FACT: Republicans have repeatedly blocked legislation intended to help the economy and preserve and protect the rights of American citizens. What follows is only a partial listing.
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2008
Republicans Block Fair Pay Restoration Act. The legislation was intended
to make it easier for women and other victims of discrimination to sue their
employers over unequal pay. It was intended to make it easier for people to
sue over pay discrimination. The Fair Pay Restoration Act was a response to
a 2007 Supreme Court decision which ruled a person who claims pay discrimination
must file a complaint within 180 days of that discrimination taking place.
Update: A new version of the bill, The Lilly Ledbetter
Fair Pay Act of 2009 was eventually re-introduced and brought to the attention
of President Obama. It became the first act of Congress signed by President
Obama.
Background: The case began when Lilly Ledbetter -- then a production supervisor
at a Goodyear plant in Alabama -- took early retirement in 1998, after being
involuntarily transferred to a less-desirable job on the production floor. Six
months earlier, she had filed a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission (EEOC), alleging various forms of sex discrimination.
When her case eventually went to trial, a jury concluded she had indeed suffered
illegal pay discrimination on the basis of sex. (Her salary was as much as 40
percent lower than that of the lowest-paid male supervisor.) A $3 million award
from the jury was reduced to $300,000 in accordance with Title VII's damages
cap. However, this award was taken away on appeal. On appeal, Goodyear successfully
argued that Ledbetter's claims were time-barred because the discriminatory decisions
relating to pay had been made more than 180 days (the limitations period under
Title VII) prior to the date she filed her charge with the EEOC. The U.S. Supreme
Court ultimately sided with Goodyear. Title VII provides an incredibly short
statute of limitations – 180 days (or 300, in some states).
Republicans Block Windfall Profits Tax - Its centerpiece was a 25% tax on Big Oil's windfall profits and the stripping away of tax breaks the oil companies have enjoyed. The tax could be avoided if the money were put into alternative fuel projects. - The proposed windfall tax would have been triggered on any "unreasonable" profits of the five largest American oil companies, which together made $36 billion during the first three months of the year. The bill also would have given the government more power to address oil market speculation, opened the way for antitrust actions against countries belonging to the OPEC oil cartel, and made energy price gouging a federal crime. - June 11, 2008
Republicans Block Democratic Effort on Oil Leases, an effort to pressure energy companies into drilling for oil on lands they already leased from the federal government. Oil companies are sitting on 68 million acres they could be exploring. Democrats favor increased domestic oil and gas production, but want it to take place where drilling is already allowed, arguing that oil could be produced more quickly from those areas rather than in new, environmentally sensitive locales. - July 18, 2008
2009
Republicans Block Iraq Debate. Republicans blocked a full-fledged U.S.
Senate debate over Iraq on Monday, but Democrats vowed to find a way to force
President George W. Bush to change course in a war that has claimed the lives
of more than 3,000 U.S. troops and tens of thousands of Iraqis. - February 11,
2009
Republicans Block Spending Bill. Senate Republicans blocked a $410 billion omnibus spending measure on Thursday night, forcing Congressional Democrats to prepare a stopgap budget resolution to keep the federal government from shutting down. - March 5, 2009
Republicans Block "Halt Assault, Rape, Murder, Evisceration and Dismemberment" Bill - The GOP today, along hard-line party votes, successfully blocked two versions of a bill dubbed in the media as H.A.R.M.E.D.: Halt Assault, Rape, Murder, Evisceration and Dismemberment. The bills (HR 451 and S 34) would help shore up gaps in the criminal justice system that already allegedly prevent American citizens from being physically assaulted, forcibly raped, viciously murdered then eviscerated and dismembered. The bill was a tentative attempt to overturn Bush-era policies that paved the way for abuses by American war contractors. Former Halliburton subsidiary KBR, for instance, refused to hire women unless they waived their right to press charges in the event they were ever raped and beaten. "Is this really necessary?", Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) said at a press conference. "All I hear from Democrats is Katrina this, health care that, let's stop our fellow citizens from getting needlessly slaughtered. Aren't there more constructive ways to spend our time?" - October 21, 2009
Republicans Block Freeze On Credit Card Interest Rate Hikes - Senate Republicans blocked a Democratic effort Wednesday to immediately freeze increases in credit card interest rates, fees and finance charges. Shortly after Democrats passed credit card reform legislation in May, the card companies began jacking up rates in advance of its implementation. Major parts of the act won't take effect until February and August of 2010. - Nov 18, 2009
