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April 29, 2011 10:19 PM UTC

(Newly) Responsible Republicans Beg Tea Party To Shut The Hell Up

  • 52 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols

As the Denver Business Journal’s Ed Sealover reports:

Colorado business groups got the result they wanted when the state Senate gave final approval Wednesday to a bill creating a health care exchange board, but they were not happy with the vote tally.

Every Republican in the Senate voted against Senate Bill 200, sponsored by Sen. Betty Boyd, D-Lakewood. And for the first time this session, there appeared to be a real, albeit temporary, rift between the GOP and business-association lobbyists…

Every major business group in Colorado backed the measure, saying it will preserve the free market and, at the same time, help to slow skyrocketing insurance costs.

Senate Republicans led by Sen. Shawn Mitchell argued fiercely against Senate Bill 200 Wednesday, and repeatedly tried to introduce Rep. Amy Stephens’ amendment–which Stephens herself has (maybe) backed away from–that would make implementation of the exchange system contingent on Colorado seeking a complete pullout from the federal health care system. Stephens, a nominal cosponsor of SB-200, first threatened this ‘poison pill’ after being ambushed by the “Tea Party,” who accused her of capitulating to “Obamacare.” In fact, the “Tea Party” is itself split between those who favor the so-called interstate compacts to administer health care, and those who say even this loopy Confederate Health Care stuff is “too much government.”

But if an open letter sent from Tony Gagliardi, state director of the National Federation of Independent Business is any measure, there is growing fatigue appeasing the “Tea Party” monster Republicans helped create.

Here’s another truth that needs telling, and damn the political consequences, because the stakes are too high: Many of our Colorado legislators fear the wrath of Tea Party activists who have made support of Senate Bill 200, which would establish a health-care exchange similar to Utah’s, a needless ideological litmus test on which to oppose Republican lawmakers in primary elections.

Many of the goals of the Tea Party are commendable and widely shared, but in straying out of its vector and with another air traffic controller asleep in the tower, it is showing the worst side of any new political movement on this issue: The need to have a position on everything-including ones well outside their original founding purpose and, especially in the case of SB 200, their expertise.

The Colorado members of the National Federation of Independent Business, America’s leading small-business association (small businesses are 98 percent of all American businesses) support establishing a Colorado-designed health-care exchange over one that would be imposed on the state by the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human services, which the Patient Protection Act gives states the option of choosing.

At the same time, NFIB is the only business group named on a federal lawsuit, along with 26 states, seeking to have all of ObamaCare (the Patient Protection Act) ruled unconstitutional. We would be delighted to see it tossed, but the need for a health-care exchange will remain…

The biggest problem for Gagliardi, and the rest of the broad coalition of business and healthcare advocacy groups who support the bipartisan health insurance exchange bill, is that Rep. Stephens showed weakness in the face of the “Tea Party’s” nonsensical clamoring. Once she gave in to their irrational demands, even if she reversed again under pressure as she appears to have done, Stephens greatly emboldened them while failing to help herself politically in any way. Primary rumors against Rep. Stephens and others have since spread unabated.

Actually, that’s the second biggest problem. The biggest problem, for elected Republicans and their “Obamacare” lawsuit-filing, Americans for Prosperity-loving benefactors,  is they’ve both relied upon and deliberately cultivated the fringe irrational angst they are now trying to squelch, so grownups can do the grownup work of solving grownup problems.

It also doesn’t help Gagliardi’s cause that he calls the health care reform law “Obamacare” in the aforementioned letter; Gagliardi can’t line himself up on the far right of the GOP, as he has done for years, and then all of a sudden chastise Republicans for listening to the Tea Party. Every elected official in Colorado knows that the NFIB under Gagliardi is about supporting Republican politics first and looking out for “small business owners” a distant second.  

Don’t expect too much gratitude for trying to bring the crazies back in line, Tony; you helped create the guest list for this goofy party, and now it’s out of control.

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52 thoughts on “(Newly) Responsible Republicans Beg Tea Party To Shut The Hell Up”

    1. Hell, that’s like saying the monster “followed” Dr. Frankenstein home.

      The GOPers stitched their TP beast together like a quilt.

  3. What you fail to point out is the fact that NFIB and Rep. Amy Stephens are completely in agreement. They both view health care exchanges as a free market health care solution, and they both oppose ObamaCare.

    The health care exchange is not incompatible with an interstate compact, a bill that Stephens supports as well. The amendment to ask for a waiver from a federal health care “system” that is about to go belly up is responsible. That is why every Senate Republican stood up for it. But even if that has to go to appease Democrats, ObamaCare will come crashing down either way.

    I know part of Pol’s job is to stir infighting among Republicans, but the disagreements on our side are not any different than the differences between, for example, the Democrat base and Obama.

    Carter/Obama 2012!

