I said we'd be watching the Republicans and holding them to their word and their conservative principles. This thread will track them.

So far, they've kept one promise - to bring a bill to repeal Obamacare. Although it's not expected to clear the Senate or be signed by the President, this is a good first step to get rid of the Obamacare government health care take over.

House Votes to repeal year-old health care law

WASHINGTON – The Republican-controlled House has voted to repeal the health care law President Barack Obama signed last year.
The 245-189 vote marks the fulfillment of a promise many Republicans made in last fall's political campaigns.

The measure has little or no chance of passing the Senate, where Democratic supporters of the law have a majority. And Obama has vowed to veto it if it reaches his desk.
Republicans said repeal was necessary because the law provides for a government takeover of the health care system, raises taxes and would destroy jobs.

Democrats denied that, and said repeal would strip Americans of new protections against insurance industry abuses that deny them coverage they have paid for.

I heard that Harry Reid says he won't even bring it up for a vote in the Senate. But I don't understand that - don't they have to?

We'll definitely have to keep their feet to the fire. Health care may not be fully defeated until 2012, but it can always be de-funded, so it can't be implemented.

[This message has been edited by avengador1 (edited 01-19-2011).]

What if they just add it as pork to another bill? It's not like anyone ever reads those anyway.

Call it the "Anti offshore, don't kill those endangered animals" bill, and it'll fly right through.

Brad

quote Originally posted by Cheever3000: I heard that Harry Reid says he won't even bring it up for a vote in the Senate. But I don't understand that - don't they have to?

Yeah, that's what I've heard. They're using some Senate procedure to hold it up. Gee...didn't the Democrats complain about that when the Republicans did it?

$100 Billion in spending cuts, Openess of House Committee Attendance, Amendments to rules of bills such as Healthcare will not be allowed as promised.

Pelosi, when she was in charge, set the adgenda for the House. Harry Reid as majority leader of the Senate, sets the adgenda. So Harry would have to put the measure in front of the Senate. When he doesn't, the bills go nowhere. What will need to happen is that Harry Reid will need to have something he wants the to go before the House and will need to come to John Banor (new House majority leader) to do some horse trading. What we will get is gridlock, which is not a bad thing. When nothing gets done those in the House and Senate, they wont be spending money.

quote Originally posted by newf: $100 Billion in spending cuts, Openess of House Committee Attendance, Amendments to rules of bills such as Healthcare will not be allowed as promised.

?

quote Originally posted by fierobear: ?

You don't understand? The things I listed are promises they made that they are backing away from, I thought you'd like to keep a "watch" on those things as well.

Two prominent republicans are stirring up that assault weapons BS again, Lugar and King. In 2008 it was 4 republicans sponsoring a bill for it.

quote Originally posted by newf: You don't understand? The things I listed are promises they made that they are backing away from, I thought you'd like to keep a "watch" on those things as well.

Rose colored glasses make me smile!

quote Originally posted by newf: $100 Billion in spending cuts, Openess of House Committee Attendance, Amendments to rules of bills such as Healthcare will not be allowed as promised.

What ? were you hoping they'd add some pork to it ?

This is a great idea, to track political promises. Here are the ones made in:


A PLEDGE TO AMERICA 
 
We as Republicans offer the following:

1. A PLAN TO CREATE JOBS, END ECONOMIC UNCERTAINTY & MAKE AMERICA MORE COMPETITIVE

• We will end the uncertainty and create incentives for job growth with a plan to:
o Permanently stop all job-killing tax hikes
o Give small businesses a tax deduction equal to 20% of their business income
• We will establish regulatory certainty with a plan to:
o Rein in the red tape factory in Washington D.C. and require Congress to approve any new
regulation that would harm job creation or the economy
o Repeal job-killing small business mandates like the new 1099 paperwork rules imposed on small
businesses

2. A PLAN TO STOP OUT OF CONTROL SPENDING & REDUCE THE SIZE OF GOVERNMENT

• We will put government on a path to a balanced budget and pay down the debt with a plan to:
o Act immediately to reduce spending by cancelling unspent stimulus funds
o Cut government spending to pre-stimulus, pre-bailout levels saving at least $100 billion in the first year alone
o Establish a hard cap on new discretionary spending
o Cut Congress’ budget
o Hold weekly votes on spending cuts
• We will reduce the size of government with a plan to:
o End TARP once and for all
o End government control of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
o Impose a net federal hiring freeze on non-security employees
o Root out government waste and sunset outdated and duplicative programs
• We will reform the budget process to focus on long-term challenges

