Republicans’ Mindless Obstructionism Shows In Budget Battle [GOP IS BATTLING? REALLY?]

American Enterprise Institute ^ | 3/11/2016 | DANA MILBANK

[expat_panama]

It has been an annual rite in Washington since the modern budgeting system began in 1974: The president sends his budget to Congress and lawmakers hold hearings on it.

But not this year.

The chairmen of the House and Senate budget committees announced, for the first time since their panels were created more than 40 years ago, that they would not have hearings on the president’s budget or allow administration officials to testify. They decided this before President Obama released his budget, refusing to contemplate any budget from Obama — sight unseen.

This declaration, like the Senate Republicans’ vow that they will refuse to consider — or even meet with — any Supreme Court nominee Obama sends, is the very definition of blind obstruction.

The Senate Banking Committee refused to take action on any Obama nominee...

...The number of judicial and executive branch confirmations overall is at the lowest point in decades...

...Now, approval of Congress is at 13% in the latest Gallup poll, near record lows. Republicans are more down on Congress than Democrats, even though the GOP controls both chambers.

Obama, in a news conference Thursday, attributed the Trump phenomenon to...

And still Republicans in Congress continue to say “no.”...

...The day Obama asked Congress to take action on closing the Guantanamo Bay prison...

...After years of complaints from Republicans about the Democratic majority’s failure to pass a budget, the GOP-controlled Senate Budget Committee — the same panel that refused to consider Obama’s budget — just postponed action on its own budget.

The reason behind all this inaction is almost always the same: surrendering to the far right.

But in their zeal to placate tea party conservatives, Republican officials created a leadership vacuum that has been filled by something far worse.

[expat_panama]

The story I got (mostly from Rush) is that the Rinos have already caved on dem budgets for years to come. This rant makes me wonder but it's so mindlessly blurred I'm having a hard time understanding just what budget action we're talking about. Anyone here see what's going on with this?

[Diogenesis]

The GOP kept ObamaCARE, also passed ObamaTRADE,
and funded Obama’s entry of Islamic terrorists.

Where is the battle? ONLY against the voters
to whom the stinking, miserable, deserving to be indicted,
GOP direct ALL their hatred.

[Arm_Bears]

Indeed.

They just rolled over in December—WTH is this all about?

[Olog-hai]

How did IBD become AEI? much less have a Washington Compost hack write for it?

[goldstategop]

Lil Crybaby Dana blames lack of a budget on GOP obstructionism.

The same GOP that’s given Obama everything he wanted and then some.

Oh the nauseating hypocrisy of it all. For once, the Uniparty is working smoothly and Milbank is slow to appreciate it.

[JPJones]

“The reason behind all this inaction is almost always the same: surrendering to the far right.”

Bhahwhhahahahahahahahahahaahahhaah

This guy is on drugs!

[goldstategop]

The mythical far right is a strawman beloved of Beltway liberal commentators and GOP establishment honchos.

It has no basis in reality.

[bert]

I interpret it to be the FY ‘17 budget that was not considered.

[JPJones]

“It has no basis in reality.”

You saw that too, eh?

LOL

[expat_panama]

Stock prices up while trading volume falls --that's what we had last Friday and it pretty much describes the entire past week too.  I'd like to say that this sure seems like indecision but I can't quite make up my mind.  Like, a look at futures traders finds the same quandary for this morning as the heat map's looking to a joyous +1.68% while these contracts are bearish across the board. 

No indecision w/ gold & silver tho, they're solidly going nowhere and at these latest highs that's probably welcome news (latest gold, silver $1,259.87, $15.72).  No major econ reports, but lots for later this week.  np, we can sit back and enjoy all the news over our morning coffee...

U.S. Economy: Better than We Think? - Robert Samuelson, Washington Post
Without Recessions, There Will Be Little Prosperity - John Tamny, Forbes
The Man I Respected Most Liked Trump - Clifford Asness, RealClearPolitics
Things Are Better Than They've Ever Been - Glenn Harlan Reynolds, USAT
Radical Economic Theory Gains Converts - Michelle Jamrisko, Bloomberg
If We Can't Invest Now, When Can We? - Nigel Wilson, Daily Telegraph
When Health Insurance Fails Miserably - Steve Moore, Washington Times
Central Banks Beat Bitcoin at Own Game - A. Evans-Pritchard, Telegraph
How Saudi Turned Its Best Weapon on Itself - Andrew Scott Cooper, NYT
Oil Layoffs Aren't Rooted In Greed - Christopher Baecker, SA Express News

[expat_panama]

How did IBD become AEI? much less have a Washington Compost hack write for it?

Not to worry, this piece is from their token liberal.  Their op-ed page always has 2 articles one labeled "On the Left" and the the other "On the Right" (today's was "Media Missing As Christians Get Massacred".  I guess the reasoning was that to be even, fair, and balanced you need to post a lie every time you post the truth.  My thot here was that if the left is unhappy then something good must be happening, I just can't figure out what it is tho...

[Tupelo]

Simply Election Year Politics.
Something to show the rubes back home how “hard, they are fighting for Truth, Justice and the American Way”.

A very old formula, Simply pick a meaningless fight and get your buddies in the national media to do a story, then feed it to you biggest boosters back in “The District”. Pretty soon it is the lead story on every local news cast and headlines in the local paper.
Representative Foghorn Leads Budget Fight on Capital Hill”
Since most of the electorate they are catering to are still living in a pre internet world, it still works.

[SunkenCiv]

A Republican-bashing a-hole fake journalist’s opinion, hmm, what is it worth?

http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/danamilbank/index

[dila813]

This guy doesn’t realize this is Obama’s fault, he pushed through major changes in this country that a majority of people didn’t support and still don’t support.

Payback is hell

[expat_panama]

the FY ‘17 budget

huh.  what I got from Rush was that fy'70 was approved already too.  Maybe Rush was too 'understandable' and wound up skipping past too many 'complex' details...

[bert]

yep, on reflection you (and Rush who is 98% correct) are right