and certain of the caucus members, Iowa’s Chuck Grassley excepted.
IF THESE STORIES DON’T MAKE YOU FURIOUS . . . Believe it or not, we are pretty much run out of words to express our contempt for these people. But then these “straight” articles automatically produce such, no extensive explanation necessary.
Capable of what, Mitch?
Mitch McConnell: Hillary ‘Intelligent and Capable,’ Trump ‘Clearly Needs to Change’
Michelle Moons at Breibart reports: (excerpts)
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) was busy praising presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton Wednesday, criticizing his own party’s presumptive nominee, Donald Trump.
McConnell lauded Clinton as “intelligent and capable” while casting Trump as not yet credible. He told Time Warner Cable (TWC) News that Trump is “getting closer,” but that he “clearly needs to change.”
Trump meanwhile remained focused on calling out Clinton over failures from her time as Secretary of State, tweeting Wednesday:
In the past, McConnell has dodged answering direct questions about his opinion of Trump’s capability, but told TWC that he hopes Trump pivots soon to “become what I would call a more serious and credible candidate for the highest office in the land.” The high ranking establishment official said that he has commended Trump on his ability to entertain and turn on audiences, but that for the general election he needs to up his “level of seriousness,” a level that involves a teleprompter and “staying on message.”
(snip)
A new Quinnipiac University poll released on Wednesday shows Trump and Clinton statistically tied.
Will McConnell chastise these RINO’s for their committee votes to fund Obama’s Paris climate accords, something the caucus ridiculed?
Devin Henry reporting for The Hill: (excerpt)
Senate panel approves $500M for international climate fund
The Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday adopted a $500 million spending package for the Green Climate Fund, an international climate change adaptation program.
Members approved the funding, via an amendment from Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), Susan Collins (R-Maine) and others, on a voice vote, despite strong Republican opposition to the measure.
The amendment removes language from the committee-approved State Department and Foreign Operations funding bill preventing the State Department from providing money for the fund, a program designed to support poor countries that are impacted by climate change.
Republicans have opposed the fund for a host of reasons and fought hard to block funding for it during last year’s appropriations process. At the time, they said the funding shouldn’t go forward unless the Senate got to vote on the international climate change agreement reached in December.
A year-end spending deal didn’t fund the U.S.’s contribution to the climate program, but the State Department was able to find $500 million within its budget for it anyway. The Obama administration has promised $3 billion for the program by 2020.
Merkley’s amendment not only removed the prohibition in the underlying bill, but it also provided $500 million in 2017 for the fund.
“Regular order” means what Mitch says it means and is used when he wants to use it
Seung Min Kim and Colin Wilhelm at Politco report:(excerpt) (emphasis ours)
McConnell tees up Wednesday vote on Puerto Rico rescue
In a letter to fellow senators Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) said that he would offer amendments to add two board members to be nominated and confirmed by the Puerto Rican governor and senate, strike the power of the oversight board to overrule Puerto Rican officials on budgetary matters, lower the vote threshold necessary for the seven member board to allow debt restructuring, and increase, rather than maintain, the funding of essential public services under a required fiscal plan. Menendez said he also would introduce an amendment for stronger protections for pensions. Those amendments already faced an uphill battle in a Republican-controlled Senate, but may be particularly tough to attach after McConnell filled the amendment ‘tree’ on Monday.
Sounds good right — keep those Democrat profligates at bay! Except the bill McConnell and Ryan are pushing is an agreement with Obama that is unsatisfactory to conservatives who would like to make sure there are no angles for Obama’s Treasurer Lew to use taxpayer money to buy Puerto Rican bonds. Politico goes on to report:
“I haven’t seen that the bill is going to guarantee that the lack of fiscal frugality and the collection of taxes is taken care of enough to satisfy me,” said Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), whose committee is one of three panels with jurisdiction over the Puerto Rico debt issue.
We heard an interview with Chuck Grassley on WOC Talk Radio with Jim Fisher yesterday. Grassley’s intonation was one of lament that McConnell had “filled the amendment tree” to prevent improvements he wanted to make. He indicated he will vote against the bill as is.
DLH with R Mall
Senate panel approves $500M for international climate fund
The 16 Republicans on the Senate Appropriations Committee:
(remember “Thad Cochran”? And, is that the Senate Majority Leader on this committee? Why, I believe it is. Wonder what his input was to the decision to fork over $500 million to the UN? Voice votes are good for “regular order”…right Mitch?)
Thad Cochran, Chairman, Lamar Alexander, Roy Blunt, John Boozman
Shelley Capito, Susan Collins, Lindsey Graham, John Hoeven
Mark Kirk ,Jerry Moran, Lisa Murkowski, Richard Shelby
Bill Cassidy, Steve Daines, James Lankford, Mitch McConnell
Mitch McConnell: Hillary ‘Intelligent and Capable…
As soon as the primary is over, I’ll be joining George Will as an “independent”…but for far different reasons. And, if that treacherous, vindictive, US Chamber-owned fool is still Senate Majority Leader by November, I’ll be voting only ‘Trump’; the rest of the ticket is on its own!