3. A PLAN TO REPEAL & REPLACE THE GOVERNMENT TAKEOVER OF HEALTH CARE

• We will repeal the job-killing health care law
• We will replace it with real reforms, with a plan to:
o Enact medical liability reform
o Grant consumers the freedom to purchase coverage across state lines
o Expand Health Savings Accounts
o Strengthen the doctor-patient relationship
o Ensure access for those with pre-existing conditions
• We will permanently prohibit taxpayer funding of abortion

4. A PLAN TO REFORM CONGRESS & RESTORE TRUST

• We will “read the bill” and require legislation be publicly available at least 3 days before voting on it
• We will adhere to the Constitution and require every bill to cite its specific Constitutional Authority
• We will ensure an open and bipartisan debate on all spending bills
• We will advance legislative issues one at a time and end the practice of massive bills that address unrelated issues

5. A PLAN TO KEEP OUR NATION SECURE AT HOME & ABROAD

• We will continue to lead the fight against terrorism with a plan to:
o Pass clean troop funding bills and provide the necessary resources and support to our military
o Keep terrorists out of America
o Enact an overarching detention policy for terrorist combatants
• We will protect our homeland and support our allies with a plan to:
o Fully fund missile defense
o Require tough enforcement of sanctions against Iran
• We will secure our borders with strong enforcement of the law with a plan to:
o Establish operational control of the border
o Work with state and local officials to enforce our immigration laws
o Strengthen visa security

6. We will uphold our principles and fight for America’s priorities

• We will fight to ensure transparency and accountability in Congress and throughout government
• We will continue to fight the growth of government and oppose new stimulus spending that only puts our nation further in debt
• We will fight efforts to fund the costly new health care law
• We will fight to increase access to domestic energy sources and oppose attempts to impose a National “cap and trade” energy tax
• We will fight for the rights of workers and oppose “card check” proposals that put union bosses before an individual’s right to a secret ballot
• We will fight efforts to use a national crisis for partisan gain


Now at least we can discuss which promise was or wasn't kept or at least attempted by the Republican led House.

quote Originally posted by newf: You don't understand? The things I listed are promises they made that they are backing away from, I thought you'd like to keep a "watch" on those things as well.

It was the way you worded it. If you have links to stories, please post them so I can read them and then do follow up.

quote Originally posted by fierobear: Good stuff, spark. I need to print that out and distribute it at our local Tea Party group so we can "watchdog" this list against their actions, or lack of.

Here's a link to the "Pledge Card" in PDF: http://pledge.gop.gov/resou...edge-pocket-card.pdf

That will look better than the plain text I entered. I also added the numbers which aren't on the original.

quote Originally posted by fierobear: It was the way you worded it. If you have links to stories, please post them so I can read them and then do follow up.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/...ongress_gop_promises

Here's another reason to make sure Obamacare gets repealed.
http://www.gop.gov/blog/10/...obamacare-taxes-home

quote Beginning January 1, 2013, ObamaCare imposes a 3.8% Medicare tax on unearned income, including the sale of single family homes, townhouses, co-ops, condominiums, and even rental income. In February 2010, 5.02 million homes were sold, according to the National Association of Realtors. On any given day, the sale of a house, townhome, condominium, co-op, or income from a rental property can push middle-income families over the $250,000 threshold and slam them with a new tax they can’t afford. This new ObamaCare tax is the first time the government will apply a 3.8 percent tax on unearned income. This new tax on home sales and unearned income and other Medicare taxes raise taxes more than $210 billion to pay for ObamaCare. The National Association of Realtors called this new Medicare tax on unearned income “destructive” and “ill-advised” and warned it would hurt job creation.

There are other taxes like this hidden in there.

quote Originally posted by newf: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/...ongress_gop_promises

Thanks for posting the link. Let's look at that article...

