While our other Senator is working hard to avoid a disastrous debt default and the government shutdown, deeper recession, and global financial catastrophe that would follow, Heller would rather play Russian Roulette with the full faith and credit of the USA.
In case you missed it in the video, here's some of the text of Harry Reid's speech this morning.
A Band-Aid approach to a world crisis is an embarrassment to Congress, to this country and to the world.
United Senate Democrats – all 53 of us – have informed the Speaker that his legislation was doomed in the Senate, because we would not vote for a short-term extension of the debt ceiling. It would put our great nation on the path to another default extravaganza in a few weeks.
Virtually every expert – every economist, every rating agency, every market analyst – has said the kind of short-term plan the Speaker proposed was no answer to the crisis Republicans have created. If we are trying to avert the kind of financial calamity default would bring, the Republicans’ plan is not was not a solution.
As the experts say, all too soon we would be back in the midst of partisan wrangling, with our economy once again held prisoner by extremist Tea Party Republicans.
Our economy cannot bear this kind of uncertainty any longer.
Congress and the White House are on lockdown, and the business of the country is not being conducted.
I say no, not again will we fight another battled like the one in which we are now engaged.
But default is not an option, either. And we cannot wait for the House any longer.
It is time for Republicans to stop the political games and embrace compromise.
No matter how long Republicans delay, the deadline will not move. We have hours – I repeat, hours – to act.
At least Reid is ready to act... Even if his bill also contains more than enough cuts to harm economic recovery. The unfortunate reality is that some sort of compromise has to be reached, and Dean Heller simply can't keep running to the press and claim he won't vote for anything that's "not good enough" for him.
Guess what? None of these plans is "good enough" for me, or even for the American economy. But if we don't see a deal emerge this weekend, the devastation that will soon emerge is sure to sink our economy, along with the rest of the world.
Even Republican Senators are now decrying the extremist, hostage-taking insanity that's crippling The House and threatening all the rest of us. Senator Bob Corker (R-TN) explained this morning how forcing another hostage crisis over the winter would hurt us.
[...] I do agree with the, fact that, you know, having these debates in the middle of an economic downturn that we’re having right now is not healthy, and there’s no question that business people, those people that hire employees all across our country watch this and become uncertain.
So, in a perfect world — and I know we’re not in a perfect world — but if we can get worked out over the next several days something that actually achieves all those on the front end and extends the debt limit beyond this next election, to me that would be a perfect solution and I hope we can do that.
And another Republican Senator, John Kyl from next door (Arizona), is asking the House TEA-nuts to drop the "BBA hostage taking".
Of course, neither one of them wants to admit the full truth. Conservative Republican economic policy adviser Bruce Bartlett (who served Presidents Reagan & GHW Bush) called out the obvious on MSNBC yesterday.
This is reality. George W. Bush's billionaire bailouts (the 2001 & 2003 tax cuts for the super-rich), wars of profit (for private military contractors), pharmaceutical industry bailouts (the Medicare Part D plan that passed in 2003), and TARP bank bailouts all led to the federal budget deficit we face now. And last winter, President Obama agreed to keep Bush's billionaire bailouts going. And this summer, Obama has agreed to cut domestic spending instead of undoing Bush's bailouts/tax cuts. We've already seen intense compromises from Democrats... In fact, many progressives are getting sick and tired of it.
(And for the record, their rally in DC yesterday was much better attended than the teabagger rally on Wednesday.)
But instead of doing the obvious and going to the bargaining table, Dean Heller instead wants to cheer on the hostage taking extremists and threaten not to vote for anything that's "not good enough" for him? Well, that's not good enough for Nevada! We deserve better.
Joe Heck: Email, Phone (202) 225-3252
Dean Heller: Email, Phone (202) 224-6244
Call Heller, along with fellow Nevada's House Republican, Joe Heck, and tell them to stop this madness and work with fellow Nevadan Harry Reid to stop a ridiculously preventable debt default.
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