No benefits extension for the unemployed

[Trieste]

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/02/26/senate.jobless.benefits/index.html

These statements make me wonder if this man is trying to make a statement about health care. Every single person in the senate chamber believes that extension of unemployment benefits is needed... not every person in the senate thinks the same on health care reform.

If you can't pay for something everyone agrees on, how in the world are you going to pay for something only half seem to agree on?

While I understand that Congress thinks it's too important to have to pay for its measures, I'm not entirely sure this is the way to challenge that. It's punishing a lot of people who are already being punished by the economy... :/

[Vekseid]

Jim Bunning is just being an ass and looking forward to his cushy lobbying job. He's certainly not the least bit concerned about his constituents and they know it.

He's had a decade to take a stand on the deficit, but as Dick Cheney said, "Deficits don't matter." Now he's all too happy to make people suffer and hurt the nation as a result.

I just wish we'd move from unemployment extensions to work programs : /

[Trieste]

Yeah, I noticed that he's retiring. My first thought after reading the first couple paragraphs was "Jackass" and honestly, the next several didn't change my mind.

[Moreth]

We could be making public works projects and putting people to work modernizing our infrastructure. Our roads, power transmissions systems, bridges are all in very bad shape. Could make lots of jobs just bringing those things into the 21st century.

[National Acrobat]

Kind of off topic, but Bunning is retiring because the Republican Party refused to endorse him and directed all fundraising efforts in Kentucky towards a more conservative candidate. Essentialy the Republican Party is paying Bunning back for not voting lock step with them. This is basically him deciding he's still in the Senate for now, and he can do whatever he wants and say what he wants, and since he's a republican, it will reflect on them. So it's merely a tit-for-tat thing. Still, it's moronic.

[consortium11]

Not defending the guy here but...

Didn't PAYGO get provisionally brought back just a few weeks ago. And isn't what this guy is saying essentially "follow PAYGO"? Even if it doesn't technically violate the rules, doesn't it at least break the spirit of them?

[Trieste]

What's rather funny to me is that when Gore was campaigning against Bush, one of his campaign promises was to find the money for each measure before it was approved and Bush criticized him, talking about how paygo was inefficient and completely unfeasable. Who's laughing now? Gore, well, would be if we weren't so fucked.

[RubySlippers]

The Senate Democrats reinstated Pay-Go as a statute change in the Senate. It says such programs must be paid for with either a tax or reduction elsewhere with exclusions. And the Sneate voted on a unanimous vote option and this Senator simply said NO. He is right if the Pay-Go is in place and the Democrats did it then they should be held to their own rules. Why not pay for it with somethings its a modest sum it would be fair then to Pay-Go?

[Jude]

Pay-Go was never intended to apply to emergency spending and this is clearly an emergency provision.

However, as far as I'm aware the problem has already been solved (or so I recall hearing via some type of media, I can't remember the resource).  Can anyone confirm or deny this?

[Trieste]

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/03/02/jobless.benefits.bill/index.html

[Jude]

Thanks.  On an unrelated note, Jim Bunning looks a little bit like Dick Cheney.

Coincidence?  You decide.

[Zeitgeist]

So now that this bill has been passed, when this extension is about to expire again will it again become a sudden emergency? Might it be time now to find the budget cuts to pay for this? Or will everyone just put their heads in the sand and ignore the fact we are writing checks for which we don't have the money for?

[Trieste]

Yes.

The next step is a nationwide hippie commune. With free health care.