"Is business as usual really back so fast? That's not clear one day after Democrat Nancy Pelosi yielded the gavel to the new Republican House leader, John Boehner."

Wow. They couldn't do it in ONE WHOLE DAY?!? Yikes, time to vote 'em out, I guess.

Seriously, newf. The article is dated Jan 6, they day after they took control. But let's continue.

"The effort to repeal the health care law, for one, is expected to pass in the House and fail in the Senate, going nowhere."

It will be tough for them to do much if the Senate stops anything coming out of the House. But I think it's important to at least bring up bills and votes on issues. The real test will be if they can and do "de-fund" monstrosities like Obamacare.

"CUT SPENDING: "We will roll back government spending to pre-stimulus, pre-bailout levels, saving us at least $100 billion in the first year alone," the GOP pledge stated.
It turns out $100 billion is way out of reach.
By the time the current stopgap spending bill expires March 4, five months of the budget year — which began Oct. 1 — will have passed. Republicans acknowledge it's unrealistic to force even deeper cuts for the rest of the budget year to make up for money that's already been spent at the current, higher levels."

We've covered this before. It will be almost half a year (5 months) into the budget year.

What disappoints me is they didn't propose *more* than $100 billion, but the situation in this first year is kinda messed up. I'll be pretty pissed off if they don't cut at least that much from next year's budget.

"Despite the promise of more open debate and the opportunity to offer floor amendments, GOP leaders will bring legislation to repeal Obama's signature health care overhaul bill to the floor next week and deny Democrats any chance to try to preserve popular provisions.
Republicans say that repealing the health care measure is a core campaign promise that deserves an up or down vote.
But it denies minority Democrats the chance to force individual votes on certain provisions of the new law, such as the ban on insurance company discrimination against people with pre-existing illness or the measure allowing children to stay on their parents' health plan until they turn 26."

I don't recall Republicans being able to get much leverage on individual issues regarding the Obamacare bill. I agree with them that this should be an up or down vote, and that the entire Obamacare law be scrapped and started over. If they are able to do that, I fully expect them to be bipartisan with whatever replaces it. I also expect a more open process on other legislation.

We got the house and it did what they said so far. Too bad we have to wait till 2012 to get the Senate and hopefully Presidency. Im not even dead set against another democrat President as long as its not Obama or one of his cronnies. I hope Obama goes for re election, hed be a lot easier to beat than another newcomer that can spout off all new BS for them to believe in.

Two thumbs up, one for Bachmann and the new Tea Party Caucus for having the Constitutional seminar, one for the Democrats that attended, one down for it being a closed-door meeting. No explanation for why it was closed.

Two thumbs up, one thumb down.

Scalia addresses tea party-organized event

By HENRY C. JACKSON
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia says members of Congress need to get themselves a copy of the Federalist Papers - and make sure they read it.

Scalia made the short walk from the Supreme Court to the Capitol on Monday to speak at a seminar organized by GOP Rep. Michele Bachmann and the Tea Party Caucus. In remarks closed to the media, Scalia told about 50 members of Congress and their staff to "pay attention" and read up on their roles. Attendees described the associate justice as professorial and occasionally playful.

"He said we should all get a copy of the Federalist Papers and read it, underline it and dog-ear it," said Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., who attended the event.

Scalia's lecture had drawn criticism and taken on an air of mystery because of the prohibition on media coverage. Liberal groups in particular hammered Scalia for associating with the Republican-leaning Tea Party movement, saying it displayed a clear bias.

Members of both parties, though, described Monday's lecture as a fairly bland affair, one heavy on legal and Constitutional banter and virtually devoid of discussion on the hot button issues of the day.

"I didn't get the sense that this was skewed at all," said Schakowsky, an outspoken liberal. She deadpanned: "This was a discussion at a very high level. There were lots of Latin phrases being used."

Freshman Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., said Scalia was careful to veer away from current events or matters that could come before the court. Instead, Huizenga said, the Justice outlined his own, already well-annunciated views on the Constitution. Huizenga and other attendees said Scalia reiterated his view that the Constitution is not a living document. And, Huizenga said, Scalia did so in his own trademark style.

"It's established that he has a very wicked sense of humor, he displayed that a little bit," Huizenga said.

