Al Franken, HuffPo: The Hardest Vote I've Taken

[Amerigo Vespucci]

The Hardest Vote I've Taken

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/al-franken/the-hardest-vote-ive-take_b_796716.html

A lot of people are unhappy that the president punted on first down, and I'm one of them. Extending the excessive Bush tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires will explode our deficit over the next two years without doing anything to help our economy. I think it's simply bad policy.

But for Minnesota's middle class, struggling to get by in a tough economy, there's a lot in this bill that will really help: tax cuts for working families, a payroll tax holiday, energy tax credits, and the extension of Recovery Act initiatives that are already making a difference.

And for the Minnesotans truly suffering right now -- men, women, and children on the edge of economic disaster -- the alternative is simply unacceptable. If we let Republicans block unemployment benefits, even temporarily, there will be a lot more pain for working families, a lot more homeless kids spending Christmas in a shelter or a car.

If this is the prelude of a permanent extension of the Bush tax breaks for the super-wealthy, we're in big trouble. We'll lose our ability to make the investments we need to grow our way out of long-term budget deficits: education, infrastructure, and research and development. And I am taking the president at his word that he will fight harder to put an end to these wasteful tax breaks in 2012 than he did in 2010.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

1. Seems to be a lot of CYA "I couldn't help myself" statements going around.

[L. Coyote]

8. Not to mention the whole deal was designed to entrap support like this.

Los sin cajones are in charge.

[Skink]

2. Call it what it is. A republican shakedown.

[Riley18]

3. Sadly it sounds like Franken would rather get reelected than

say the truth. He is no Grayson.

[Lucky 13]

4. Whatever.

I kind of can't care anymore. It doesn't matter what cause I give to, or fight against, or protest with, or campaign against. No one is listening and nobody cares.

[wackywaggin]

5. Whatever, seconded!

Heretic Wack! :0)

[golddigger]

6. With extreme sadness, I have to agree with you.

[Forkboy]

7. Or, as I was told at a young age, be true to yourself because no one else will be.

:)

[laughingliberal]

10. Whatever works for me. nt

[Peregrine Took]

9. To hell with principles - I want to reserve my place at the government trough.

[Forkboy]

11. I disagree with his choice but still like him.

I know, on DU I'm supposed to fully love or fully hate everyone so people can score their points....

Of course, I might have more confidence in this if half the people arguing for it weren't among those arguing against it when Bush did it.

[dionysus]

35. rational, sane arguments don't belong here.

;)

[Johonny]

38. me too

It's hard to vote against the standing president when he's in your party and he tells you I really need you to do this. Being a politician isn't always fun. Sometimes you feel the need to pass bill you don't believe in.

[hulka38]

12. Disappointed. n/t

[Snotcicles]

33. Disappointed +. nt

[niceypoo]

13. No yarbles

[upi402]

14. Like eating your seed corn Al

There must be something in the water there. I dunno. So disappointing. I give up.

[jillan]

15. Next time Al - JUST SAY NO!

jeez....

[Name removed]

16. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[PurityOfEssence]

17. Just you wait, Henry Higgins, just you wait...

You're gonna have plenty more distasteful mish-mashes of rearguard appeasement to yea or nay on in the next few years...

[BlueCaliDem]

18. A hard choice for Al

but it's better than divide and conquer. He did the right thing, and I support him for it. The last thing we need to do is have the Democratic Party weakened by principled Liberals who would rather see the Democratic Party fail, than to understand this is NOT Utopia.

If you wanna know why this tax bill went through, just look at the cohesiveness of the Republican Party. Tea-Bagger, Moderate, Rightwinger, when it comes down to it, they stand together.

United We Stand. Divided We Fall.

What part of that don't the Ultra-left Liberals understand?

[hulka38]

19. I stopped playing follow the leader at around 6.

[BlueCaliDem]

21. And I wised up and knew the world didn't evolve around me at the same age. eom

[hulka38]

23. Truth trumps party

and any other affiliation. The conditions you set for yourself obscure your view.

[BlueCaliDem]

25. Unity trumps egotism. eom

[Pholus]

32. So there is NO circumstance over which you'd break party ranks?

Impressive.

I guess.

Course that's why I can't stand conservatives. Lock step, pretzel logic to rationalize every screwed up move.

Oh well, works for you...

