House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) has launched a new app on Facebook called Citizen Cosponsor, designed to connect voters with bills making their way through Capitol Hill.

The new platform allows users to “cosponsor” a bill – essentially the equivalent of “liking” in Facebook lingo – and receive updates on its status throughout the legislative process, from committee hearings to votes. There is also a “keep me informed” option, which allows citizens to follow the bill rather than support it.

“We are dedicated to modernizing the way Congress connects with the American people,” Cantor said in a statement. “With the simple click of a button, Citizen Cosponsors will become a part of the deliberative process, using the same social networks they already rely on in their everyday lives.”

Citizen Cosponsor is built on Facebook’s Open Graph, which allows third party developers to create apps that “deeply integrate into the core Facebook experience.”

Matt Lira, director of digital media for Rep. Cantor, says the genesis of the idea came as a challenge to re-think the way Congress can better communicate  with the public in this social media-driven age.

“We’re still in beta,” Lira said. “This hasn’t been done inside of government or Congress [yet], and we envision in the future providing opportunities for more user engagement.”

Lira also cited Rep. Darrell Issa’s (R-Calif.) Project Madison, an interactive blogging platform that allows citizens to comment on individual passages of legislation, as an example of the inspiration behind Citizien Cosponsor.

Cantor’s office hopes that the platform will encourage more engagement between American voters and Congress, as well as create a transparent and open legislative process.

“This is about making sure that you are involved,” Cantor said.

At launch, the platform has six bills and only one of those is sponsored by a Democrat, sparking critics to charge that the app is partisan. Shortly after Rep. Cantor’s office tweeted about the app’s unveiling on Tuesday, the press office of House Minority Whip Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) tweeted back: “We like the idea of Citizen CoSponsor, but why did you re-write the bill titles and descriptions in an entirely partisan way?”

But Lira said he “would dispute that characterization.” He added that Cantor’s office is “looking for ways to involve all people in the program,” which means Democrats, Republicans, and independent voters alike.

As of March 22, the bill with the most Facebook sponsorships is the Republicans’ 20 percent tax cut proposal for businesses with fewer than 500 employees. The bill is sponsored by Cantor and currently has 935 sponsors.

Other bills included on the platform are the DATA (Digital Accounting and Transparency) Act, the Permanent Hyde Rule (no taxpayer funding for abortion) and Repeal IPAB (the health law’s Independent Payment Advisory Board). The one Democrat-sponsored bill is Green’s (D-Texas) Homes for Heroes Act, which has 269 Facebook sponsors, the lowest number of all the bills.

“On the scale of partisanship, I don’t know if this comes on the heavy end,” Lira said, adding that the app  includes Democratic and bi-partisan legislation. “But that’s the typical back and forth of Hill politics. One side does something, the other side throws up a volley, but I’m hopeful we’ll overcome it and succeed.”

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Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/facebook-app-lets-voters-cosponsor-bills-congress-210812812--abc-news.html

Opening up government is easier said than done. That appears to be the reaction of many early observers to “Citizen Cosponsor,” a new web app launched Tuesday by the office of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) designed to allow Americans to “co-sponsor,” or endorse specific bills and to receive updates about their current status through Facebook.

Users who click the “Cosponsor” or “keep me informed” buttons on any one of the six bills currently listed on the Citizen Cosponsor website will automatically get Facebook updates as those bills progress through Congress.

Citizen Cosponsor also lists each bill’s original author and shows all other Facebook users who have “cosponsored” them.

The app has already attracted hundreds of cosponsors on each of the six bills currently listed, revealing it be an early success. But a number of prominent critics in government and the private sector have also already popped up, blasting the app for being partisan and being decidedly non-transparent in crucial areas.

Hours after Rep. Cantor’s press office tweeted about the launch on Tuesday, the press office of House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) tweeted back: “We like the idea of Citizen CoSponsor, but why did you re-write the bill titles and descriptions in an entirely partisan way?”

Indeed, comparing the descriptions of the six bills currently listed on the Citizen Cosponsor website to the descriptions of those same bills on the Library of Congress website reveals that two of the bill titles have been substantially changed and at least three of the descriptions of bills have been substantially rewritten as well. Although, to be fair, bill descriptions generally aren’t the most straightforward pieces of writing to begin with, colored in policy lingo, so the re-written descriptions do serve to clarify them in some respects.

Five of the six bills listed were proposed by Republicans, including Rep. Phil Gingrey’s (R-GA) bill to repeal the health care reform Medicare advisory board and Rep. Christopher Smith’s (R-NJ) bill to end taxpayer funding for institutions that also provide for safe abortion procedures.

But more problematic to Citizen Cosponsor’s critics is the fact that the app doesn’t fully explain the selection process for the bills currently listed.

“How did you select those 6 bills in Citizen CoSponsor?” tweeted Rep. Hoyer’s press office to Rep. Cantor’s on Tuesday, “Partisan? Senate GOPers want you to include the Senate Highway bill.”

“@RepAlGreen has a bill in Citizen Cosponsor, feel free to sponsor his bill or sign up!,” replied Cantor’s press office in a tweet, referencing the Democrat Congressman’s bill to create a new position in the Department of Housing position to oversee veterans affairs.

“My concern about the partisanship of Citizen Cosponsor is borne out of past experience,” said Marci Harris, a former aid to Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA) who left government to found POPVOX, a competing open government platform in the private sector that allows users to gauge public sentiment about bills.

Harris aired her concerns about the new platform in a detailed column on The Huffington Post on Wednesday. She had five key questions about the new app, including “Are ‘Updates’ neutral or partisan talking points?” As Harris wrote:

Will these updates be managed by the Majority Leader’s office? If so, are they partisan messages from the Republican Caucus or will they be couched as updates from the institution of “Congress”? Is the project being managed by the House Majority Leader ‘s communications staff, new media, or by policy staff?

“Those three possible choices aren’t wrong,” Harris told TPM in a phone interview, “It’s just that someone needs to know what they’re signing up for on the front page.”

Harris also noted that the website’s privacy policy was listed on the page of the company that developed it, IB5k, raising questions over whether users of the new app were protected by that company’s privacy policy, Facebook’s, or Congress’s.

Harris was full of praise for the new Citizen Cosposnor initiative, too, calling it a great leap forward but an imperfect one right now.

Citzen Cosponsor, developed by the San Francisco-based software company IB5k, is backed by Facebook and was built using Facebook’s “Open Graph,” a platform that allows for the creation of specific action buttons that tie-into the world’s largest social network. Facebook has not yet responded to TPM’s questions about its role in the project. Neither has IB5k, nor has Rep. Cantor’s office.

Carl Franzen

Carl Franzen is TPM Idea Lab’s tech reporter. He used to work for The Daily, AOL and The Atlantic Wire (though not simultaneously, thankfully). He’s never met a button that didn’t need to be pressed. He can be reached at carl@talkingpointsmemo.com.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said Thursday afternoon that Republicans are delaying a long-term transportation authorization bill because they are trying to find a way to fund federal spending at a time when the government is “out of money.”

“We are in very, very difficult economic times,” Cantor said on the House floor. “We have never faced the kind of problems that we face today as a country from a fiscal standpoint.

“And unfortunately, transportation funding is no different. We’re just out of money. And so we’re trying to take the approach that most American families and business would take, and that is to try and spend within our means, to come with some innovative ways to look at transportation needs and demands in the future, and our being able to meet them.”

Cantor’s comments were a reply to a question from House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), who asked why the House wouldn’t take up the Senate-passed transportation bill. Hoyer said he believed the Senate bill, authorizing $109 billion in federal spending over two years, would pass the House with bipartisan support.

But Cantor replied to Hoyer that he doubted the Senate bill would pass the House.

“I’m not prepared to bring that bill to the floor, because I differ with him in his assumption that there would be enough bipartisan support to pass that bill in the House,” Cantor said. “From all that I know about the Senate bill, there is a lot of disagreement over how that bill was constructed as far as House members are concerned.”

In lieu of the Senate bill, Cantor repeated that Republicans next week would bring up a three-month extension of federal highway programs, which he said would give both parties more time to find a longer-term extension.

Cantor and Hoyer also sparred over the GOP budget resolution, which would cut discretionary spending in 2013 another $19 billion below the $1.047 trillion level both parties agreed to last year. Hoyer warned that Democrats were unlikely to work with Republicans given that they are looking to cut beyond what he said was more than a simple agreement, but was now U.S. law.

“It seems to me that if we’re going to try to keep faith with one other, and with the law that we passed, that we should stick to what we agreed to,” Hoyer said.

Cantor replied that Republicans see the $1.047 trillion as a cap that can be cut further.

“It is our view that the agreement reached in August at the top line was that, a cap,” he said. “We view it very much that we need to continue to try, at least try, to save taxpayer dollars when we are generating over $1 trillion in deficits every year.”

Cantor also took a shot at Hoyer’s party by saying Democrats are not trying hard enough to reduce the deficit.

“Unlike the gentleman’s party or his president, we are actually proposing a solution to the problem, and saving the program for this generation and the next,” he said, adding that this debate is “somewhat of an academic discussion given that the Senate’s not going to pass a budget.”

The House is expected to start work on the GOP budget resolution on Wednesday, and finish up voting on Thursday.

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Article source: http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/house/217623-cantor-on-transportation-bill-delay-were-just-out-of-money

Our daily blend of the latest news, trends and tips for the small business community.

