House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said that conservative Republicans who oppose anything less than the significant budget cuts they promised their constituents were acting like “dictators” and were to blame for stalled budget negotiations.
Harkening back to the government shutdown of 1996, Hoyer blamed what he called the “perfectionist caucus” for refusing to compromise, then and now.
“The last time government shut down President Clinton was President of the United States,” Hoyer told reporters at his weekly media briefing.
“And what happened then was the perfectionist caucus thought they would be the dictators and do it their way or no way. That’s what’s happening now.”
The phrase “perfectionist caucus,” Hoyer pointed out, came from an Oct. 20, 1998 speech by then-Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) that lectured House conservatives who opposed the 1999 balanced budget because it made policy concessions to Clinton.
Hoyer, in borrowing Gingrich’s phrase, was criticizing current-day House conservatives such as Reps. Steve King (R-Iowa) and Mike Pence (R-Ind.) and others for opposing any government spending plan that does not satisfy their particular policy goals.
King has said that he will oppose any spending bill that does not completely de-fund the Obamacare health reform law, including approximately $105 billion in automatic spending programs begun when the law passed last spring.
Pence has said that in addition to the complete defunding of Obamacare, he will oppose any spending bill that does not deny federal family planning money to Planned Parenthood – the nation’s largest abortion provider – even though it is already illegal for Planned Parenthood to use federal money to provide abortions.
Hoyer said that it was this “perfectionist caucus” who would be to blame if the government shuts down again, not Democrats. Hoyer, trying to drive a wedge between House GOP leadership and the conservative rank-and-file, said that the Tea Party “tail” was wagging the Republican “dog.”
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4 comments:
It is the Steny Hoyer's style politican that drove me to move from Maryland.
Hoyer and his ilk invented the concept of it's their way or the hiway.
let me get this right they are being called " DICTATORS " for doing what they said they would do to get elected,but the rest of them do what THEY want to do no matter what the people want .I think somebodt needs to look up the word in webster.
Right, ranger.
This is the same bunch that locked the republicans out in the hall while they wrote a behemoth bill, then dropped it on them just hours before they had to vote on it.
"We'll have to pass it to see what's in it."
Right.
We're still finding hidden treasures like the 106 billion in built-in funding.
Tell me about 'dictatorships', Steny.
Hail Caesar. Let my will and decrees be law and followed by all good citizens of my domain.
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