Bachmann called Scalia's appearance a success and said she was particularly pleased it was a bipartisan event. She said she counted at least three Democratic members in the audience. Scalia is the first attendee in what Bachmann said will be a regular series of lectures for members on the Constitution and the role of Congress.

Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., said Scalia repeated and amplified legal views he had heard from the associate justice before.

"It was Justice Scalia's explication of his views," said Nadler. "They are well established."

Still, the off-the-record nature of Scalia's lecture provoked curiosity. Dozens of reporters gathered outside a conference room in the Capitol Visitor's Center and, for a moment, the door to the room was left open, allowing those outside the room to hear what was being said. Scalia was introduced by Bachmann. Then came the sound of his voice.

"Look, I'm going to tell you some things" Scalia began, but then staff shut the door.

The Republicans don't seem to like the idea of a "Tea Party response" to the SOTU address. My personal opinion...too bad, GOP.

You can decide for yourself....

'Unusual' Bachmann Rebuttal Could Scramble GOP Message on Obama Address

quote Originally posted by avengador1: Here's another reason to make sure Obamacare gets repealed. http://www.gop.gov/blog/10/...obamacare-taxes-home ''Beginning January 1, 2013, ObamaCare imposes a 3.8% Medicare tax on unearned income, including the sale of single family homes, townhouses, co-ops, condominiums, and even rental income. In February 2010, 5.02 million homes were sold, according to the National Association of Realtors. On any given day, the sale of a house, townhome, condominium, co-op, or income from a rental property can push middle-income families over the $250,000 threshold and slam them with a new tax they can’t afford. This new ObamaCare tax is the first time the government will apply a 3.8 percent tax on unearned income. This new tax on home sales and unearned income and other Medicare taxes raise taxes more than $210 billion to pay for ObamaCare. The National Association of Realtors called this new Medicare tax on unearned income “destructive” and “ill-advised” and warned it would hurt job creation. '' There are other taxes like this hidden in there.

NO
just more BIG LIES
the tax at all of 3.8% only hits a sale of a home with over 500k profit for a married couple
and only if they have 300k taxable income hardly middle class

not a price of 500k or over but a capital gain of over 500k + they are in a 300k tax bracket not counting the home sale capital gain

quote Originally posted by fierobear: The Republicans don't seem to like the idea of a "Tea Party response" to the SOTU address. My personal opinion...too bad, GOP. You can decide for yourself.... 'Unusual' Bachmann Rebuttal Could Scramble GOP Message on Obama Address

Do you think The Tea Party has penetrated the thick marbled heads of both parties?
Considering a short time ago the all knowing Neptune declared them dead, not bad for a bunch of dead folks.
In about two years they have gone from a whisper to singing center stage.

I am in love with Michelle Bachmann!
They should have made her Speaker of the House.
Then her and Pelosi could have some knock down drag out cat fights.

quote Originally posted by partfiero: Do you think The Tea Party has penetrated the thick marbled heads of both parties?

Nope. Not entirely, at least. But they ignore the Tea Party at their peril.

quote Considering a short time ago the all knowing Neptune declared them dead, not bad for a bunch of dead folks. In about two years they have gone from a whisper to singing center stage.

The Tea Party has come a LONG way, and is growing in influence. They must be gaining traction if Chris Matthews is apoplectic about it.

quote I am in love with Michelle Bachmann! They should have made her Speaker of the House. Then her and Pelosi could have some knock down drag out cat fights.

Yeah, I really like her. There's been rumblings she might consider a Presidential run.

[This message has been edited by fierobear (edited 01-26-2011).]

You see nothing but lip service from the tea party. You can eliminate ALL discretionary spending and solve nothing in the picture. And when the reality of the budgets hit, they'll not have a clue. See how electable they find themselves when they actually start casting votes against SS, defense, and medicare.

quote Originally posted by weaselbeak: You see nothing but lip service from the tea party. You can eliminate ALL discretionary spending and solve nothing in the picture. And when the reality of the budgets hit, they'll not have a clue. See how electable they find themselves when they actually start casting votes against SS, defense, and medicare.

