The American Spectator

JP| 12.9.10 @ 12:52PM

I surely hope the GOP holds firm -especially in the Senate. I'm sure Pelosi and Reid will attempt to add all types of earmarks and riders onto the tax-cut and unemployment extensions.

McConnell should simply withdraw his reccomendation if the Dems pull thier normal stunts. The GOP can always fix this mess early next year. Of course, many people will get hurt in the meantime. If Reid forces an early vote on the Dream Act and DADT, McConnell and the Senate GOP should walk. They can filibuster away the remaining days left in this Lame Duck session.

NVA Patriot| 12.9.10 @ 1:26PM

I have wondered if Nan was crazy or crazy like a fox. After teh health care bill was shoved through, I thought crazy like a fox.

However, with each passing day taxes are not resolved teh GOP gains negotiating leverage and more people see what the Dems are truly about - confiscation of wealth and all that comes from theft of private property.

She's crazy - this empowers the new Tea Pary weighted congress.

I'm dialing our Repub Senators and telling them to walk or change the negotiating position.

How about we go for tax cuts and tax simplification, permantely make rates:

Top rate 20% for all income over $250k
15% for all income below $250k
2% socisal security cut goes to a privte savings account in the name of the contributor so it becomes an individually owned assett
10% for capital gains
0% for the death tax

Follow our President's lead and stimulate away!!

If the Dems can change the rules we should call them on it and raise the ante.

JP| 12.9.10 @ 1:56PM

NVA,
The only weapon the GOP has is in the Senate- the filibuster. Pelosi may just be playing brinksmanship. She will demand all sorts of goodies be attached to this -making it impossible for the Senate Republicans to swallow. If the GOP withdraws its support, the Dems and the MSM will go nuts.

The only light here, and it is a big one, is that the President already gave his imprimatur. Going against a sitting President from your own party usually isn't a good career move, House Speaker or not. In any event, McConnell must tread carefully and stick to his guns. The extension of unemployment will cost $120 billion with $70 billion of that coming from higher unemployment insurance premiums. And more add-ons would and should kill the deal.

NVA Patriot| 12.9.10 @ 2:29PM

Agree & Understand.

If Nancy 'decorates the spending Christmas tree' as a negotiating ploy to get 'more stuff' for her team to allow the vote to come to the floor...

...then we can wait until there's a new congress. I personally would prefer that. However, I understand the Repubs taking the current deal.

As time goes on, our side grows in strength - raw number of new memebers and moral authority as every wage earning American sees that the Democrats take more from your paycheck, Repubs come in, in January, and they will look like knights in shining armor as they lower taxes and it's seen in paychecks.

President O will not be able to negotiate because he can't deliver votes. No votes, no power.

Given this dynamic - I think the Dems will fold and let President O have this deal - the alternative carries much more down-side risk for the Dems than the Repubs.

And as a side note, I have run large projects with many players for business transactions measured in 100's of $million. I have NEVER entered a negotiation or decsion meeting without KNOWING I can deliver on EVERY committment. For the President to put a deal on the table and NOT have it locked down through a critical choke point, Speaker of the House, is simply amazing and insane.

It should make every American nervous when this guy (President O) enters negotiations with Iran, China, Russia, the Saudi's, North Korea, and Venezuela. What's he missing in those negotiations?

I would be fired if I conducted my business dealings like that and I am by no means dealing with matters as significant as our national security.

Paul Clare| 12.9.10 @ 6:53PM

Right On! Where are they getting the money to pay for the extra 13 months of unemployment? If the Senators want this they should take out of THEIR paycheck!

Remember November, Primaries are only 18 months away! We can chain saw away more of the dead wood then!

Too Many Tims| 12.9.10 @ 2:49PM

The Dems are fighting and scrabbling for the choppers like it's the fall of Saigon.

Nick| 12.9.10 @ 2:56PM

Mr. Klein,

Your post should've been titled "KAOS on Capitol Hill."

The democrat party increasingly resembles the fictious spy organization of "Get Smart" fame.

I can easily see Dingy Harry saying to his caucus (in a German accent, of course,) "Vee are demokrats! Vee don't cut taxes here!"

ncatty| 12.9.10 @ 2:57PM

If nothing gets done by these lame ducks, then the Alternative Minimum will kick in, the retroactive extension of research credits, itemized deductions for state and local income taxes, and standard deductions for state and local real property taxes will all go away. In addition, the expiration of the Bush era tax rules will result in an increase in taxes. Oh yes, and the proposed reduction in social security witholding taxes will not happen either. All this is doomsday for the economy. This is legislative malpractice of the highest order.

NVA Patriot| 12.9.10 @ 3:03PM

And Healthcare wasn't ;) !! :)

Interested Conservative| 12.9.10 @ 3:02PM

I remember back in '06, when the GOP lost both houses, but still had a POTUS, what a mess that lame duck session was - trying to cram everything through just to appease the "wealthy" one last time, and deny civil rights to so many innocent groups.

Oh, wait, did that happen, or am I misremembering again?

ncatty| 12.9.10 @ 3:24PM

Good one. The Dems are more ruthless than the GOP when it comes to legislative power. They lost big time on November 2. So what, they say, our term isn't over until the end of the year. Why should we bend to the will of the voters? Those slobs voted against us.