    3. Uh…we didn’t write that letter. Tony Gagliardi of the NFIB wrote the letter.

      When you see a car wreck on the side of the road, pointing it out doesn’t make it your fault.  

  4. It’s doing exactly what it was designed to do, which is to promote smaller government. It’s up to Republicans to decide how much they want to cave to the left on more big government programs. If they get too far out of line, yes they will be primaried, which is also exactly what the Tea Party was designed to do. Remember that the Tea Party was thinking of becoming a third party before Limbaugh and others convinced them to work inside the Republican Party. You would think the GOP would be grateful that instead of hanging them out to dry, the Tea Party gave them the largest electoral swing in decades in 2010.

    1. Let’s fire every tea party member who collects a paycheck that comes directly or indirectly from the government. That would give us a good 10% cut in the government – and I’m sure all those tea party members would be proud to be directly involved in the cut.

      Sound good???

      1. If you’re counting Social Security and Medicare, I’d bet Tea Partiers easily collect more than their proportion of the population.

        If every Tea Partier decided to “go Galt,” the budget deficit would be eliminated in one year.

            1. Earth to sxp, ever heard of the Tea Party? That big election thingy we had in 2010? Yeah. It was all about reducing the deficit, something which YOU were clearly opposing.

                1. Your talking points really aren’t working today man. Ever notice the results of the 2010 election? Still care to make the case that it was all talk?

                    1. Serious question. The Tea Party has done nothing but advocate for cuts in government spending. Many voted against the budget compromise that doesn’t really cut anything. They’ve forced the President to focus on the deficit and round 2 is just around the corner with the debt ceiling vote. But no, they are not in control. First of all, the Senate and the White House are controlled by Democrats. In the House, the GOP is in charge, which doesn’t necessarily equate to “Tea Party”. The block of newly elected house freshmen has done a great job of pushing for meaningful reform.

                    3. BJ–please understand that you were an instrumental tool force in bringing about the Grand Old Party’s election sweep, truly without your mindless regurgitation of disproved talking points, they never could have done it.  

                      Sorry you failed your senatorial candidate so terribly badly, but there is always Udall. Maybe Doug Bruce will run–if he’s not in Canon City for a few years, I mean.  

              2. You advocate for this and that, but what do you personally do to affect the deficit?

                Sounds to me like you want lots of government funding for people like you and very few taxes for people like you. Advocating for that doesn’t reduce the deficit, it increases the deficit. Learn to math.

                1. As I have said before, we need cuts across the board in order to bring spending into line with revenues. Learn to read. And learn some grammar.

        2. I would like to see the Bush tax cuts ended immediately. Something you don’t understand, you have to invest money to make money. Adequately funding and administering education in this state would allow me to grow my company a lot faster. So a tax increase actually will make me richer in the long run.

          Someday hopefully you’ll gain some understanding of how the free market works in real life.

          1. Ok, so you want to see taxes raised to… promote the free market? No, you are not advocating for a freer market. You are advocating for more government involvement in the market. “How the free market works in real life?” Basically it doesn’t, because we don’t have a free market right now. We have a half-centrally planned system of favors for those with influence – a ripe breeding ground for crony capitalism, lobbyists, and handouts to special interests. I know exactly how the free market works in real life, the problem is that we’re not using one.

                1. And which is no surprise–The Ryan plan doesn’t even address the deficit for a couple of decades, while funneling off cash to the uber-wealthy at the expense of the hard-working middle class American…

                  Rep. Barton genuflects to Big Oil; Boehner (which is NOT pronounced as it appears, btw) says defense cuts are off the table; Revenue is a dirty word to the GOP, because the obvious place to raise it is among the wealthiest of the wealthiest–the ONLY sector to have ridden through the Great Recession not only with their value intact but actually expanded…

                  The Tea Party are useful tools–bought and manufactured by big corporate bankrolls–who will be tossed under the bus as quickly as the perplexed GOP can figure out exactly how to do that.  

                  Eventually even people in funny outfits waving ‘Made in China’ Gadsen flags will be in the way of Corporate Behemoth, Inc. That you think the GOP will choose your little band of dole-taking anti-dole-giving folks over their Corporate Masters is, well, cute.  

                  1. The Ryan plan doesn’t balance the budget for a couple of decades, which is why Jim Jordan’s plan is better. However, it does address the deficit immediately by implementing fiscal reforms to put our currently unsustainable entitlements on solid financial ground. I was unaware of the subsidies to the rich in his bill, could you please point them out? How you equate not raising taxes on the rich to the levels you would like (actually it does raise taxes on them by eliminating corporate tax loopholes) to “funneling off cash to the uber-wealthy at the expense of the hard-working middle class American” is beyond me, unless you are somehow working from the starting assumption that you own the world’s cash. This I find to be hilarious, given your probable lack of a job.

