Rep. Joe Wilson, R-South Carolina, has achieved the ignoble distinction of being admonished by the House after refusing to apologize on the floor for his outburst during the presidential address of President Barack Obama. What is astonishing is that only seven Republicans voted to uphold the House rules and to admonish their colleague in a 240-179 vote.
What is equally striking is that twelve Democrats voted not to admonish a member for screaming “you lie” at the President of the United States during a formal address on the House floor. Moreover, five Democrats simply voted “present.”
Most notably, Barney Frank did not vote for the measure and instead voted “present” while Dennis Kucinich voted against the measure. The only good news for Wilson is that Pete Stark voted for the measure and Wilson is thus not someone Stark would bestow his novel method of showing respect, here.
Here is the language of the resolution:
Raising a question of the privileges of the House.
Whereas on September 9, 2009, during the joint session of Congress convened pursuant to House Concurrent Resolution 179, the President of the United States, speaking at the invitation of the House and Senate, had his remarks interrupted by the Representative from South Carolina, Mr. Wilson; and
Whereas the conduct of the Representative from South Carolina was a breach of decorum and degraded the proceedings of the joint session, to the discredit of the House: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives disapproves of the behavior of the Representative from South Carolina, Mr. Wilson, during the joint session of Congress held on September 9, 2009.
The twelve Democrats voting against admonishment were:
Michael Arcuri (NY)
Bill Delahunt (MA)
Gabrielle Giffords (AZ)
Maurice Hinchey (NY)
Paul Hodes (NH)
Dennis Kucinich (OH)
Dan Maffei (NY)
Eric Massa (NY)
Jim McDermott (WA)
Gwen Moore (WI)
Gene Taylor (MS)
Harry Teague (NM)
The seven Republicans who voted for admonishment were:
Joseph Cao (LA)
Jo Ann Emerson (MO)
Jeff Flake (AZ)
Bob Inglis (SC)
Walter Jones (NC)
Jim Petri (WI)
Dana Rohrabacher (CA)
The five Democrats who voted present were:
Eliot Engel (NY)
Bill Foster (IL)
Barney Frank (MA)
Carol Shea-Porter (NH)
Ike Skelton (MO)
This is the first formal admonishment of a member for misconduct during a presidential address in Congress. House Minority Leader John Boehner of Ohio called the resolution “piling on” and urged a vote against the measure.
For the full story, click here.
“Mike, the annoying thing to all your arguements is your blame of everyone else.”
Karen,
I think the annoying thing about them is they refute yours. Yours blame the President specifically, I’m just pointing out where you are wrong.
“My mother was on Medicare and it’s a very basic plan.”
I’m on Medicare and I love it. The problem is that Bush and the Republicans passed the Medicare Advantage Plan which purported to extend coverage and pay for prescriptions. It was a gift to the health insurance companies of hundreds of billion$ a year.
To me the idea is to make sure everyone has great coverage, not take anyone’s current coverage away. Within your concept of taking away some of the benefits Federal Employees have, seems more in revenge, than in a sincere desire to solve the healthcare problem
Mike, the annoying thing to all your arguements is your blame of everyone else. I am looking at the actions Obama is taking. He is responsible for his own actions…..although,I continually see him blaming others in his news conferences.
Congress and Obama have a great deal going, 2 years in Congress, and full retirement benefits. My mother was on Medicare and it’s a very basic plan. There’s no reason Congress and Obama can’t make cuts without impacting care to the Federal Employees Health benefits. Obama and Congress should be willing to get the savings from their Gold plan. A lot of uninsured could be insured with the savings.
Scrapping of the F-22 Raptor and of the European Missile shield
was a great step that Obama took, especially if the technology was outdated anyway.
Obama has taken some good actions….my concern is still very high because I don’t see ‘common sense’ regarding spending/waste. Hopefully, Obama improves his actions in the rest of the 4 years. I’m watching Obama’s actions, they need to match his words.
Karen,
The scrapping of the F-22 Raptor and of the European Missile shield saved at least five time the amount of all the earmarks combined. You can look that up, probably at least $100 billion together. Secondly,
many earmarks are good. Recently drove the Interstate through South Carolina which has the worst highways I’ve ever driven in the country.
Governor Sanford didn’t want stimulus, but perhaps the roads wouldn’t be axle-breakers and wheel alignment destroyers, if he had felt differently. Despite John McCain’s hypocrisy and the support of it by Bobby Jindal, much of the earmarks represent worthwhile projects.
