Dems Hammer Boehner For Preparing Vote Against Bill Recouping AIG Bonuses
As we speak, the skirmishing over the AIG mess on the floor of Congress is quickly devolving into a partisan showdown.
A spokesperson for GOP House leader John Boehner confirms that he will be voting No on a measure being introduced by House Dems today to slap a 90% tax on bonuses paid to AIG execs with family incomes topping $250,000 — and a senior Democrat on the Senate side blasted him for expressing “manufactured outrage” about the AIG controversy.
Senate Dems are demanding to know whether Boehner’s opposition — which doesn’t matter much on the House side because of the Dems’ lopsided majority — signals that GOP leaders will oppose the measure in the Senate, where the Dem margin is much slimmer.
“He will vote `no’ on the Democrats’ bill, which will recoup some of the AIG bonus money eventually,” Boehner spokesperson Michael Steel emails me. “He supports the House Republicans’ better alternative, which would recoup all of the money immediately.”
That alternative would require Treasury to develop a plan within two weeks to recoup 100% of the bonus money.
The big concern here for Dems is that this signals that GOP Senate leaders will oppose the measure when it comes up later this week — potentially endangering passage.
“Congressman Boehner’s words and actions demonstrate that he could care less about a solution and only cares about keeping the issue alive for political reasons,” Reid spokesperson Rodell Mollineau tells me. “It’s hard to believe that after spending days manufacturing outrage about this, Republicans would turn their back on a piece of legislation that’s going to get the bonuses back and give them back to the American taxpayers.”
“I hope Senate Republicans don’t follow suit,” Mollineau added.
The big question now is where Senate leaders are heading on this. More soon.
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Two weeks later… Treasury’s reply:
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We have determined that such a clawback requires new legislation. As such, our plan is to ask Congress to send President Obama a bill that accomplishes this goal. It is beyond the purview of the executive to dictate the legislative negotiations needed to pass such a bill.
You mean Tom Delay is back and working for the Dems?
Of course it’s manufactured outrage. Limbaugh has said on his program that there is nothing wrong with the AIG folks getting the money that is contractually owed to them. Boehner and Co just wanted to put the screws to Obama and win the day or even the week.
Is it just AIG, or all companies that received billions of bailout money? I thought it was the latter, why single out AIG?
what is the better plan? getting it all back or 90%? Is Bohner’s idea workable?
Many companies give a bonus; however this year most companies are not. . It sounds like some of these executives have a different mind-set than ordinary people. They seem to think they are owed the moon whethere their company made money or not. Mr. Boehner has no thoughts beyond tax cuts and big business. Who is he representing? Big business or the people?
kenyg – bohner’s plan is to require someone else to come up with a plan. The republicans *still* don’t have any ideas of their own.
I realize that in the Bush years, congressional Republicans got used to their only role being to respond to the executive’s “jump!” with “how high?”, but this is ridiculous.
It passed. Republicans split their caucus on is voting 87-85 against it. Boehner voted nay, however Cantor voted for it. How in the hell are they going to explain this one? What is Limbaugh going to say about this?
Bohner’s plan is to require Treasury to come up with a plan within 2 weeks to get all the money back and if they fail to do so, it is Obama’s Treasury Department who is at fault, not Bohner. What a great, self serving and utterly idiot non-plan. How many voters will fall for it?
Didi
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The thing is the GOP can do whatever they want now because nobody in the MSM ever calls them out for it. Obviously it was a CYA vote which is why the leadership split on it after Cantor got POUNDED this morning by Lawrence O’Donnell over his fecklessness.
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In case you missed it.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gvX8vVClOU&feature=player_embedded
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But talking about faux outrage, Harry Reid should be fired immediately if he really didn’t see this coming. Hell even though it passed the house I would almost bet that the Republicans are going to vote no en masse in the Senate. See the House Republicans couldn’t stop the bill anyway but those in the Senate can.
post up on House GOP leadership vote split:
http://theplumline.whorunsgov.com/economy/house-gop-leadership-splits-votes-on-bill-to-tax-back-aig-bonuses/