Proof why government programs that are complete failures keep going like the Energizer Bunny.
So hard to pull the government's teet out of ones mouth once inserted.
And last night all he talked about was more spending.
But the fact that he is calling spending "investing", shows how stupid he thinks people are.
That is all he knows in spending.
This guy will never get the last election in his lifetime.

Spending to make your allies wealthy (Haliburton, anyone?) is not the same as spending on US infrastructure, which is indeed an investment. Or maybe you think all those roads and bridges you use should never have been built.

[This message has been edited by weaselbeak (edited 01-26-2011).]

quote Originally posted by weaselbeak: Spending to make your allies wealthy (Haliburton, anyone?) is not the same as spending on US infrastructure, which is indeed an investment. Or maybe you think all those roads and bridges you use should never have been built.

Thought that was what the trillion dollar stimulus was for.
That just took us deeper in debt and was so poor in its implementation, don't think the country wants to go there again. At least not with this guy.

I'll just leave this here: Paul Ryan's voting record on budgets 1999-2006. You're Welcome.

quote Originally posted by USFiero: I'll just leave this here: Paul Ryan's voting record on budgets 1999-2006. You're Welcome.

Hmmm...can you say "biased site"?

“I hope that Paul Ryan explains to us why we should trust him and his conservative allies with our finances after they nearly bankrupted the nation with reckless tax cuts for the rich and deregulation schemes to reward companies which put America’s working families last. Paul Ryan himself voted for eight straight Republican budgets that increased spending by a staggering 50 percent. Let’s not forget the so-called fiscal conservatives, like Ryan, who put trillions of dollars in war spending and the unfunded $8 trillion Medicare Part D boondoggle on the checkbooks of our children. Paul Ryan’s ‘Road Map’ would hand our government over to big business and Wall Street speculators, and silence the voices of working families. America needs jobs, not Paul Ryan’s budget-busting, recycled corporate special interest wish list.”

From their "about" page:

"One Wisconsin Now is a statewide communications network specializing in effective earned media and online organizing to advance progressive leadership and values."

Yeah, Paul Ryan could walk on water, but since he's got an "R" after his name, they'd complain he's just trying to avoid paying bridge toll.

quote Originally posted by fierobear: Hmmm...can you say "biased site"?

and yet the voting record, if you bothered to check it is true. my point? the republican and democratic parties are only interested in keeping the status quo of a two party system and their comfortable relationship. we are pawns, and people are fools to defend these ineffective politicians.

Proposed cuts by the GOP. Are they enough? Are they cutting the Congressional budget enough? I think they can cut more.

House Republicans slash agencies, nick themselves

WASHINGTON – Even as they take a cleaver to many domestic agencies, Republicans now running the House are barely touching Congress' generous own budget.
A new GOP proposal would reduce domestic agencies' spending by 9 percent on average through September, when the current budget year ends.

If that plan becomes law, it could lead to layoffs of tens of thousands of federal employees, big cuts to heating and housing subsidies for the poor, reduced grants to schools and law enforcement agencies, and a major hit to the Internal Revenue Service's budget.

Congress, on the other hand, would get nicked by only 2 percent, or $94 million.

Recent hefty increases to the congressional budget — engineered by Democrats when they held power in the House from 2007-2010 — would remain largely in place under a plan announced Thursday by the chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, Rep. Harold Rogers, R-Ky.

The plan, developed in close consultation with Republican Speaker John Boehner's office, would cut Congress' budget less than any other domestic spending bill, except for the one covering the Department of Homeland Security.

All 12 spending bills left unfinished by Democrats will go into a single, enormous measure that Republicans promise to bring up the week of Feb. 14.
"Charity begins at home, and Congress should lead the way with cuts to their own budget," said Steve Ellis of Taxpayers for Common Sense, a Washington-based watchdog group. "Instead they're protecting their bottom line while slashing everyone else's."

The cut to Congress gets a little deeper, to 3.5 percent, if it were imposed for a full calendar year instead of the seven months that will remain in the current budget year. But so, too, would the cuts to other agencies — growing to 16 percent.

When Democrats took over Congress in 2007, they inherited a $3.8 billion budget for Congress. That includes money for members' and leadership offices, House and Senate committees, and support agencies such as the Capitol Police and the Congressional Budget Office, which crunches numbers for lawmakers as they consider legislation.

