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TalkingPointsMemo has a post how pro-choice Republicans, the few of them that are left, have issued a warning to the GOP that their fight with President Obama on contraception.
Pro-choice Republicans are begging their party to drop this fight over contraception before it's too late. Turning to a discussion about access to birth control will be nothing short of a disaster, they say.
Since U.S. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito is one of the few pro-choice Republicans on Capitol Hill, perhaps she should join her fellow pro-choice Republicans in urging her party to drop this fight.
Then again, she's taken an extremist stance against contraception before.
Does Capito, one of the largest recipients of donations from the Republican pro-choice WISH group, really not support contraception for women? That's the fight her party wants to have and so far she's joined with them in wanting to deny women birth control.
Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., says extending the payroll tax holiday for only two months is "absolutely ridiculous" and urges leaders in the House and Senate to appoint conferees to negotiate a deal to extend this much needed relief for a full year. Moreover, tax experts agree that a two-month plan isn't workable because it does not leave enough time for businesses to comply which significant changes in tax policy.
So I guess the Wall Street Journal, Karl Rove, Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, former Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain and pretty much every other Republican not kowtowing to the Tea Party were wrong to tell the House Republicans like Capito to quit playing games.
But since she's on the right side, she'll stick by her guns, right?
Those guns the House Republicans were sticking to backfired:
By reaching a deal], House Republicans ended five days of increasing tensions that developed after a contentious Saturday conference call in which rank-and-file Republicans rebuffed Boehner's initial efforts to sell them on the Senate deal that passed with bipartisan support on Saturday. After voting down the Senate deal Tuesday, Democrats led by President Obama and a rising chorus of Republicans criticized them for blocking a deal.
The impasse was brokered in part by the Senate's top Republican, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who broke with House GOP leaders on Thursday and called on them to approve the short-term patch in exchange for Senate Democrats formally naming negotiators to finalize a full extension through 2012 when Congress returns in January.
Even many Republicans are coming to the right conclusion that these Republicans in the House, including so-called moderates like Capito who is showing she's a radical partisan, are incapable of governing.
Paul Nyden begins a story at the Charleston Gazette that for a moment gave me hope Republican Reps. Shelley Moore Capito and David McKinley were going to be reasonable people. Capito, afterall, claims to be a moderate and never includes Republican on her campaign material because she must be embarrassed by the affiliation and McKinley, afterall, voted against repealing the so-called "ObamaCare."
In the face of continued deadlock over ways to reduce the country's debt, some lawmakers who have signed a pledge never to raise taxes have been rethinking that action.
But no, Nyden was just doing the usual media papering over what the Republicans say to make them seem reasonable. Neither Capito or McKinley said they were rethinking their action.
Here's what he quotes them as saying lower down in the story:
Asked last week if she still plans to abide by the Norquist anti-tax pledge, Capito did not answer directly.
In a statement, Capito said she supports changing the tax code "to make it fair and flatter, reining in burdensome regulations that make it harder for small businesses to operate and getting the reckless spending under control."
"We're in a fiscal crisis because we spend too much, not because we're taxed too little," she said.
She gives him some platitudes disconnected from what she actually does and he dutifully serves as stenographer without pointing out how often she votes the way Norquist wants and not what her constituents want.
Then Nyden quotes McKinley as saying:
McKinley still supports Norquist's anti-tax pledge, his spokesman said Friday.
"McKinley remains committed to the pledge and opposed to tax increases. He believes fundamental tax reform that lowers rates while eliminating or limiting some tax loopholes would create jobs," Andrew Sere said.
Capito and McKinley are all but using semaphore flags to signal they their radical stance that puts the wealthiest ahead of the nation's fiscal health and Nyden spins it for them as being open to compromise when they say no such thing.
Do you know when the nation was last booming? When President Clinton was in office. Let's go back to the Clinton tax rates.
Is it any wonder Capito and McKinley can get away with voting for radical rightwing bills and still claim to be moderates back home?
When Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va, seeks a 2012 re-election bid, she not only faces an early-announced inter-party competitor, but also a grassroots effort to unseat her.
Last month, Delegate Jonathan Miller, a fellow Republican, commended Capito for her service, but announced he would be running as a much-needed fresh face for reform in the second district. Now, a grassroots collective of second district citizens are rallying for her resignation, mostly based on her April support of Rep. Paul Ryan's budget plan.
Activist and writer Russell Mokhiber of Berkeley Springs, said he is part of the organization demanding resignation for "unconscionable" actions he said would "effectively put Medicare on the road to extinction."
I'm Regan Bartley. My small business now has 39 stores in the region that employ 250 people. And I need your help.
Every day, over three-fifths of our customers use plastic, and when they do, we're charged a "swipe fee." We understand the principle involved in paying a small fee for this convenience. But with a credit card duopoly the fees have skyrocketed unaccountably, and small business has felt the pinch.
