Another Day, Another Round Of GOP Obstructionism Beaten Back

Anti-Law and Order Blue Dog Brad Ellsworth, 407-1

Starting at 5:47 PM and stretching 'til almost 8:30 last night-- a chorus line of GOP extremists put on a noisy display of pure old fashioned partisan obstructionism, offering amendment after amendment to lard down the Stimulus Package with the very policies that have wrecked the country's economy over the past decade. The night ended with the man who led the GOP to an historical defeat last November demanding that the Buy American provisions in the bill are removed (at the behest of his corporate paymasters). Aside from his Independent BBF Joe Lieberman, the only backing he had came from 29 others from the Obstructionist Caucus, who seem to think that the further de-industrialization of our country and shipping more and more American jobs overseas where there are no labor unions (and none of the things Republicans hate: minimum wage, benefits, workplace safety, environmental standards, weekends, overtime...) is the solution to our economic woes. Every single Democrat plus 9 Republicans, even including the third (South Carolinian) mouseketeer, voted against McCain's blatantly anti-American proposal. This morning economist Dean Baker takes McCain and the rest of the pathetic Free Trade Crowd apart piece by piece at TPMCafe.

The free trade crew tells us that this Buy America provision will start a trade war. Why would our trading partners start a trade war over a bill that increases demand for their exports?

That's right, the stimulus bill will increase demand for imports, including for imported steel. The bill will lead to more growth, which will increase demand for all products, including imported steel. That
will be the case even if we have barriers that limit the use of imported steel for a small part of the stimulus. So, will our trading partners start a trade war because we are buying more of their products?

Bunning and Cornyn presented a pair of partisan ploys disguised as tax breaks, both of which failed, Bunning's 39-57 (even after attracting two of the most anti-working family Democrats, Evan Bayh and Ben Nelson); and Cornyn's by an even more dismal 37-60.

These two had been preceded by Inhofe's attempt to slip a $5.2 billion dollar boost to the military budget, which went down to defeat 38-59, Lieberman back across the aisle but all the Democrats holding firm-- along with 3 Republicans.

The worst defeat of the day went to John Thune's bloviating nonsense demanding that the Stimulus not be used to expand the scope of the Federal Government by adding new spending programs. No Dems, no Lieberman, and the defection of 5 Republicans left Thune with a 35-62 defeat. Losing almost as badly, 36-61 was the lead obstructionist's "mystery meat" amendment, a vast array of substitutions that attracted no Democrats and drove away Snowe, Specter, Voinovich and Lieberman. Oh, wait! There was one lunatic fringe senator who managed to get even less support for his moronic amendment than even Thune or DeMint. David Diapers Vitter, the Senate's biggest clown, gave up a day at the whore house to propose an amendment to "eliminate unnecessary spending." It was defeated 32-65, failing to attract any Democrats-- not even Nelson, who's usually a sucker for that kind of banality-- and driving off Collins, Hutchison, Lugar, Murkowski, Shelby, Snowe, Specter and Voinovich, none of whom were amused by Diaper-boy wasting everyone's time.

Over in the House they were arguing about the need to postpone the DTV transition date, which passed 264-158, most Democrats in favor and all but 23 Republicans in their habitual state of opposition for opposition's sake. Their last bill was a pretty uncontroversial Death in Custody Reporting Act which will encourage states to report to the Attorney General information regarding the deaths of individuals in the custody of law enforcement agencies. Every Republican and every Democrat voted for this except for one jackass, former Sheriff-- and don't you forget it, boy-- Brad Ellsworth, a reactionary Blue Dog from Indiana.