn't would cost lives.

The pay-go bill had an emergency clause so that bills could be passed if deemed an emergency expense. The 30-day extension of unemployment benefits was seen as an emergency by both dem and republican leaders. It was ok'd in bipartisan fashion for unanimous vote because of that bipartisan agreement.

I don't know where you heard the misinformation on Reid, but I think it's because whomever said it is ignoring the very real emergency aspect.

NJ

Then why didn't Reid submit just the emergency - portions for passage?

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Let's continue your analogy:

Yes, the fire engine can go through the red light, but not in a convoy of taxicabs, pizza delivery cars, UPS trucks, Army tanks and bulldozers.

The FIRE TRUCK goes through the red light - NOT the others. Yet what Reid submitted was the equivalent of that convoy, and then he argued that all of them should go through the red light merely because ONE of the vehicles was a fire truck.

Coming up to bat... - NJ

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I'll play, but first let's get the teams straight. Reid AND the republican leadership agreed to submit the bill for unanimous vote. Not just Reid. It was bipartisan. They decided to pass it as emergency legislation.

Alrighty then. Ever seen a cop put on his lights to run a red light because he was jonesing for a donut? I can't say it's never happened, but that cop would be in deep doo. Are you saying parts of this bill were a donut run? You can read it here to see what else besides unemployment would be covered.

It would be helpful if you could point out the parts Bunning couldn't see as emergencies and what percentage of the bill their cost is. I hope it wasn't COBRA. It would also help if you could justify not passing a 30-day extension as Bunning has voted for extensions historically and against pay-go.

Are you sure this wasn't just grandstanding by someone whose mental health has been called into question over the past few years?

He is a maverick, you betcha!

You're begging the question - would you please break this habit?

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There is only ONE question here, and that is whether Bunning was justified or not. Whether the bill was submitted by Reid alone, by Reid and the Democrats alone, or by Reid and the Democrats in collusion with every other Republican in the Senate has absolutely nothing to do with this question.

As for your ad hominem argument concerning Bunning's "mental health", you might want to ease off the gas with respect to that subject seeing that your own mental health has been called into question more than once and I have always said in your defense that it's a scurrilous lie to call you crazy no matter how nuts you are.

Now, let's address your assertions regarding Bunning's motives. Since you don't know the man, and since we all know how little store we can set by the pronouncements of Senators standing in front of microphones, we will simply leave such questions to God and Mr. Bunning.

This takes us down to the core question: Was Bunning justified in demanding that the Senate stop spending money that it doesn't have? Some say yes, some say no. Mr. Bunning was entitled to say no. And that's all there is to it except to say that you are entitled to disagree with him. Just once, it would be nice to see you disagree with someone without being so....well, disagreeable about it.

Justify it then, please - NJ

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Ok, was he justified? Please see the previous post for a link to the bill. You want us to believe Bunning would have passed it if it had been concerned only with unemployment, so that is part of the question about justification.

Again, what part of the bill would you consider unjustified and why (as in, how much would that part cost)?

We can't come to a decision unless we know the facts. Help us out and present the justifications.

NJ

Let Bunning justify it - Not carrying any water for Bunning

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I didn't offer a position on what Bunning did. I see both sides of the issue, however.

I said that as a senator, Bunning was entitled to do what he did, just as other senators are entitled to vote for cloture, criticize him or whatever.

He made plenty of statements about this. Read them and agree or disagree -but with him, not me. That's what you're entitled to do.

Entitlement - NJ

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Ah, you mean that because what he did wasn't against the law it was alright to do?

Nonsense. And a very scary attitude that I hope you don't live by.

NJ

Is that what I said? - Hardly

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PLEASE read my posts, or engage in conversation with another member of the forum.

Thank you.

Thanks - is a little more complicated than I thought - Lillybell

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I've had CNN on today and I read their website to try get headline news, so that might be where I heard it, but I just want's sure if I was hearing it and why he would be for something that he felt good but now did not.

Thanks for the explanation. Understand it a little better.

Just my take on it - see message

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In my opinion, we don't need to be sucked into the propaganda machine.

Senator Bunning supported extending benefits if they were paid for with leftover, unspent money from the stimulus bill. Reid was blocking that and wanted to spend an additional $10 billion. That $10 billion will come out of our pockets, the taxpayers, because we are the only ones who will ever pay for any of this, GOOD OR BAD, we always pay for it, and we already paid for that stimulus bill. Why should we pay for it twice.

