Funding, Break Many Campaign Promises
GOP cuts won't be as easy as thought
By Jack Jamison
Posted: 02/12/2011 01:00:00 AM PST
Republicans have been crowing for months about the things they would
do once they took over the House of Representatives, but they quickly
ran into trouble on their promises.
Instead of the $100 billion cut in the budget they had projected, the
House (which has been under GOP control for a month) cut the budget
for this fiscal year $32 billion. That is far short of the cuts that
Rep. John Boehner promised before the November elections, according to
the New York Times. Late this week a conservative faction within the
GOP objected to the Republican leadership and asked for increased
cuts.
Now, $32 billion is not chopped liver, but not what Boehner promised.
Apparently the Republicans found it more difficult to cut the budget,
especially when they insisted on retaining President George W. Bush's
tax cuts for the wealthy.
The GOP traditionally makes cuts that will affect the poor the most,
while protecting the wealthy. True, there are some who scam the
system, but by and large most on disability or other social programs
deserve their aid. The second promise many of the Republicans made
during the election was to repeal "Obamacare." They made many
references to the "bad bill that should be repealed" and that "the
Americans say so and job creators say so."
These claims are proving exaggerated, if not totally false.
Those opposed to "Obamacare" only have a thin majority. Factcheck.org
has made an analysis that concluded that the Republicans' claim that
the law will
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cost jobs misrepresents the studies that the GOP cites, according to
the Washington Post. "In fact, even among Republicans - who
overwhelmingly oppose the law - only 34 percent wants to see a full
repeal." In a new tactic, after the Senate killed the largely symbolic
repeal of "Obamacare" by the House, the House GOP leader vowed to
strip funding for it. Many Ridge retirees want to see the "donut hole"
on Medicare's prescription drug insurance phased out, which
"Obamacare" is doing - let alone see any cuts in benefits paid to
Social Security or Medicare recipients. But the attacks on health care
continue - including a GOP bill that would allow hospitals to let a
pregnant woman die rather than perform a life-saving abortion (HR 358
by Rep. Joe Pitts, R-PA).
So, even though the GOP scored a resounding victory in November, it is
finding that to put their promises into law is easier said than done.
***
Recently the country marked the 100th birthday of America's 40th
president, Ronald Wilson Reagan. All over the country, prominent
conservatives and Republican figures have celebrated, claiming that
the former president was "guided by strong conservative principles"
and that he truly made America a "shining city on a hill."
What conservatives omit is that many of his policies sharply deviated
from what is considered conservative orthodoxy today - like his strong
record of trade protection and granting residency to millions of
undocumented immigrants (americanprogress.org). Don't assume that I'm
a Reagan-hater. Conservatives often praise Reagan for his "sweeping
economic reforms, which included tax cuts, deregulation, and
liberalized trade policies," according to the Heritage Foundation.
Yet the truth is that, in the classical sense, Reagan wasn't an
economic conservative at all, often radically expanding the size of
government and the federal budget deficit - just doing so in ways that
did not benefit most Americans, especially the poor, according to
americanprogress.org. Reagan, with his steadfast but genial
personality, was just what the country needed, especially after
President Jimmy Carter's "malaise."
He deserves the honors, but don't overlook his shortcomings - the high
unemployment of his first year, the Savings and Loan fiasco and the
Iran/Contra debacle. (And the lack of response to the AIDS
epidemic.-T)
More:
http://www.paradisepost.com/opinion/ci_17365209
--
Together, we can change the world, one mind at a time.
Have a great day,
Tommy
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