Remember those supposedly fiscally conservative "Blue Dog"
Democrats. They are now being taken for a ride by their
leadership and especially President-elect Barack Obama who, they
believe, intends to transform entitlements and most everything
else.
Reports The Hill:
The costs of the stimulus will not abide by pay-as-you-go
principle, one of the most important issues for Blue Dogs.
After years of waging a frustrating battle to get their
congressional leaders to act on their fiscal reform plans, Blue
Dog Democrats are buoyed by the hope that Obama will finish the
job for them.
In fact, Blue Dogs believe the president-elect's commitment to
economic reform is so pronounced that a number of them who have
bucked Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-Calif.) past efforts to bypass
pay-go are lining up in favor of a stimulus bill.
Blue Dogs, though, know they don't have much leverage on this
stimulus legislation because it is expected to sail through
Congress - with or without their backing.
Pelosi spent much of her first term as Speaker fighting,
cajoling and sometimes giving up on dozens of fiscally
conservative Democrats who agreed with much of her economic
agenda, but who could not stomach borrowing more money to pay
it.
As she leads the House's efforts to pass a new economic
stimulus bill that could top $1 trillion, the Speaker is not
only finding Blue Dogs in her corner, but seeing them publicly
backing her and even standing alongside her leadership
lieutenants at policy press conferences.
The irony is that the change has almost nothing to do with
anything Pelosi has done.
The Blue Dog euphoria that swept through the House chamber on
Wednesday had almost everything to do with Obama, and his
consistent and amplified commitment to the Blue Dog caucus;
long-term entitlement reform; and a return to balanced budgets
over the long term.
Waiving pay-go rules could become a common occurrence this
year, however. Democrats will have to move a Medicare payment
fix and an Alternative Minimum Tax measure that could cost
hundreds of billions of dollars. Moreover, Democrats have
suggested major healthcare reform will not be fully offset,
meaning the price tag of that measure could also be hundreds of
billions of dollars.
Rep. Jim Cooper (D-Tenn.), who voted against the last two
stimulus bills on the grounds that they were not paid for,
joined a number of Democratic leaders at a Wednesday press
conference to talk up the new stimulus plan.
"Government can walk and chew gum at the same time. We can
stimulate the economy and address our long-term problems at the
same time," said Cooper, who later joked that he couldn't
remember the last time he was asked to attend a leadership
press conference.
Maybe the Blue Dogs will be proved right. Alas, I
have this sneaking suspicion that in four years we will have is a
lot more debt for the present but only reform promises for
the future.
