The Republican Governor's Association has launched an extremely powerful ad, entitled "Remember November." The ad, produced by young staffers, effectively taps into the frustration with the Obama/Democrat really big government agenda fueling the Tea Party Movement. Watch the video:
Never again should taxpayers be expected to bail out those who made risky financial bets with other peoples’ money. -- Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison
In this week's Republican address, Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison talks about the effort to reform the financial system in order to avoid another catastrophic financial crisis like we saw in the fall of 2008:
The idea that a financial institution is ‘Too Big To Fail’ perverts free market capitalism. It suggests that large firms can privatize their profits, yet socialize their risks.
Watch the video of Senator Hutchison's address below:
You can read the transcript of Senator Hutchison’s address below:
I’m Kay Bailey Hutchison, United States Senator from Texas.
For more than a year, Democrats and Republicans on Capitol Hill have been working to craft legislation that would prevent another catastrophic financial crisis like we saw in the fall of 2008.
Republicans are working to ensure the bill would forbid any future bailouts of Wall Street banks. The idea that a financial institution is ‘Too Big To Fail’ perverts free market capitalism. It suggests that large firms can privatize their profits, yet socialize their risks. Or, put simply, these companies take their profits in good times - but when things go bad – they turn to the government to bail them out. This must end. The American people should not be forced to pay the risky gambling debts of the large financial institutions.
The Democrats pushed a bill through the Senate Banking Committee that does not stop future bailouts. Republicans have been attacked for speaking out against it and asking for bipartisan negotiations before allowing the bill to be debated on the Senate floor. But to be clear, we will stand firm against a partisan bill that exposes ordinary taxpayers to future bailouts or favors big companies over community banks across America. The tactics the Democratic leadership used to pass the health care bill must not be repeated.
Thankfully, negotiations in the Senate continue. It's time for the name-calling to stop. Getting our economy back on track is too important to allow political games to sidetrack these efforts. Both parties agree that any financial regulation should do one essential thing: no company should be considered ‘too big to fail.’ And never again should taxpayers be expected to bail out those who made risky financial bets with other peoples’ money.
Unfortunately, the White House is attacking Republican leaders to score political points. Americans are troubled by the way Democrats forced their health care bill on the public that overwhelmingly opposed it. The Democrats are trying to do it again. But they underestimate Americans’ understanding.
The fact is a growing number of experts on both sides of the ideological spectrum are coming to see what Republicans have been saying all along: the Financial Regulation Bill contains serious flaws. We believe this bill can be fixed, with a sincere bipartisan solution. And, as the President said in his visit to Wall Street on Thursday, we are still working on a bipartisan bill ‘drawing on the ideas of Democrats and Republicans.’ That’s a far cry from last week’s comments.
It’s time for Democrats to put away the political playbook and simply say publicly what they’re suggesting privately: that this bill still needs some work, that both parties should come together to do that work on behalf of the American people. We can prevent future bailouts. We can address the root causes of the economic downturn. But, first, we need to put politics aside.
Thank you for your time.
I haven't written much about the proposed financial reform, but I agree with Hutchison that taxpayers should never again bail out those who made risky financial bets.
A young, fourth-generation family farmer is running a come-from-behind campaign for the United States Senate.
The candidate's name is Marlin Stutzman. He's a husband, a father, a small businessman, and -- most importantly -- a constitutional conservative.
Marlin's got an uphill fight in the Republican primary against a former Senator and a former Congressman. But as we have seen with Marco Rubio in Florida, voters are looking for new Republicans who will fight for their values.
I am proud to announce the endorsement of the Senate Conservatives Fund for Marlin Stutzman in Indiana.
Marlin is running for the U.S. Senate because he knows we cannot change Washington unless we begin to change the people we send to Washington.
Watch the following brief video introduction of Stutzman:
Stutzman is right on the issues:
He supports full repeal of President Obama's health care takeover;
He supports a Constitutional Amendment to force Congress to balance the budget without raising taxes;
He strongly opposes the earmarks, which have turned Congress into a massive favor factory for special interests; and
He is 100% pro-life and strongly supports our 2nd Amendment rights to keep-and-bear arms.
House Republican Whip Eric Cantor endorsed former Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio's Senate campaign this morning.
The theme running through Cantor's endorsement of Marco Rubio was that we need principled leaders to make the tough decision:
America needs energetic, smart, responsible leaders to start making sure that Washington once again starts working for the people, and Marco will play a big part in that effort.
During the conference call announcing Cantor's endorsement, I asked about the impact of the support the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) now gives Rubio.
Cantor replied that now is the time for the country to turn to the new generation of leaders that Marco Rubio represents to take on the challenges and make the tough decisions to assure America's continued leadership in the world.