[BlueCaliDem]

37. I don't cut my nose to spite my face, no.

I'm not a sucker for self-inflicted pain and self-righteous martyrdom.

Oh well, works for you.

[Snotcicles]

34. Jim Jones had Unity. nt

[BlueCaliDem]

36. Wrong. He had GUNS. You should read up on his cult

and realize just how much the Professional Left and their lockstep herd resemble Jim Jones and his congregation have in common. It's astounding, really.

[Snotcicles]

39. Professional Left? now there is lockstep terminology for ya. He had Koolaid.nt

[BlueCaliDem]

44. The people did not drink the poisoned Kool-Aid without Jones' GUNS on them.

It was NOT voluntary. Survivors talk about this all the time. Jones didn't get unity from his people because of Kool-Aid. He got it with GUNS.

And yes, the Professional Left: Hamsher, Greenwald, Schultz, even Bernie Sanders who, and of course you know this, has seen funds pouring into his campaign coffers for his 2012 reelection since his filibustering.

All the above make their money off of the passions of the Left making them the Professional Left. It's not a bad thing. Actually, it's a good thing people do that, but it does make them the Professional Left because they sell a leftist p.o.v. and get paid for it. You do understand that concept, right?

[johnlucas]

42. Unity under the wrong banner is Idiocy

The Tea Party is united.
They're also stupid, wrong, misled.

Unity without context does no one no favors.
Unite under something worthwhile.
In other words, you're using your unity skills wrong.

If it ain't for the good of all citizens, then it ain't worth uniting under.
John Lucas

[BlueCaliDem]

43. Agreed, but who decides what banner's idiocy?

You?

Allowing the tax cuts to expire ain't good for all citizens, so it ain't worth uniting under. Right?

Once again, the Left and their Leaders, the Professional Left {they DO make money off of your passion and the current controversy, too, don't you know? That makes them Professional, right?} are disemboweling the ONLY party strong enough, big enough, and funded enough, that stands between the Corporate Elite Party {GOP} and the working people. The Democratic Party.

The Professional Left and their followers are cutting their collective noses to spite their collective faces, and strengthening the Republican Party and their fanatical voters who, no matter how wrong they are, do seem to understand the concept of "united we stand, divided we fall". At least they're smart enough to understand that.

I just wish the Left would find a way to understand, and grasp, that concept, too. And not only right before voting for Democrats, but in full understanding that campaigning is a perpetual concept in this country, and attacking, criticizing, and putting down those pols who share their views the most, are being weakened by their constant rancor, and those who hate them, are served by it.

[dflprincess]

22. God forbid the Democratic party actually stand and fight for something

The Republicans stick together because they know the Democrats will cave in and give them what they want.

This deal went through because Obama cut a back room deal with Republicans. Just as he cut single payer advocates out of the health care discussion he cut Congressional Democrats out of these talks - then had a snit when his latest sell out was questioned.

[BlueCaliDem]

26. Hard to fight when you're being torn apart from the inside out, isn't it?

The Republicans stick together because they know Democrats will cave because Congressional Democrats are secretly aligned with the Republicans - in everything. If the 94-3 vote against giving President Obama funds to realize his campaign promise to close Gitmo, and bring detainees into the United States for trial - just like ALL the Liberals wanted to see happen - doesn't tell you the above is true, then you haven't been paying attention.

This deal went through because the President, since July this year, has been pushing Congressional Democrats to pass a bill to ensure tax cuts for the 98% of Americans didn't expire come January 1, and Congressional Democrats had been DEAF, DUMB, and BLIND.

The President's been after them month after month after month since. FrenchieCat has posted a timeline in the Barack Obama Group IF you're interested. It shows how Congressional Democrats punted, and punted, and punted, and even waited until AFTER the elections to do anything about it, completely ignoring him.

But I bet you didn't read that in Jane Hamsher's blog, did ya? Or in Glenn Greenwald's blog. Or heard Cenk Uyger rant about it. No. Corporate media, of all friggin sources, reported on it. Barely, but they did.

But you keep blaming the President. You keep it up. Keep discouraging yourself and others so that when it's 2012, you'll have a solid excuse why a Republican wins the WH, and the Senate is tossed back into the RepubliCONS column. But at least you'll have your anger and self-righteous principles to keep you warm and fuzzy until the next Democrat comes along you can bash because he/she isn't Liberal enough for you.