Small businesses are currently plagued with swipe fees. These swipe fees are accrued when customers use a debit or credit card for a purchase. Big banks and credit card companies charge an "interchange cost" on each purchase to process the transaction. Swipe fees can add up quickly, especially for small business owners.
I am one of these small business owners. Whenever someone comes into one of my stores and uses a debit or credit card to make a purchase, I - along with all other business owners - must pay a swipe fee. To add insult to injury, even if the item purchased is just a few dollars, the fee paid out to big banks can actually wipe out any profit I would have made on the purchase.
For most small business owners, swipe fees account for the largest expense right behind payroll and healthcare. The big banks and credit card companies that taxpayers bailed out just a few years ago have had a stronghold on the interchange system, enabling them to charge out-of-control fees that continue increasing. The situation has become increasingly grim for small business owners as these swipe fees have close-to tripled over the past decade.
Last summer, there was light at the end of the tunnel. Legislators took action to alleviate this unfair fee on businesses and passed common-sense swipe fee reform to rein in these excessive fees, and ensure that they are reasonable and proportional to the actual cost of each transaction.
Our very own Shelley Moore Capito, R-2d, is a terrible representative. A member of the lockstep Right in the U.S. House of Representatives, Ms. Capito voted for the Ryan Plan to Kill Medicare (RPKM), consistently supports gutting the EPA, dismisses climate change, and generally does the bidding of her corporate owners.
By Republican standards, a perfectly acceptable politician.
And yet ... Berkeley County delegate Jonathan Miller (R-53d) has announced that he's going to run for Congress next year!
As you can see, he manages to get through the whole speech without ever mentioning Capito's name. And he wraps himself in populism ("I'm running because I'm tired of seeing Washington politicians put themselves before you," for example), while including a dig at health care reform to make sure that folks know he hates Obama.
A look at his official bio on the House of Delegates site turns up some interesting stuff:
- Member, National Rifle Association (no surprise there);
- Martinsburg-Berkeley County Chamber of Commerce (ditto no surprise);
- Berkeley County Farm Bureau (appropriate);
- American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), The Heartland Institute (*this one's interesting - see below);
- The Cato Institute (rightwing "unthink" tank);
- The Club for Growth (another rightwing "unthink" advocacy group);
- Americans for Tax Reform, Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council (ah, Grover Norquist, who wants to make government so small it can be drowned in a bathtub ... I guess he thinks no one will remember Jack Abramoff).
* ALEC is the legislative clearinghouse that writes "model" legislation on such topics as union-busting, a la Wisconsin governator Scott Walker.
Shelley has been a loyal foot soldier for corporate America. Do you think she's wondering what the hell else she has to do to prove that she's just as willing as the next guy (or Jonathan Miller) to destroy America in the furtherance of unfettered greed?
Is Shelley Moore Capito afraid of her constituents?
I say yes.
I called her Martinsburg office a couple of days ago to ask when, or if, Shelley would be holding a town hall meeting anywhere in the Eastern Panhandle.
I admit right up front, I wanted to grill her face-to-face about her vote for the Ryan plan to gut Medicare, hand the insurance industry googobs of taxpayer money, and bestow tax break largesse on the rich. (I suspect I wouldn't be alone!)
However ... the young woman who answered the phone said that (a) Shelley didn't have any town halls scheduled, and (b) Shelley doesn't normally do "live" town halls - i.e., CONSTITUENT MEETINGS! - because "her district is so long."
Awwwww. I guess actually having to drive a few hours and endure the presence of the unwashed masses is just too much for her.
Never mind that somehow our senators - who represent the entire state - manage to hold citizens' meetings.
Anyhow, back to the young woman: She offered to put me on the list for Shelley's next town-hall-by-phone. She said this is so Shelley "can reach more people."
Didn't Shelley ever hear that quantity doesn't equal quality?
I think we should mount a campaign to encourage her to hold some real meetings with living, breathing constituents.
The ad asks people to call Rep. Paul Ryan, but his friend Shelley Moore Capito voted for the same radical plan.
Call her 202.225.2711. If the aide said she was concerned about the deficit, point out that the CBO says the deficit would be increased by the plan and also she didn't care about the deficit when it was time to vote for two endless wars, the prescription drug plan and the Bush tax cuts for "job creators" who increased their bonuses by laying off their workers.
You know what's not popular? Reforming Medicare such that beneficiaries "receive a check or voucher from the government each year for a fixed amount they can use to shop for their own private health insurance policy." According to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll, 65 percent of Americans oppose the idea -- about the same number who dismissed it in 1995. And if they're told that the cost of private insurance for seniors is projected to outpace the cost of Medicare insurance for seniors -- which is exactly what CBO projects -- more than 80 percent of Americans oppose the plan.
But it's not just sweepingly ideological reforms that are unpopular. Cutting Medicare polls poorly even if you leave out the details. Almost 80 percent of Americans oppose Medicare cuts in the abstract, while 70 percent oppose Medicaid cuts. Slightly over half of the country wants the Defense Department left alone. The only deficit-reduction option that is popular? Raising taxes on the rich.
