Republicans don't care about fiscal responsibility, their budgets are about lobbyists and extremist ideology

[Anonymous]

Case in point: The completely unserious Interior and Environment budget they just passed. They just gutted Department of Interior, Bureau of Land Management and EPA reducing several agencies to the lowest levels in 30+ years. EPA budget slashed by 40%, including money intended to go to states to improve drinking water infrastructure and other critical projects.

https://www.eenews.net/articles/house-sends-interior-epa-bill-off-to-uncertain-future/

Yet they barely touch the DoD budget. BLM and EPA could probably be fully funded using the rounding error and auditing errors in DoD's budget.

This action barely makes any impact at all on the deficit, yet it will make those agencies dysfunctional, slowing down leasing and permitting for minerals, oil and gas, and grazing, it will worsen pollution by undermining monitoring and enforcement of air and water quality issues, it is an attack on tribes and Alaska native communities, it will undermine economic activity on public lands, not just oil and gas but also tourism, hunting and fishing and other outdoor recreation, and many other adverse impacts. There would be numerous long term consequences, many of them impacting red states the hardest.

Goes to show that it's all about ideology, rather than reality or fiscal sanity.

And again, this budget bill is likely DOA when it arrives in the Senate, and the White House has already issued a statement saying they will veto it.

Yet the unserious, and possibly insane House Republicans went ahead and pushed this garbage anyhow, wasted time, and now we are yet another day closer to a shutdown, because they can't pass a serious or sane budget bill.

[Anonymous]

And in other news, the sun rose this morning.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Case in point: The completely unserious Interior and Environment budget they just passed. They just gutted Department of Interior, Bureau of Land Management and EPA reducing several agencies to the lowest levels in 30+ years. EPA budget slashed by 40%, including money intended to go to states to improve drinking water infrastructure and other critical projects.

https://www.eenews.net/articles/house-sends-interior-epa-bill-off-to-uncertain-future/

Yet they barely touch the DoD budget. BLM and EPA could probably be fully funded using the rounding error and auditing errors in DoD's budget.

This action barely makes any impact at all on the deficit, yet it will make those agencies dysfunctional, slowing down leasing and permitting for minerals, oil and gas, and grazing, it will worsen pollution by undermining monitoring and enforcement of air and water quality issues, it is an attack on tribes and Alaska native communities, it will undermine economic activity on public lands, not just oil and gas but also tourism, hunting and fishing and other outdoor recreation, and many other adverse impacts. There would be numerous long term consequences, many of them impacting red states the hardest.

Goes to show that it's all about ideology, rather than reality or fiscal sanity.

And again, this budget bill is likely DOA when it arrives in the Senate, and the White House has already issued a statement saying they will veto it.

Yet the unserious, and possibly insane House Republicans went ahead and pushed this garbage anyhow, wasted time, and now we are yet another day closer to a shutdown, because they can't pass a serious or sane budget bill.

i appreciate the information and passion OP.

[Anonymous]

OP, there is nothing new here. They are unserious about protecting water and air quality that keep our citizens healthy. They are simply happy to allow capitalism to run amok regardless of the impact on the health and safety of the citizens.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, there is nothing new here. They are unserious about protecting water and air quality that keep our citizens healthy. They are simply happy to allow capitalism to run amok regardless of the impact on the health and safety of the citizens.

What's not new is the far right wing rhetoric about the EPA and other things. What's not new is that this current House is doing the same thing with several of the other Appropriations bills.

What's new is that it's gone beyond merely being rhetoric to inflame the base, but that in 2023 they actually took this lunacy and extremism to the House floor.

What's new is just how deeply they are trying to make the cuts, and how insane this whole thing is.

How can Republicans be so idiotically hubristic to think they actually have any chance of passing this garbage?
Don't they realize that they will are still on the hook to pass a real budget (as opposed to this unserious clownshow) to avoid a shutdown?

[Anonymous]

God: "Be good stewards of the earth"

Supposedly-devout Evangelical Christian Mike Johnson: "NO! We're killing the Environmental Protection Agency off."

[Anonymous]

Some of us are old enough to remember when conservation was a cornerstone of conservative policy. When Republicans passed the Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act. When Republican President Nixon created the EPA.

Since then, they've been completely bought off by polluting industry.

[Anonymous]

They said they were going to DC to "drain the swamp" - instead they want to fill the swamp with toxic sludge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some of us are old enough to remember when conservation was a cornerstone of conservative policy. When Republicans passed the Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act. When Republican President Nixon created the EPA.

Since then, they've been completely bought off by polluting industry.

Are you old enough to remember when the govt actually fixed things and wasn't just a jobs program for bureaucrats and paper shufflers who are more interested in their proper mission than the latest reorg, front office politics and genuflecting to internal DEI initiatives?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some of us are old enough to remember when conservation was a cornerstone of conservative policy. When Republicans passed the Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act. When Republican President Nixon created the EPA.

Since then, they've been completely bought off by polluting industry.