What’s going ‘on’:

House Majority Leader Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.) unveils the Small Business Tax Cut Act of 2012 on Wednesday.
(Alex Wong – GETTY IMAGES)

Cantor proposes small business tax break: House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) on Wednesday introduced a bill that would reduce by up to 20 percent the tax burden for small businesses, which could total up to 50 percent of the wages they pay employees. Under the current language, the tax break would last through the rest of the year and apply to any business with less than 500 employees.

Senate moves ahead on small business investment bill: The Senate voted on Wednesday to move forward on the JOBS Act, which would make it easier for small businesses to raise money, increasing the chances it could emerge as one of the few bipartisan bills to pass through Congress this election year. The 76-22 vote sets up another on final passage planned for Thursday after the Senate votes on two amendments addressing aspects of investor protection.

Housing data disappoints: Previously owned home sales dropped 0.9 percent in February, according to a report released Wednesday, lower than expected by economists. The disappointing number indicates that roughly five years after the housing bubble burst, the real estate market’s road forward remains bumpy.

Keep an eye ‘on’:

Entrepreneurs urge lawmakers to work with them on regulations:Co-founders of Honest Tea and Pork Barrel BBQ testified before the House Committee on Small Business on Wednesday, outlining policy recommendations they say would foster entrepreneurship and help young companies grow quickly, including taking a “partnership” attitude toward regulation enforcement.

Jeremy Lin pushing Volvo: Emerging NBA star Jeremy Lin has signed a two-year contract with automaker Volvo to promote the company’s cars around the world but especially in Asia, according to an announcement on Tuesday. Lin will participate in Volvo’s worldwide corporate and marketing activities as a brand ambassador.

Helpful advice ‘on’:

How to become an expert in your industry (Open Forum)

How to hire the right press relations professional (Yahoo)

How business etiquette can close a deal (Florida Times-Union)

How women can get their share of contracting work (SBA)

How to build a business mentoring relationship (CNN Money)

Article source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/on-small-business/post/get-started-on-mar-22-cantor-proposes-small-business-tax-break-senate-moves-forward-on-jobs-act/2012/03/21/gIQAmJqUSS_blog.html

Freshman U.S. Representative Adam Kinzinger’s defeat of 10-term Illinois incumbent Don Manzullo,
with help from House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, prompted an
anti-tax group to warn Republican leaders not to take sides in
other intra-party races.

The Club for Growth, which supports fiscally conservative
Republican candidates, said it would support Arizona
Representative David Schweikert in a Republican primary fight if
House leaders back his fellow Republican, Ben Quayle.

Hours after Kinzinger, 34, a former military combat pilot,
was declared the winner over Manzullo in the March 20 Illinois
Republican primary, Club for Growth President Chris Chocola
urged House leaders to stay neutral in the Arizona race between
the two freshman Republicans. Both incumbent-versus-incumbent
races were prompted by legislative redistricting.

The Club for Growth was “alarmed” to see Cantor
“aggressively take sides in favor” of Kinzinger because
“Manzullo clearly had a better record of voting for limited
government,” Chocola said in a letter to Cantor, House Speaker
John Boehner of Ohio and Republican Whip Kevin McCarthy of
California.

The redrawn Illinois 16th congressional district stretches
from the Illinois-Wisconsin line north and west of Chicago south
and east to the Indiana line.

Cantor had taken the unusual step of making an endorsement
during a Republican primary. YG Action Fund, a super-PAC run by
ex-Cantor aides, spent $52,000 to produce and place radio ads to
help Kinzinger. That’s the only independent expenditure the
super-PAC has reported, according to its Federal Election
Commission filings.

‘Get His Name Out’

Those radio ads “definitely helped get his name out there
in the final days,” said Jessica Taylor, a senior analyst with
the non-partisan Rothenberg Political Report.

In his letter, Chocola said if Republican leaders try to
defeat Schweikert, the “Club for Growth PAC will vigorously
come to his defense.”

The letter noted that Boehner’s Freedom Project PAC had
given $10,000 to Quayle, the son of former Vice President Dan
Quayle, before legislative redistricting pitted him against
Schweikert. Chocola urged Boehner “in the name of neutrality”
to give $10,000 to Schweikert’s campaign as well.

Cory Fritz, a spokesman for Boehner’s political action
committee, didn’t respond to an e-mailed request for comment.

Ray Allen Jr., a spokesman for Cantor’s re-election
campaign in Virginia, said the majority leader “has not
endorsed in the Arizona race” and “has appeared at events for
both gentlemen.”

Risks for Party Leaders

Cantor’s endorsement of Kinzinger and the Club for Growth’s
reaction shows the risk of leaders getting involved in intra-
party disputes, said John Pitney, a political scientist at
Claremont Mckenna College in Claremont, California.

“The risks exceed the benefits of getting involved,” he
said. “It’s very seldom going to end well.”

Schweikert, who was briefly a member of the House
leadership whip organization, called the Club for Growth’s
letter “heartwarming” because “it demonstrates that some of
the conservative community has made it clear they are going to
step up and defend us.”

The 50-year-old lawmaker said the Aug. 28 primary against
Quayle “seems to becoming a proxy” for “establishment versus
reform.”

‘Outside Groups’

Because “I am not the son of a former vice president,”
Schweikert said “we fully expect” that “outside groups
because of that relationship step into our race.”

In Illinois, Manzullo and Kinzinger ran against each other
because of redistricting after the state lost a House seat after
the 2010 U.S. Census.

Manzullo, 67, was targeted by the independent Campaign for
Primary Accountability, a super-PAC that has spent more than $1
million to challenge incumbents, according to the Center for
Responsive Politics, a non-partisan Washington-based group that
monitors campaign finance.

The Campaign for Primary Accountability spent $227,731 on
direct-mail ads, postcard mailings and other independent
campaign efforts seeking to defeat Manzullo.

Kinzinger’s 56 percent victory to Manzullo’s 44 percent is
tantamount to election because no Democrat filed to run in the
congressional district.

‘Even Worse Record’

Kinzinger, a former Air National Guard pilot who served
five tours of duty in Afghanistan and Iraq, was elected to
Congress in 2010 with support from the Tea Party movement.

Chocola’s letter said Kinzinger had an “even worse
record” on issues important to the Club for Growth than
Manzullo.

In his campaign ads, Kinzinger characterized Manzullo as
being part of the “old majority” of House Republicans that
“lost its way on spending” by supporting a 60 percent increase
in federal expenditures during the two terms of President George W. Bush.

Manzullo cast himself as the true “conservative choice,”
saying in one ad that Kinzinger “isn’t much different than the
Democrat he replaced.”

Manzullo’s defeat by Kinzinger may be a warning to
Representative John Mica, a 10-term incumbent who is pitted in a
Florida primary against a freshman Republican, Pitney said.

‘Old Bulls’

“In a year like this, the old bulls need to watch their
backs” Pitney said, because saying “‘I’ve served in Washington
a long time’ doesn’t necessary earn a lot of points with the
electorate.”

Mica, who is running against freshman Republican Sandy
Adams, said Manzullo’s defeat is isn’t unsettling. Mica says he
takes comfort that, this year, Manzullo had support from Tea
Party-allied groups.

“Mr Manzullo was a sweetheart for the Tea Party, so was my
potential opponent, so I got a little grin on my face today,”
he said.

To contact the reporter on this story:
James Rowley in Washington at
jarowley@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Jodi Schneider at
jschneider50@bloomberg.net

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Article source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-03-21/kinzinger-defeats-manzullo-in-house-primary-in-illinois.html

“Citizen Cosponsor,” a new platform from House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), lets Facebook users show their support of a particular Congressional bill with the click of a mouse.

[More from Mashable: The Copyright Question: How to Protect Yourself on Pinterest]

Once a user “cosponsors” a bill, they receive periodic updates on its status — if there’s a hearing about it, whether it’s passed committee, or if it’s up for a full vote in Congress. Facebook automatically shows off a user’s support of a bill to all of his or her friends.

[More from Mashable: Nimble Streamlines Your Company’s Communication Over Social Media]

The platform is built on Facebook’s Open Graph, which lets developers create apps that seamlessly integrate into Facebook users’ news feeds and Timelines. Funding for the project came from directly from Rep. Cantor’s office.

Matt Lira, director of new media for Rep. Cantor, says the idea was sparked after Facebook launched Open Graph and the first apps to make use of it were released.

“We saw examples of its usage with The Washington Post’s Social Reader and Spotify and we said, ‘woah, we probably can’t do things as cool as they do, but there’s probably a nugget of an idea there we could use,’” says Lira.

Cantor’s office intends the platform to create more engagement between voters and government.

“We are dedicated to modernizing the way Congress connects with the American people,” said Rep. Cantor in a statement. “Citizen Cosponsor breaks ground by directly connecting people with the work the House is doing every day.”

“We’re looking at ways to connect people specifically to the bills that they care about,” added Lira.

At launch, the platform only allows users to register their support for a bill — users can’t suggest changes or have an conversation about the bill directly on Cantor’s site. And only six bills — five of which sponsored by Republicans — are on the app so far.

Lira says that Citizen CoSponsor is still “in beta,” and they’re looking for ways to add more engagement in the future.

“We have a startup mentality to it,” says Lira. “When Twitter first started, it was just going to be for cell phones, now it is what it is today. It’s evolutionary, so you want to see how users use it and if the engagement justifies it, we’ll expand it out.”

The new media team at Cantor’s office is drawing inspiration from both sides of the aisle. Lira says he’s a fan of Rep. Issa’s (R-Calif.) Madison Project as well as the White House’s “We the People” online petitions. He talked about online bill markups, hearings and expert roundtables as possibilites for ways to expand the Citizen Cosponsor in the future.