[Pholus]

27. Al the wise played this cruddy hand. You got your unity, but this was a back-room deal.

And it stank to high heaven.

One final note. Stop blaming the DFH's for 2012 in advance if Mr. Obama's bipartisanship doesn't work. The last meme pushed out during this debate was that people appalled by this capitulation were the "insignificant 15%" of the party so you'd better get your messaging straight. Are we the lunatic fringe who doesn't matter a bit in the calculations or are we the reason it's all going to come crashing down in 2012?

When forced with a choice between Republican and Republican-light, the electorate has chosen the "real thing" time and time again.

[BlueCaliDem]

30. Once again, mosey on to the Barack Obama Group for the timeline

and you'll see just how wrongheaded your assertion is regarding "backroom deals". Congressional Democrats were NOT willing, although veeery able, to extend tax cuts for the lower 98% and to allow expiration of tax cuts for the top 2%, but they punted, punted, punted. They refused to even bring up debate of it before the elections. But you know that, of course, even though you'll place the blame squarely in President Obama's lap. Yeah, that REEKS to high heaven, all right.

But of course, President Obama was "Republican-lite" for having to turn to the RepubliCONS in the 11th hour to find a way to stop expiration of the Child Tax Credit, the EIC, while pushing for an extension of unemployment benefits, and for stopping the expiration of tax cuts for the lower 98% in what some egocentric purists are dubbing a "backroom deal".

"The last meme pushed out during this debate was that people appalled by this capitulation were the "insignificant 15%" of the party so you'd better get your messaging straight."

What percentage was it again in Florida 2000 that voted for Nader over Gore, and what cost him about 97,000 votes so Dubya could be anointed pResident again? Refresh my memory, please. Was it 10%? That's a helluva lot less than your 15% (actually, the ultra-left Liberals make up about 20-22% of the American voting electorate}.

So yeah, you betcha the Professional Left and their loyalists will be blamed by the Democrats should it all come 'crashing down' in 2012. And deservedly so. Be rest assured, the African-American community will be sorely p*ssed off at those lily-white Professional Leftists {Hamsher, Greenwald, Olbermann, Uygur} for being instrumental in discrediting America's first, black President since they are very well aware that Clinton's triangulation during his presidency didn't seem to hurt their bleeding little hearts half as much. Count on it.

Call me racist, call me whatever, but fact remains, this is how the African-American community WILL SEE an eventual defeat of America's first African-American President, just like the Professional Left WILL CONTINUE TO BELIEVE that punishing this President with losing the House in last election was a good thing.

[Pholus]

31. Well, you guys won didn't you? It's up to YOU to deliver. Wait till you FAIL before you blame.

So to summarize your position -- due to numbers my opinion doesn't matter and in fact I MUST keep quiet for party unity. However, when this deal goes south you reserve the right to blame me. Tell you what, if it is a Nader-esque margin (or even closer than the "15%" of democrats you can blame me as long as if you lose by a bigger margin you admit that the entire deal was not wise to begin with.

That timeline is cool, course it goes back to early summer. Why not earlier? My problem is that this should have been rolling around in the background far earlier.

And finally it's okay. I still like you, despite your threats. :)

[GeorgeGist]

20. Wimp ...

and a schmuck.

[somone]

24. "I am taking the president at his word that he will fight harder"

Did he sleep through the movie or what

[stillwaiting]

28. Boo Franken! Booooooooo ooooooooooo ooooooooooo!

[justiceischeap]

29. Sometimes good politicians have to do bad things

I agree with Al on this one and if that makes me whatever name you wanna call me, then so be it. The ReThugs are great at being obstructionists. It seems that's all their party is about these days. I'm sure in 2 years, after this tax cut deal is passed, they will use it against Obama and the Dem party but there are lots of good things in this Bill no one seems to be talking about. Do I want to see the richest get a break instead of an increase? Hell no! Do I want to see the unemployment benefits continue? Hell yes. Do I want MY tax break (cause I'm one of the lucky ones that still has a job)? Hell yes! It's a hell of a pickle the government has gotten themselves into and to say Al Franken is a sellout because of this one vote, when he's done so much good in Congress is, well, ridiculous. There isn't a (great) politician in history, who hasn't had to make a vote he didn't care for.

[TBF]

40. Unrec for another one making excuses while he votes the wrong way. nt

[1badjedi]

41. +1