Republicans Block Estate Tax Extension. Senate Republicans blocked a last-ditch effort by Democrats Wednesday to extend the federal estate tax for two months and thereby avoid outright repeal Jan. 1. Barring some reversal, the standoff means the levy will drop to zero for the first time in decades on New Year’s Day –a long-time goal for conservatives but one that could also expose smaller estates to capital gains liabilities that they are now protected against. “If you’re rich, celebrate. If you’re not, you should be really afraid.” The current $3.5 million exemption protects many smaller businesses and farms, and heirs calculate their capital gains on a “stepped-up” basis or the value of the holdings when they take control. By comparison, the “carry-over” formula will require families to use the much lower base value of a stock or business when first purchased by a parent, for example, and that would make the gain far greater. Sen. Jon Kyl (R.-Ariz.) said many heirs would welcome this dilemma since the capital gains rate, now about 15%, is still better than the top rate of 45% on large estates. But Reid and Baucus said the greater exposure for those below $3.5 million is real and undercuts the Republican argument that they stand up for small business and farmers. - 12/16/09
2010
Republicans Block Judicial Nominee Appointments. Without Explanation
Republicans continue to block nominations. Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse
asked unanimous consent to bring five judicial nominees forward for a final
confirmation vote before the full Senate. Republican Sen. Jon Kyl, without any
legitimate explanation, objected to all of them. Republicans have blocked almost
half of the nominees for judicial nominations, the worst obstruction rate in
U.S. history. Of particular interest is the fact that Republican obstructionism
has hindered female and minority nominees the most. Every district court nominee
with unanimous opposition from the Senate Judiciary committee Republicans has
been a woman or a person of color. - April 20, 2010
Republicans Block Debate on Wall Street Finance Reform Bill - Republicans in the Senate blocked further debate on financial reform legislation that would tighten regulations on derivatives among other financial products. “We are as vulnerable as we are today in the waning days of April 2010 as we were in the fall of 2008 when we saw what happened to our economy,” said Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-CT), who is the chairman of the banking committee. “Nothing has changed, except, of course, jobs have been lost, homes have gone into foreclosure, retirement incomes have evaporated, housing values have declined. Almost $11 trillion in household wealth has been lost.”- April 26, 2010
Republicans Block Federal Telework measure. An effort to expand telecommuting by federal workers would have required uniform rules for federal employees who work at sites other than their regular government offices, such as their homes. - May 06, 2010
Republicans Block Effort to Raise Oil Spill Liability Cap - The bill would have increased oil companies’ liability for oil spill cleanup and damages. - May 18, 2010
Republicans Block Renewal of America Competes Act - Federal Support for Scientific Research - May 13, 2010
Republicans Block Homeless Women Veterans and Homeless Veterans With Children Act - Jun 29, 2010
Republicans Block DISCLOSE Act, would have set new campaign finance laws for some corporations, unions, and interest groups. The bill was intended to curb what is viewed as an unlawful edge granted to corporations, including foreign entities, in political races, granted as a result of the Citizens United ruling. - July 27, 2010
Republicans Block Health Care for the 9/11 First Responders. The bill would have provided billions of dollars in health care to help the 9/11 First Responders who were at Ground Zero on 9/11 and are now sick because of it. The original bill would have paid for the fund through a tax on foreign owned businesses operating in the United States. - August 4, 2010
Republicans Block Campaign-Finance bill. The bill required disclosure of groups funding political ads. The legislation was needed to bring transparency to political spending following a Supreme Court decision in January of 2010 that allowed unlimited corporate and union spending on independent political ads. "Without disclosurethe winner of every upcoming election won't be Democrats or Republicans, it will be special interests. The decision by Republicans to block this legislation is a victory for special interests and U.S. corporations – including foreign-controlled ones – who are now allowed to spend unlimited money to fill our airwaves, mailboxes and phone lines right up until Election Day. And it comes at the expense of the American people, who no longer have the right to know who is financing these ads in an attempt to influence an election for their preferred candidate. Wall Street, the insurance lobby, oil companies and other special interests are now one step closer to taking Congress back and returning to the days when lobbyists wrote the laws". - Sept. 23, 2010
Republicans Block Miine Safety Reform Bill, legislation intended to strengthen safety protections for the nation's miners.- September 29, 2010
Republicans Block Efforts to repeal the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell’’ policy for gay soldiers - September 22, 2010
Republicans Block Bill to Prevent Outsourcing American Jobs - The legislation would have raised taxes on corporations that shift operations overseas, costing U.S. jobs. It also would have awarded companies that bring jobs back from abroad by offering a two-year hiatus from payroll taxes for those positions. - Sep 28, 2010
