Senate and House Republicans are throwing a fit and claiming that Speaker of the House John Boehner gave President Obama everything he wanted in the new two-year budget deal.
Politico talked to some very unhappy Republicans:
Asked about the tentative agreement after the briefing, Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions replied: “My knees quiver at the sound.” In an interview, Sessions expressed frustration that outgoing Speaker John Boehner was hammering out the deal just days before he plans to give up the gavel for good. “What does Boehner got to do with it?” said an exasperated Sessions, the former top Republican on the Senate Budget Committee. “I’m worried about how fast it’s moving. I see no reason for that. Based on what I know now, it appears the president got whatever he wanted.”
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Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas dryly acknowledged: “I don’t think you’ll hear anybody popping any champagne corks.”
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The discontent over the preliminary fiscal agreement also extended to the House on Monday night, where Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) focused his ire over how leadership was handling the budget process. “We’re not just here to take commands. We’re really tired of the top-down, micromanagement where you have just a few people, or in this case just the speaker and his team, determining the outcome,” Amash said. “This is a fair reason to vote against the bill.”
The real reason Republicans are unhappy is because this deal would take away their ability to hold the country hostage by creating a crisis over the budget and the debt ceiling for two years.
The far right will be neutered.
This deal is not perfect, but Democrats can check many more boxes off of their side of the wish list than Republicans can. In fact, the main selling point for Republicans will be the lifting of the sequester cuts and a repeal of a small piece of the ACA.
Compared to what the Democrats got in return, no more sequester, more spending, no increase in Medicare premiums, and no 20% cut to the Social Security Disability Insurance Program, Republicans got next to nothing.
President Obama has finally done it. He has broken the cycle of Republican crisis politics. There will be no more calls for government shutdowns, or Republicans pushing the economy to the brink of catastrophe by refusing to raise the debt limit.
Obama won, and Republicans can do nothing but blame Boehner and grumble in defeat.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