“We want the program to give more to users than is asks of them,” says Lira. “The only way this stuff works is if you have a tolerance for experimentation and a certain level of patience. I’ve been impressed with We the People and that’s very experimental — it’s in the spirit of ‘let’s throw something out there and see if it works.’ Otherwise, there’s the alternative: a conference room of ideas that never happen.”

At launch, Citizen CoSponsor only has one Democrat-sponsored bill, from Texas Rep. Al Green. And Democrats might not be a fan of the platform’s reference to “Obamacare,” considered a right-wing term for the Affordable Health Care Act. Lira acknowledged that some people consider “Obamacare” a partisan name, but he says it’s the term most people are familiar with. However, he added that such criticism is “the kind of feedback we’re listening to.” He says he isn’t opposed to finding ways to expand the platform to the other side of the aisle.

“We are looking for ways to work with [the Democrats],” says Lira. “It’s a two-sided coin, but as it grows that’s something that interests me. I’m optimistic that will be the case, but we’ll see.”

Do you see any bills on Rep. Cantor’s site you would want to co-sponsor? Do you want more opportunities for engagement from the platform? Sound off in the comments.

Thumbnail image courtesy of iStockphoto, pagadesign

This story originally published on Mashable here.

Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/facebook-app-lets-cosponsor-bills-congress-124340167.html

• By
  Jessica Brady and John Stanton
• Roll Call Staff
• March 22, 2012, Midnight

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House Republicans might not like the idea of one of their leaders picking favorites in Member-vs.-Member primaries, but at least for Majority Leader Eric Cantor, his backing of a winner in the Illinois GOP primary decision has only solidified his power base.

In the wake of Rep. Adam Kinzinger’s victory over Rep. Don Manzullo on Tuesday — winning 56 percent to 44 percent — Congressional observers note that despite some short-term gripes directed at Cantor, in the long run, his effort in Illinois could pay off for his own ambitions. It also poses a threat to outside groups who jealously guard their own status as kingmakers.

“It’s about, ‘Alright, I want to be a successful Speaker, and I’m going to lay it down now over a long period of years and be in a very strong position,’” one GOP lawmaker said.

The lawmaker also said Cantor’s move further indicates “he’s playing with real bullets and he has the capacity to affect outcomes. Is that such a bad thing?”

Cantor has made recruiting young, conservative candidates a top priority and helped bring dozens of them to Congress during the 2010 cycle.

“Eric is the only member of leadership to endorse a presidential candidate that I’m aware of, and so I wasn’t shocked,” Rep. John Campbell (R-Calif.) said. “Not because of who was in the race, but because Eric tends to make his opinions known. He will err on that side rather than keeping it quiet.”

The YG Action Fund super PAC — run by a former Cantor aide — spent $52,000 on a radio ad boosting Kinzinger, the freshman who ran against the 10-term Manzullo and whom Cantor personally endorsed.

Cantor’s move did not go unnoticed, particularly among conservatives who have caused their own stir in GOP primaries. On Wednesday, Club for Growth President Chris Chocola warned House leaders not to show favoritism in the Arizona primary between GOP Reps. David Schweikert and Ben Quayle. In a letter, the former Indiana Congressman cited the Illinois primary and called for neutrality in Arizona.

“Should it become apparent that you are choosing sides on behalf of Rep. Quayle, the Club for Growth PAC will consider it necessary to intervene on behalf of Rep. Schweikert,” Chocola wrote. “As is our practice, if the Club’s PAC entered this primary, it is highly likely that our 75,000 members would donate considerably more funds to Rep. Schweikert’s campaign than the Republican House leadership would contribute to Rep. Quayle’s campaign.”

The club letter was the most visible sign of unrest Wednesday, in addition to grumblings from some rank-and-file Members. Other Republicans said Manzullo’s demands for Cantor’s resignation and claims of widespread unrest over his endorsement produced headlines but predicted no big drop-off for Cantor.

Kinzinger’s decisive victory, winning by 12 points when many observers predicted a far closer race, could also help soothe any hurt feelings among senior Members who were wary of a veteran lawmaker being targeted for defeat. The rationale goes that given how handily Kinzinger defeated Manzullo, those Members might simply see it as Cantor recognizing the reality that “it was time for Manzullo to retire,” one leadership aide said.

Some veteran lawmakers were left wondering Wednesday “if they may be next,” another GOP Member said.

The next likely GOP Member-vs.-Member primary is Aug. 14 in Florida, where another freshman lawmaker, Rep. Sandy Adams, is likely to face veteran Rep. John Mica. The Quayle-Schweikert race is Aug. 28. And Reps. Charles Boustany and Jeff Landry face off in Louisiana’s Nov. 6 nonpartisan primary.

Furthermore, although the issue of the Illinois primary was not broached in the Conference meeting this week, according to a source at the meeting, some predict it will surely be raised next week when Manzullo returns. How things play out from there will be more telling, sources said.

“This will undoubtedly cause some consternation,” a GOP strategist said. “From the rank-and-file Member’s perspective, leadership is not elected to be in the business of picking winning and losers within the Conference. From a leadership perspective, it also requires spending a lot of political capital, perhaps to an undesired effect.”

Adding another wrinkle is whether a new group, the Campaign for Primary Accountability, will continue to make its presence felt in these primaries. The super PAC spent a whopping $222,000 on Kinzinger’s behalf late in the race. The six-figure sum is more cash than the controversial group has spent in any other race this cycle.

The super PAC spent at least $75,000 on television ads and $18,000 on radio spots knocking Manzullo and pumping up Kinzinger, according to Federal Election Commission records. Online reports show it also unloaded at least $104,700 in direct mail on the race through postcards and other pieces.

CPA targets incumbents in primaries in safe districts, regardless of party affiliation, according to spokesman Curtis Ellis. Its most notable success was spending against Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Ohio), who lost her primary earlier this month.

Abby Livingston and Shira Toeplitz contributed to this report.

Article source: http://www.rollcall.com/issues/57_114/Eric-Cantor-Uses-Real-Bullets-Primary-Endorsement-213305-1.html

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Va., accompanied by fellow GOP leaders, gestures during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2012 to discuss the payroll tax cut negotiations. From left are, House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., Cantor, and House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

House Republican leaders should stay out the upcoming Arizona Republican congressional primary between Rep. Ben Quayle and Rep. David Schweikert, the Club for Growth warned Wednesday, or they will be outspent and outmatched by outside groups.

This was the message in an open letter from Club for Growth president Chris Chocola about the incumbent-on-incumbent battle caused by recent redistricting.

The warning came after the Young Guns PAC, aligned with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, endorsed freshman Rep. Adam Kinzinger over longtime Rep. Don Manzullo in a similar Illinois fight. the tea party-aligned group FreedomWorks stepped in to support Manzullo, who has the more conservative voting record by most available ratings.

Chocola’s group remained “neutral” in the Illinois race since neither candidate had a sufficiently conservative record to merit its support. But he wrote that the Club for Growth was “alarmed” by the leadership’s involvement. Kitzinger, a House freshman, ultimately beat his more senior opponent.

Chocola wrote that the Club is also neutral in the upcoming Schweikert vs. Quayle battle, but only because both have “outstanding pro-growth voting records.”

However, “should it become apparent that you are choosing sides on behalf of Rep. Quayle, the Club for Growth PAC will consider it necessary to intervene on behalf of Rep. Schweikert. As is our practice, if the Club’s PAC entered this primary, it is highly likely that our 75,000 members would donate considerably more funds to Rep. Schweikert’s campaign than the Republican leadership would contribute to Rep. Quayle’s campaign,” Chocola wrote.

The concern over the Arizona race stems from the fact that Speaker of the House John Boehner has donated already to Quayle, but not yet to Schweikert.

“We’d be more than a counterbalance” in Arizona, said spokesman Barney Keller. “Aside from the party committees, last cycle, no one raised more money for the Republican candidates” than the Club for Growth.

“We’ll put our record up against anyone’s,” he said, pointing to the Club’s support of Sen. Pat Toomey and Sen. Marco Rubio over their establishment opponents, and its support of Sen. Rand Paul even when his bid seemed like a long shot.

The Club for Growth would get involved on behalf of Schweikert, Chocola wrote, only if House Leadership should choose to help Quayle.

“It is our preference to remain on the sidelines of the Arizona race, as both candidates have fine records. However, we will not sit back and allow House Republican leaders to invest resources with impunity against an incumbent fiscal conservative like Rep. David Schweikert.”

Asked whether the same would hold if the House Leadership were to side with Schweikert, an operative with ties to conservative groups — including the Club for Growth — simply said, “we believe they should remain neutral.” The source repeated the same response when the Daily Caller pressed for an answer.

FreedomWorks chief operating officer Ryan Hecker questioned the premise of taking action solely in the case that house leadership does so first.

“We don’t get involved just because of what the leadership does or doesn’t do,” Hecker said. He explained that involvement with the Manzullo campaign came after a process of consideration. The timing, coinciding with Cantor’s support of Kinzinger, he said, was simply “fortuitous.”

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Article source: http://dailycaller.com/2012/03/21/club-for-growth-threatens-to-outspend-house-leadership-in-ariz-primary-race/

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (left) doesn’t believe Rep. Cliff Stearns’ (right) birtherism is a problem

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) rushed to defend his colleague, Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL), today after the latter admitted recently that he is a birther.

