Worst GOP Votes In The 112th Congress?

The DC memo being circulated about 16 votes Eric Cantor engineered calls them the "worst" votes in the current session. I'm not so sure this would be my own list-- not by a mile, but it is a way of looking at the hypocrisy of the House Republicans. Beauty, of course, is in the eye of the beholder and, although some of these votes are pretty indefensible from any perspective, not everyone would consider them "the worst." Grassroots Democrats, pretty universally, though, would. These 16 roll calls can easily be used to define for Democrats the danger of a Republican-controled Congress. What makes it even more interesting, of course, is which Democrats, supported by the Beltway Establishment, were part of the bipartisan conservative consensus behind many of them. Let's take a look.

Republicans Voted to Cut Medicare and Assistance for Veterans…

1. Republicans voted to deeply cut Medicare and raise seniors’ health care costs

Background: House Republicans voted to pass a plan that ends Medicare, and replaces it with a voucher program for Americans under the age of 55. This would raise seniors’ costs, reduce benefits, and put private insurance companies in charge of seniors’ health care. Under the House Republicans’ proposed voucher system, seniors would lose the Medicare guarantee of a defined set of benefits and instead simply get an increasingly inadequate voucher. According to the nonpartisan CBO, the GOP plan would increase seniors’ out-of-pocket health care costs by more than $6,000 in 2022. Not a single Democrat broke ranks on the Ryan Budget. Even the worst Blue Dogs and New Dems voted against it-- and so did 4 Republicans.
Source: FY2012 Ryan Budget, H.Con.Res. 34, Vote #277, 04/15/11.

2. Republicans voted against assisting homeless Veterans

Background: In 2011, House Republicans voted to eliminate $75 million from the program that provides assistance to homeless veterans. Again, not even the most pernicious Blue Dog scum broke ranks and backed Boehner and Cantor on this one. In fact, 3 Republicans crossed the aisle in the other direction and voted with the Democrats!
Source: H.R. 1, Vote #147, 02/19/11.

3. Republicans voted to balance the budget on the backs of our Veterans

Background: The measure would have prohibited the House of Representatives or the Senate from considering any balanced budget amendment to the Constitution that could result in a reduction in Veterans’ benefits. Once again, all the Democrats stuck together... and were joined by one Republican, making their position the bipartisan one, not the anti-veteran position Boehner and Cantor were pushing.
Source: Motion to Recommit on H.R. 2560, Vote #605, 07/19/11.

BUT Voted to Protect Their Own Perks and Pay!

4. Republicans voted to keep first-class flights at taxpayer expense

Background: The Democratic Budget would have prohibited Members from using taxpayer funds to purchase first-class airfare or to lease corporate jets. Corporate-oriented Blue Dogs and New Dems generally sided with the Republicans on this one. Most of the de facto anti-populist caucus defected to the GOP including galoots like Ron Kind (New Dem-WI), Jim Himes (New Dem-CT), Kathy Hochul (New Dem-NY) and virtually the entire Republican wing of the congressional Democratic Party that is the Blue Dog Caucus (Barrow, Boren, Chandler, Cooper, Costa, Donnelly, Kissell... right through to Matheson, McIntyre, Ross and Shuler.
Source: Democratic Budget, H.Amdt. 1004, Vote #150, 03/29/12.

5. Republicans refused to cut taxpayer funding for the Member gym, beauty salon, barber shop, and the House dining room

Background: The Democratic Budget would have required the House Administration Committee to cut taxpayer subsidies for the Member gym, barber shop, beauty salon, and House dining room. This was incorporated into the same roll call as #4 above.
Source: Democratic Budget, H.Amdt. 1004, Vote #150, 03/29/12.

6. Republicans voted to protect his/her own salary during a government shutdown, but voted
against the same protections for the troops

Background: This is a result of combining votes on two separate motions to recommit. The first measure would have prevented Members of Congress from receiving basic pay in the event of a government shutdown. The second measure would have ensured that the troops’ pay not be interrupted in the event of a government shutdown.
Sources: (1) Motion to Recommit on H.R. 1255, Vote #223, 04/01/11; (2) Motion to
Recommit on H.R. 1363, Vote #246, 04/07/11.

7. Republicans voted to protect a loophole that allows Members of Congress to personally collect hundreds of thousands of dollars in agriculture subsidies

Background: The Democratic Budget would have limited the amount that Members of Congress can personally receive in taxpayer-funded agriculture subsidies to $26,955 a year-- the same as the limit on outside pay for Members of Congress. (Members already make an annual salary of $174,000.) This was the same amendment and roll call as #s 4 and 5, with 22 Democrats joining their corproate allies in the GOP to protect their own privileges and advantages.
Source: Democratic Budget, H.Amdt. 1004, Vote #150, 03/29/12.

