Coburn: Blocking jobless benefits okay because it only affects a ‘relatively small number of people’

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Coburn: Blocking jobless benefits okay because it only affects a ‘relatively small number of people’

http://rawstory.com/rs/2010/0407/coburn-blocking-jobless-benefits-affects-relatively-small-number-people/



Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) added potential fuel for Democratic outrage over his block of a one-month extension of federal jobless aid earlier this week.

In a Tuesday phone interview with The Hill, Coburn said the Republican obstruction of $9 billion in extended unemployment benefits isn't a big deal because it only affects "a relatively small group of people."

“The easiest thing in the world is to pass this bill unpaid for, but consider the millions of Americans whose financial futures would be damaged, versus the relatively small amount of people who will be affected by this delay," he said. "Now you tell me which vote takes the most courage.”

The number of Americans temporarily losing their unemployment benefits this week because of Coburn's block is around 212,000.

The congressman also said he intends to block all future Senate spending bills that aren't "paid for" by cutting from other spending programs. He said he will "absolutely" object to any such bill.

“The fact is that the country wants us to start making hard choices on spending, and if we can’t do it on a $9 billion bill, then we’re certainly not going to be able to do it on our $1.6 trillion deficit,” he said.

[Botany]

1. The easiest thing in the world is to pass this bill unpaid for

Those workers paid into unemployment w/ every pay check.

[Tansy_Gold]

6. Actually, they probably didn't

FUTA -- Federal Unemployment Tax -- is paid by the employer, not the employee.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Payroll_tax#Unemployment_taxes


Hiking taxes on employers -- which would send any gooper into apoplexy -- would fund this, but of course that'll never happen.


Eat shit and die, Tom Coburn.



Tansy Gold

[MrScorpio]

2. One has to be born with this level of clueslessness

Congenital stupidity is what it is

[doc03]

3. Why not play hardball with the SOB, cut

the stimulus funds for Oklahoma to pay for it, I am sure he opposed them anyway.

[Historic NY]

4. thats right Tom, hurt the pay check to pay check crowd....teabaggers look here.

[madokie]

5. Thats my man

well inHove is really but jeezus crist how stupid can one supposed dr be. I think that maybe he's looked at way too many pussys

[Karmadillo]

7. Not a problem. Cut defense 50% and we can fund UC & a great New Deal type jobs program.

nt

[Arkana]

8. As one of that "relatively small number of people", Dr. Coburn,

I'd like to tell you to go fuck yourself with a rusty sewer pipe.

[Bitwit1234]

9. I am so damn sick of this fiscal crap

these republicans let bush spend any amount he wanted, not once did they say he was fiscally irresponsible. He took billions in surplus and ran it into trillions in deficit. Not once did they say he was fiscally irresponsible.

Now Obama and the Democrats are trying to clean up bush's mess and the republicans are messing themselves trying to say they are the fiscal ones. WHY IN THE HELL DIDN'T THEY COMPLAIN ABOUT BUSH...WHY NOW WHEN OBAMA AND THE DEMOCRATS ARE TRYING TO PULL THIS COUNTRY BACK TO WHAT IT WAS BEFORE THE BUSH REIGN RUINED IT, THEY CAN'T STAND THE FACT THAT IT WILL SHOW THEM AND BUSH UP AND THEY ARE DOING EVERYTHING THEY CAN TO BLOCK RECOVERY.

[Demoiselle]

10. Well if a "small number" of people doesn't matter so much...

Let's raise the taxes on American's richest people...oh, say the top 2%.
Let's raise those taxes to, oh, say, 70% .

Hell, they'll still have 30 % of their money left, which is more than we can say for the unemployed.
That would certainly help the deficit.

[chill_wind]

11. Right you are! n/t

[Rex]

12. No asshole, the fact is the country WANTED you shitbags to make

hard choices on spending a DECADE AGO. You know, when your shitty party was in charge. I find all Congress critters to the Right to be worthless and should lose their health benefits.

[Beetwasher]

13. Tax Increases For The Wealthy ALSO Would Only Affect A "Small" Number Of People

Things that make you go "Hmmm".

Wonder how he feels about tax increases for wealthy people?

[area51]

14. "The easiest thing in the world is to pass this bill unpaid for..."

Oh, really?

Then why don't you feel that way about the never-ending free ride the military is getting with our tax dollars? They're the reason why we don't have universal health care and a decent social safety net in this country.