Whatever happened to using RECONCILIATION for Tax Cuts?
Pass the Bush tax cuts for the middle-class NOW.
The Democratic Leadership needs to seize the initiative. Don't tell me what you are not doing, tell me what you ARE doing. Why is Democratic Party in a defensive responsive mode ~ reactive mode ~ damage control mode ~ a DEFENSIVE MODE? The Democratic Party will never be seen as strong leadership without strong decisive measurable substantive PRO-ACTIVE actions that seize the initiative and direct the media news-cycles.
Demonstrate Strength:
~ Tell me what you ARE doing
~ Pro-active actions
~ Seize Initiative
~ Direct Media News-Cycles
NOTE: The Republicans were only able to pass the Bush tax cuts in the first place through Reconciliation (which is why they could only last for ten years and why they're now set to expire.)
And, of course, the Republicans will be in a quandary when they're put in the position to VOTE AGAINST TAX CUTS FOR THE MIDDLE-CLASS!
The Democratic Party can and SHOULD take the offensive.
The Democratic Party needs to SEIZE THE INITIATIVE.
Here's the President's response today from the fallout, clearly it is a defensive posture (reactive), not an offensive posture (pro-active):
Obama says he's not caving on tax cuts
By Ed Henry, CNN Senior White House Correspondent
November 12, 2010 8:12 a.m. EST
Seoul, South Korea (CNN) -- President Barack Obama declared Friday that his "number one priority" is preserving tax cuts for the middle class, and sharply denied that comments by his senior adviser David Axelrod suggest that his administration is about to cave in to Republicans who also want to extend the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy.
Okay, I get that his "number one priority" is preserving tax cuts for the middle class, and I believe him, I really do, and so should you, seriously, but now tell me what you are going to do to achieve that "number one priority!"
"That is the wrong interpretation because I haven't had a conversation with Democratic and Republican leaders," Obama said of a Huffington Post article suggesting that in advance of negotiations with lawmakers next week, the White House has calculated that giving in on tax cuts for the rich is the only way to get the middle class cuts extended too.
Really?
What about ...
Reconciliation is a legislative process of the United States Senate intended to allow consideration of a contentious budget bill with debate limited to twenty hours under Senate Rules.
Now, I am not an authority on the legislative limitations of Reconciliation, and I am sure that at least some of you are, so please feel free to correct, amend, or add to this list, but here are a few more "budgetary" measures that, I believe, should be considered:
- Tariffs tariffs tariffs.
- Public financing of elections.
- Pull out of the WTO, NAFTA, and all so-called 'free trade' agreements. Back to 'protectionism.'
- Large scale Stimulus Program to get country back on feet. Infrastructure infrastructure infrastructure.
- Break up the big banks. Take over the mortgages by federal gov't. Keep everybody in their house.
- Raise minimum wage to a living wage. ($15 - $25/hr.) The economy grows from the bottom up. The spending of average people would create jobs like crazy! Not to mention more paid in taxes.
I repeat, the Democratic Leadership needs to seize the initiative, and that either starts now or never, if we want to win in 2012.
Control the MEME: The best defense is a good offense!
Move Sooner, Not Faster
~ Aikido Proverb ~
Update [2010-11-12 11:38:46 by ArthurPoet]:
I am not knowledgeable on the intricacies of when or how reconciliation can be used, however, these few comments seem to suggest that it cannot.
- Several commenters have suggested that you cannot use reconciliation because you can't use it 2x per year, and that it was already used for the ACA, but then someone else noted that the ACA was last fiscal year.
- paleo: Congress never passed a budget resolution: So reconciliation can't be done.
WASHINGTON INDEPENDENT [7/15/10]:
In Dodging a Budget Vote, Dems Take Reconciliation Off the Table
Decision Could Preclude a Jobs Bill Next Year
Under the arcane rules of the Senate, budget reconciliation can only be used if it was written into the budget rules passed the previous year. With no full budget, there can be no reconciliation. As a consequence, Democrats lose a valuable tool for passing budget-related items on a majority-rules vote. Stimulus and jobs measures, if they combined short-term spending with longer-term deficit reduction, would have qualified for reconciliation.
[Update]
David Waldman (aka KagroX) says otherwise (1+ / 0-)
Last Congressional working session: reconciliation is still a live option
"With everyone wondering what to do -- and whether or not it can be done -- in the remaining few weeks of the 111th Congress, I'm just going to throw this out there: the reconciliation instructions adopted as part of the fiscal year 2010 budget resolution are still valid. That is, the Congress may still technically entitled to use them to pass another reconciliation bill, though no one expects they'd really try it."
by We Won on Fri Nov 12, 2010 at 08:49:32 AM PST