Republicans

From Dollars To Death Panels: How Republicans Distorted Debates On Capitol Hill

Brian Beutler | November 27, 2009, 8:42AM

With Thanksgiving recess now upon us, it seems an appropriate time to revisit the hysterical Republican whoppers and talking points about the Democratic party agenda that have dominated this Congress. Herewith a top-five list:

Number Five: Paul Ryan Draws Line On Graph

Back in the Spring, when Democrats were putting together the federal budget, House Budget Committee ranking member Paul Ryan (R-WI) released a much-mocked Republican alternative, which would have basically canceled the stimulus and instituted a spending freeze of sorts. The ideas in the Republican alternative budget were roundly rebuked by experts, but Ryan wasn't deterred. Instead of accepting defeat, he unveiled some graphs suggesting that, under Republican budgets, spending would be restrained, while under Democratic budgets, it would blow through the roof.

Except his numbers weren't based on any analysis at all. Instead, Ryan used CBO numbers through 2018 and then drew an upward-sloping line on the graph completely at random. It didn't take long for Republicans to catch on and begin claiming that Democratic policies would make government spending half of GDP before the end of the century.

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Blue Dogs

Liberal Groups Organize In Opposition To Entitlement Reform Panel

Brian Beutler | November 25, 2009, 11:44AM

Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND)

Earlier this month, Republican and Democratic deficit hawks in the Senate, led by Kent Conrad issued a veiled threat to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi: let us set up an entitlement-reform commission to address budget deficits, or we'll kill annual legislation raising the country's debt ceiling.

That may sound like a bunch of jargon, but loosely translated it means they want to get their hands on Social Security and they're willing to let America default on its debt, potentially unleashing economic catastrophe, if they don't get their way.

That has touched off a game of chicken as Congress counts down to the new year. Though she's somewhat handcuffed by Blue Dogs, who could join Republicans in forcing legislation calling for such a commission through the House, Pelosi is adamantly opposed to the idea. One side or the other will have to budge. For her part, Pelosi will have progressive organizations on her side.

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Harry Reid

Broder: Reid Is Parochial, Uninspiring Leader

Brian Beutler | November 25, 2009, 10:31AM

Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) and David Broder

This past Saturday, at the beginning of a marathon health care debate, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid took a pot shot at Washington Post columnist, and liberal bête noir David Broder.

"To focus on a man who has been retired for many years and writes a column once in a while is not where we should be," Reid said.

Well now Broder, typically not much one for diving into the mud, is hitting back.

"I hope he's more accurate about the [health care] bill than he is about me," Broder told Politico. "And I'm not retired."

Broder didn't limit his critique to Reid's accuracy, and hammered the Nevada senator for his parochial approach to leadership.

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Health Care

The Final Four: Who's Standing In Reid's Way, And Can They Be Won Over?

Brian Beutler | November 24, 2009, 4:29PM

From left to right Top: Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) Bottom: Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT), Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Center: Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)

Toward the end of the summer, when it was unclear whether Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid would include a public option in his health care bill, progressives let it be known that he would not be forgiven if he allowed a handful of nameless Democrats silently filibuster the provision. In the end, this pressure, and various other factors, ultimately convinced Reid to include the opt out public option in the legislation, and the opponents have had to come forward. Their names won't surprise students of Democratic politics: Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-CT), Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), Ben Nelson (D-NE), and Mary Landrieu (D-LA).

These conservative Democrats are known for taking stances at odds with the party on key issues, but in this health care debate they are ultimately driven by very different motives. They have suddenly become the targets of every major reform organization in the country, and understanding what makes them tick will be key to the advocates who are now trying to change their minds.

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Alex Castellanos

CNN Keeps Castellanos, Dems Hit Back

Brian Beutler | November 24, 2009, 1:53PM

RNC Communications Director Alex Castellanos

CNN will retain the services of Alex Castellanos, despite his new role as unpaid flack for the RNC (his official title will be Senior Communications Adviser).

"CNN has political strategists that provide unpaid advice to both sides of the aisle, and Alex will remain as a CNN contributor," a CNN spokesperson emails. "CNN will continue to be vigilant in disclosing contributor affiliations and their profiles."

Castellanos' consulting firms have produced ads for the Chamber of Commerce and America's Health Insurance Plans as part of the groups' ongoing efforts to defeat key Obama agenda items like climate change legislation and health care reform.

And now, Democrats have latched on to the development both to criticize CNN for allowing such a partisan figure to appear on the network as a news analyst, and to attack the Republican party for its closeness to industry.

"By bringing on a senior strategist for the Chamber and AHIP, the Republican Party can no longer pretend that they aren't in the pocket of big business and the insurance industry lobby and it made it crystal clear who Republicans are fighting for -- and it's not our families and small businesses," DNC spokesman Hari Sevugan emails. "When Castellanos is on CNN as a top strategist for the GOP, the insurance industry, and the Chamber of Commerce, he certainly won't be offering any 'independent analysis.'"