Are you old enough to remember when the govt actually fixed things and wasn't just a jobs program for bureaucrats and paper shufflers who are more interested in their proper mission than the latest reorg, front office politics and genuflecting to internal DEI initiatives?

You clearly spend far too much time listening to right wing yammering than you do being part of reality.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some of us are old enough to remember when conservation was a cornerstone of conservative policy. When Republicans passed the Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act. When Republican President Nixon created the EPA.

Since then, they've been completely bought off by polluting industry.

Are you old enough to remember when the govt actually fixed things and wasn't just a jobs program for bureaucrats and paper shufflers who are more interested in their proper mission than the latest reorg, front office politics and genuflecting to internal DEI initiatives?

The government still "fixes things" - you are just consuming media that lies to you and begrimes the government to serve a different agenda.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some of us are old enough to remember when conservation was a cornerstone of conservative policy. When Republicans passed the Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act. When Republican President Nixon created the EPA.

Since then, they've been completely bought off by polluting industry.

Are you old enough to remember when the govt actually fixed things and wasn't just a jobs program for bureaucrats and paper shufflers who are more interested in their proper mission than the latest reorg, front office politics and genuflecting to internal DEI initiatives?

This trope has gotten old.
Most people who work for the government actually believe in the mission. Remember they often choose to earn a lot less to make the world a better place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, there is nothing new here. They are unserious about protecting water and air quality that keep our citizens healthy. They are simply happy to allow capitalism to run amok regardless of the impact on the health and safety of the citizens.

What's not new is the far right wing rhetoric about the EPA and other things. What's not new is that this current House is doing the same thing with several of the other Appropriations bills.

What's new is that it's gone beyond merely being rhetoric to inflame the base, but that in 2023 they actually took this lunacy and extremism to the House floor.

What's new is just how deeply they are trying to make the cuts, and how insane this whole thing is.

How can Republicans be so idiotically hubristic to think they actually have any chance of passing this garbage?
Don't they realize that they will are still on the hook to pass a real budget (as opposed to this unserious clownshow) to avoid a shutdown?

I keep wondering about this too. Precious few work days left. On the one hand it’s worrisome. On the other, part of me is hoping we go off the cliff and that the GOP’s constituents get a lesson from the hard knocks school on the value of the government.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, there is nothing new here. They are unserious about protecting water and air quality that keep our citizens healthy. They are simply happy to allow capitalism to run amok regardless of the impact on the health and safety of the citizens.

What's not new is the far right wing rhetoric about the EPA and other things. What's not new is that this current House is doing the same thing with several of the other Appropriations bills.

What's new is that it's gone beyond merely being rhetoric to inflame the base, but that in 2023 they actually took this lunacy and extremism to the House floor.

What's new is just how deeply they are trying to make the cuts, and how insane this whole thing is.

How can Republicans be so idiotically hubristic to think they actually have any chance of passing this garbage?
Don't they realize that they will are still on the hook to pass a real budget (as opposed to this unserious clownshow) to avoid a shutdown?

I keep wondering about this too. Precious few work days left. On the one hand it’s worrisome. On the other, part of me is hoping we go off the cliff and that the GOP’s constituents get a lesson from the hard knocks school on the value of the government.

Problem is, they won't because there are still grown-ups in Washington who won't do what they probably should do:

Stop paying Social Security
Stop paying Medicare
Stop paying military salaries
Stop paying veterans
Stop paying all government contracts including military
Stop paying agriculture subsidies

24 hours of that and the Republicans would move to reopen the government so fast your head would spin.

But the Democrats won't allow it because, you know, we're not insane.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, there is nothing new here. They are unserious about protecting water and air quality that keep our citizens healthy. They are simply happy to allow capitalism to run amok regardless of the impact on the health and safety of the citizens.

What's not new is the far right wing rhetoric about the EPA and other things. What's not new is that this current House is doing the same thing with several of the other Appropriations bills.

What's new is that it's gone beyond merely being rhetoric to inflame the base, but that in 2023 they actually took this lunacy and extremism to the House floor.

What's new is just how deeply they are trying to make the cuts, and how insane this whole thing is.

How can Republicans be so idiotically hubristic to think they actually have any chance of passing this garbage?
Don't they realize that they will are still on the hook to pass a real budget (as opposed to this unserious clownshow) to avoid a shutdown?

I keep wondering about this too. Precious few work days left. On the one hand it’s worrisome. On the other, part of me is hoping we go off the cliff and that the GOP’s constituents get a lesson from the hard knocks school on the value of the government.

Problem is, they won't because there are still grown-ups in Washington who won't do what they probably should do:

Stop paying Social Security
Stop paying Medicare
Stop paying military salaries
Stop paying veterans
Stop paying all government contracts including military
Stop paying agriculture subsidies

24 hours of that and the Republicans would move to reopen the government so fast your head would spin.

But the Democrats won't allow it because, you know, we're not insane.

The Democrats won’t allow it because they know that it’s always the poorest and weakest who get it hardest from the GOP shutdowns. Children, disabled people, the elderly and so on. The people with the least ability to absorb a few days without heat or food or whatever it is that the government provides them. The GOP just loves the cruelty.