Republicans Block An Up-Or-Down Vote On The Paycheck Fairness Act - "Forty-five years after passage of the Equal Pay Act, it is unacceptable that women still earn, on average, 77 cents to the dollar earned by men," said National Women's Law Center Co-President Marcia Greenberger. "The law needs to be stronger. This persistent pay gap translates to more than $10,000 in lost wages per year for the average female worker. In this difficult economy, in which nearly 40 percent of mothers are primary breadwinners, women shoulder increased responsibility for supporting their families and cannot afford to have employers discounting their salaries." Among other provisions, the Paycheck Fairness Act, which has already passed the House, would ensure that a law already on the books -- the Equal Pay Act of 1963 -- is properly enforced. It would also make sure that women aren't punished for seeking out information about what their male colleagues are earning in order to ensure they are being paid properly. Note: At the current rate of 77 cents to each dollar earned by men holding the same job, a woman would need to work approximately four additional months to make the same amount of money. - 11/17/10
Republicans Block Unemployment Benefits Extension ...Nov 18, 2010
Republicans Block Child nutrition bill - December 2, 2010
HEADLINE:
GOP vows to kill all Dem-backed bills - Associated Press: Republican leaders
quietly collected senators' signatures on a pledge to block action on any measure
that Democrats support. 12/01/2010
Republicans Block Tax cuts for only middle class. Republicans blocked a move to let Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans expire, rejecting in the process Democrats' efforts to extend those breaks just for the middle class. The measure would have let rates on higher earners rise at the beginning of 2011 to where they were before cuts were enacted by former president George W. Bush's administration in 2001 and 2003. Republicans want all of the tax cuts -- including those that directly benefit the top earners -- to be extended instead. They also rejected another Democratic proposal to extend the tax cuts for annual incomes of up to one million dollars. President Obama responded; "It makes no sense to hold tax cuts for the middle class hostage to permanent tax cuts for the wealthiest two percent of Americans." - Dec 4, 2010
Republicans Block The DREAM Act- an immigration measure that would have provided a conditional path to legal residency for hundreds of thousands of young, undocumented immigrants first brought to the U.S. illegally by their parents. Supporters of the DREAM Act had said it would bring out of the shadows a fraction of the country's estimated 12 million illegal immigrants who have known only the United States as home, enhance military recruitment and give American employers access to a talented and highly-motivated pool of young workers. Only immigrants younger than 30 who entered the United States before age 16, have lived here five years without a serious criminal offense, graduated high school or earned a GED and attend college or join the military among other requirements, would be eligible for legal residency.The Congressional Budget Office estimates between 300,000 and 500,000 undocumented immigrants could benefit from the DREAM Act. - Dec. 18, 2010
2011
Republicans Kill Global warming committee. Republicans have disbanded
the one committee devoted solely to climate change and energy issues. The Select
Committee for Energy Independence and Global Warming, created in 2006, has been
shuttered under the new Republican leadership. - January 6, 2011
Republicans Block Funding of Planned Parenthood - February 18, 2011
Republicans Block Bill Reauthorizing Government Programs That Aid Small Businesses and would have given local community banks access to billions of dollars to loan to small businesses 5/4/11
Republicans Block Key Economic Appointments - Republican obstructionism is resulting in the loss of potential appointees. It underscores the large number of vacancies in key positions dealing with the economy and financial matters at a time of serious problems in both areas. Failure to fill vacancies in several agencies was making it difficult to write all the rules called for by financial regulatory legislation. The position of director of the Comptroller of the Currency, the agency within the Treasury that supervises national chartered banks, has been vacant for months, and the term of Sheila C. Bair as chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation expires next month. There also are two vacancies on the seven-member Federal Reserve Board. Professor Peter A. Diamond of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a Nobel laureate in economics, withdrew his nomination to one of those spots. He cited strident opposition by Republican Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, ranking minority member of the Senate Finance Committee, who contended that Diamond was not experienced in either monetary policy matters or crisis management. Possibly Senator Shelby was unclear on the exceptional level of knowledge the term " Nobel laureate in economics" conveys. - June 07, 2011
Republicans Block Economic Development Revitalization Act of 2011 - a bill to reauthorize and expand a long-running and consistently successful job-creation agency, the Economic Development Administration. - June 6, 2011
Republicans Block Trade Adjustment Assistance program. The deals with South Korea, Panama and Colombia were expected to boost exports by $13 billion, helping to support or create tens of thousands of jobs. - Jun 30, 2011
Republicans Block FEMA disaster relief funds. The measure would have granted the Federal Emergency Management Agency additional funding to help communities devastated by natural disasters. Because of the nations increased number of natural disasters (there were natural disaster declarations in 48 states during the first nine months of 2011) FEMA's funds are being rapidly depleted. September 13, 2011
Republicans Block National Criminal Justice Commission bill - A bipartisan commission that would be charged with doing a top-to-bottom review of the U.S. criminal justice system - October 21, 2011
Republicans Block American Jobs Act Of 2011.
