Surprise! GOP Cut out of Stimulus Conference Negotiations

More evidence to suggest that to President Obama and the Democrats, bipartisanship means doing the will of The One, without all that pesky interference from the other party.

Republicans have caught the Democrats in a midnight “stimulus” power play that seeks to cut Republican conferees out of the House-Senate negotiations to resolve a final version of the Obama “stimulus” package. Staff members from the offices of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) met last night to put together the “stimulus” conference report.

They intend to attempt to shove this $1.3 trillion spending bill through in the dead of the night without Republican input so floor action can take place in both chambers on Thursday.

I spoke with House Republican Conference Chairman Mike Pence (R-Ind.) moments ago about this latest version of Democratic “bipartisanship.” Pence told me, “I think the American people deserve to know that legislation that would comprise an amount equal to the entire discretionary budget of the United States of America is being crafted without a single House Republican in the room.”

What a great little scam they've got going here. President Obama excoriates Republicans for standing in the way, while Reid and Pelosi ensure that no icky Republican ideas make their way into the pork-o-rama. Win-Win.

Update - I agree with those who have commented that, politically, this is a good thing. However, it never hurts to point out the contrast between Obama's rhetoric and the way he and those in his party are doing business. So I guess politically, this is a win-win for conservatives, as well.

I should add, though, that having a monstrosity like this to fight against may be good political fodder, but in the end we're still left fighting a budget-bloating monstrosity.

posted by Slublog at 01:10 PM

| Access Comments