A big topic on the liberal blogs has been that Republicans who took a hatchet to the stimulus bill didn't even vote for it.
I explained yesterday how the people who crafted the crappy Senate compromise bill were, to a significant degree, Republicans. Republicans who won't even vote for the bill. But I forgot to credit the guy who really put the stupid in this bill: Johnny Isakson.
On ABC's THIS WEEK, Chuck Schumer and Maxine Waters make a great point that many in the press have missed or refuse to talk about, but which bloggers have not.
SCHUMER: So let me just say this.
(CROSSTALK)
SCHUMER: We had a lot of people who said, "Take this out, take
that out."
WATERS: That's right.
SCHUMER: Most of those things were taken out, and they still
voted against the bill.
(CROSSTALK)
KING: ... so much is missing, and that's the reality.
WATERS: We took the amendments from those three Republicans who
were willing to step up to the bat.
KING: In the House, no one was allowed to take -- no Republican
was allowed to take part in the process.
(CROSSTALK)
KING: Not one Republican was allowed to take part in the process
in the House.
WATERS: That's -- that is not -- that is not the truth.
KING: It is the truth.
WATERS: As a matter of fact, we should focus on, when you had
the opportunity to participate, why not do what those three moderate
Republicans did? Step up to the plate; offer your amendments. You
know, we took all of their amendments.
Do you know we reduced the neighborhood stabilization program by
a couple of billion dollars? We reduced Head Start, Early Start,
school construction. We took the amendments. And so all those who...
KING: The fact is...
SCHUMER: And one other thing...
KING: ... not one Republican was allowed at the table in the
House of Representatives when the bill was...
(CROSSTALK)
KING: I'm talking about the House.
(CROSSTALK)
SCHUMER: Let's just look at the Senate. The two biggest
amendment that we accepted were Republican amendments, $70 billion --
you disagreed with it -- Senator Grassley, AMT, $38 billion, housing
relief, Senator Isakson. They still voted against the bill.
STEPHANOPOULOS: Let me bring Senator Graham back into this now.
SCHUMER: We don't know what more to do in terms of
bipartisanship.
(CROSSTALK)
SCHUMER: Well, how about the Senate?
GRAHAM: If I may say, if this is going to be bipartisanship, the
country's screwed. I know bipartisanship when I see it. I've
participated in it. I've gone back home and gotten primary opponents
because I wanted to be bipartisanship.
If Republican Senators have an amendment added to a bill and then vote against the bill, that amendment should be pulled. Why should a conservative effort to water down legislation get passed and then not get the backing of the author? Goober Graham as usual performs his hyperventilating act while Democratic politicians still do a pretty poor job of explaining their positions. And not a single economist showed up on THIS WEEK...