As ThinkProgress first reported last week, Stearns — a top GOP lawmaker who has taken the lead in investigating Planned Parenthood and Solyndra — told a town hall meeting in February that it’s a “legitimate…question” whether President Obama was born in the United States. When pressed by reporters yesterday, Stearns confirmed his doubts, pointing to Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s birther investigation that declared Obama’s birth certificate to be a “forgery and fraud.”

Amidst concerns about Stearns’ suitability as a top congressional investigator, Cantor stepped in today to assure reporters that Stearns “has my full confidence”:

“I think Cliff Stearns does a good job with the chairmanship of his subcommittee,” Cantor told The Hill in the Capitol Wednesday. “He has my full confidence.”

Cantor was responding to a question about whether it’s appropriate to have someone who has questioned Obama’s birth certificate leading a probe of the White House.

The GOP leader, in the very brief interview, made clear that he’s not among the people that question the president’s citizenship. “Let’s just get it straight … I believe the president is an American citizen, so that question I can dispense with,” Cantor said.

Though not a birther himself, Cantor is developing a reputation as a birther-apologist. Last year, he refused to criticize those who do not believe the president is an American citizen, telling NBC host David Gregory, “I don’t think it’s nice to call anyone crazy, OK?”

Cantor may be unwilling to candidly and correctly criticize members of his party who advance absurd conspiracy theories, but some congressmen underneath him are more frank. Rep. Lee Terry (R-NE), who serves with Stearns on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, criticized his colleague to Politico. “You really put me on a box on this one,” Terry said when asked about it. “Let’s just say I disagree with his position and that is somewhat distracting from the issues we’re trying to work on in this committee.”

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Article source: http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2012/03/21/449579/cantor-stearns-birther/

Congress and Facebook are about to get a little bit closer.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) unveiled a new app on Tuesday called Citizen Cosponsor, which is designed to connect voters with bills being debated on Capitol Hill.

“We are dedicated to modernizing the way Congress connects with the American people,” Cantor said in a statement. “Citizen Cosponsor breaks ground by directly connecting people with the work the House is doing every day.”

Mashable explains that users can “cosponsor” a bill to receive updates on its status, ranging from hearings to committee votes to full votes. Facebook then shares the user’s support for a bill on their profile. There is also a “keep me informed” option for citizens looking to solely follow bills.

Critics of the program charge that there is a partisan slant. Mashable notes that Citizen Cosponsor’s launch includes only one bill sponsored by a Democrat. TPM adds that hours after Cantor’s press team tweeted an introduction to the platform, House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer’s (D-Md.) press office tweeted at Cantor’s team: “We like the idea of Citizen CoSponsor, but why did you re-write the bill titles and descriptions in an entirely partisan way?”

WATCH Cantor’s introduction above.

Also on HuffPost:

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Article source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/21/citizen-cosponsor-eric-cantor-facebook-app_n_1370509.html

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (left) doesn’t believe Rep. Cliff Stearns’ (right) birtherism is a problem

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) rushed to defend his colleague, Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL), today after the latter admitted recently that he is a birther.

As ThinkProgress first reported last week, Stearns — a top GOP lawmaker who has taken the lead in investigating Planned Parenthood and Solyndra — told a town hall meeting in February that it’s a “legitimate…question” whether President Obama was born in the United States. When pressed by reporters yesterday, Stearns confirmed his doubts, pointing to Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s birther investigation that declared Obama’s birth certificate to be a “forgery and fraud.”

Amidst concerns about Stearns’ suitability as a top congressional investigator, Cantor stepped in today to assure reporters that Stearns “has my full confidence”:

“I think Cliff Stearns does a good job with the chairmanship of his subcommittee,” Cantor told The Hill in the Capitol Wednesday. “He has my full confidence.”

Cantor was responding to a question about whether it’s appropriate to have someone who has questioned Obama’s birth certificate leading a probe of the White House.

The GOP leader, in the very brief interview, made clear that he’s not among the people that question the president’s citizenship. “Let’s just get it straight … I believe the president is an American citizen, so that question I can dispense with,” Cantor said.

Though not a birther himself, Cantor is developing a reputation as a birther-apologist. Last year, he refused to criticize those who do not believe the president is an American citizen, telling NBC host David Gregory, “I don’t think it’s nice to call anyone crazy, OK?”

Cantor may be unwilling to candidly and correctly criticize members of his party who advance absurd conspiracy theories, but some congressmen underneath him are more frank. Rep. Lee Terry (R-NE), who serves with Stearns on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, criticized his colleague to Politico. “You really put me on a box on this one,” Terry said when asked about it. “Let’s just say I disagree with his position and that is somewhat distracting from the issues we’re trying to work on in this committee.”

<!–

(for webtech) Posted in General, Politics

–>

 Previous in TP Politics

Article source: http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2012/03/21/449579/cantor-stearns-birther/

“Citizen Cosponsor,” a new platform from House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), lets Facebook users show their support of a particular Congressional bill with the click of a mouse.

Once a user “cosponsors” a bill, they receive periodic updates on its status — if there’s a hearing about it, whether it’s passed committee, or if it’s up for a full vote in Congress. Facebook automatically shows off a user’s support of a bill to all of his or her friends.

The platform is built on Facebook’s Open Graph, which lets developers create apps that seamlessly integrate into Facebook users’ news feeds and Timelines. Funding for the project came from directly from Rep. Cantor’s office.

Matt Lira, director of new media for Rep. Cantor, says the idea was sparked after Facebook launched Open Graph and the first apps to make use of it were released.

“We saw examples of its usage with The Washington Post’s Social Reader and Spotify and we said, ‘woah, we probably can’t do things as cool as they do, but there’s probably a nugget of an idea there we could use,’” says Lira.

Cantor’s office intends the platform to create more engagement between voters and government.

“We are dedicated to modernizing the way Congress connects with the American people,” said Rep. Cantor in a statement. “Citizen Cosponsor breaks ground by directly connecting people with the work the House is doing every day.”

“We’re looking at ways to connect people specifically to the bills that they care about,” added Lira.

At launch, the platform only allows users to register their support for a bill — users can’t suggest changes or have an conversation about the bill directly on Cantor’s site. And only six bills — five of which sponsored by Republicans — are on the app so far.

Lira says that Citizen CoSponsor is still “in beta,” and they’re looking for ways to add more engagement in the future.

“We have a startup mentality to it,” says Lira. “When Twitter first started, it was just going to be for cell phones, now it is what it is today. It’s evolutionary, so you want to see how users use it and if the engagement justifies it, we’ll expand it out.”

The new media team at Cantor’s office is drawing inspiration from both sides of the aisle. Lira says he’s a fan of Rep. Issa’s (R-Calif.) Madison Project as well as the White House’s “We the People” online petitions. He talked about online bill markups, hearings and expert roundtables as possibilites for ways to expand the Citizen Cosponsor in the future.

“We want the program to give more to users than is asks of them,” says Lira. “The only way this stuff works is if you have a tolerance for experimentation and a certain level of patience. I’ve been impressed with We the People and that’s very experimental — it’s in the spirit of ‘let’s throw something out there and see if it works.’ Otherwise, there’s the alternative: a conference room of ideas that never happen.”

At launch, Citizen CoSponsor only has one Democrat-sponsored bill, from Texas Rep. Al Green. And Democrats might not be a fan of the platform’s reference to “Obamacare,” considered a right-wing term for the Affordable Health Care Act. Lira acknowledged that some people consider “Obamacare” a partisan name, but he says it’s the term most people are familiar with. However, he added that such criticism is “the kind of feedback we’re listening to.” He says he isn’t opposed to finding ways to expand the platform to the other side of the aisle.

“We are looking for ways to work with [the Democrats],” says Lira. “It’s a two-sided coin, but as it grows that’s something that interests me. I’m optimistic that will be the case, but we’ll see.”

Do you see any bills on Rep. Cantor’s site you would want to co-sponsor? Do you want more opportunities for engagement from the platform? Sound off in the comments.

Thumbnail image courtesy of iStockphoto, pagadesign

Article source: http://mashable.com/2012/03/21/citizen-cosponsor-facebook/

WASHINGTON — House Majority Leader Eric Cantor on Wednesday unveiled a $46 billion economic stimulus bill that would cut taxes for small businesses — and offer a windfall for wealthy celebrities and hedge funds.

The Small Business Tax Cut Act would grant a one-year 20 percent cut on taxes paid by small businesses, defined by the federal government as companies that employ fewer than 500 people.

“We need to help our small businesses. That’s what this does,” said Cantor (R-Va.) at a Capitol Hill news conference. “We hope it will go forward in a bipartisan manner, just like the JOBS Act went through the House, because I don’t think any of us can disagree that right now especially is the best time to help small-business men and women.”

Cantor’s bill removes a restriction that, in previous versions of the legislation, would have barred certain highly compensated professions — such as finance, law and health — from receiving the tax cut. The change allows people such as hedge fund managers, corporate lawyers, surgeons and celebrities to qualify for the break. Donald Trump and Oprah could qualify, for instance.

“In the first version, they were kept out, but in this one, they’re in,” said Chuck Marr, a director at the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. “This is really just a tax cut for the richest people in the country.”

In fact, of the 400 richest taxpayers in the United States, 202 would qualify for the break, according to 2008 statistics from the Internal Revenue Service. Those 202 taxpayers averaged an adjusted gross income of $21.5 million.

But Cantor defended the move.

“As far as excluding businesses, which one may or may not approve of their legal activities, we don’t make those distinctions when we’re talking about corporate rates or individual rates,” Cantor said.