The bill included plans to tax corporations and the wealthiest Americans in
order to pay for it.
The result:
Total number of jobs NOT created in TEXAS thanks to JOHN CORNYN and PETE SESSIONS:
103,600, Those would have been: 33,800 infrastructure jobs, 39500 teacher jobs,
and 30,300 school repair jobs.
Total number of jobs NOT created in PENNSYLVANIA thanks to PAT TOOMEY: 44,600.
Those would have been: 17,900 infrastructure jobs, 14,400 teacher jobs, 12,300
school repair jobs.
Total number of jobs NOT created in FLORIDA thanks to MARCO RUBIO: 63,000. Those
would have been: 20,500 infrastructure jobs, 25,900 teacher jobs, and 16600
school repair jobs.
Total number of jobs NOT created in OHIO thanks to ROB PORTMAN: 40,700, which
would have been 13,700 infrastructure jobs, 14,200 teacher jobs, 12,800 school
repair jobs. - 10/11/11 (insufficient room to list statistics for every state
disadvantaged by Republicans blocking this bill)
Republicans Block Teachers And First Responders Back To Work Act Of 2011. The roposal to deliver Federal aid to state and local governments to hire back teachers and first responders who have been laid off during the recession. Oct 21, 2011
Republicans Block Prison-Reform Study - Washington Post report: The Bill was intended to create a 14-member commission to examine federal, state and local criminal-justice practices. The commission would’ve looked at everything from prison overcrowding to drug-war policies and made recommendations for how to reduce the overall incarceration rate, tamp down on prison violence and improve mental-health treatment. That’s it. A non-binding, blue-ribbon commission. Even conservative and law-enforcement groups had backed it as a reasonable first step. One in every 31 U.S. adults is in prison, jail or supervised release; we now spend $68 billion per year on corrections. - Oct 21, 2011
Republicans Block Attempt to subpoena oil company CEOs. Republicans on the House Natural Resources Committee rejected attempts to subpoena the CEOs of BP and the other companies blamed for 2010's massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill which dumped 4.9 million barrels of oil into the Gulf and resulted in the death of 11 rig workers. The joint Interior Department-U.S. Coast Guard report, released in September, faults BP, Deepwater Horizon rig owner Transocean Ltd. and Halliburton, which performed the concrete job on the well, for the spill, along with Cameron, which manufactured the blow-out preventer used on the rig. The CEOs declined to testify. "Republicans have put the CEOs from the companies responsible for the worst offshore oil spill in our history into a witness protection program....." House Natural Resources Committee member Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) - 11/02/11
Republicans Block Infrastructure Bill - The Rebuild America Act. The legislation would have created jobs immediately by investing $50 billion to repair and rebuild the nation’s roads, rails and airports, establish a national infrastructure bank to fund a broad range of projects and asked millionaires and billionaires to pay their fair share. It also would have created an infrastructure bank to fund future projects.The measure would have created tens of thousands of construction jobs and lifted the still-struggling economy. Republicans unanimously opposed it for its tax surcharge on the wealthy. 11/ 3/11
Republicans Block Funding to prevent more foreclosures. Federal funds aimed at pulling struggling homeowners out of the foreclosure crisis are a victim of Washington’s budget battles. Nonprofit agencies around the nation are closing offices, laying off counselors and referring desperate homeowners elsewhere as Republicans actively pursue Mitt Romney's infamous idea of letting foreclosures "hit bottom." The steadfast Republican opposition to this funding persists despite the fact that "a study by the Urban Institute finding that homeowners who use foreclosure counseling avoid foreclosure 'more frequently and avoided a return to default more often than their unaided counterparts.'"- Nov 14, 2011
HEADLINE: GOP War on Voting: New Laws Could
Block Five Million From Polls - October 3, 2011
Republican state legislators and governors in a dozen states have been passing
laws that make it harder for voters – overwhelmingly, Democratic voters
– to cast their ballots. The measures, from voter ID requirements to cutting
back on early voting to curtailing voter registration drives, may seem disconnected,
but they add up, wrote Berman, to "an unprecedented, centrally coordinated
campaign to suppress the elements of the Democratic vote that elected Barack
Obama in 2008.The vast majority of the voters will be Democrats – students,
minorities, immigrants, ex-convicts and the elderly." The Brennan Center
for Justice at New York University School of Law calls it "The most significant
rollback in voting rights in decades."