Barack Obama

White House Takes On Gun Lobby's Health Care Reform Attacks

Brian Beutler | November 24, 2009, 1:01PM

President Barack Obama

You might not necessarily think that health care reform would end up in the crosshairs of the gun lobby. But you'd be wrong. Gun Owners of America have been raging against the Senate health care bill for all sorts of imagined threats to the Second Amendment, and now the White House has taken notice.

What exactly are their concerns? Well, for instance, "Special 'wellness and prevention' programs (inserted by Section 1001 of the bill as part of a new Section 2717 in the Public Health Services Act) would allow the government to offer lower premiums to employers who bribe their employees to live healthier lifestyles -- and nothing within the bill would prohibit rabidly anti-gun HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius from decreeing that 'no guns' is somehow healthier."

The White House says: "Section 2717 section creates guidelines for insurers to report on initiatives that improve quality of care and health outcomes, and it specifically lists what types of programs would be involved - such as smoking cessation, physical fitness, nutrition, heart disease prevention. There is no mention of guns, and there is no language that could result in higher premiums for gun owners or lower premiums for people who do not own guns."

You can read the gun owners' gripes here, and the fact-check here.

Alex Castellanos

In Quest To Reform Steele's Image, RNC Hires Republican Attack Dog Castellanos

Brian Beutler | November 24, 2009, 11:28AM

RNC Communications Director Alex Castellanos

Pretend for a moment that you're Michael Steele. You won the RNC chairmanship earlier this year, and have been at the helm of the GOP for months as it has waged a fierce internal battle over the future of the party. You also have a reputation for being a bit of a buffoon. So the off-year elections roll around, and things go OK. Dede gets Scozzafav'd, but for the most part the media trains its eyes on gubernatorial pick ups in New Jersey and Virginia and declares victory for the GOP.

You might think that's a pretty good outcome. But Steele apparently wanted more credit for the Christie and McDonnell wins. So what's a political chief to do?

According to Politico the answer he arrived at was 'fire my communications director and fill the void with CNN's celebrity GOP talking head Alex Castellanos."

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Health Care

GOP Meme: Senate Health Care Bill Actually Costs $2.5 Trillion

Brian Beutler | November 23, 2009, 3:50PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

Whenever a Democratic agenda item spends some time in the spotlight--be it health care or energy--Republicans do a little hocus pocus and claim that, whatever the CBO might believe, the true costs of reform are sky high. So it's no surprise that the new GOP line regarding the Senate health care bill is that it's actually three times more expensive over a 10 year window than the CBO says it will be.

Where does this number--$2.5 trillion--come from? In this USA Today counterpoint, Sen. John Ensign (R-NV), cites this article in The Hill. But the article in question simply quotes Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) who seems to pull the number out of thin air. "When fully implemented, it will cost $2.5 trillion," McConnell said.

And where did McConnell get this idea?

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Health Care

Sebelius Unveils State By State Analysis Of Impact Of Health Care Reform

Brian Beutler | November 23, 2009, 12:55PM

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today unveiled state-by-state analyses of the beneficial impacts of health care reform. Using the Senate bill, the report underlines, among other things, the number of working and middle class people who would receive federal assistance, and the extent to which the legislation would reduce the number of uninsured in that state.

So, to pick three states totally at random, if you wanted to know what the goodies for Nebraska, Arkansas, and Louisiana, would be, you can just click.

And, in case you're wondering, the reports do not address the state-by-state impact of the public option.

Harry Reid

What Did We Learn From Saturday's Health Care Vote

Brian Beutler | November 23, 2009, 11:50AM

Senators Nelson (D-NE) and Lieberman (I-CT)

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid got his 60 on Saturday, and when the Senate returns from Thanksgiving recess next week, they'll be debating and amending a major piece of health care legislation. However, the vote, and its aftermath exposed or clarified the cleavages within the Democratic party that will have to be bridged if Reid hopes to keep his caucus in line on the next cloture motion--to end a Republican filibuster and hold a simple majority vote on reform.

If you thought the opt-out compromise was a silver bullet for the public option, you may have gotten a bit ahead of yourself. It held up for a while, and could still survive, but that's going to require some interesting gymnastics from Democratic leaders. Leading up to Saturday's vote, and in its immediate aftermath, conservative Democrats entrenched their opposition to the public option in the Senate bill. Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) repeated his threat to support a health care filibuster if it includes a public option of any kind, and, despite her earlier support for the provision, Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) took to the Senate floor Saturday and announced, "I'm promising my colleagues that I'm prepared to vote against moving to the next stage of consideration as long as a government-run public option is included." That gives her a bit more wiggle room than Lieberman's left himself, and Sens. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and Ben Nelson (D-NE) have a bit more still, but that makes 60 for the opt out a tough climb. On the other side of the caucus, though, Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), and Roland Burris (D-IL) have inched closer to threatening to block a health care bill from the left if the public option is weakened further. If reform is to pass, one side of the caucus will have to hold its collective nose and vote for something they don't like.

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