                    You really need to get over your grudge toward successful people. If you spent as much time trying to become successful yourself as you do bashing them, you might be able to make something of yourself in this world. Then you can do whatever you want with your wealth, including giving it all to the government to help pay for all the programs you want to foist on the American people.

                    “… as quickly as the perplexed GOP can figure out exactly how to do that” No doubt there’s plenty who feel that way. But you overestimate the establishment GOP and underestimate the Tea Party.

                    I am under no illusion that the establishment GOP will choose my “little”, as you put it, band of patriots (dole-taking???) over their corporate interests. However, the Democrat Party is now the party largely run by corporate masters. This gives us the freedom to remake the GOP into a more popular party while the Dems are stuck with corporate masters they sold their soul to in order to get Obama elected.

                    1. especially when I post good profits in the corporation I own and run; indeed my corporation itself gives a certain percent every year to non-profits, as I do personally.  That is what I do with my wealth.

                      Mr. Bucknutz–I do not care if you continue your blind stupidity.  In a boorish tiresome manner it’s kind of cute, in an ‘awww, he’s so flippin’ stupid’ sort of way.

                      However, the Democrat Party is now the party largely run by corporate masters. This gives us the freedom to remake the GOP into a more popular party while the Dems are stuck with corporate masters they sold their soul to in order to get Obama elected.

                    2. I can’t believe even you could sink to such depths of stupidity. You just admitted you are one of the corporate masters which control the Dem party. Thanks for proving my point better than I could.

                    3. Busted.

                      Yeah, the Friends of the Library Foundation and Western CO  Food Bank are crazy leftist causes.

                      PS-The correct word is ‘that’ or ‘who’

                      You just admitted you are one of the corporate masters which that control the Dem party.

                      And, obviously, it is never difficult to ‘prove’ your point better than you can, since (even with the stupidest ideas you have, which–honestly–would be hard to rank) you generally, almost exclusively, fail to make them.  

      1. Although I think it’s better for the economy that I be productive rather than sit around and collect welfare. Look, the public sector is approaching 50% of the economy. You can’t honestly expect no conservatives to work in the public sector when that’s where half of all the jobs are. Likewise, I don’t expect liberals to stay out of the private sector. In fact, I don’t oppose the public sector at all when it comes to education and research. I just want spending to be brought under control with cuts across the board. In Colorado, Dems are happy protecting everything else and dumping all the cuts on higher ed. So you can take your hypocritical outrage and stuff it.

        1. I don’t oppose the public sector at all when it comes to education and research.

          You love the public sector when it puts food on your table and a roof over your head.  So who’s hypocritical?

          1. It’s a matter of priorities. The public sector has its role, but has expanded into areas where it shouldn’t be of late. The auto industry, the housing markets, the financial industry, etc. It has become too big. What I oppose is inefficiency, mismanagement, and reckless overspending that will collapse our economy.  

        2. How on earth could you collect welfare if you quit your job, beej? Are you under the impression you can be one of the welfare queens Ronald Reagan railed against? Do you have the remotest understanding that welfare as it existed 30 years ago doesn’t exist anymore, or do you prefer the myth to the reality?

          1. Second, I’m not convinced you actually have a job. And finally, you just shot your credibility to pieces by calling Tea Partiers free loaders. Actually, Tea Partiers are the ones paying the taxes and carrying the load for the people who think government should give them everything.

            1. yelling “Keep Gubmint Hands off my Medicare.”  I know, because I read it on the Intertubz.

              And finally, I really worry about your measure of my credibility.  You’re right, however, I don’t and have never worked a day in my life.  Unless, of course, you consider getting a ride from some sucker (or better yet a government program!) to the PO Box to pick up my SSI check…or is it my federal student grant?  

              So many government programs!!! It’s hard to know which one’s to hate and which ones to love…

               

    3. The original Tea Party groups were libertarian groups in nature.

      It will be interesting to watch who really gets the most corporate money in the coming election.

        1. Wha?

          I have no memory of 2009. I remember electing President Obama in 2008. He must have been inaugurated in 09. …  but then the next thing I remember is the people defeating Ken Buck, well after first defeating Jane Norton. ANd that was in 2010.  

          The GO(T)P is screwed. Unless, Obama’s college transcript shows he really didn’t graduate from Harvard.

        2. the original Tea Party groups were created by average Americans who were sick of the reckless spending and mismanagement of the economy by both parties. It was only later that the Tea Party decided to work inside the GOP (since Dems wouldn’t give them the time of day), and with the widespread popularity of the tea parties, some more libertarian-leaning donors saw them as a good investment.

          1. the original Santa Claus was a toymaker who was sad to see children go without presents on Christmas. It was only later that parents and grandparents decided to buy gifts for children to celebrate the holiday.

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