Thursday, December 9, 2010

Thom Hartmann: Democratic Caucus votes democratically on tax cut deal

You need to know this. House Democrats are for the first time trying to implement majority rule within their own party. Congressmen Peter DeFazio - Jim McDermott - and Jay Inslee are circulating a letter in opposition to President Obama's tax cut deal. They hope to convince 60 members of the House Democratic Caucus to sign on to it and force a vote within the caucus on whether or not the tax cut package should be brought to the House floor. As Congressman DeFazio says, "We want to have a record vote in the caucus on a resolution that says this resolution should not go to the floor without a majority of Democratic votes." Democrats have been in the majority in Congress for two years. Yet - the legislative proposals supported by the majority of the party - have repeatedly been torpedoed by the interests of a minority of Blue Dogs. Progressives are right to ensure that this vote - likely to be one of the last of a Democratically controlled Congress - reflects the majority will of the party. If they had used this strategy earlier - the 2010 midterms may have turned out differently.

-Thom

(Were they right? What do you think will happen now? Tell us here.)

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