Warrior| 12.9.10 @ 5:22PM

Can you be a little more specific? The biggest controversy I remember was W trying a last ditch effort to get Bolton "approved." I can't remember anything on the magnitude of DREAM Act, tax increases, DADT, and/or climate change.

Francis| 12.9.10 @ 8:41PM

The only immigration law that should be demanded is to make illegal entrance into the United States a felony, with no excuses and no exceptions. This includes businesses that are twice caught hiring illegal workers, should be subject to a harsh fine, confiscation of business assets and after the second conviction--prison. It's blatantly obvious to me, that for years Washington has deceived the American people of both political parties. There has been no intention of enforcing immigration laws and this is proven without doubt. If illegal immigration had severe consequences, such as the above penalties the only enforcement program needed would be E-Verify mandated for every business owner. The majority of other restriction tools needed to halt the free flow of desperate, destitute people would radically decline; knowing that you would be convicted of a class “A” felony would collapse the ongoing flow.

This would be huge disincentive to economic foreign nationals crossing our borders, or using the excuse of being a tourist, fully aware they are not leaving once their visa runs out. No! There has been no true intention of halting illegal aliens coming here for work, or to commit crimes. Both Democrats and Republicans have remained impassive to the invasion, whether its 13 million or 20 million foreigners who have skirted our laws; of course that's according which side of the Washington chambers you are inclined to believe? Over thirty years of government neglect has brought this nightmare upon us, of incessant crimes against lawful citizens and permanent residents. Americans land owners living in constant fear along the 2000 miles of mostly unprotected border. Both political parties irrationally forget who pays their salaries and pensions while American find their wages sinking and the majority of Social programs of having to share these entitlements with illegal labor and their families.

Around the country, we have activist judges who ignore the US constitution and instead construe the law according to personal political orientation. Even now Arizona is under bombardment from open border radicals, or pro business entities, who do not want this Border States policing laws to be upheld. Then again the IRS is complicit in allowing illegal aliens to squat here, by issuing ITIN numbers, as foreigners cannot possess a real Social Security card. Over the last ten years we have seen an escalation in ID theft, with the courts saying this is not classed as a felony. Another un-exaggerated point is that illegal alien workers are collecting billions of dollars in income tax refunds, for children who don't exist or filing for the same child twice by each parent. For those people who believe that this is an embellishment, one only has to Google key words--illegal alien costs; illegal alien income tax refunds.

The are highly regarded reports on the expenditures of federal, state and county support of foreign nationals, that you as the taxpayer is erroneously paying. Sanctuary States like California under Liberal progressive control in Sacramento is depleting the state of billions of dollars, as they subsidize the millions in just Los Angeles County alone? The schools are in turmoil from overcrowding of children of illegal families, who by mandated law must be educated. In understaffed county hospitals have become places of last resort, for the multitudes of foreign nationals who live below the poverty line, so they are dependent on taxpayers. California has become an incubator for hundreds of thousands of illegal pregnant females, who collect under their new citizens-babies, namely billions of more dollars soaked from you and me.

Their children are a valuable commodity, because our 14th amendment law has been with intent compromised, so that children of illegal aliens are issued food stamps, low income housing and a large profusion of cash payment and other freebies. These illegal women are already aware that once the stand on our soil, that the US taxpayer will support them and all their children. Until we halt the illegal immigration occupation of this country, we a steadily heading for a irrevocable overpopulation. It should be remembered for every legal or illegal immigrant who settles here, brings many more immediate relation group follows. Every year millions come to America who already has a legal or illegal family member, who offers either a safe haven or an affidavit of support; who they sponsor. When an illegal alien is caught along the border, the US agents ask that individual where are they are going.

The majority answer I have a brother, or uncle in Denver, Salt Lake City or other major hub, who has a job for me. This is almost a perpetual loop of the same story over and over again. Alas, there is not enough room to explain what is happening around America ITS AN FINANCIAL catastrophe. ? Why should US citizens have to compete with foreign nationals? Why should legal construction workers or a laborer in any other job, have to compete with Contractors who hire foreign workers? When is this injustice to the American population going to end? Remember that--CHAIN MIGRATION--puts the United States in serious peril, even more so than the original sponsors. Learn much more about the OVERPOPULATION and its risks to the environment, infrastructure and quality of life at NumbersUSA The Dream Act in itself not a menace, although at least a 800.000 students would be eligible if they abide by the law?

The major problem that once legalized over how many years, they could bring in a whole spectrum of family. Chain migration has silently snowballed from the 1986 Immigration bill. Since that law was passed the Congress has quietly passed six amnesties, without any explanation, while at the same time admitting over a million new legal immigrants a year through a lottery of specific working visas. The Dream Act if passed is just another stealth type back door amnesty. Hopefully in our future—the TEA PARTY—will put an end to this serious pretense of each administration supposedly working for the populace. Don't give any Senator or Representative breathing room, and should get a cordial call the Washington Switchboard 202-224-3121 Until the Dream Act is amended--is must not be voted on--as is.