Luke Skywalker
Super Moderator
{vb:raw ozzmodz_postquote}:
The dome of the U.S. Capitol is seen at dusk in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 11, 2014.(Photo: Shawn Thew, European Pressphoto Agency)
WASHINGTON — A $1 trillion spending bill forced into the spotlight this week Democrats' simmering frustrations with the party's midterm election losses and highlighted the potential for future conflicts with the White House as lawmakers adjust to life in the congressional minority.
Top Democrats criticized President Obama for backing a spending bill that included provisions to ease regulations of Wall Street and campaign finance laws. Democrats are seeking to reinvigorate an economic message that party leaders have acknowledged failed to win over voters in 2014, and the spending bill provided an opportunity to hammer a populist message against Wall Street.
At the same time, Obama faces a new political reality with Republicans poised to take control of Congress for the first time in his presidency, putting increased pressure on the White House to negotiate more with the GOP — and vice versa — in order to advance legislation.
USA TODAY
House approves $1 trillion spending package
USA TODAY
Obama urges Senate to pass budget plan
A House Democratic uprising led by Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., temporarily sidelined the bill Thursday, though it ultimately prevailed on a 219-206 vote after Obama and top White House officials lobbied Democrats to support it. The Senate is on track to approve it as they try to wrap up for the year.
The White House tamped down talk of intraparty division Friday.
"I continue to be confident and I know that the president is confident that the strong working relationship and the effective, productive working relationship that we have had over the last six years will continue for the next two," said White House spokesman Josh Earnest.
The uproar over the spending package — despite being the product of negotiations by Democratic leaders in both chambers —encouraged progressive activists who want to see Democrats embrace a more populist economic agenda in the next Congress.
USA TODAY
17 items tucked into a trillion-dollar spending bill
"I absolutely think this is just the beginning of the fight," said Charles Chamberlain, executive director for Democracy for America, a liberal grass-roots group. "Finally, D.C. is waking up to what the American people already know, which is that the fight against income inequality is the fight of our time."
One of Democrats' first actions after the election was to create a leadership position for Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., a popular figure among the party's base for her populist economic message and support for more aggressive oversight of Wall Street.
She helped spark the wave of liberal opposition to the spending package this week over the inclusion of a provision that would roll back a portion of the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial services overhaul. She has been compared in recent days to conservative Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who is so popular among the party's base that GOP lawmakers monitor his positions even when they disagree with him.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., right, and Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., left, speak to reporters on Dec. 10, 2014.(Photo: J. Scott Applewhite, AP)
Pelosi and top House Democrats quickly lined up in opposition. In a rare moment of Democratic criticism, Pelosi declared on the House floor that she was " enormously disappointed" in the president for supporting the bill. Outside liberal groups cheered Pelosi despite the failure to change it. "Nancy Pelosi took a stand against Wall Street and stood up for the middle class," tweeted liberal advocacy group Americans United for Change, "AND SHE'S NOT DONE."
Opposition among liberal senators was also fierce. "In my very strong opinion, we have reached the stage with Wall Street that the major financial institutions are just too big, they are just too powerful, and anyone who thinks that Congress regulates Wall Street has got it backwards because the reality is that Wall Street — with their incredible wealth and lobbying capabilities and campaign contributions — regulates the United States Congress," said Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.
Sanders is mulling a 2016 presidential run. It was announced Friday that he would also take the top Democratic slot on the Budget Committee in the next Congress, giving him a powerful platform to shape the party's economic message.
Obama, in contrast, sought a conciliatory tone on Friday. "This by definition was a compromise bill," Obama said, "This is what is produced when you have a divided government that the American people voted for."
Powered By WizardRSS.com | Full Text RSS Feed