Posted on 10/14/2013 5:05:48 AM PDT by markomalley
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) says he's disappointed that a plan negotiated by six Republicans and six Democrats was "squashed" by Democrat leaders on Saturday, just as the 12 were ready to announce it.
He said Democrats "moved the goalpost in light of the polling data."
Speaking on CBS's "Face the Nation" Sunday, McCain said, "We were ready to go to the press gallery, OK? The Democrat leadership said no.
He joked that "maybe we need to get Joe Biden out of the witness protection program because he has good relationships with (the Democratic leadership)."
Biden has not taken part in negotiations to fund the government or raise the debt limit; Even President Obama's participation has been brief and limited.
McCain told CBS's "Face the Nation" tha President Obama should be "engaged" in the ongoing negotiations: "And the Democrats, they better understand something -- what goes around comes around. And if they try to humiliate Republicans -- things change in American politics, and I know what it's like to be in the majority and the minority, and it won't be forgotten. Now's the time to be magnanimous and sit down and get this thing done."
The so-called "Collins plan," named for Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and involving a number of female lawmakers, reportedly would fund the government for six months and increase the federal debt limit through January. It would also delay the Obamacare tax on medical devices and require income verification for Obamacare enrollees who want subsidies to purchase insurance on the health care exchanges. Collins said she's also calling for "a long-overdue budget conference."
Collins told CNN's "State of the Union with Candy Crowley" that she was "very surprised" that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid rejected the bipartisan plan dubbed "Collins-plus."
"I don't think it was very constructive," Collins said. "But the fact is, we have a responsibility to govern and we're continuing to talk. And I'm still hopeful that at least we sparked a dialogue that did not exist before we put out a plan. And I think that I've made a real contribution that way and that elements of the plan that Senator Murkowski and Senator Ayotte and I have put forth will end up in the final compromise."
Asked why Reid rejected the plan, Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), one of the 12 senators who backed it, said, "I think what Senator Reid meant is that he wasn't going to accept every little detail of it, but I think he knows that there are some positive things in that plan that are very good." She noted that "a lot of women" are "leading the way" when it comes to bipartisan negotiations.
One of those women, Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), told CBS's "Face the Nation" that she's "tired of the politics on both sides."
"It's time to get out of our trenches and resolve this, and we need presidential leadership to resolve this. I can understand the American people are tired of this. And again, I think the zero-sum politics is not good for anyone. It's not good for the American people. So I hope that this bipartisan agreement can be resurrected, we can get this resolved, we can get the government open, and obviously, also deal with the debt ceiling issue while talking about our underlying fiscal challenges. We still have $17 trillion in debt."
Collins said President Obama waited too long to bring congressional leaders to the White House for talks. "And that's why many of us have tried to step into the breach and put together a plan and offer it to the leaders as a starting point because real harm is being done. As the shutdown goes on, the consequences go far beyond the unfortunate furlough of thousands of federal workers. It affects the private sector, it affects our economy, it affects America's place in the world."
Collins also said the bipartisan plan is gaining interest beyond the 12 lawmakers who put it together: "We had 12 people meet (Saturday), but just last night I had two more Democrats and a Republican contact me to offer suggestions and say that they wanted to be part of our group. So I think that's very positive. We're going to keep working, offering our suggestions to the leadership on both sides of the aisle in an attempt to be constructive and bring this impasse to an end. Surely, we owe that to the American people."
McCain told CBS that the stumbling block for Republicans in any deal is sequestration: "That's the key element," he said. "And I'm very worried about the devastation to our military and our defense. But at the same time, we do have to rein in spending. That's a major sticking point here."
McCain said he supposes it's possible for Congress to drop lower in the polls: "We're down to blood relatives and paid staffers now," he joked. "But we've got to turn this around, and the Democrats had better help us rather than do what they've done -- turn down two good proposals that they were about to agree to, and then of course this proposal that they just scuttled yesterday."
‘Unconditional surrender’ and bankruptcy, of course.
The “six” and “six”.... Well, just add another “six” media hounds to the group and it will be the Devil’s Delight— 666.
The Dems appear to be fairly confident that the Republicans will never again attain a majority.
What does that matter? The GOPe will insist upon being "gentlemen" and won't ever think about taking retribution upon the Dhims...
hey, McCain... when you oublicly trash your own team, can you really be suorised taht the Dems take it as a sign of weakness?
Not only is Reid not willing to give the GOP anything for a debt limit increase, but now he is demanding the GOP pass a CR that reverses the sequester spending cuts as a price for not being blamed for the stock and bond market going nuts over it.
Reid acts like he plans on making the GOP sign a full surrender with reparations on that railway-care in France.
More unemployed = more that sign up for Obama-care. And Reid figures its Christmas if he and Obama successfully blames GOP again as in 2008 and 2009. Sounds like he wants 2015 to be a new 2009.
Exactly, Obama has said from the beginning that he would not negotiate. The RINOs always think that they know better.
All that bashing of Cruz and Lee was a damaging fail.
Obama: If you don’t agree with me to financially ruin the USofA, I’ll ruin it even faster!!!!
I wouldnt call it ‘unconditional’ surrender.
Reid feels so confident that he has the upper hand after that WSJ/NBC poll that now he is imposing ‘conditions’ on the debt limit increase if the GOP wants it extended.
That poll showed O-care becoming more popular since the shutdown, certainly scared the GOP Republicans.
This is some really bad kabuki. If the House speaker had a sack on him he would just pass a bill that does what they want and adjourn the House. “See, we did our job! Now we’re going home to help our districts and families prepare for the obama default.”
Sure seem to me like the Dems are playing end game politics. They want to hit the debt ceiling limit, have Obama issue and EO and then buy more votes to ensure permanent majority (at least until they run out of other peoples money.) They know Obamacare is their Waterloo if they don't get the purse strings back.
How’d you make that natural e that is superscripted?
I am sure that Reid took great pleasure in seeing all those GOP Senators and a few House members lining up at the WH to talk to Obama after he made clear he wont negotiate or compromise.
He smells their fear.
And Republicans are surprised by this? What naive fools they are. Its no wonder they never win at anything.
Exactly! Good post.
That is their game plan in a nutshell. Good post.
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Can’t add anything to that.
Stray dogs two counties away can smell gop fear in DC. It’s not like reid has any special intuition here.
Why should they care about winning? They get rich no matter what. /half sarcastically
But anyone who would put stock in that absurdly constructed poll is an idiot....on either side!
The problem is with McLame and the GOPe! If they looked at the details of that poll, they would know that the polsters over sampled government workers (like 25% compared to an actual of 8%) and their usual over sampling of Dems (32% - 25% (I THINK this is right, you might check on this one)), etc...
If you believe the lying media and Dems, then the Republicans are ALWAYS wrong and ALWAYS on the wrong side of every argument.
The problem is McLame and the GOPe actually BELIEVE these lies and then attempt to negotiate or govern from the false angles! IDIOTS!
McStain is the dumbest bas$ard to ever suck air in a pair of lungs aside from Boner and McConnell. You can’t win when you are negotiating with yourself and making one offer after another and the other side just sits there and says no give us more and you do and then the insane fighting amongst yourself.
As I posted in another thread I would love to play poker with these fools or be their car salesman. These goobers could be held up through the mail they are so mind numbingly stupid.
Who is this Juanita McLame of whom they speak?
Commies are predictable. You just have to have the guts to face the truth.
Like Reagan did.
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