I am at the office late tonight and only just now found out about passage of the economic stimulus package.
It passed the House of Representatives this evening by a vote of 243 to 189. Not one Republican voted for the bill, yet they sit there and wonder why they've been relegated to minority status. Last November, Americans voted overwhelmingly for a government that will step up to the plate and do whatever it takes to repair an economy on life support. Apparently the Republicans didn't quite get the message.
I understand that the Republican members of congress may not have agreed with everything in this bill, and I understand that it was never going to get hearty Republican support...but not one single solitary vote?
So... now one has to wonder if tonight's result in the House will encourage some rogue Republican in the Senate to filibuster their version of the bill in that chamber, and whether the Democrats can muster up the necessary two or three Republican votes to end such a move.
Whatever the case, one thing is for sure. Tonight, the Republicans in the House proved they are not all interested in the plight of the American economy and, by extension, Americans. After eight years of mismanagement on their watch, they don't understand that the country has asked the other side to clean things up.
Fine.
While the Democrats work overtime to set things right, the GOP can stomp and whine and cry. And when the 2010 elections roll around and the Republican Party find themselves losing a third consecutive cycle...well...maybe...MAYBE then they'll understand.