You want to cut, I’ve mentioned alternatives that would save far more money and it seems that this administration has already begun them. It is of course your right to think and vote as you please, but perhaps if you researched the issues, beyond the soundbites on TV/Radio you might have a clearer understanding of what’s going on.
“Mike, the teabaggers were expressing their opinions. There were some fringes, but there were a lot of people who marched on Washington who voted for Obama.”
A nice statement, but I doubt you can back it up. If you see their comments to me there is an obvious racist undertone, but then reality always rests in the eye of the beholder.
Oh Mike, what I forgot to mention. The reason I have a problem with EAR MARKS is because I heard Obama’s campaign claims regarding EAR MARKS, and then when the Congress was coming out with the stimulus, I expected Obama to stand up and say “The economy is horrible, we can not afford to waste one penny, so there will be no ear marks. Instead he wanted it passed in such a hurry, no one could really see what was in it. There was NO need for the hurry, it would have been better not to waste the money. The most worrisome thing for me is Obama’s actions do not match his words….the words he used in his campaign, are far from the actions he is taking today. Good Luck with your Democratic party, Mike.
Mike, the teabaggers were expressing their opinions. There were some fringes, but there were a lot of people who marched on Washington who voted for Obama. I don’t agree with what Wilson did….it was very disrespectful…..but, I also am getting tired of hearing Obama lie. I was not for McCain, god knows we don’t need to lose any more innocent young lives, but I’m all for the CIA outsmarting the terrorists and doing what the CIA needs to do to keep our country safe. I’m a registered Democrat and I voted for Obama, but now I see I’m misplaced in the party. The Independents are probably more ‘common sense’ that I can relate to.
Basically, if Obama is so behind this Health Care, let’s let Obama, Congress, and the Federal Employees be part of the solution. We can save 800 billion by savings in the Federal Employees Health care gold plan coverage, by covering our Federal employees with a basic plan, and this will not impact their care. This 800 billion savings could be used to help insure the uninsured. Let’s let Congress and the President be part of the solution!
I voted for Obama as well Mike. I hope socialized medicine becomes a reality. I feel that the measure of a civilized society is gauged by how well it takes care of its’ citizens, especially the infirm..
Possibly a better link to 2009 earmarks.
http://earmarks.omb.gov
“Mike, I voted for Obama, but now I disagree with his wasteful spending. I wasn’t racist when I voted for him, and I’m not racist now when I disagree with him.”
Karen,
If you re-read my comments you might see that I don’t see opposition to some of the President’s policy’s as being racist.
I disagree with, have openly stated such here, some of his policies too.
However, the reactions of Rep. Wilson, the birthers, teabaggers and people like Rush (Glenn, Sean, etc.)have been racist in content and nature. This is the essence of the point I’m making.
Now when you specifically cite earmarks see the estimates for 2009, which show about $3 billion.
http://earmarks.omb.gov/2009-appropriations-by spendcom/summary.html
The earmarks in 2008 were about $16.5 billion:
http://earmarks.omb.gov/2008_appropriations_earmarks_110th_congress.html
To you and I that seems like a lot of money, but in a federal budget in the trillion$ it represents very little. During the campaign McCain made a big deal about earmarks, even though he knew they were miniscule compared to the Federal Budget as a whole. Candidate Obama, as a true politician, countered the McCain claims. Was he being honest? No. However, McCain himself was being dishonest by even making this a major issue.
GW Bush cost the Federal Budget more than One Trillion in tax cuts that went to the very richest people in the country. He took us from a surplus to a deficit. He then added another Trillion, at least, in pursuing the Iraq war. Finally, the Republicans plan for Prescriptions drugs was a gift to the drug companies and also a way for the Republicans to put Medicare in crisis. This too is costing hundreds of billion$. These are much more important issues than earmarks, many of which are actually
good things for localities and for science.
Finally though, if you are concerned about budget problems I would ask you to look at our Defense Budget, which is larger than the defense budgets of every other country in the world, combined. This is where the waste comes in and this is where our Armed Forces are being under equipped and poorly treated, in order to pay for yet another unnecessary weapons system, or for private contractors to provide rotten meals and showers that electrocute our service men.
I would respectfully suggest Karen that you are being misled by a news media that is more interested in creating controversy, than reporting the truth.
