Debt Ceiling

Tea Party Tommy backs Baldwin, not Ryan, on debt ceiling vote

August 5, 2011 by Uppity Wisconsin

Paul Ryan and all of the other House Republicans from Wisconsin voted for the debt ceiling deal this week. So did Dem Ron Kind.

Tammy Baldwin is the only Badger in the House who didn't.

The Cap Times says Baldwin did the right thing, and defends her vote, which was criticized by the Wisconsin State Journal. No surprise there; The Cap Times loves Tammy, who's considering a Senate run next year.

Here's the surprise: Tommy Thompson, making noises like he will run for the Senate, tells Politico he would have voted against it, too, but doesn't say why. (Presumably because he's trying to demonstrate to the right wing of the GOP and the Tea Party that he's conservative enough.)

Tommy would have voted with alleged Senator Ron Johnson, who opposed the deal. Herb Kohl, who is retiring next year, voted for it.

So if it ends up being a Thompson-Baldwin race, no issue there.

Debt deal doesn't end Bush tax cuts, Ryan tells Sean Hannity

August 2, 2011 by Uppity Wisconsin

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) assured Sean Hannity of Fox News that the debt deal that passed the House will not increase taxes and WILL NOT eliminate the Bush tax cuts, which under current law will expire in 2013. That 2013 expiration remains unchanged. Rep. Ryan appears to be engaged in some semantic trickery -- but don't be surprised if the GOP finds a way by 2013 to keep the tax cuts in place, even if the new debt ceiling deal doesn't do it.

Watch it here

Quote, unquote

August 2, 2011 by Uppity Wisconsin

On Speaking To Power, Or, When Sanity’s Gone, There’s Always Satire

August 1, 2011 by Uppity Wisconsin

So everybody’s hearing the news, right? There is a tentative debt ceiling deal, and this Administration and Congressional Democrats seem to have won everything they wanted: Republicans get to have multiple “we don’t approve” votes before 2012 on raising the debt ceiling, there won’t be any new revenue, there’s going to be another “hostage-taking” event around Christmastime, for many Democrats the issue of the Ryan Budget and the dismantling of Medicare is likely off the table for the 2012 electoral cycle, and the Administration seems to have figured out a way to not involve itself in shaping the way that entitlement reform will work out. All in all, it’s some pretty slick negotiating, and I’m sure this Administration and Democratic Congressional leaders must be very proud. Even on bad days, however, you gotta have some fun, and that’s why I’m encouraging everyone to take a minute today to say .

“This is tremendous, Don, just tremendous.

On Speaking To Power, Or, When Sanity’s Gone, There’s Always Satire

August 1, 2011 by Uppity Wisconsin

So everybody’s hearing the news, right? There is a tentative debt ceiling deal, and this Administration and Congressional Democrats seem to have won everything they wanted: Republicans get to have multiple “we don’t approve” votes before 2012 on raising the debt ceiling, there won’t be any new revenue, there’s going to be another “hostage-taking” event around Christmastime, for many Democrats the issue of the Ryan Budget and the dismantling of Medicare is likely off the table for the 2012 electoral cycle, and the Administration seems to have figured out a way to not involve itself in shaping the way that entitlement reform will work out. All in all, it’s some pretty slick negotiating, and I’m sure this Administration and Democratic Congressional leaders must be very proud. Even on bad days, however, you gotta have some fun, and that’s why I’m encouraging everyone to take a minute today to say .

“This is tremendous, Don, just tremendous.