Since then, that budget has risen to $4.7 billion, a 23 percent increase over four years. The biggest jump, 11 percent, occurred when President Barack Obama signed a Democratic-written spending bill just after he took office in 2009.
Among the first items of business when the GOP regained the House was to pass a bipartisan measure to cut office and committee budgets by 5 percent. That move that prompted much self-congratulation even though it would produce just $35 million in savings. For context, the deficit is climbing toward $1.5 trillion this year.

Republicans bristle at the suggestion that Congress is getting off easy. They promise further cuts when the Senate pitches in and when the two chambers work out joint items such as budgets for the Capitol Police, Library of Congress and the Government Accountability Office.

"Earlier this year, the House passed unprecedented cuts to its own budget, and we are cutting more ... a total of nearly $100 million in House-related spending cuts," said Boehner's spokesman, Michael Steel. "The Senate has substantial responsibility for the overall legislative branch appropriations bill, and we hope to work with them to cut even more going forward."

Republicans will provide more details about the spending bill in the week ahead.

Legislative branch cuts are hardly unprecedented. Former Speaker Newt Gingrich engineered an 8 percent cut in Congress's budget when Republicans last wrested control of the House, in 1995.

When Democrats gained a majority in 2007, the budget for the office of the speaker's office — considered the most powerful of any in Congress — exploded. As speaker, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., engineered a $2 million, 71 percent increase immediately after that transfer of party control.

A Pelosi spokesman attributed some of the increase to her decision to consolidate a variety of leadership jobs within her office — as opposed to the power-sharing approach of her predecessor, Republican Dennis Hastert of Illinois.

Regardless, Boehner inherited a pretty flush office account, which permits him a sizable staff contingent, including a press and communications operation with a dozen people. Capitol Hill news coverage has increased considerably in recent years with the advent of the 24-hour news cycle, the growth of niche publications and a range of new online media, including Twitter and Facebook.

Saw an interesting piece on the news about U.S. budget cuts it linked this site http://www.public-consultation.org/.


They did a survey about ways to cut spending and such. Some of the results showed from those polled Independents cut the most, Democrats the next, and lastly the Republicans. All however made significant cuts and keep in mind these were not politicians and lawmakers just people who aligned themselves with the parties. You can even take the survey and see how you yourself would do.

[This message has been edited by newf (edited 02-05-2011).]

A. Bachmann annoys the hell out of me.. and I'm from MN.. She acts/speaks like Pelosi.. very scripted
Caught a segment with her on Beck and she couldn't even give Beck a real answer beyond what she had scripted ..
I like her stated position.. but.. Give me a Chris Christie .. ya he's a fat lard ball..but.. he can speak off the cuff and be deadly honest in a debate/meeting.

As a conservative.. I want a Chris Christie in the White House.. I don't want a Bhorner or other establishment Rs who are looking at position instead of actual work/leadership

I said we'd be kicking the GOP in the ass (through, amongst other ways, the Tea Party), and it looks like it's working. At least we have their attention, and are getting some traction. Either they get on board, or they'll be out of a fricken job.

Conservatives' clout flummoxes House GOP leaders

WASHINGTON – The clout of tea party advocates and other hard-line conservatives in Congress has caught top Republicans by surprise, raising questions about whether GOP leaders can impose enough discipline in their House majority to pass tough measures, such as raising the debt ceiling.

Within 24 hours this week, House Speaker John Boehner's team had to pull a trade bill from the chamber floor, suffered an embarrassing setback on a USA Patriot Act vote, and failed to recoup money paid to the United Nations.

And in electoral politics, the tea party's threat to Republican incumbents came more into focus. Three GOP senators up for re-election in 2012 could be looking at challenges for their party nominations. One of them, five-term Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, crossed town Tuesday to tell the tea party's national town hall that he has supported its budget-balancing, smaller-government agenda for decades.

Democrats and Republicans said the events show that GOP leaders have yet to gauge the full extent of libertarianism and independence in their newly swollen ranks. Republicans gained control of the House thanks to sweeping victories last fall, many involving tea party loyalists.

