DeMint threatens hold on bills not "cleared by his office before the close of business Tuesday"

[Pirate Smile]

DeMint Threatens Hold on Last-Minute Bills

September 27, 2010 by senatus



Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) “warned his colleagues Monday night that he would place a hold on all legislation that has not been ‘hot-lined’ by the chamber or has not been cleared by his office before the close of business Tuesday,” Roll Call reports.

Although the South Carolina Republican has objected for years to the hot-lining of legislation until his staff at the Republican Steering Committee has reviewed it, DeMint’s threat to essentially shut down legislation in the chamber is remarkable.

Traditionally, the Senate passes noncontroversial measures by unanimous consent at the end of most workdays, a process known as hot-lining. DeMint, Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and others have fought against the practice for years and have dedicated staff members to reviewing bills that are to be hot-lined.

As a result, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) have generally given DeMint, Coburn and others time to review legislation before proceeding with unanimous consent agreements.

But in a terse e-mail sent to all 100 Senate chiefs of staff Monday evening, Steering Committee Chief of Staff Bret Bernhardt warned that DeMint would place a hold on any legislation that had not been hot-lined or been cleared by his office before the close of business Tuesday.

Democratic and Republican “aides alike were stunned, arguing that DeMint had essentially made a unilateral decision to end legislative activity in the Senate.”

The practical effect of DeMint’s warning is unclear; most of the Senate’s remaining major legislation will likely be handled after lawmakers vote Tuesday on a cloture motion to begin debate on a continuing resolution to keep the government funded when the new fiscal year begins Oct. 1. The Senate is expected to adjourn this week for the midterm Congressional campaigns.

(credit image – daylife/associated press)
http://senatus.wordpress.com/2010/09/27/demint-threatens-hold-on-last-minute-bills/

He is the King of the Teabaggers.

[hlthe2b]

1. If only SC could have had a viable challenger to this ass...

sigh...

[Bitwit1234]

6. In all probably they did, that's why they paid for Greene to run

and "fixed" the voting machines so he would win. Everything in SC is controlled by the republicans.

[elizm]

14. Exactly. nt

[Rhiannon12866]

2. K&R. What is wrong with this man?!

And he's up for re-election... :crazy: :banghead:

[dgibby]

8. Red meat for his supporters.

He has nothing to worry about re: re-election here in SC, especially since his opponent is Alvin Greene.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, DeMint is preparing a run for the WH in 2012, IMO. He's the darling of the Teabaggers, as well as the rest of the conservatives in the GOP. No doubt, if he choses to run, the part of the party that fears the Palinites will rush to endorse him as the lesser of the evils.

All I can say is DeMint would make you long for the good old days of Dubya and Darth!

[Rhiannon12866]

12. I understand and thanks for the perspective...

But are people actually proud of him for doing this? It's been all over the airwaves and none of it positive. I'm actually in your lovely state as I write this, visiting from NY. It really is beautiful here and the people are very nice, so why do they elect the likes of DeMint and Joe "You lie!" Wilson? :shrug:

[dgibby]

15. Enjoy your visit!

Hope you have a good time while you're here. Are you in Charleston? If not, I hope you get to visit the "Holy City" (so named because of all the church spires). It's really beautiful and a gold mine for history buffs, but my favorite place is Beaufort. It's breathtaking down there.

As for the people here, they are nice, but they love DeMint and Wilson. Go figure! No doubt it's due in part to being the "buckle" on the Bible Belt.

[Rhiannon12866]

17. Thank you!

I'm on the coast, North Myrtle Beach. It's a lovely place, but the weather is kind of crappy, rain off and on and thunderstorms and high winds are predicted. But I'm not a swimmer or a surfer, so it's interesting to watch changes in the ocean and the birds, but it's tough to go places. I've spent time in NC, since my grandmother retired to the Asheville area, but I've never spent time in SC before. :D

One of my childhood friends currently lives in Florence, SC, though she also grew up in northern NY. When candidate Obama came to her area, she went to see him on her lunch break, said she didn't dare tell her work colleagues or her boss that she was going... She says she's happy here, that people are great to her, but it's got to be tough... :shrug:

And though I don't understand the whole "Bible Belt" sensibility, I also ran across it in NC. My cousin also moved there and has sent me e-mails advocating school prayer... x(

[Lint Head]

3. I realize hate is a strong sentiment but, I hate this SOB as much as I hate

Mitch the bitch McConnell!

[msongs]

4. if dems were competent they would welcome this move.....and profit from it

imagine the PR that could be generated by repubs shutting down the senate and stopping the Obama middle class tax reduction plan (formerly known as expiration of bush tax cuts) and if national dems had any clue how to frame a message and put out some effective PR this action by demint could be a gold mine.

[wisteria]

5. Wow, DeMint is full of himself. It is time for the Republicans to have a little talk with him. n/t

[Pirate Smile]

7. He is in ascendancy in the Republican Party right now.

His teabagger folks have taken over/hijacked/terrified the old GOP. He is big man on campus now and it is going to just get much worse, I believe.

[dgibby]

9. Agreed.

See my post above. If he runs and wins the WH, I'm going to seriously consider moving out of the country.

[Supersedeas]

10. and he objects to the BP's Committee having subpoena power

[Pirate Smile]

11. kick

[DemocraticPilgrim]

13. When I say Alving you say Greene. tinyurl.com/greene444

[PVnRT]

16. Why does DeMint hate democracy so much?

[truebrit71]

18. After his religio-facist candidates lose in November and the gop fails to seize either chamber...

..DeMint will be quickly dealt with by the gop...

I think that the real blood-letting this election season will be in the rethuglican party as it rips itself apart from the inside-out after the Dems retain control of congress.

The Teahadists will be purged by the remaining republicans as the ruinous vermin that they are after the dust settles and the realization that they nutters cost them the election...

[budkin]

19. This guy is a straight up FUCKING ASSHOLE