In his response, Rubio said that when he started this campaign, he wanted the next Senator from Florida to be someone that he could be trusted to stand up to the Obama agenda and offer alternatives. Rubio is the only candidate in this campaign who will do that regardless of which label the candidates embrace.
Cantor also took Governor Crist to task for his on again off again threats to campaign as an Independent, his support of the Obama stimulus and his recent veto of an education bill. Most of Cantor's criticism of Crist concerned the Independent threat:
We need an entirely different kind of leadership, a principled leadership and an individual that will keep his word to the voters.
As someone working in Congress to change the direction we are headed as far as an agenda is concerned, we have to stand firm on principles. Running as an Independent means throwing away years and years of involvement in our party and the policies of limited government, lower taxes, free markets, individual responsibility, and more freedom just to stay in office. The people of this country do not need another U.S. Senator who will do that.
Right now, what we need are principle-based leaders who will be there to make tough decisions for the people of this country.
It is good to see the Republican establishment finally getting on the Rubio bandwagon. Too bad it did not happen sooner.
At the end of this year, Americans will face the 'Obama tax increase,' and it will be the largest in history. -- House Republican Whip Eric Cantor
In today's Weekly Republican address, House Republican Whip Eric Cantor spoke about the job killing taxes, reckless deficits and massive debt caused by the Obama/Pelosi/Reid agenda. Cantor noted that President Obama plans on imposing the largest tax increase in history at the end of the year and stressed that unless a change is made, we risk leaving our children a country worse off than we found it.:
The Democrats never met a tax they didn’t like or found a dollar they couldn’t spend. . . . You pay, they spend, your children owe.
Watch the video of Congressman Cantor's address:
You can read the full transcript of House Republican Whip Cantor's address below:
Hello. I’m House Republican Whip Eric Cantor and I have the great privilege of representing the hardworking people of Virginia’s 7th District.
This week, Americans from coast to coast sent their tax payments to Washington. Your government continues to spend more and more, and that means your taxes are more and more. This has to stop – and you can help stop it.
The challenges and situations faced by families, small business people, and young workers have no doubt made this tax day particularly painful. But as painful as it was, the truth is that the actions taken by Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Majority Leader Harry Reid and the Obama Administration are going to make the ‘tax days’ of the future much much worse.
President Obama has signed 25 tax increases passed by the Democratically controlled Congress into law that will cost families and small business people more than $670 billion over the next 10 years. Many of these break the President’s campaign promise not to raise taxes on families making less than $250,000 a year. In the House, Speaker Pelosi and her majority have passed legislation that would result in more than a trillion – that’s with a T – dollars in net tax increases.
But tax increases are the symptom. Runaway spending is Washington’s disease.
The Democrats control every lever of power in Washington and they’ve never met a tax they didn’t like or found a dollar they couldn’t spend. Their economic plan? You pay, they spend, your children owe. You deserve better.
Speaking of your children, the deficits left in the wake of President Obama's agenda now stand at $1.5 trillion and will add $11 trillion to our national debt over the next 10 years. One non-partisan study reveals that to keep up with this spending, the government would have to find about half a trillion dollars each year in new revenue. That means that the tax rates on families earning slightly more than $200,000 would skyrocket to well over 70 percent.
70 PERCENT!
Democrats have already made clear that more tax increases on income, capital gains and dividends are on the way. Some, including the president himself, refer to this as letting the "Bush tax cuts” expire. But no matter how he spins it, it means you’ll be paying more and more. At the end of this year, Americans will face the "Obama tax increase," and it will be the largest in history. As if that wasn’t enough, others, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Obama Economic Advisor Paul Volcker support a European-style value-added tax (VAT).
Higher taxes, reckless deficits, unsustainable debt and a bleak future for our kids and grandkids. We must not leave our children a country more in debt and worse off than we found it. It is our moral obligation to act now to put a stop to this.
America is at a critical point of decision making. We are a nation at a crossroads. It is up to each of us to determine what kind of country we want to be.
Down one path is the Democrats’ a trillion dollar health care overhaul, a stimulus law that failed to meet expectations for job creation, the taxpayer funded bailouts of private companies, and a cap & trade policy that will impose a massive energy tax upon all Americans. All are costly policies that seize more control over the economy and of our lives. The goal? To remake America in the image of Europe.
But take hope. Down the other path is responsible, adult leadership, focused firmly on job creation and economic opportunity. We believe in a Congress that will once again listen to the people and return America to the country they know and love. We believe in a limited but effective government that provides a safety net for those who need it most, but sets no limits on opportunity or achievement. We believe that it’s not enough just to talk about ending government waste. You have to take action so that we can begin to erase our deficits and free our children from our debt. And rather than putting the squeeze on our nation’s job creators and entrepreneurs, we believe in a pro-growth strategy to create jobs and empower the American entrepreneur and small business people to thrive.
