Boehner: "Welcome to Divided Government"

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) began his weekly press conference saying that the House bill passed yesterday to extend payroll tax cuts was a bipartisan effort.

“Did this bill have everything the Republicans wanted? Certainly not. Democrats didn’t get everything they wanted either. But that’s how divided government works. At the same time everything in the House passed bill has bipartisan support. Payroll tax cuts and unemployment benefits… bipartisan.” Boehner said.

He went on to say that the bill is fully paid for and 90 percent of the offsets are based on ideas from President Obama. There is a provision in the bill that eliminates tax payer funded benefits  for millionaires and billionaires.

The Speaker added that there are provisions in the current legislation that will jumpstart Keystone Pipeline projects which will create thousands of jobs in this struggling economy.

 When asked about a recent Pew Research Poll that said nearly 70 percent of Americans feel that members of Congress do not deserve to be reelected next year, Boehner said “welcome to divided government.”

“The American people provided a Republican House, a Democratic Senate and a Democrat in the White House. As a result we have to work overtime to find common ground to do what the American people sent us here to do. It’s not pretty and not easy,” Boehner replied.

At an earlier press briefing House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said the “House Republican bill was doomed from the start.” She added that she would not go home for the holidays without extending  payroll tax cuts.

Pelosi Shuns Keystone Pipeline Inclusion For Job Bills

By Janie Amaya

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told reporters Thursday that including the Keystone XL Pipeline in a jobs bill is not a responsible way to create jobs and has no place in the bill, during her weekly news briefing.

After meeting with President Obama and the House Democratic leadership earlier in the day, Pelosi said it is necessary for something to be done before year’s end.

“The president pressed upon us, and we all agreed, that we can’t go home for the holidays until we pass a payroll tax cut for working families in our country and extend unemployment insurance,” Pelosi said.

She argued that Republicans continue to resist a federal tax cut that could help million Americans and said it is just not right.

“The Congressional Republicans are holding up a payroll tax cut that will help 160 million Americans. They are holding that up because they want to protect tax cuts for the wealthiest 300,000,” Pelosi said.

Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-Ohio) said he is in agreement with President Obama that the American people can not  wait on jobs any longer.

“We agree whole-heartedly with the president. The Keystone Pipeline project will create tens and thousands of jobs immediately. It has bipartisan support in the House and the Senate,” Boehner said.
   
However, Pelosi said, “Republicans are trying to associate themselves with the tax cuts, but not without injecting… ‘poison pills’ into the legislation they know will not possibly pass the Senate.”

GOP Ignoring Middle Class, Say House Dems

By Janie Amaya 

The top two Democrats in the House today accused Republicans of unfairly holding up a payroll tax cut extension for middle-class workers.

“We cannot go home for Christmas unless we pass this legislation,” said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). “The clock is ticking,”

Pelosi urged Republicans to work with her party on continuing the tax cut through the end of next year.

“We’re always open to what they have to say. So far, we haven’t heard anything that even sounds like a serious attempt of bipartisan compromise.”

The former Speaker bristled at the notion that Republican leaders are unhappy with taxing the rich to offset the cost of keeping the tax cut alive.

“Republicans never want to pay for the tax cut for the wealthiest people in our country. Doesn’t that strike you as funny? For the middle income tax cut, it has to be paid for. Tax cuts for the wealthy, we don’t pay for that.”

Pelosi said that savings from the winding down of the “OCO,” or Overseas Contingency Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, should be available to spend on domestic jobs initiatives that would otherwise require extensive cuts in other areas of the federal budget.

“The [resources] will be used for something and we’re saying they should be used as a priority to give a tax cut to the middle class and other issues that are of concern to the middle class,” she said.

Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) and other Republicans, however, have argued that the war savings should strictly be used to pay down the nation’s nearly $15 trillion debt.

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said Democrats will try to push through an extension of the payroll tax cut, even if some Republicans decide to vote against it again.

“We are prepared to cooperate on behalf of the welfare of our country and of our people.”

Geoff Holtzman contributed to this report, which was updated at 5:02 p.m.

Pelosi: U.S. In Abusive Relationship With China

By Andrea Salazar

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) Thursday urged Congress to tackle the China currency manipulation bill before dealing with trade agreements.

“I can say flat out, with all the respect that I have for the people of China, with all the importance I place in our relationship and the fun I had digging to China when I was a child on the beach…we are in an abusive relationship with China when it comes to trade,” Pelosi said.

Speaking to reporters at her weekly briefing, Pelosi said Congress should pass the Currency Exchange Rate Oversight bill “not to be protectionist but to be self reliant.”

The minority leader also commented on the supercommittee, asking them to “have as its centerpiece an initiative for growth, for innovation, for entrepreneurship” because “creating jobs through the private sector, through the small business is the way to better the economy.”

As a representative from California, she also spoke about Steve Jobs’ death calling him a “visionary genius” who was able to connect with different generations.

Pelosi Calls For Immediate, Bipartisan Action On Jobs Bill

By Andrea Salazar, Janie Amaya, Adrianna McGinley

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) urged both Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and fellow Democratic leaders Friday to take immediate action addressing key points in the president’s jobs proposal.

Calling the president’s jobs plan a “masterful” proposal, Pelosi stressed the urgency to pass legislation with bipartisan support, noting that other ideas are welcome depending on public response.

“One thing that we were very happy about is that [the President] would be taking it to the public,” Pelosi said. “Their feedback on it would further validate the need, or other proposals they may have on it, but at the end of the day, which is a short day, we will have legislation passed that addresses many of the proposals that the president put forth.”

President Obama, in a speech to a joint session of Congress Thursday, laid out a $447 billion plan to create jobs. He emphatically pushed legislators to take action, saying over a dozen times, “pass this jobs plan.”

Pelosi reiterated the president’s call to action, noting the lack of effective legislative action so far.

“What I do know is that the ideas that have been put forth thus far in the nearly 250 days that the Republicans have had the majority have not created one job,” she said.

Pelosi also acknowledged the upcoming 10th anniversary of 9/11 and the reported terror plot but was unable to comment on details of the briefing.