REPUBLICAN CONGRESS PASSES “ENABLING ACT” OF 2015

Paul Ryan turns “crap sandwich” into 12 course dinner for 300 million Americans . . . “bon appetit, suckers”   (comments below)

We have previously referred to the “Enabling Act” passed by the German Reichstag, the equivalent of the US Congress, on March 23, 1933.

It was officially titled the “Law for Removing the Distress of the People and the Reich”. The “distress” referred to was the growing panic and crisis atmosphere in Germany created by and promoted by Hitler’s Nazi party. It included riots, rampant civil disorder, public beatings and intimidation by Hitler’s “Brown Shirts”, and the burning of the Reichstag building.

The bill, promised Hitler, would grant him powers only temporarily until he had the crisis under control and the vast powers it gave him would not be abused but used only sparingly and prudently.The legislation in fact, effectively ended democracy in Germany and established the legal dictatorship of Adolf Hitler.The vote was 441 to 84 and from that day on “Congress”…the Reichstag, was nothing more than a “cheering section for Hitler’s pronouncements”.

This week, Paul Ryan and the Republican-held Senate and House produced, passed, and sent on for the President’s approval a bill as close as possible to a United States equivalent of the German “Enabling Act” of 1933!

“Oh surely, that’s extreme hyperbole!’, one will say.”How could the Omnibus spending bill be that bad?”

Let us count the ways. Far better detailed analyses are available elsewhere regarding this bill but we offer just a brief summary of some of its worst elements:

– Billions$ will be added to the debt (there is no longer, for the rest of Obama’s current term, any “spending caps”)

– all of Obama’s agenda has been fully funded: executive actions on illegal immigration, amnesty, Syrian and other refugee and illegal migrant resettlement costs, borders are wide open; sanctuary cities, the commitments the administration made at the recent ‘Climate Change: conference in Paris are funded; no conservative issues are addressed; Planned Parenthood continues to receive $500 million or so annually in taxpayer money.

– what we will hear Speaker Ryan and other establishment Republicans claim as “big wins” for the GOP are, in reality, very much in line with and in support of overall Obama and progressive goals: i.e., the “tax extenders”, includes delay, not elimination, of the “Cadillac tax” on rich health insurance plans so much beloved by organized labor. The tax was to provide some $500 billion to help pay for Obamacare to make it sound “affordable”. Thus, implementation of one of the most unpopular and painful consequences of Obamacare is put off until after the ’16 elections…a big boost for Democrat candidates. And, keep in mind, it will still become effective!

Another that there will be much crowing about by Ryan et al is the export of crude oil…a “HUUUGE conservative win, right? Maybe, but also not all that objectionable to the Democrats. Given Obama’s EPA, it is likely to have a dampening effect on the calls for more US based refineries; the sooner many of those can be shut down, the happier are the fossil fuel fear-mongering Democrats. It is not that allowing the marketing of crude oil is bad, it is the effect of claiming a great compromise on the energy situation when Obama’s EPA continues to be funded without restriction to strangle the industry.

And then there is the elimination of Obamacare’s bailout of health insurers who have lost large amounts of revenue because of the failure of Obamacare. Good news that taxpayers won’t have to bail out the guys who were all for the Obama health care fiasco, right? Now that’ pure conservatism, ain’t it?

Well yeah, except that it virtually assures that in addition to those private insurers who have already had to to bail out of Obamacare, the rest will likely follow very quickly. And what will be the “only viable solution”? SINGLE PAYER HEALTHCARE COVERAGE…otherwise known in the civilized world as full on SOCIALIZED MEDICINE!

Cloward-Piven anyone?

The point is that Republicans got throwaways as far as Democrats are concerned or worse yet, things that they can manipulate later.  Democrats got more money and further inculcation of onerous policies.

***********
So now we have an idea of the content of the “amiable” dinner meeting between Paul Ryan and Nancy Pelosi earlier in the week. It now seems clear that Nancy came to the “sit-down” with her list for Mr. Ryan. As Nancy may have put it: “Here are the items we, the Democrats, will not accept; here are the ones that will be in the Omnibus; and here a few items, Paul, that we Democrats actually also want but we’re willing to allow you to claim that you “extracted’ them in tough bargaining.

“Now, Paul, be on your way, and get this done”.

Everyone on Capitol Hill probably had a pretty good idea how Ryan’s and Pelosi’s meeting went when they saw him return to the House chamber without his pants.

DLH  with R Mall

0

0