Mike, I voted for Obama, but now I disagree with his wasteful spending. I wasn’t racist when I voted for him, and I’m not racist now when I disagree with him. I will not give him my vote in 2012, because he spoke out against EAR MARKS when he was campaining, but now it seems that wasteful spending isn’t a problem for him. When I don’t vote for him in 2012, are you going to be calling me racist?? The problem is, he sucks, just like George Bush. I’ll look for someone not so corrupt (chicago style politics) and more business experience in 2012!
If you have to ask, then I suggest you should go back to school, elementary to BOOT. As far as your perceived illusion of what a true democrat should be, first of all, are you one? Second, you speak from both sides of your mouth. I thought that the term fiscal conservative was unique to the mantel of the elephants. We Dems/liberals are constantly being lambasted for big government, socialist programs, BAILOUTS, STIMULUS PAY OUTS,(sound familiar) and the like. I plead gulity to want to extend a helping hand to my fellow man. By the bye, what the meaning of a true GOP?
I am all for socialized medicine and feel it is only a matter of time before it becomes a reality in our great nation. I believe the measure of a civilized society is based upon how we provide for those who cannot provide for themselves. I feel everyone has the right to “wellness”.
Alan Keyes is employing a defense mechanism, its’ called “reaction formation”…..
While some might fairly make the case that such a resolution was unneeded, for the most part Wilson’s defenders have shown either stupidity, or a willful disregard for what the resolution is about. It is not about calling the President a liar, but about doing it out loud, at a joint session of Congress on widespread TV. That made it a blatant display of incivility and that is what the resolution is about. While it is true that Bush too was called a liar, it wasn’t in a joint session of Congress where a certain decorum is expected. It used to be that Conservatives were the defenders of decorum, but this new group of faux Conservatives have become so radicalized that they behave worse than the Hippies ever did and lack all sense of decorum.
Slice it any way you want, most of this radical “Conservatism” is thinly disguised racial hatred practiced by people too gutless to say the truth about what they really feel.
What do you mean unable to defend himself?
Mr. Bush damned near caught that shoe!
Please explain what you mean. You should be in politics if you can not be more clearer. Why would what I say be an antonym?
Are you saying that Clinton gave tax breaks and balanced the budget? If that is correct, then that is good, yes?
To Mind That Bird THANK YOU soo much for enlightening me and defining the meaning of being a “true democrat”. Your definition or interpretation reeks of antonyms. Your are right about one thing though, no Democrat bestowed a tax cut, on those most righteous and deserving of stalwarts (the wealthiest 1% of this country), while simultaneously spending and borrowing to finance an ill conceived war. Sound familiar? Clinton did dole out tax breaks for the middle class, BUT his biggest claim to fame is that he BALANCED THE BUDGET and left a surplus!!!. And yes, I do feel lost in LA. One Repub and one Dem rep found the courage to vote their convictions.
AND ANOTHER THING!
WTF is up with saying Nancy Pelosi did something horrible by pointing out the CIA lied to Congress, but saying the President is lying is somehow clear-eyed rational patriotism? Republicans need to get their head out of their asses if they think accusing the CIA of lying is wrong but accusing the President of lying is not. Is it ONLY because he’s a Democrat, or is it also that he is, you know, um… dark skinned.
Either the first part or the second part of that claim has to be false. If you don’t think he should be at all sanctioned, then he was not an idiot, but a political genius, for shouting out during speech.
I heard a great comment on Stephanie Miller the other day, “Tenthers, birthers, deathers, let’s just call them what they are: sore losers.”
Alan Keyes? Seriously?
Congressman Wilson should resign: he is a shameful disgrace as a legislator. You might even believe he isn’t a bigot or that the President is dishonest, but neither of those things has anything to do with the fact that, in being unable to control himself long enough to make his statement after the address, he proved himself unfit for office.
Bullshit–what a waste of taxpayers time and completely inequitable compared to what other members of the Senate and House have done to demean the office with no recriminations.
It’s clear that ALL republicans have no concept where they are most of the time. That’s not a mistake – that (as we say in the tech trade) is a feature! Since it appears to be fact, no one should be surprised by this outcome on Wilson and his flapping lips.
Since republicans have no sense of who sees their displays worldwide, they buzz along in their sheer delirium unaware the rest of the world is laughing at them because they are such a spectacle.. They should at least respect what the nation looks like in the eyes of the rest of the world but nnnnhhhhoooooo…they want their candy bar back….losers…