Coalition EXPOSED: Post Cliff, The House GOP’s new reality

Well, now we know. Thanks to tireless work on behalf of Vice President Biden, President Obama, and Congressional leaders, the big bad Fiscal Cliff was officially averted. After a rousing show of Senate Bi-Partisanship, the ‘Fiscal Deal’ was also approved by the House 257-167.

Most pundits today are talking about the deal, and about how “disappointed” they are, or about how “terrible it was for the country. But I’m actually very VERY happy about last night’s House vote. It may have been the best gift ever delivered to the Obama administration, and to the country. Here’s why…

All but 16 Democrats voted for the bill, and that’s as expected because Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has a great relationship with her caucus. We all knew that Speaker John Boehner’s caucus was split, with a majority of them oppsing him at every turn. But what we didn’t know until last night, was exactly where those fault lines lie.

Now we do.

Boehner’s decision to cave and bring the bill to a clean vote was a total game-changer for the White House and for Democrats. Of the 257 yes votes, 85 of them were Republicans. This is it!! This is the group of people that actually listen to the Speaker, and most importantly, are willing to listen to others and put country before party. The official roll call tells this tale like the best of political novels. For the first time since the “Hastert rule” was enacted, a party caucus was knowingly split up by its leadership. As a result, we now see the House GOP for what it really is… a two-party coalition in which John Boehner is actually part of the minority. On one side, you’ve got roughly 150 members that grab all of the attention, and on the other side you have 85 members that want to WORK. 85 members that are (at least briefly) capable of putting the interests of the country above the sanctity of their party.

Many of those members are what you’d expect… blue state Republicans like New Hampshire’s Charlie Bass, or those that have their eye on future offices like Illinois’ Aaron Schock, knowing that bipartisanship is a necessary step were he to run for Governor or Senator of a bifurcated state. And some of them were just people that actually respect Speaker Boehner’s leadership and trust the decision of the caucus… the “old school” politicians. After 3 years of the Tea Partiers hogging the spotlight, we were suddenly reminded that the GOP isn’t completely over-taken… at least not yet.

Now sure, out of those 85 some of them would never do this again. They would never join up with Democrats to help the President. But there’s likely a good 40 to 50 of them that the public can now target to get our government in the right direction again. And as long as Boehner keeps his Speakership in the 113th, Congress will be able to pass important things like Immigration reform and simplification to the tax code.

Republicans and Democrats will always have differences, but we shouldn’t be so far apart that we would allow our country to go to ruins. Sadly, that faction is alive and well within the GOP… some of them care nothing more for the well-being of the United States as long as their narrow viewpoint is advanced. But what we learned on the first night of 2013? That’s not all of them. There are still reasonable, hard-working, SANE people in Congress that want this country to succeed, and are willing to compromise even if they don’t always agree with the views of others. There’s still people in the House of Represenatatives that want to legislate, and not just waste people’s time.

In normal voting procedure, the Speaker of the House does not actually cast a vote. But sometimes, when they think it’s needed (like then Speaker Nancy Pelosi casting a vote for the Affordable Care Act), they will vote. Last night, Speaker Boehner cast a vote, eventhough he knew that enough of the other members of the caucus would join Democrats. He knew the bill would pass, but he voted anyway. Why would the Speaker do that?

If I were a betting man, I’d say that Boehner’s vote was a signal. He’s communicating to the President and Senate that he’s one of the “good guys”. Or at least that he’d like to be.

But in order to be a truly good guy, Mr. Boehner needs one other thing… COURAGE. One vote is simply not enough to save the reputation of the 112th Congress. And letting bills like the Violence Against Women Act and vital aid for Hurricane Sandy victims die in the House is not courageous. It’s wrong. I hope the Speaker finds more courage in the 113th Congress, and FAST.

Hail To the VEEP

For and foremost, I want to wish everyone a very Happy New Year. Great to have made it to 2013!!

One thing is clear today… Washington is finally doing some WORK. After a painful campaign year in 2012, and a shameful Lame Duck session, the United States Congress has now gone over the Fiscal Cliff. As of today, the Bush Tax Cuts have expired FOREVER, and we are now under the largest tax rate the nation has had in over 10 years. It’s done folks, the clock has run out.

Of course this isn’t what anyone wanted… Neither Democrats or Republicans wanted tax rates this high (at least not yet), or cuts this steep to defense and social services. Just like our hangovers from last nightMs New Years’ Eve, we now have to face the consequences of our Congressional actions. Unemployment benefits have now been cut off for nearly 2 million Americans, and it’s unacceptable to let them starve. In other words, now we need some help.

In for the rescue come Vice President Joe Biden. Apparently, some jobs are too big for even the President to negotiate. And when it comes to Congress m, those jobs now fall to Joe Biden.