He argued that businesses with few employees would not be able to take too much advantage because the tax break is capped at 50 percent of what the company pays to its workers or to its minor owners and family members who work for the business, whichever is greater.

“So there’s not going to be a potential for that kind of abuse,” Cantor said. “We’re really about trying to help the small business owners who are out there working every day, and it just seems the government has got in the way. And we’re just trying to provide them with some relief.”

Cantor also defended proposing a $46 billion bill that would not be paid for.

“We in our budget provide for trillions of dollars in mandatory savings that help resolve the budget deficit and increasing debt in this country,” he said. “We don’t feel it’s appropriate to burden small businesses, and that’s why we are going forward with this bill.”

Michael McAuliff covers politics and Congress for The Huffington Post. Talk to him on Facebook.

Also on HuffPost:

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Article source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/21/small-business-tax-cut-eric-cantor_n_1371147.html

“Citizen Cosponsor,” a new platform from House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), lets Facebook users show their support of a particular Congressional bill with the click of a mouse.

[More from Mashable: The Copyright Question: How to Protect Yourself on Pinterest]

Once a user “cosponsors” a bill, they receive periodic updates on its status — if there’s a hearing about it, whether it’s passed committee, or if it’s up for a full vote in Congress. Facebook automatically shows off a user’s support of a bill to all of his or her friends.

[More from Mashable: Nimble Streamlines Your Company’s Communication Over Social Media]

The platform is built on Facebook’s Open Graph, which lets developers create apps that seamlessly integrate into Facebook users’ news feeds and Timelines. Funding for the project came from directly from Rep. Cantor’s office.

Matt Lira, director of new media for Rep. Cantor, says the idea was sparked after Facebook launched Open Graph and the first apps to make use of it were released.

“We saw examples of its usage with The Washington Post’s Social Reader and Spotify and we said, ‘woah, we probably can’t do things as cool as they do, but there’s probably a nugget of an idea there we could use,’” says Lira.

Cantor’s office intends the platform to create more engagement between voters and government.

“We are dedicated to modernizing the way Congress connects with the American people,” said Rep. Cantor in a statement. “Citizen Cosponsor breaks ground by directly connecting people with the work the House is doing every day.”

“We’re looking at ways to connect people specifically to the bills that they care about,” added Lira.

At launch, the platform only allows users to register their support for a bill — users can’t suggest changes or have an conversation about the bill directly on Cantor’s site. And only six bills — five of which sponsored by Republicans — are on the app so far.

Lira says that Citizen CoSponsor is still “in beta,” and they’re looking for ways to add more engagement in the future.

“We have a startup mentality to it,” says Lira. “When Twitter first started, it was just going to be for cell phones, now it is what it is today. It’s evolutionary, so you want to see how users use it and if the engagement justifies it, we’ll expand it out.”

The new media team at Cantor’s office is drawing inspiration from both sides of the aisle. Lira says he’s a fan of Rep. Issa’s (R-Calif.) Madison Project as well as the White House’s “We the People” online petitions. He talked about online bill markups, hearings and expert roundtables as possibilites for ways to expand the Citizen Cosponsor in the future.

“We want the program to give more to users than is asks of them,” says Lira. “The only way this stuff works is if you have a tolerance for experimentation and a certain level of patience. I’ve been impressed with We the People and that’s very experimental — it’s in the spirit of ‘let’s throw something out there and see if it works.’ Otherwise, there’s the alternative: a conference room of ideas that never happen.”

At launch, Citizen CoSponsor only has one Democrat-sponsored bill, from Texas Rep. Al Green. And Democrats might not be a fan of the platform’s reference to “Obamacare,” considered a right-wing term for the Affordable Health Care Act. Lira acknowledged that some people consider “Obamacare” a partisan name, but he says it’s the term most people are familiar with. However, he added that such criticism is “the kind of feedback we’re listening to.” He says he isn’t opposed to finding ways to expand the platform to the other side of the aisle.

“We are looking for ways to work with [the Democrats],” says Lira. “It’s a two-sided coin, but as it grows that’s something that interests me. I’m optimistic that will be the case, but we’ll see.”

Do you see any bills on Rep. Cantor’s site you would want to co-sponsor? Do you want more opportunities for engagement from the platform? Sound off in the comments.

Thumbnail image courtesy of iStockphoto, pagadesign

This story originally published on Mashable here.

Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/facebook-app-lets-cosponsor-bills-congress-124340167.html

Congress and Facebook are about to get a little bit closer.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) unveiled a new app on Tuesday called Citizen Cosponsor, which is designed to connect voters with bills being debated on Capitol Hill.

“We are dedicated to modernizing the way Congress connects with the American people,” Cantor said in a statement. “Citizen Cosponsor breaks ground by directly connecting people with the work the House is doing every day.”

Mashable explains that users can “cosponsor” a bill to receive updates on its status, ranging from hearings to committee votes to full votes. Facebook then shares the user’s support for a bill on their profile. There is also a “keep me informed” option for citizens looking to solely follow bills.

Critics of the program charge that there is a partisan slant. Mashable notes that Citizen Cosponsor’s launch includes only one bill sponsored by a Democrat. TPM adds that hours after Cantor’s press team tweeted an introduction to the platform, House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer’s (D-Md.) press office tweeted at Cantor’s team: “We like the idea of Citizen CoSponsor, but why did you re-write the bill titles and descriptions in an entirely partisan way?”

WATCH Cantor’s introduction above.

Also on HuffPost:

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Article source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/21/citizen-cosponsor-eric-cantor-facebook-app_n_1370509.html

More than two dozen AIDS activists protesting the ban on federal funding for needle-exchange programs were arrested after staging sit-ins in House lawmakers’ offices Wednesday morning.



Capitol Police took 29 protesters into custody after they descended on the offices of House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), and Reps. Denny Rehberg (R-Mont.) and Hal Rogers (R-Ky.).



According to Capitol Police spokeswoman Sgt. Kimberly Schneider, nine individuals were detained in Rehberg’s office in the Rayburn House office building and are charged with demonstrating within a Capitol building.
 
Ten more suspects were arrested in Roger’s Rayburn office, also charged with demonstrating within a Capitol building. The remaining ten individuals were arrested in the Capitol Building and are charged with unlawful entry.
 
Schneider could not confirm the suspects’ affiliations, but an AIDS activism organization claimed responsibility for the protests and several arrests Wednesday.


According to a statement put out by a member of Housing Works, an AIDS outreach organization that provides support services in New York, the protesters targeted the four lawmakers for their role in reinstating the ban on federal funding for needle-exchange programs last December.



“Our government should be embarrassed as this year’s host of the International AIDS Conference to have sneaked this into an unrelated bill under the cloak of night last December” wrote Charles King, CEO of Housing Works. “The U.S. cannot be any shining example to the rest of the world on how to end the AIDS epidemic when we’re still fighting foolish policies that reject what we know works.”
 

The issue of the use of federal funding for needle-exchange programs, particularly in the District of Columbia, has been a point of congressional contention for years.
 
In early 2011, the GOP-led House approved a bill preventing needle exchanges. Last April, Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) said Congress had “killed” D.C. residents by not allowing them to pay for their own needle-exchange programs.
 
“We have the highest AIDS rate in the United States only because the Congress of the United States has killed — I used these words advisedly — killed men, women and children in the District of Columbia by keeping the District for 10 years from using needle exchange so that AIDS would spread throughout the city,” she said on the House floor.



Norton and local D.C. officials have also struggled continuously to remove policy riders on federal budget bills banning the use of funds for needle-exchange programs.



Wednesday’s sit-ins against the ban were part of a larger series of protests across the country called the National Day of Action. 

Many of the groups participating in the protests are organized under the banner of The We Can End AIDS Coalition, which is planning a massive mobilization in the District on July 24, according to the statement.

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Article source: http://thehill.com/homenews/house/217299-aids-activists-detained-following-sit-ins-in-boehner-cantor-offices

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said he has “full confidence” in Rep. Ciff Stearns (R-Fla.), the GOP’s point person in the Solyndra probe, despite Stearns’ recent remark that he’s not certain whether President Obama’s birth certificate is legitimate.

“I think Cliff Stearns does a good job with the chairmanship of his subcommittee,” Cantor told The Hill in the Capitol Wednesday. “He has my full confidence.”

Cantor was responding to a question about whether it’s appropriate to have someone who has questioned Obama’s birth certificate leading a probe of the White House.

The GOP leader, in the very brief interview, made clear that he’s not among the people that question the president’s citizenship. “Let’s just get it straight .. I believe the president is an American citizen, so that question I can dispense with,” Cantor said.

Stearns heads the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, which is part of the powerful Energy and Commerce Committee. He is leading the GOP probe of Solyndra, the California solar panel company that went belly-up last September after receiving a $535 million Energy Department loan guarantee in 2009.

The probe is focusing heavily on White House involvement with the loan guarantee, and has included a November subpoena for White House documents and many other inquiries.

Stearns said Tuesday that he’s not yet convinced Obama’s birth certificate is legitimate, noting he is “looking at all the evidence.”

“I think we are just going to hold in abeyance a final decision until we hear, you know, some of these people seem to have legitimate concerns, so I don’t think it is unreasonable just to see what they have to say,” Stearns said. He also questioned the birth certificate at a meeting with constituents in late February.

Overwhelming evidence shows that Obama was born in Hawaii and is a U.S.
citizen, but members of what has been called the “birther” movement have
continued to dispute his nationality.

