WSJ joins list of media ignoring GOP's reconciliation double standard
The Wall Street Journal uncritically quoted Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN) saying "there'll be a minor revolution in this country" if Democrats use the budget reconciliation process to pass health care reform. The Journal did not note that, during the Bush administration, Alexander voted to use the reconciliation process to pass tax cuts and voted against amendments that would have stripped reconciliation language from budget resolutions.
From the September 2 Wall Street Journal article:
Republicans said the Democratic leadership has never really given them a seat at the table or entertained their ideas on health care, which include limiting medical-malpractice suits and allowing small businesses to join insurance-buying pools that would be exempt from state-level regulations.
"They either don't know how to operate in a bipartisan way or don't want to operate in a bipartisan way," said Sen. Lamar Alexander (R., Tenn.). He warned that if Democrats use a parliamentary tactic called reconciliation to push through a bill by a majority vote in the Senate, "there'll be a minor revolution in this country."
Democratic leaders are leaving open the option of using reconciliation for parts of the bill. But with the political price for that tactic potentially high, they are hoping to avoid it.
Alexander supported Republican use of reconciliation to pass Bush tax cuts
Alexander supported passage of 2003 tax cuts through reconciliation. In 2003, Alexander voted for the Senate version of the fiscal 2004 budget resolution that called for additional tax cuts to be considered under reconciliation and for the final version of the 2004 budget resolution. He also voted against an amendment to the Senate version of the budget resolution, proposed by Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV), that would have stripped reconciliation instructions from the resolution. He subsequently voted for the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 itself. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that the bill, as cleared by Congress, "would increase budget deficits ... by $349.7 billion over the 2003-2013 period."
Alexander supported passage of 2005 tax cuts through reconciliation. In 2005, Alexander voted for the final version of the fiscal 2005 budget resolution, which also called for tax cuts through reconciliation. Alexander subsequently voted for the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005 itself. The CBO estimated that the bill, as cleared by Congress and signed by the president, would "reduce federal revenues ... by $69.1 billion over the 2006-2015 period."
WSJ joins media in ignoring Republicans' past support for the tactic
In quoting GOP criticism of reconciliation, media have ignored Republicans' past support for the tactic. Media Matters for America has documented a pattern of journalists uncritically quoting Republican senators criticizing the decision to use reconciliation as overly partisan, without noting that those same senators -- including Sens. Judd Gregg (R-NH), Charles Grassley (R-IA), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) -- voted to allow the use of the budget reconciliation process to pass legislation during the Bush administration, including tax cuts.
I thought the Republicans were all about state's rights (they used to be until the 2000 election). Tort reform is a state issue, since medical malpractice suits are generally heard in state courts. Federal tort reform would have no effect at all on health care costs.
There once was a time folks lied to hide the truth, today in America, politicians has taken lying to a hold new level. Lying has become a national pastime.
Here is a prime example:
The 2008 presidential election featured a black man with a great chance to win the presidency.
From the moment they feared Obama, the black man, could win the election Republicans shamelessly abandoned all logic and strategy and resorted to what they know best; LYING.
The campaign of lies began by labeling the black front-runner an “Elitist”, “Socialist”, and “Marxist” just to name a few.
As time went on the lies has gotten bigger and bolder.
During the race and after Obama won the presidency Republicans, in particular, broaden the lie that Obama did not have an American birth certificate. They lied knowing a black man would not do something no white man has done before, and that is become president of the United States without proof of citizenship.
They pushed this lie with provable evidence to the contrary, in fact, a copy of Obama’s birth certificate was put up on his website for all to see, not only that, but the hospital in Hawaii where Obama was born made an announcement of his birth in the local Newspaper.
It did not matter to these pathological liars.
When confronted with the truth many Republicans ignored the facts saying “I never saw the ORIGNIAL birth certificate”. In other words they wanted to keep the lie alive.
Republicans and the conservative media prove to be the greatest liars of them all. They oppose everything Obama does with misinformation, which is a creative way of lying.
Most people caught in a lie will be more careful the next time they speak, not these unremorseful liars. They simply put it on the back-burner and start a new lie.
This is what they did throughout the campaign and they have not paid a real price yet, as a result lying in the open has become contagious and out of control.
In their effort to derail the Healthcare Bill Republicans and some in the Health-Insurance industry hired liars to disrupt Democrats’ town hall forums.
We know this because a circulated memo detailing the mission, the list of meetings sites and objectives was revealed to the media.
Even when some of those who put out the memo confessed to mischief Republicans continue to lie and say the mobs were organic.
Republican wants Obama to fail and they are out to defeat his Healthcare Bill believing it will be his ‘waterloo’ In order to achieve this objective Republicans have elevated their lies into the stratosphere. “There is a provision in the Bill for a death panel” former Gov. of Alaska Sarah Palin said.
This outrageous assertion (lie) is echoed by prominent members of the Republican Party even though they know for a fact this is not true. They no longer care how they are perceived nor are they held accountable for the lies they tell.
It is clear; when it comes to a lie no one does it better (a badge of honor perhaps?).
They will lie about anything. They will lie for no reason and they will lie for the sake of lying, thereby earning America dubious distinction of having The GREATEST LIARS IN THE WORLD!!!.
Ask any Russian journalist (ones that are still alive) or ask the Cubans.
I suppose it could be said that everyone has an equal right to free speech. You can say whatever you like, but we are free to disagree (and if we are in a position to influence your exercise of free speech - as your employer, your advertiser, etc.), we are free to do so.
As long as the government is not the agent of infringement, whatever Mark Lloyd or anyone else can do to silence the liars on conservative talk radio is not only an exercise of his right to free speech, but it is a public service.
The difference is that they were cutting taxes... not changing the system...
That is how hypocrisy works. Its different for you, but applies to the other guy.