Republicans Block Middle Class Tax Cut Act Of 2011 Measure would have extended the payroll tax cut and assess a new tax on income over $1 million to help pay for it. .- 12/1/11
Republicans Block Appointment of New Consumer Watchdog Richard Cordray as first permanent director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, keeping consumers’ rights in limbo at least through the 2012 elections. - 12/08/2011
2012
Republicans Block Wyden Amendment To Keep Keystone XL Pipeline US-Friendly.
The amendment to an unrelated highway bill was designed to expose the hypocrisy
of Keystone XL advocates who have argued that the foreign-owned, foreign-oil
pipeline was a patriotic American priority. As Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) admitted...Keystone
XL’s owner, TransCanada, intends to build the pipeline with foreign steel
and ship its foreign oil for export to foreign markets. - Mar 8, 2012
Republicans Unveil Plan To Kill Medicare: Washington Post report: Four Republican members of the U.S. Senate – Lindsey Graham, Rand Paul, Jim DeMint and Mike Lee – have endorsed a plan to kill Medicare. For years, Republicans have insisted that they would not end Medicare as we know it and that any changes to the program would not affect those in or near retirement. In the span of 20 minutes Thursday, they jettisoned both promises. DeMint and his colleagues think the time to end Medicare is now — with a cold-turkey conversion to a private program, effective in 2014. All the details aren’t out, but Paul says his plan would cut funding of Medicare by $1 Trillion over 10 years. It would do that by enrolling Medicare recipients in the health plan now used by federal workers. The government would pay 75 percent of the insurance premium on average but 30 percent or less for those who earned more than $100,000 a year. The eligibility age would gradually be raised to 70 from 65. If seniors can’t afford their share of the premium, they can apply for Medicaid, the health program for the poor. March 17, 2012
Republicans Block Responsible Mining Bill intended to accomplish needed mining reforms and aid job creation without recklessly damaging the environment - Mar 6, 2012
Republicans Block Republicans Block Repeal of Oil-Company Tax Breaks - Mar 29, 2012
Republicans Block Reauthorization Of The Export-Import Bank Of The United States. The bank is an independent federal agency that dates back to the 1930s and provides bridge loans and credit guarantees to finance the overseas sale of American products. - March 22, 2012
Republicans Block Reopening American Capital Markets To Emerging Growth Companies Act Of 2011. 3/20/12
Republicans Block Transportation Funding Extension - Mar 27, 2012
Republicans Block FCC password protection amendment. Intended to prevent employers from forcing workers to reveal their Facebook passwords. - Mar 28, 2012
Republicans Block (Buffet Plan) Paying A Fair
Share Act Of 2012. The simple piece of tax legislation would require millionaires
and billionaires to pay at the same tax rate most of us do.
NOTE: The Buffet Plan would have raised $47 billion dollars over a ten year
period. The Republican party uniformly ridiculed the amount as a drop in the
bucket, saying that $4.7 billion dollars year would do nothing. But $4.7 billion
dollars a year would have funded Pell Grants at $5500 ea. for 850,000 college
students. Think about it. - 04/16/12
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