Marathon Pundit: Dems demagogue, then cave on the FAA

Friday, August 05, 2011

Dems demagogue, then cave on the FAA

A couple of hours before former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi took part in a Communications Workers of America activist call--where the non-union business owner kissed Big Labor's butt--her party caved on the FAA Reauthorization Bill.

Jennefier Rubin writes about it in the Washington Post:

Yes, it does seem to be a familiar pattern now for Democrats: Holler, claim "blackmail" and then give in. In this case, however, it's hard to escape the conclusion that Democrats were trying to use the labor issue to ingratiate themselves with Big Labor and to slam those mean Republicans. On Wednesday House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) put out a statement that read:

All it will take to end this crisis is for the Senate to pass the House-approved FAA extension. The only reason so many jobs are at stake is Senate Democratic Leaders chose to play politics rather than pass the House bill. I respect the fact that Senators have certain objections, but they have had two weeks to respond to the House bill and done nothing, leaving tens of thousands of workers in limbo. The House has done its job, and now it's time for Senators to do theirs.
And that's precisely what Reid finally agreed to do. A senior Senate adviser explained to me what had happened: "They could have done this before they left [on vacation]." But, he said, Democrats' finger-pointing at Republicans "tried, [but] failed" to alter the situation. So naturally, Democrats had to retreat.