This was not one man standing in the way of benefits it was one man standing in the way of the government sucker-punching you with one hand while giving you a paycheck that barely keeps you alive with the other. The major networks that reported events on this topic are just a prime example of the obama's pledge for "Transparency". It's very transparent that the WH or the Senate Majority Leader's office, or both, provided CBS, NBC, and ABC with talking points.

An objective and serious news organization might have featured a report on any of the following related topics:
1. The Democrat-led U.S. Senate refuses to implement the President's "Paygo" strategy.
2. The Congress and WH give $120B in pay raises to federal employees at the expense of the unemployed.
3. Congress mistakenly pays for constuction maintenance on the historic covered, wooden Humpback bridge in Virginia via the so-called jobs bill instead of the Transportation, National Parks bill, or "shovel-ready jobs" Stimulus bills.

You won't see any of these more worthy news topics on the major networks because their Nightly newsreaders having turned their investigative reporting responsibilities over to the major political parties.

Bottom line, this was not a filibuster. Bunning refused to give consent on an unanimous consent motion. The reason the filibuster term was used, was to try and gain a propaganda advantage when the health care bill comes back to Congress.

The left wing coverage of Bunning's courageous stand was the most overtly partisan coverage since the Obama campaign. Never once was the substance of Bunning's objection given prominence.

Never once were Democrats asked to explain their hypocrisy on failing to pay for this spending.

Never once did the left wing press mention that it was Reid's incompetence that pushed the vote back to such a late date.

Never once did the left wing press explain that the Reid could have simply called for a roll call vote. Instead, the DNC talking points were pushed. The reason the left wingers in the press did this is obvious. The Democrats needed a win in public opinion after being battered for more than two months, and this was the vehicle they pushed to get that win. It didn't matter that the integrity of the left wing fringers in the press would be shredded.

Anyway, that is my take on it. I hope this helps explain some issues on the matter.

I am looking forward to November 2010 and then onto 2012. God Help Us All.

No cries about the bipartisan foul? - NJ

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You are way out in right field. It was bipartisan, and pay-go was written with a provision for emergencies. But you know that because it's been posted half a dozen times already.

I guess it boils down to you not thinking unemployment is all that bad. If you don't think it is, you must think Obama did a good job rescuing the economy. Glad things are looking up!

NJ

Thanks for your reply too - think I'm getting the jist of it a little better - Lillybell

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I just think the whole thing stinks. I've got a great plan on how to pay for all of this. - STOP THE WAR! Billions could be saved if they could stop the war.

Excellent synopsis of the chicanery going on in Congress! - Anon

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You know your stuff, and I'm thankful you chose to share it with the rest of us. With the media constantly siding with the left, it's hard to get the conservatives' message out, which is extremely frustrating. Of course, the media is slowly dying so that won't always be the case, thank goodness.

A "price in press coverage"?? - Reaching just a bit, no?

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Are you referring to a cost in trees and ink, or what?

(Hint: News agencies make money off of controversies such as this one. They thrive on controversy. Ask them, and they'll say "The more the better!")

Where is your quote from? - NJ

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Quotes are supposed to be verbatim ^^

NJ

From your original post - as quoted here

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"...but his antics came at a price both in our tax money and in the press coverage of what NO can do and has been doing."

WHAT? You omitted an ellipsis? Well, then your - point must be invalid.

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Here's how you should have done it:

"A price...in press coverage"?

See that you don't commit this error again. It gives NJ room to quibble about nothing.

Poor sentence structure - NJ

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Thanks for quoting properly. I was worried that you are taking it out of context.

I must have hurried that post. I'll type this one slowly so you can understand:

How much tax money was wasted by Bunnings baloney?

How much will the republican party pay for his spotlighting the NO tactic?

Hope that helps ^^

NJ

Oh, you make me laugh. "How much Govt money was - wasted" ? ! Oh, never as much as

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OBAMA and friends. Can you not see just how hypocritical what you are saying is? Of course you cant.

The Democrats could've voted for cloture at anytime and NOT held this bill up.... - Anon

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They wanted unanimous consent so their names wouldn't be recorded as voting for this bill that once again will drive up the deficit, especially after their grandstanding on Pay-Go.

They're a bunch of cowards.

Nope - NJ

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It was sent for unanimous vote. It would have taken days to go through the procedural rules to get it to cloture. That was the whole point.

NJ

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