Hoyer Criticizes Kyl, Bush Tax Cuts

Philip Bunnell - Talk Radio News Service

House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.) soundly criticized remarks made by Minority Whip Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ) regarding the continuation of the Bush tax cuts.

“Essentially what [Kyl] meant was that going deeply into debt to cut taxes was acceptable,”  Hoyer said in response to Kyl’s comments on Fox News Sunday.

Kyl publicly voiced his approval for extending the Bush tax cuts on the program, despite negative impacts the tax cuts have on the deficit. “Now, somebody at some point or time has to pay that bill,” the top Democrat said. “Thirty-five percent of our deficit that we confront is directly attributable to that philosophy.”

Hoyer acknowledged a recent Washington Post/ABC News poll, which showed that a growing number of Americans disapprove of President Barack Obama’s handling of the economy.

“I’m not happy about it,” said Hoyer. “Americans are angry… their economy is still not working the way it ought to work. Their anger should be focused on not returning to the Bush, Hastert, Boehner, McCain, policies, which plunged us deep into debt and resulted in the worst economy in the lifetime of almost every American.”

The House Leader took time to applaud the recent passage of the budget enforcement resolution, which passed before Congress took its July 4th recess.  As a former member of the House Appropriations Committee, Hoyer said that the act was significant, even though he would have preferred a full budget. 

“I believe the budget enforcement resolution was, in fact, a very meaningful action taken by the Congress,” Hoyer said. “This was not some superficial action without meaning.” 

The resolution sets discretionary spending $7 billion below what President Obama requested.

Hoyer Touts Democrats' Record For Securing Nation

By Alexa Gitler - Talk Radio News Service

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said Monday at The Center for Strategic and International Studies that Democratic leadership under the Obama administration has handled the threats that have endangered America’s security and the worlds’ effectively.

“We have done this through four ways: strength, development, democracy, and fiscal discipline,” said Hoyer.

Hoyer said the increased funding of American military equipment and the leadership of President Obama has led to the kill and capture of hundreds of terrorist leaders. The House's leading Democrat said this sparked an increasing interest into the development of cyber security as a form of national defense.

He also stressed the necessity and extreme importance of living our Democratic and American values here at home.

"Throughout America’s history, the nation has been the advocate of democratic movements around the world and it is important that the role only grows stronger," Hoyer said. "This can only happen through continued support of the American people."

“The eight years of the Bush administration showed what we already knew that democracy cannot be imposed by force, that elections alone do not equal democracy, that democratization and economic growth do not always go by hand in hand and that failing to lead by example weakens democracy around the world” he said.

February Job Numbers: Caused By Heavy Snow, Or A Blizzard Of Bad Policy?

By Sofia Sanchez -University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

While the White House says last month's 'snowpocalypse' helped keep the nation's unemployment rate at nearly 10%, a Republican from Texas attributed the numbers on Friday to a "blizzard of bad policy proposals."

“The administration attempted to spin these numbers as a result of storms in the northeast, but in truth it is a blizzard of bad policy proposals, higher taxes, health care mandates [and] dangerous levels of debt that is the real reason businesses are delaying key investments in hiring,” said Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Texas), during a Joint Economic Committee hearing on the newly-released statistics.

Brady's remarks disputed those of White House Council of Economic Advisers Chair Dr. Christina Romer, who said Friday that the snow did play a factor in keeping businesses from operating, and people from working.

“As many analysts have discussed in recent weeks, the large snowstorms in the Mid-Atlantic region in mid-February likely had a substantial negative impact in this number,” she said.

In a statement released Friday, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) agreed with Romer's assessment.

“It’s widely acknowledged that this number [36,000] would have been better except for the snowstorms that hit the Northeast last month."

Administration officials and Democrats in Congress contend that the weather forced individuals to miss work, thereby keeping them off monthly payrolls. Brady, however, said he doesn't buy that argument.

“I know the President and Congress are well-intentioned in all these efforts [to restore jobs], but I am puzzled by the President's economic approach. I don’t know what you call it, maybe ‘Blame-onomics?'"