What we sometimes forget about our distinguished VP? Before 2009, he was a in the United States Senate for 36 years. Had he not become VP, he would actually be the most senior Democrat in the Senate. That seniority is proving to play a critical role to the future of our nation. Knowing the gravity of the situation, Minority leader Mitch McConnell actually called on Biden to come in and close the deal for the Senate. As a result, Senators reached a compromise and were able to pass a the fiscal cliff deal on a shocking 89-8 vote. If you’ve followed Congress over the last few years, you’ll know that bi-partisanship of this magnitude doesn’t happen often.

Of course Joe Biden has been a critical partner to President Obama at almost every turn. He helped restore the faith of the Progressive Caucus in a shrewd move to clarify the White House position on same sex marriage. Sure President Obama came out in support of marriage equality last May, but only after Biden endorsed it a few days prior on a Sunday talk show. This put the President against a wall, and thankfully he chose to side with the arc of history. Since that pivotal moment, the cause for marriage equality has entered a new realm of victory with endorsements by Civil Rights organizations, and wins in the mere state-wide referenda. Sure history will talk about Obama’s leadership on the issue, but let’s not forget who actually toppled the first domino.

Now let’s not kid ourselves… This isn’t a great bill, and the struggles are far from over. The House has yet to vote on the legislation. But now, with weight of Republican support from the Senate the House will knows that rejecting this bill would be electoral suicide. So the prospects look good at the moment. (Look for updates as this is developing rapidly.)

But in either case, the Vice President has proven his worth today. After forcing the President’s hand on issues like same-sex marriage, clobbering Sarah Palin and Paul Ryan in debates, and being a tireless champion for the working class, it’s time for us all to raise a glass to Mr. Biden.

Hail to the Veep.

Jon Huntsman on working for Obama: “I’d Do It Again”

The big news of today will likely be that President Obama has set his sights on former Republican Senator Chuck Hagel for his next Secretary of Defense. If so, this would be the President’s second Secretary of Defense that comes from the Republican party. So clearly, Obama has no qualms choosing members of the GOP to be in his close consort, as long as they are qualified for the position. Which is yet more evidence to suggest that his next choice for Secretary of State may be a Republican as well.

As the punditocracy continues to oscelate around possible picks for America’s next top diplomat, it’s helpful to be reminded where one candidate stands. As was penned in an earlier post, much of the experience that Obama seeks currently lies with former Governor Jon Huntsman. He of course has served before the President before as Ambassador to China, but this is no guarantee that the Governor would accept another position with his assumed Democratic rival. But, in an interview with ABC’s George Stephanopolous, Huntsman left the door wide open to future service in the Obama Administration, even as he was preparing to run for President himself.

Jon Huntsmans says, without a doubt, that he is proud of his service to President Obama and the nation, and that he would do it again. That’s very significant. What’s perhaps even more important about this interview? What Huntsman did not say. He never stated that he outright disagrees with the President’s Foreign Policy, or even with the decision for Federal Stimulus (in fact, Huntsman willingly accepted Federal Stimulus Funds for his state). The facts remain that regardless of which party affiliation he chooses, Mr. Huntsman remains a Moderate, if not sometimes Progressive and politician. Of course it’s possible that the GOP primary process could have affected Huntman’s views on what future roles he’s willing to accept. But he was also quite unapologetic during the primaries, and made a graceful exit from the “bloodbath” quite early. These are the makings of someone that continues to prove a good fit for the Obama Administration, past or future.

Unbroken news: Who’s NOT sharing today’s SCOTUS announcement

Yes that’s right… Fox News. How did you guess?

Apparently, breaking news that the Supreme court has decided to take up landmark cases on both California’s Prop 8 and the Defense of Marriage Act isn’t really “newsworthy” to the Right-wing network. Given the outcome, these decisions, to be handed out on June 27th of 2013, could re-make the Civil Rights landscape for the GLBT community. But on the front page of their website, they bury it about halfway down…

Well, I understand that the network has a wide online readership. Perhaps the history-making headline was good enough for the U.S. section? After all, it is news that applies only to the United States.

Uh, ok. The last shot here… a specific section on politics. There wasn’t any bigger news of the day…

Quite sad, but this is how the Right-Wing machine has been engineered. Insulate the readership so that they can live in their own bubble, and thusly, be uninformed.

And in case you missed the New York Times hyperlink from the top, here’s their Breaking News headline for December 7th, 2012…

Mariah Carey, Jimmy Fallon and The Roots take us to SCHOOL

Now this is a clip that every elementary music teacher can be proud of. Jimmy Fallon teams up with The Roots and THE Mariah Carey to do a live cut of her Christmas classic All I Want For Christmas Is You. The video is cute and instantly infectous… obviously the kids at the bottom of the screen popping in and out of the shot was all I needed to turn my frown upside down.