8. Republicans voted to hide giving themselves a tax break

Background: The measure would have required Members of Congress to publicly disclose if they receive a personal tax break from the bill’s small business tax cut. Two of the most egregiously corrupt Members of Congress in history, Blue Dogs John Barrow (GA) and Collin Peterson (MN) abandoned the Democratic position and voted with the GOP on this direct threat to their personal circumstances.
Source: Motion to Recommit on H.R. 9, Vote #176, 04/19/12.

9. Republicans voted to protect taxpayer-funded pensions for Members of Congress who become millionaire lobbyists

Background: The measure would have ensured that Members of Congress who go on to become millionaire lobbyists won’t receive cushy, taxpayer-funded Congressional pensions. Knowing it had no chance of passage anyway, even lobbyist-bound Blue Dogs like Heath Shuler felt safe cynically voting for it. It was a party-line vote, except for Republican Walter Jones, voting with the Democrats.
Source: Motion to Recommit on H.R. 5652, Vote #246, 05/10/12.

10. Republicans voted to protect glossy, self-promotional mailers sent at taxpayer expense

Background: The measure would have cut by 10% the official franked mail component of House Members’ office budgets, known as the Member’s Representational Allowance (MRA). Members of Congress waste over $5 million a year using franked mail to send expensive, glossy, self-promotional mailers to their constituents-- all at taxpayer expense. Communications can be done electronically, and Members can spend their own money on their glossy, self-promotional mailers. This united all the Republicans but Walter Jones but really split the Democrats. 100 voted YES but 79 voted with the Republicans, and it wasn't necessarily an ideological split. Some of the best progressives, like Raul Grijalva, Judy Chu and Barbara Lee wound up voting with sleazy Blue Dogs and New Dems like John Barrow, Mike Ross and Joe Crowley.
Source: Motion to Recommit on H.R. 5882, Vote #367, 06/08/12.

11. Republicans voted to gamble Social Security benefits on Wall Street

Background: The measure would have required that none of the funds in the short-term funding resolution (CR) be used to cut or privatize Social Security, reduce Medicare, turn Medicare into a voucher program, or roll back health coverage for seniors. A straight party-line vote except for Walter Jones (R-NC) crossing over to vote with the Democrats.
Source: Motion to Recommit on H.J.Res. 48, Vote #178, 03/15/11.

12. Republicans voted to give tax breaks to companies that ship jobs overseas

Background: The measure would have prevented companies that outsource American jobs from receiving the 20% tax deduction in the underlying bill. Again, Blue Dogs Barrow and Peterson were with the Republicans on this one-- and Jones was the only Republican to cross the aisle in the other direction.
Source: Motion to Recommit on H.R. 9, Vote #176, 04/19/12.

13. Republicans voted to protect tax breaks for Big Oil companies

Background: The measure would have repealed tax breaks for major integrated oil companies (i.e., the Big 5) for the 2-week period in the proposed budget resolution. 13 Blue Dogs, New Dems and oil industry shills teamed up against this with the GOP.
Source: Motion to Recommit on H.J.Res. 44, Vote #153, 03/01/11.

14. Republicans voted to keep their government health care while repealing yours

Background: The measure would have required a majority of Members to waive their taxpayer-provided health care in order for repeal of health care reform to take effect. Hoyer (and his tail Ruppersberger) teamed up with 3 of the worst Blue Dogs to vote with the entire GOP against this: Shuler, Ross and Boren, all three of whom are retiring after this year. [Note: Hoyer would like to be Speaker.]
Source: Motion to Recommit on H.R. 2, Vote #13, 01/19/11.

15. Republicans opposed putting fraudsters in the penalty box

Background: The measure would have prohibited the Coast Guard from awarding a contract to anyone convicted of fraud or other criminal offenses including embezzlement theft, forgery, bribery, falsification or destruction of records, making false statements, tax evasion, violating criminal tax laws, or receiving stolen property. Jones voted with the Democrats, who all stuck together, while the GOP moved to protect the interest of their criminally-minded corporate cronies.
Source: Motion to Recommit on H.R. 2383, Vote # 841, 11/15/11.

16. Republicans voted to protect wasteful earmarks

Background: Republicans voted to protect two egregious earmarks: (1) one earmark for a Canadian highway; and (2) one earmark for a wasteful, multi-billion dollar earmark for the powerful Republican Financial Services Chairman Spencer Bachus. Jones voted with the Democrats but 5 corruption-oriented "business Dems" voted with the GOP: Sewell (New Dem-AL), Peterson (Blue Dog-MN), Owens (New Dem-NY), Ross (Blue Dog-AR) and Boren (Blue Dog-OK).
Source: Motion to Recommit on H.R. 4348, Vote #169, 04/18/12.