While ignoring Republican Rep. David McKinley's vote against the radical plan of Rep. Paul Ryan to end Medicare to give even more tax cuts to wealthiest, Republicans are heaping praise on Republican Rep. Shelley Moore Capito for voting with the majority of Republicans to end Medicare.
West Virginia Democrats are rightly calling the GOP on this:
WV Republicans Send Mixed Messages on Federal Budget
Capito is Praised for Cuts While GOP Looks the Other Way on McKinley
Charleston, W.Va. - The West Virginia Republican Party and other tea party groups are praising Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito for her vote supporting the GOP's 2012 budget, the Ryan Plan, which dramatically cuts Medicare and federal highway spending. Meanwhile Congressman David McKinley was one of just four Republicans who voted against the measure. Every Democrat voted against the radical cuts.
"West Virginia Republicans are sending mixed messages on this radical plan to cut Medicare," said West Virginia Democratic Party Chairman Larry Puccio. "David McKinley campaigned on cutting the deficit, but now it appears he is running for political cover. Their Chairman, Mike Stuart, praised Congresswoman Capito for voting for these cuts, but he is silent on McKinley. It's clear that their Party's leadership supports these radical cuts and the public will see through this game of hide-and-seek."
Background:
· Explaining the four 'nos' on the Ryan Plan. David McKinley - "he may be concerned about redistricting..." Politico, 4/15/11
· Congressional Budget Office: GOP Budget Raises Health Costs for Retirees. "Most future retirees would pay more for health care under a new House Republican budget proposal, according to an analysis by nonpartisan experts for Congress that could be an obstacle to GOP ambitions to tame federal deficits. ... The budget office gave two reasons future retirees can expect to pay more. First, private plans would cost more than traditional Medicare because of such factors as higher administrative costs. Second, the federal contribution would grow more slowly than health care cost inflation, leaving a bigger gap for beneficiaries to pay." AP, 4/6/11
End Medicare As We Know It. "The plan would essentially end Medicare, which now pays most of the health-care bills for 48 million elderly and disabled Americans, as a program that directly pays those bills." Wall Street Journal, 4/4/11
"The West Virginia Republican Party and other tea party groups..." That's classic.
Republican Rep. Shelley Moore Capito voted with the majority of the Republicans to end Medicare and Medicaid in 10 years. Surprising fellow Republican David McKinley was just one of four Republicans to join the Democrats in voting no to dismantle Medicare and Medicaid.
This bill is going no where, but it's interesting to see Capito has no trouble with telling seniors they're going to have to find their own health insurance.
Jared Hunt of the Charleston Daily Mail wrote a lengthy story about the pros and cons of Secretary of State Natalie Tennant receiving the endorsement of Emily's List without once mentioning that Republican Rep. Shelley Moore Capito receives the endorsement and contributions from the Republican pro-choice group WISH List.
The WISH List -- which stands for Women In the Senate and House® -- raises money to identify, train, support and elect more Republican women leaders to public office at all levels of government. WISH is America's largest fundraising network for pro-choice Republican women candidates!
You'd think in a story how the endorsement of a pro-choice group might help or hurt a candidate in West Virginia that Hunt would point out how it hasn't hurt Capito.
Was Hunt ignorant of Capito or was this just more slanted coverage from the right wing Daily Mail? Either way it really looks bad for the Daily Mail.
Shelley Moore Capito wants to allow businesses to screw you over, to put out unsafe products, to steal your house even when you pay your mortgage. Why? Is it because she's a criminal's daughter? Maybe. Or is it because her financial industry husband gets richer when investors are screwed over? Maybe.
Why else is the daughter of ex con Arch Moore so opposed to making sure Elizabeth Warren is not the cop on the beat?
What does Capito have to hide? Why is she wanting to protect criminals like her daddy?
It's almost Republican Rep. Shelley Moore Capito has something to :
It seems everybody is afraid of Elizabeth Warren, the Harvard law professor charged by President Obama with setting up the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
snip
"If there had been a cop on the beat with the authority to hold mortgage services accountable a half-dozen years ago," she announced, "the problems in mortgage servicing would have been exposed . . . long before they became a national scandal."
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Warren added: "We need a cop on the beat that American families can count on. It is critical that we get this right - a real cop on the beat."
"You kept saying 'cop on the beat, cop on the beat,' " complained Rep. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), who chaired the day's hearing.
Warren could not dispute this. In reply, she said that banks must know "there will be a cop on the beat" and that her agency will need "enough money to put enough cops on the beat." Before completing her testimony, Officer Warren made four more references to cops-on-beats - possibly putting her in violation of public-nuisance statutes.
But it was a useful metaphor: If she's the cop, then banks are the robbers, and members of the Republican majority on the committee sounded like lawyers for the accused.
Clearly Capito wants to let the banks keep screwing over people or she'd be supporting Warren's nomination.
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