And cute may have been all that they were going for here. But even if unintentional, this video serves as a powerful reminder of where our music and arts education actually begins. It starts in a classroom with recorders and Fischer Price Xylophones. It starts with dedicated teachers that give of their time and energy to invest in our nation’s children. How beautiful of these international superstars to join forces and remind us… everyone has to start somewhere. Somebody invested in those music teachers through tax dollars, and in turn the teachers invested in little Mariah, little Jimmy and Lil’ Questlove. If not for that, the world may never have encountered their immense gifts of music and entertainment. As federal, state and local governments continue to posture and postulate over what is “important” to fix the nation’s fiscal issues, maybe they will also stumble upon this video, and be reminded… what good is saving the country, if we have nothing of value left to save?

Sheesh! Maybe that was too political. I think I better watch this again!!

Is Obama Hunting for Huntsman as Secretary of State?

This may be out on a limb, but I think there’s still a very good chance the President will pick Jon Huntsman to be Secretary of State. Though few in the main-stream media seem to focused on Susan Rice to explore this option, but Lisa Riley Roche of Utah’s Deseret News believes the former governor is a viable option.

Sure, he’s a Republican. And yes he ran for President in the GOP primaries, actually hoping to take on Barack Obama for his job. But here’s why Governor Huntsman is possibly the best choice for the Obama Administration, and for this time in American history…

Huntsman’s experience lines up with Obama’s priorities. Lest we forget… This President’s number one foreign policy priority is to re-establish the United States as a Pacific Power. Obama has conducted three large-scale visits throughout the South Pacific during his term, and has also had extensive dealings with China. Virtually any trip that he has elected to take (outside of a summit or other special meeting) has been to Asia. Governor Huntsman is one of the foremost diplomats to Asia… having served as the American Ambassador to both China and Singapore. He is fluent in Chinese, and has a real grasp on the sensitive political issues of the Continent. As the delicate relationship between China and the United States grows in importance, it’s clear that Governor Huntsman is best qualified to handle this aspect of being the nation’s top diplomat.

Huntsman has a background rooted strongly in both business and government. In 2012, we all recently suffered through several Republican candidates that claimed to have an equal share of both… most evidenced by Republican nominee Mitt Romney. But unlike Mr. Romney, who didn’t even attempt to run for a second term in his state, Huntsman was reelected with a “landslide” 77.7 percent of the vote. Romney’s decision not to run was a pure admission that he would likely be unsuccessful. Of course Mr. Huntsman didn’t complete much of his second term before accepting the position of US Ambassador to China, but the re-election effort in itself is a significant credit to his character and dedication.

In second term, President Obama is free from the concerns of election. Unlike 2008, the President can choose the person he feels will best suit the job, without concern for political consequences. Obama picked Huntsman as Ambassador to China during his first term, and that is critically important. Anyone chosen to be America’s face to the largest country on earth is being set up for greater duties down the line. Susan Rice’s prominence as Ambassador to the UN would be the only other person that was chosen for such a critical post. But as is par in the world of politics, the reaction outside our shores is just as important. The elevation of Huntsman to Secretary of State would be a major signal to China that the United States is serious about building on the progress the two nations have made. Susan Rice’s prior field experience as Ambassador was in Africa. So in either case, the President’s decision will of top diplomat will reveal which foreign relations he chooses to prioritize.

And finally….

President Obama likes diverse opinions. If you’re able to read this, then you probably remember 2007 and 2008… you know, when then Senators Obama and Clinton didn’t get along so well. But once all was said and done, he still chose Clinton for his most senior cabinet position. The relationship between Obama and Huntsman hasn’t been nearly as contentious, but most have been willing to discard him as a possibility simply because of party.

Clearly, this is not how the President sees it. Check out this video from 2011… Obama not only indicates that he admires Huntsman’s work as Ambassador to China, but that he has not been ruled out for future endeavors.

Until a decision is announced, no one can be sure. But looking at all of the objective information, I’m ready to place my bet. Obama is hunting for Huntsman.

CONFIRMED: William and Kate are Expecting!

Just in… The Globe and Mail has confirmed from the Prince’s office that the young couple are expecting their first child.

After a banner year for the Royal family that saw the both the celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s reign of 60 years, and the very successful London 2012 Olympics, this is yet another bit of exciting news for the UK.

Here is a brief official statement…

“Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are very pleased to announce that The Duchess of Cambridge is expecting a baby. The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Harry and members of both families are delighted with the news.”

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