In April 2011, the White
House released Obama’s long-form birth certificate to the public, hoping
to put the matter to bed for good.

But the issue has popped back
up repeatedly — most recently in early March, when Maricopa County,
Ariz., Sheriff Joe Arpaio said he had evidence the document was a fake.

back to top

Article source: http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/217367-cantor-has-full-confidence-in-stearns-despite-birther-questions

U.S. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor won’t limit which industries are eligible for a 20
percent tax cut for small businesses that he will propose today.

The bill would cut taxes for companies with fewer than 500
workers and would cap the deduction at 50 percent of wages paid
to employees, Laena Fallon, a spokeswoman for Cantor, confirmed.
Removing the limits means that companies that can generate
significant profits from relatively few workers might be
eligible for the tax break.

Cantor, a Virginia Republican, plans to release details of
the bill today. The bill will apply only in 2012, Fallon said.

Cantor said last month that Republican leaders plan to
bring the measure to the House floor before the April 17 tax-
filing deadline.

Cantor and other House Republican leaders proposed a
similar small-business tax deduction in 2009 and 2010. The
measure didn’t advance in the House, controlled at the time by
Democrats.

The earlier proposals wouldn’t have allowed the deduction
for income from banking, insurance, financing or investing. They
also excluded golf courses, massage parlors, gambling
operations, farms, hotels, restaurants, engineering firms,
accounting firms and producers of pornography.

Alternative to Stimulus

The deduction proposal was part of Republicans’ 2009
alternative to the Democrats’ economic stimulus plan, and in
2010 it became part of House Republicans’ campaign agenda.

According to 2008 figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, of
the 5.9 million companies that weren’t sole proprietorships,
18,469, or 0.3 percent, had 500 or more workers. Those larger
companies employed 50.6 percent of the U.S. work force.

Groups that support the legislation include the
International Franchise Association.

Other groups, such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, have
taken a less definitive position.

“The Cantor bill adds to the debate and underscores the
need for comprehensive, fundamental tax reform,” said Blair
Latoff, a chamber spokeswoman, in an e-mail.

Cantor is proposing the measure even as House Republicans
pursue an overhaul of the tax code that would eliminate many
targeted tax breaks.

To contact the reporter on this story:
Richard Rubin in Washington at
rrubin12@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Jodi Schneider at
jschneider50@bloomberg.net

Article source: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-03-21/cantor-20-percent-small-business-tax-cut-won-t-have-industry-limits

Yesterday, House Majority Leader, Eric Cantor, introduced “Citizen Cosponsor,” which he personally describes in a video on www.majorityleader.gov as “an innovative way for you to stay in touch with your Member of Congress, to be engaged in the legislative process, and to make sure you’re speaking out on the issues that are of particular concern for you.” (emphasis added.) The video encourages you to “sign in with Facebook” and Leader Cantor continues, “Co-sponsor the bills that you support, we’ll keep you informed, and you’ll be engaged throughout the legislative process.” The application uses Facebook Open Graph to help people follow the progress of bills that they “co-sponsor.”

As a former Congressional staffer, I understand the immense challenges at all levels within a system that — let’s face it — is in the status quo business. I am extremely hesitant to criticize any effort with a stated mission of increasing individual involvement and understanding of the legislative process. In this case, however, there are important questions to be asked, and I list them here with the hope that they will be addressed and the laudable mission of the Citizen Cosponsor project reached.

In late 2007 when I, as a staffer, shopped an idea around within Congress to create a public platform for constituent engagement, I discovered that it was nearly impossible to build something like that within the institution of Congress outside of the partisan caucus system. You could either build a Democratic-sponsored tool or a Republican-sponsored tool, but there was no structure for building a nonpartisan CONGRESSIONAL tool (and don’t even get me started on how impossible integration between House and Senate was/is.)* My experience does not mean that nonpartisan strides are impossible — just challenging, and that any effort should be viewed with a critical eye.

Critical Questions about Citizen Cosponsor

With the new effort, there are several concerning issues that need to be addressed by its sponsors:

1. Who are the sponsors? The Citizen Cosponsor platform was announced on the Majority Leader’s website, but clicking on the “privacy policy” link leads to https://ccs.ib5k.com/legal/, a page hosted by the private company ib5k. The privacy policy repeatedly refers to “we” but never explains who “we” are. “We respect your privacy. We recognize the potential of technology to help you communicate with us via our website, e-mail, and social media; we would like to use this technology over time to develop a meaningful relationship with you.” Is “we” the Office of Majority Leader Cantor, the House Republican Caucus, the company ib5k, or Congress as a whole?
2. Is YOUR Member really in the loop? Second, when Majority Leader Cantor says (in the video) the platform will help you “stay in touch with your Member of Congress“, does it actually mean that your feedback will be provided to the Member of Congress who represents you? This is enormously important, because there is one kind of advocacy that we know works: constituents contacting their own Member of Congress who works for and is dependent on a vote from them. The Majority Leader seems to indicate in the video that when an individual weighs in as a citizen cosponsor, that the individual’s Member of Congress will be contacted — though that doesn’t actually seem to be the case. In this way, the site is potentially circumventing effective advocacy — and inserting the House’s partisan Caucus leadership in the middle of the relationship between constituent and Congressional representative.
3. Are “Updates” neutral or partisan talking points? The site allows for those “cosponsoring” and “tracking” bills to receive updates that are not defined. Will these updates be managed by the Majority Leader’s office? If so, are they partisan messages from the Republican Caucus or will they be couched as updates from the institution of “Congress”? Is the project being managed by the House Majority Leader ‘s communications staff, new media, or by policy staff?
4. Whose list is it building? Will Members of Congress be provided with contact information so that they can respond to their constituents? Is the Majority Leader’s office placing itself in a position to act as a filter for messages coming in from constituents to other Members of Congress?
5. “I endorse this bill that the Majority Leader endorses” The current format only allow for “cosponsorship,” so — only expressions of support. How useful is the information if the Majority Leader’s office simply picks a sample of bills (in this case, six bills) and the only input possible is an indication of support or “cosponsorship”? Will the only possible conclusion be “X individuals endorse this bill supported by House Leadership a little more than they endorse another bill supported by House Leadership”?
6. Does Congress endorse the Facebook Privacy Policy? In addition, there was considerable concern on Twitter today about the requirement to sign in with Facebook. Why not offer other sign-in options?

Time to revisit the old rules?

Few outside the wonktastic world of Congress understand the role of the Franking Commission, which exists to limit the inherent incumbent advantage in the use of official resources for contacting members of the public. (I beat this drum a lot, most recently in a blog post on why Congress Only Wants to Hear from Constituents.) Members of Congress are given a powerful tool in the Congressional Franking Privilege, which allows them to send messages and respond to constituent inquiries through the U.S. Postal Service or over official email addresses. Franking restricts mass mailings outside their district — limiting the electoral incumbent advantage of ambitious Members who might want to lay the groundwork for future senatorial or presidential run by using official resources to reach people outside his or her district.

Franking regulations were appropriately relaxed to great fanfare to allow Congress to use social media, thanks to the work of the Open House Project and the “Let our Congress Tweet” campaign by the Sunlight Foundation. (For a full history of the open government data movement, see Open Government Data, by POPVOX co-founder Joshua Tauberer.) However, as Members of Congress are increasingly empowered through social media to build large lists and reach people beyond their districts through “official” accounts, the old concerns about incumbent overreach may merit review.

Hey — we’ve been there.

These are not uncomplicated issues, and it is not necessarily a reflection of bad intentions that these were not addressed on Day 1. In many cases, we have weighed similar questions in the building and rollout of POPVOX over the past eighteen months. We strive everyday to provide a neutral platform for all voices to be heard on every bill in Congress — for those messages to be delivered as efficiently as possible to the appropriate Member of Congress, and for the input to be transparent, verified, and quantified in a way that empowers the Voice of the People.

Release early, Fail fast.

As with any startup, the first iteration is never perfect. Reid Hoffman, the founder of LinkedIn, famously said, “if you are not embarrassed by your first release, you’ve launched too late.” In that sense, maybe the Majority Leader is learning from the startup world. In an email response to my questions, Matt Lira, Director of New Media for Majority Leader Cantor, seemed to indicate that there were iterations to come: “As was the case when I publicly defended We the People, this is an evolutionary step – there will be continual progress, as with all these things, towards the desired end of a modernized Congress.”

Lira and others like Alexander Howard have rightly noted that, “We are in Open Government’s beta period.”

Consider this customer feedback for the beta and three cheers for the goal of “a modernized Congress.”

*I eventually gave up on the internal attempt and left Congress in February 2010, to join Rachna Choudhry and Joshua Tauberer in building POPVOX outside of the partisan limitations of Congress.

Article source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/marci-harris/cantors-citizen-cosponsor_b_1369496.html

I’ll call it “Obama’s good deed.”

The president earlier this month announced his support for a $4.7 billion initiative to promote the use of alternative-fuel vehicles, a move designed to improve national security by reducing the United States’ dependence on foreign oil.

The plan, announced at a truck manufacturing plant in North Carolina, will distribute about $1 billion in funds among 10 to 15 cities or towns to invest in advanced clean-fuel vehicles, including those that run on electricity, biofuels, and natural gas.

Another $3.7 billion will go to tax credits for purchasers of alternatively fueled cars, as well as a new tax credit for trucks powered by alternative fuels. Obama’s proposal will expand the current credit for buying electric vehicles and support development of natural gas refueling “corridors” that would enable natural-gas-powered trucks to move goods.