This is our choice.
I’m Eric Cantor, and on behalf of my Republican colleagues, we hear your concerns and we’ll work hard to get Washington working for you once again. Thank you.
Tea Party supporters are decidedly Republican and conservative in their leanings.
Compared with average Americans, Tea Party supporters are slightly more likely to be male and less likely to be lower-income.
Tea Partiers are quite representative of the public at large in their age, educational background, employment status, and race.
Tea Party supporters do not like Obamacare -- 87% of Tea Party supporters -- versus 50% of all Americans -- say they consider passage of health care reform a bad thing.
Nearly two-thirds of Tea Party supporters consider themselves "pro-life" on the abortion issue, compared with 46% of all national adults.
The poll was conducted March 26-28, 2010 and has margin of sampling error of ±4 percent.
In this week's Republican Address, Congressman Kevin McCarthy takes on the Obama/Democrats' "anti-taxpayer policies":
From TARP and permanent bailouts, to the cap-and-trade national energy tax, the government takeover of healthcare, and huge increases in the national debt – and now still more demands for more spending to change the financial regulations, we have run out of money. And yet this Administration and Congressional Democrats want to spend even more.
Watch the video of Congressman McCarthy's remarks:
You can read the full transcript of Congressman McCarthy's address below:
Hi, I’m Congressman Kevin McCarthy. I have the great honor of representing California’s 22nd Congressional District. I also serve as the House Republican Chief Deputy Whip. I’d like to start by wishing all those families celebrating Easter and Passover a year of peace and prosperity in this holiday season.
I need not remind you that this is a time of great economic anxiety for almost everyone. Americans are rightfully asking ‘where are the jobs?’ ‘Why is Washington raising taxes in times of recession?’ ‘Doesn’t anyone care about us?’ ‘Is anyone actually listening?’
I know what you’re thinking. Enough is enough. Stop the spending. Stop the waste. Stop the broken promises.
Republicans agree.
Major employers are already being squeezed because of the tax increases and cost hikes thanks to the new health care law signed by President Obama. The new law is just the latest in a series of anti-taxpayer policies coming out of Washington that is making it harder for Americans to save, invest, and hire, but it is by no means the last.
As a former small business owner – a deli here in Bakersfield – I know that there is risk involved in turning a new idea into a successful business. There is no reward without some risk. My small business – like many small businesses – was started on credit. At this time of high unemployment, when we need to focus on jobs, we should not be expanding government spending, government commitments, and government promises that crowd out the small businessman and businesswoman. That’s not good for jobs. That’s not good for anyone.
From TARP and permanent bailouts, to the cap-and-trade national energy tax, the government takeover of healthcare, and huge increases in the national debt – and now still more demands for more spending to change the financial regulations, we have run out of money. And yet this Administration and Congressional Democrats want to spend even more.
So on behalf of the hardworking taxpayers of my district, I have one question for Washington: who is going to pay for all your new spending?
Last fall, when the controversial TARP program was on track to expire, Republicans voted to terminate the program and ensure that any unused funds were used to pay down our crushing national debt. Democrats instead forced through an extension so that they could use it as a ‘slush fund’ for more wasteful Washington spending.
Now, President Obama wants Congress to pass job-killing legislation that would guarantee permanent bailouts for Wall Street. Under his plan, unelected Washington bureaucrats would be granted virtually unlimited power to pick winners and losers – and hardworking American taxpayers would pick up the tab for the reckless decisions made by irresponsible bankers.
What’s worse, this legislation fails to address the root causes of the economic crisis and housing meltdown – the lack of accountability in Washington and on Wall Street.
Republicans have proposed a plan to protect taxpayers, end the permanent bailout and get rid of TARP. Our plan would address the causes of the financial crisis and institute accountability while adopting a new approach to the markets that will no longer include using the taxpayer as Wall Street’s financial lifeline.
Because more Washington bureaucrats, more federal agencies and more blue-ribbon commissions are not the answer. And putting taxpayers on the hook for more bailouts will not revive our struggling economy – it will only compound the pain for struggling small businesses and for families who played by the rules, lived within their means and acted responsibly.
Earlier I asked whether anyone was listening. I’m Kevin McCarthy, a member of the House Republican Conference, and we’re listening. And if you want to put an end to these big government bailouts, the reckless wasteful spending and the mountain of debt, we hope you’re listening, too.
Watch as the good folks at the National Republican Senatorial Committee have a little fun at President Obama's expense with the "Democrats' Rainbows and Unicorns" video:
As Hillary once quipped during her presidential campaign:
The sky will open, the light will come down, celestial choirs will be signing ....