"If they're divided on an issue like the Patriot Act, it's a bad omen for things to come regarding unity on their side," said Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md. "It's only going to get tougher for them when it comes to budget issues."

Many congressional Republicans want to slash spending beyond levels their party leaders support. GOP leaders say Congress must raise the federal debt ceiling this spring to avoid dire economic problems. Judging from the week's events, it may be a tough sell.

All three House setbacks can be reversed. The Patriot Act and U.N. votes needed super majorities under expedited House rules, and Republican leaders probably can pass them later with simple majorities. Likewise they can try to build enough support for the trade measure.

House Republican leaders Wednesday shrugged off suggestions that they've lost control of their caucus.

"We're not going to be perfect every day," Boehner told reporters. He noted that Tuesday's effort to extend provisions of the Patriot Act failed partly because it was opposed by three dozen Democrats who previously had supported them.

The Patriot Act vote would have extended the life of three surveillance tools central to the nation's post-Sept. 11 anti-terror law. The 277-148 vote fell short of the two-thirds majority required under the expedited rules.

Voting nay were 26 Republicans, many of whom have libertarian leanings and are wary of government intrusion in private lives. Joining them were 122 Democrats.
A similar vote occurred Wednesday on a bill to force the U.N. to return $179 million the United States paid into the U.N. tax equalization fund. The 259-169 vote was short of the two-thirds threshold.

Some lawmakers said GOP leaders had failed to give colleagues enough details about the trade and Patriot Act bills, and therefore they overestimated the level of support. Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, a tea party favorite, said freshmen lawmakers didn't have "adequate time to digest" the contents of the Patriot Act bill.
"I hope it makes us get sharper," said King, who supported the act's extension.

Boehner said the Patriot Act provisions will be extended under a simple-majority vote soon.

When asked why the bill was brought up under the two-thirds majority rule, Boehner glared at the reporter and said, simply, "It was."

Another Republican leader Wednesday tried to cool the cost-cutting fever of tea partiers. House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers, R-Ky., proposed ending more than 60 government programs and cutting $35 billion in spending.

Cutting more deeply at this point, Rogers told colleagues, could lead to furloughs of federal workers at the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Agency, or politically wrenching cuts to health research, special education grants to local school districts, or college Pell Grants.

There were other signs in Washington this week that Republicans are still grappling with the influence, or threat, wielded by fiscally conservative, libertarian-leaning members. Not all are associated with the tea party, but the tea party movement has boosted their numbers and clout.

Besides Hatch, veteran Republican Sens. Dick Lugar of Indiana and Olympia Snowe of Maine could face re-election challenges from tea party candidates in two years. Neither attended the town hall Tuesday evening.

Hatch's remarks at the tea party "town hall" were carried or commented on by C-SPAN, Facebook, Twitter and other outlets.

His appeal reflected the belief that tea party activists could oust him next year in the GOP nominating process. That's what happened to his colleague Bob Bennett, the veteran conservative senator who critics accused of being too willing to compromise with Democrats on some issues.

Hatch saluted the tea party for waking up the electorate, and ticked off a list of policy positions he shares with the movement: support for a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget; repeal of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul; a general distrust of big government; and a zeal for cutting spending.
"I for one want to thank the tea party for what they've done," Hatch said.

quote Originally posted by Uaana: A. Bachmann annoys the hell out of me.. and I'm from MN.. She acts/speaks like Pelosi.. very scripted Caught a segment with her on Beck and she couldn't even give Beck a real answer beyond what she had scripted .. I like her stated position.. but.. Give me a Chris Christie .. ya he's a fat lard ball..but.. he can speak off the cuff and be deadly honest in a debate/meeting. As a conservative.. I want a Chris Christie in the White House.. I don't want a Bhorner or other establishment Rs who are looking at position instead of actual work/leadership

I am from the left coast and I am with you on this.
Time to flood Chris' mail box.
Run man, run!

quote Originally posted by partfiero: I am from the left coast and I am with you on this. Time to flood Chris' mail box. Run man, run!

Looks like he is hard to convince to run or even walk if he don't have to.
I am kidding he sounds like a Gov. Regan sometimes.

On the right track?

Tea Party wins: $100 billion in cuts in House Republicans' spending bill

Only what, $1.4 trillion to go?