Politically, I believe the Obama plan may be a sign that he is finally taking a page from Bill Clinton’s playbook as president and moving to the center, promoting bipartisan ideas that can get our economy moving again while promoting the nation’s security.

Most Republicans and Democrats agree that the country needs to reduce oil imports, and offering tax incentives to individuals and private businesses is an excellent strategy for accomplishing that worthy goal.

Obama’s plan drew immediate praise from members of Securing America’s Future Energy (SAFE at www.secureenergy.org), a group I support that has strongly promoted diversifying the nation’s fuel sources in the transportation sector, particularly through the adoption of electric vehicles, and has worked closely with the White House on the substance of Obama’s proposal.

SAFE’s President and CEO Robbie Diamond said President Obama’s initiative is an “important development in the debate regarding the nation’s energy security,” and stressed that the bipartisan plan is backed by a coalition of Democrats and Republicans.

I applaud Obama as well.

Granted, it’s an election year and there is much point-scoring taking place on both sides of the aisle. Still, we should never forget the interests of the country take priority over partisan bickering.

SAFE’s advisory leadership boards, led by Fred Smith, CEO of FedEx, and former Marine Commandant Gen. P.X. Kelley, as well as former Adm. Dennis Blair, who had served as President Obama’s Director of National Intelligence, demonstrate how broadly this issue is backed across the political spectrum.

Energy independence is clearly a priority national interest. On Newsmax I have written repeatedly that the country’s security has been imperiled by the West’s dependence on Middle Eastern oil.

Recently, I wrote an Op-Ed calling on car manufacturers to produce flex-fuel ready vehicles that would allow drivers to easily change the type of fuel their engines use, from gasoline to other types of fuels such as methanol or ethanol. (See “The Milk Man’s Lesson: Car Choice Can Work.”)

Robert McFarlane, who as Ronald Reagan’s national security was a key architect in winning the Cold War, echoed these sentiments in a recent Wall Street Journal piece, saying a flex-fuel mandate can help defeat the energy crisis.

This is not just an economic issue as we see gasoline prices skyrocket, it’s also a national security one.

Today, trillions of America’s dollars and the dollars of our allies have been flowing to OPEC states and other oil-supplying nations — many of whom are not our friends.

Meanwhile, America’s armed forces have been forced to shoulder the enormous burden of protecting oil supply lines and infrastructure, often at great cost in blood and treasure.

Currently, the United States consumes about 20 million barrels of oil a day, and about 57 percent of that comes from overseas.

Oil importation results in the transfer of wealth in the amount of some $380 billion a year, and gasoline prices have been on the rise.

It’s important to remember that even if we expand oil drilling in the United States, oil costs may not drop if overall global demand increases. And our allies in Western Europe and Japan, with whom we are critically interdependent, are almost totally dependent on foreign oil.

America should take the lead in dramatically lowering our use of petroleum as the main fuel of commerce, and the Obama plan is a good start.

Again, it’s important to emphasize the bipartisan support alternative-fuel proposals have received. Electric vehicle legislation similar to Obama’s plan was introduced by Sens. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn.; and Jeff Merkley, D-Ore.; last year and has received support from both sides of the aisle. And Obama’s alternative fuel proposal is not the only recent example of the president moving toward the “Clinton” center.

When House Republicans just recently unveiled a package of measures they said will help small businesses raise capital and create jobs, the White House said it was encouraged by the GOP action and Democrats in Congress also voiced support.

White House spokeswoman Amy Brundage said the president was “encouraged to see that there is common ground between his approach and what [House Majority Leader Eric] Cantor outlined.”

Obama should have acted sooner to deal with the energy crisis in a bipartisan fashion and break oil’s stranglehold on the nation, that is true. But his new proposal deserves support.

I won’t hesitate to criticize the president when he is wrong, but I won’t hesitate to applaud him when he’s right.

The fact is, there is no Democratic or Republican plan to deal with the energy crisis, only a national plan that should draw the backing of both parties. And President Obama’s alternative-fuel proposal, commendably, appears to be leading the nation in that direction.

© 2012 Newsmax. All rights reserved.

Article source: http://www.newsmax.com/Ruddy/obama-cantor-flex-fuel/2012/03/20/id/433250

House Republicans on Wednesday plan to unveil their proposal to give small businesses a temporary 20 percent tax cut, Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said Tuesday.

The bill has been in the works for weeks, and Republicans hope to time its passage off the House floor to coincide with Tax Day on April 15.

“This is a bill that goes directly toward making it easier for small-businessmen and -women to get back into the game, to keep more of their money so it can be invested to retain and create more jobs,” Cantor, who has led the push on the legislation, said following a GOP conference meeting Tuesday morning.

He said the proposal was particularly important at a time when Americans are struggling to afford rising gas prices.

“We want to make it easier for small-business people to operate, for families to afford to be able to go to the gas pump and do what it is that they want to do,” Cantor said.

The proposal is expected to gain broad GOP support, but the temporary nature of the bill could be a tricky sell with some in the party, who have long championed a permanent tax overhaul and criticized short-term tax cuts as “sugar-high” economics.

According to a summary of the proposal provided by Cantor’s office last week, the plan would give millions of businesses with fewer than 500 employees — one federal definition of a small business — the ability to essentially exclude 20 percent of their income from taxation. Democrats have criticized the plan by saying it would complicate the tax code and pointing out that it does not exempt professional sports teams and hedge fund executives who do not need a tax break.

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Article source: http://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/domestic-taxes/216965-house-gop-to-unveil-small-business-tax-break

From Capital News Service, Mason Brown

For Wayne Powell, Virginia’s 7th Congressional District “isn’t personal, it’s Cantor.”

Powell, 62, is challenging Republican incumbent Eric Cantor of Henrico County for his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Powell is one of the three candidates running for the spot on the Democratic ballot this fall.

For Powell, a self-styled progressive Democrat, the issues for the district are not just jobs, economy, and education. He said a primary issue is Cantor himself.

“I can’t think of any positive thing he has done since he has become a congressmen,” Powell said.

Powell was born and raised in Richmond and graduated from the University of Richmond with a dual degree in Spanish and French. He later obtained a degree in law from the university and opened a law firm, Powell and Parish.

Powell was in the news recently when he agreed to give free legal representation to the 30 protesters who were arrested on the steps of the Virginia Capitol during a demonstration against legislation they view as an attack on women’s rights.

Powell has never been a politician. He served in the military for 30 years and as an assistant attorney general for the state. While in the Army, he was mobilized to command an intelligence unit after Sept. 11 and retired from active duty as a colonel in 2002.

Cantor has served as the 7th District representative since 2001 and has been the majority leader in the House since 2011. The district stretches from the Richmond suburbs north to Culpeper County and east to New Kent County. It has been a solidly Republican district, consistently electing GOP candidates in federal, state, and local elections.

Ray Allen, senior strategist for Cantor’s campaign, said Cantor’s focus this fall would be to help small businesses. He called such businesses “the engine that can pull us out of the economic troubles.”

“The congressman is focused right now on what we can do to help small businesses create and retain jobs,” Allen said.

For example, Cantor has proposed a 20 percent tax cut for small businesses.

For Powell, the issues are economic reform, infrastructure, renewable energy, and education. While his campaign targets the Henrico congressman, there are several issues he emphasized as key to his platform.

“First and foremost, we need to repair the infrastructure,” Powell said. “There are 97 bridges just in the 7th District alone that need to be repaired.”

Powell said he wants to see higher taxes on Wall Street businesses, such as hedge funds, to offset costs of tax credits on things such as renewable energy.

“We need to subsidize, like we already do for big oil, renewable wind and solar energy,” Powell said.

He also wants to make higher education affordable by tying it to national service.

“I’m a product of public schools and college loans,” Powell said. “First and foremost, I think we should provide a four-year education for service to the country. You give us two years; we give you a four-year education.”

Outside of the issues, Powell is trying to make a presence for himself through social media. He refuses to take money from “super PACs” (political action committees); instead, he is using social media to promote his campaign. The Powell campaign has used several social media platforms including Twitter, Facebook and Web aggregator Reddit to reach voters.

“I can’t be bought,” Powell said. “I’m a latecomer; I didn’t have a computer until I was 40. But I think it is important to be available and transparent. I plan to remain a part of that when I go into Congress. I’ll still go on social media such as Reddit and do frequent town halls.”

Powell is one of three seeking the Democratic nomination for the 7th District seat. The other two candidates are David Hunsicker, a retired Air Force member and real estate broker, and Jim Phillips, an attorney and college professor. The Democratic caucuses will be held in April.

“I think they are both good Democrats, and anyone is better than Cantor. However, the biggest thing that separates me from Phillips is my military and small business experience,” Powell said.

“With regards to Mr. Hunsicker, I don’t know much about his résumé, but I think the nature and breadth of my military work separates me from him. Also, me being born and raised in the 7th District, and I think that differentiates him from me.”

Caucuses will be held in each county on April 14 or 16. Then a convention will be held April 28 to announce the nominee.

— ∮∮∮ —

Related

• Wayne Powell town hall; Reddit.com
• Eric Cantor campaign finance; VPAP.org
• Wayne Powell campaign finance; VPAP.org

Photo by: Ava Reaves Images

Article source: http://rvanews.com/news/democratic-lawyer-challenges-representative-cantor/57895

• By
  Emma Dumain
• Roll Call Staff
• March 20, 2012, 5:28 p.m.