Free health care, trillions of new jobs, low-emission
unicorns, fiscal discipline transparency -- April Fools!
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell makes the case for repeal and replace of the Democrats' ObamaCare legislation in his latest Republican Weekly address (March 27, 2010):
We can do better. We can expand access to people with preexisting conditions. We can keep people from being kicked off their plans. We can lower costs and premiums. We can do all of these things without undermining the things we do best and without raising taxes that kill jobs in a bad economy.
The American people know that. That’s why they’ve been clamoring for a different approach, and that’s why Republicans are committed to repealing this bill and replacing it with common-sense solutions that achieve the good things that folks on both sides want to achieve without all the nasty consequences we’re already beginning to see.
Watch the video of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's remarks:
You can read the full transcript of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's address below:
Hello. I’m Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. Earlier this week, the President signed a massive health spending bill that’s been described as historic. Well, Democrats in Washington may measure history by how expensive and intrusive the bill is. But, most people outside Washington see things differently.
In one of the most divisive legislative debates in modern history, Democrats decided to go the partisan route and blatantly ignore the will of the people. Americans opposed this legislation, and, now they’re clamoring to see it repealed and replaced.
Democratic leaders and White House officials may be celebrating their victory this week, but most of the rest of the country is not.
Most people aren’t interested in celebrating a bill that makes their lives more complicated, takes more out of their paychecks and puts decisions they’re used to making themselves into the hands of federal bureaucrats.
Most people aren’t celebrating the fact that their insurance premiums will go up. Seniors aren’t popping champagne corks at more than a half a trillion dollars in Medicare cuts. And, job creators, already struggling in a down economy, aren’t doing any cartwheels over all the mandates and new taxes they’ll have to shoulder as a result of this bill.
We’re already seeing the economic fallout.
Just two days after this bill became law, the John Deere Co. said it will spend an extra $150 million this year alone just to comply with the new law. Illinois-based Caterpillar Corp. said it expects to take a $100-million hit.
This is bad news for workers, and it's terrible news for the broader economy. As the President himself put it during a visit to Caterpillar last year: ‘You can measure America’s bottom line by looking at Caterpillar’s bottom line.’ That was the president a year ago.
The timing couldn’t be worse. At a moment when millions of Americans are looking for work, Democrats in Washington just voted to spend $2.6 trillion on a healthcare bill that will make it even harder to create private-sector jobs. The IRS sure gets a boost, though. An estimated 16,500 new workers will be needed there to enforce a brand new insurance mandate that the bill imposes on employers.
And then there are all the unintended consequences that will inevitably result from a 2,800-page bill that sets up dozens of federal boards and a thicket of new rules and regulations -- regulations that we know won’t withstand their first contact with reality.
In fact, we’re already seeing it. Just one day after the president signed this bill into law, we got word that one of its celebrated early features -- a ban on discriminating against children with pre-existing conditions -- won’t immediately protect children after all.
Another promise, requiring insurance companies to let young adults stay on their parents’ plans up to age 26, turned out to be similarly ineffective. In other words, Democrats in Congress just voted to take over one-sixth of our economy, and two of the biggest selling points they used to push it over the finish line already need fixing. Here’s a question: If they can’t get these two things right, how can we expect them to properly manage the rest of it?
When the White House was questioned about the glitches in the bill, they said the secretary of Human Services was on the case. They said she’d issue a new regulation to correct the problem. But this is precisely what Americans are afraid of.
This bill hadn’t even been law for 24 hours, and already they’re proposing regulations to cover over mistakes and errors. And we haven’t even seen the last of it.
I’m sure that soon enough, every American will be reminded of the wisdom of that old observation that ‘government is best which governs least.’
Look, nobody is satisfied with the healthcare system as it is. We’ve got serious problems that need to be addressed. Costs are out of control. Too many people are being squeezed out of the market. But, the fact of the matter is, this healthcare bill doesn’t solve any of those problems. It uses them as an excuse to undermine the things we do best -- the wide array of choices, the constant innovations in technology and treatments, and the high quality of care that people all around the world admire about the American healthcare system.
Sadly, all of those things will suffer as a result of the bill the president signed this week.
We can do better. We can expand access to people with preexisting conditions. We can keep people from being kicked off their plans. We can lower costs and premiums. We can do all of these things without undermining the things we do best and without raising taxes that kill jobs in a bad economy.
The American people know that. That’s why they’ve been clamoring for a different approach, and that’s why Republicans are committed to repealing this bill and replacing it with common-sense solutions that achieve the good things that folks on both sides want to achieve without all the nasty consequences we’re already beginning to see.
Repeal and replace. That’s what Americans really want, and that’s something people far beyond Washington, D.C., will actually want to celebrate. Thanks for listening.
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