Reid announced Thursday that he would cut back on the jobs bill Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) introduced only hours earlier, essentially overruling the powerful chairman…. Baucus had stuffed the bill with many provisions that Democratic senators thought went beyond the goal of creating jobs, such as $31 billion in extensions to expiring tax provisions, including the research and development tax credit. That and other tax cuts were included to win GOP votes…. Democrats complained the bill did not focus enough on job creation.
“I would prefer a jobs bill that simply focused on job-creating initiatives, this bill has become something more than that,” said Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.), who led early negotiations to produce a jobs bill, said before the meeting. “Maybe that’s what has to be done in order to get some bipartisan support.” Reid said he decided to rewrite the legislation to send a clear message to people struggling financially in the midst of the biggest national recession since the Great Depression.
“The message is so watered-down with people wanting other things in this big package,” said Reid.
What is it about Senators and Congressmen? Every piece of legislation, no matter the topic, is fertile ground to plant any unrelated giveaways, earmarks and tax breaks. Every single one. This jobs bill had the following contained within it: $31 billion in extensions to expiring tax provisions, including the research and development tax credit, a short-term extension of the USA PATRIOT Act, flood insurance provisions, Small Business Administration loan provisions, and a $1.5 billion package of agriculture disaster relief provisions. Now whether or not this things should be passed is not the issue. But except for the Small Business loan provisions, none of them are related to job creation. Why can’t we just pass a bill on its merits?
Reid did a good thing today in scrapping it, for when we pass a jobs bill, it should be focused on actual job creation. And I hope Harry Reid uses his new found courage and actually passes this bill without any giveaway to the Republicans. This is a budgetary bill and can be passed easily through reconciliation. All you need is 50 fucking votes. So Harry Reid, craft a fucking jobs bill, and fucking pass it already through reconciliation. Do it now. Do not negotiate with Republicans.
** I apologize in advance to Unstable Isotope for the clearly sexist term “Grow a set.” But no other title seemed appropriate.