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Two Capitol Hill offices introduced new interactive features today that they hope will engage laymen and political junkies alike in the legislative process.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) has unveiled “Citizen Cosponsor.” Downloadable through Facebook.com, the application allows constituents to “co-sponsor,” or follow, bills that interest them.

Once certain bills are selected, users will receive automatic updates on those bills as they move through the legislative pipeline.

“We are dedicated to modernizing the way Congress connects with the American people,” Cantor said in a statement. “With the simple click of a button, Citizen Cosponsors will become a part of the deliberative process, using the same social networks they already rely on in their daily lives.”

The Government Printing Office, nearly four months after introducing its first mobile phone application, announced expanded features today that would make the product more user-friendly and effective.

The Mobile Member Guide, which allows users to search for Members of Congress by name, state, chamber or party and includes a picture entry with each one, now includes biographical information, contact information and links to their websites.

“GPO has embraced apps and new technologies as we move forward as the digital platform for the Federal Government,” acting Public Printer Davita Vance-Cooks said in a statement.

Since introducing the Mobile Member Guide last November, the GPO has released an app for the fiscal 2013 budget and assisted the Library of Congress in building up its own digital media platform: an iPad app for the Congressional Record.

Article source: http://www.rollcall.com/news/eric_cantor_unveils_citizen_cosponsor_app-213246-1.html?pos=hbtxt

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor hopes his narrow tax cut measure can follow a similar path to that of the JOBS Act, which passed the House by a wide bipartisan margin.

• By
  John Stanton
• Roll Call Staff
• March 20, 2012, 7:39 p.m.

With bipartisanship a rare commodity on Capitol Hill and prospects of tax reform this year all but extinguished, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor is moving forward with a narrow tax cut measure aimed at reducing small-business tax rates for the next year.

Under the Virginia Republican’s bill, which will be introduced in the House today, small businesses with 499 or fewer employees would be able to deduct up to 20 percent of their income taxes, which could total up to 50 percent of the wages they pay employees.

The goal, Cantor said Tuesday, is to “help small businesses create more jobs” while Congress continues to struggle with the broader tax reform effort.

The House is expected to take up the bill during the week of April 16. Individual tax filings are due on the 16th. Cantor said his decision to pursue the narrowly crafted measure is based “on the same concept as behind the JOBS Act,” which passed the House by a wide bipartisan margin and could pass the Senate as soon as this week.

Cantor did not include exclusions for certain types of small businesses, and he opted to use the Small Business Administration’s definition of a small business to determine who should qualify for the tax cut.

Democrats have previously criticized his plan, arguing that it would apply to sports teams or wealthy financial firms. But Cantor rejected that argument, noting, “Do you do that with marginal tax rates?”

“That’s a false position or argument. … We don’t do that with the overall tax code,” Cantor added, questioning the validity of Congress choosing which types of small businesses should be able to qualify for tax breaks.

Cantor told Roll Call that he and other Republican leaders “would like to drive toward overall tax reform” this year but that he views the 20 percent tax cut as a necessary step “while we are working toward that goal.”

In fact, Republicans and Democrats have been meeting with administration officials on and off for the past several months in hopes of finding some sort of common ground for a grand compromise on tax reform.

For instance, earlier this month, Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.), Finance ranking member Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich.) and Ways and Means ranking member Sander Levin (D-Mich.) met with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to discuss the state of play.

Baucus and Camp have also held separate meetings to discuss possible ways forward.

But despite those efforts, most observers agree that a comprehensive bill is unlikely before the November elections — a fact Cantor said he is keenly aware of.

For Cantor, the biggest problem facing the efforts at reform are the same issues that have plagued efforts for other “grand bargains” during this session of Congress. “We tried to do that all last year,” Cantor said.

“We’ve always said we’d like to see comprehensive reform … [but] the fundamental differences are still there” between Democrats and Republicans.

House Democrats said they are wary of new tax cuts and insisted it should be part of a broader reform of the tax code that eliminates loopholes that corporations and wealthy Americans use to significantly lower their tax rate — or even avoid paying taxes altogether.

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said Democrats are not necessarily opposed to cutting taxes for small businesses.

“We’ve have had tax cuts, as you know, when we were in charge, for small businesses. Numerous tax cuts to encourage hiring of people to encourage investing in business equipment,” Hoyer said.

“So we want to see that, we want to encourage businesses to grow.”

But Hoyer nevertheless chided Cantor, arguing, “It is easy, and requires no courage, to cut taxes. But what takes some courage and responsibility is making sure that your revenues match your expenditures. We haven’t done very well with that in the last decade.”

Hoyer said Democrats would keep an open mind “but piecemealing it is not what we ought to be doing. … I’m a strong proponent of a big, bold and balanced plan, which includes all elements of expenditures.”

Article source: http://www.rollcall.com/issues/57_113/Eric-Cantor-Tax-Plan-Follows-JOBS-Act-Strategy-213264-1.html?zkMobileView=true

• By
  Emma Dumain
• Roll Call Staff
• March 20, 2012, 5:28 p.m.

• Print
• Email
• Reprints
• • 
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  • 

  Text size

Two Capitol Hill offices introduced new interactive features today that they hope will engage laymen and political junkies alike in the legislative process.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) has unveiled “Citizen Cosponsor.” Downloadable through Facebook.com, the application allows constituents to “co-sponsor,” or follow, bills that interest them.

Once certain bills are selected, users will receive automatic updates on those bills as they move through the legislative pipeline.

“We are dedicated to modernizing the way Congress connects with the American people,” Cantor said in a statement. “With the simple click of a button, Citizen Cosponsors will become a part of the deliberative process, using the same social networks they already rely on in their daily lives.”

The Government Printing Office, nearly four months after introducing its first mobile phone application, announced expanded features today that would make the product more user-friendly and effective.

The Mobile Member Guide, which allows users to search for Members of Congress by name, state, chamber or party and includes a picture entry with each one, now includes biographical information, contact information and links to their websites.

“GPO has embraced apps and new technologies as we move forward as the digital platform for the Federal Government,” acting Public Printer Davita Vance-Cooks said in a statement.

Since introducing the Mobile Member Guide last November, the GPO has released an app for the fiscal 2013 budget and assisted the Library of Congress in building up its own digital media platform: an iPad app for the Congressional Record.

Article source: http://www.rollcall.com/news/eric_cantor_unveils_citizen_cosponsor_app-213246-1.html

• By
  John Stanton
• Roll Call Staff
• March 20, 2012, 7:39 p.m.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor hopes his narrow tax cut measure can follow a similar path to that of the JOBS Act, which passed the House by a wide bipartisan margin.

• Print
• Email
• Reprints
• • 
  • 
  • 

  Text size

With bipartisanship a rare commodity on Capitol Hill and prospects of tax reform this year all but extinguished, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor is moving forward with a narrow tax cut measure aimed at reducing small-business tax rates for the next year.

Under the Virginia Republican’s bill, which will be introduced in the House today, small businesses with 499 or fewer employees would be able to deduct up to 20 percent of their income taxes, which could total up to 50 percent of the wages they pay employees.

The goal, Cantor said Tuesday, is to “help small businesses create more jobs” while Congress continues to struggle with the broader tax reform effort.

The House is expected to take up the bill during the week of April 16. Individual tax filings are due on the 16th. Cantor said his decision to pursue the narrowly crafted measure is based “on the same concept as behind the JOBS Act,” which passed the House by a wide bipartisan margin and could pass the Senate as soon as this week.

Cantor did not include exclusions for certain types of small businesses, and he opted to use the Small Business Administration’s definition of a small business to determine who should qualify for the tax cut.

Democrats have previously criticized his plan, arguing that it would apply to sports teams or wealthy financial firms. But Cantor rejected that argument, noting, “Do you do that with marginal tax rates?”

“That’s a false position or argument. … We don’t do that with the overall tax code,” Cantor added, questioning the validity of Congress choosing which types of small businesses should be able to qualify for tax breaks.

Cantor told Roll Call that he and other Republican leaders “would like to drive toward overall tax reform” this year but that he views the 20 percent tax cut as a necessary step “while we are working toward that goal.”

In fact, Republicans and Democrats have been meeting with administration officials on and off for the past several months in hopes of finding some sort of common ground for a grand compromise on tax reform.

For instance, earlier this month, Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.), Finance ranking member Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich.) and Ways and Means ranking member Sander Levin (D-Mich.) met with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to discuss the state of play.

Baucus and Camp have also held separate meetings to discuss possible ways forward.

But despite those efforts, most observers agree that a comprehensive bill is unlikely before the November elections — a fact Cantor said he is keenly aware of.

For Cantor, the biggest problem facing the efforts at reform are the same issues that have plagued efforts for other “grand bargains” during this session of Congress. “We tried to do that all last year,” Cantor said.

“We’ve always said we’d like to see comprehensive reform … [but] the fundamental differences are still there” between Democrats and Republicans.

House Democrats said they are wary of new tax cuts and insisted it should be part of a broader reform of the tax code that eliminates loopholes that corporations and wealthy Americans use to significantly lower their tax rate — or even avoid paying taxes altogether.

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said Democrats are not necessarily opposed to cutting taxes for small businesses.

“We’ve have had tax cuts, as you know, when we were in charge, for small businesses. Numerous tax cuts to encourage hiring of people to encourage investing in business equipment,” Hoyer said.

“So we want to see that, we want to encourage businesses to grow.”

But Hoyer nevertheless chided Cantor, arguing, “It is easy, and requires no courage, to cut taxes. But what takes some courage and responsibility is making sure that your revenues match your expenditures. We haven’t done very well with that in the last decade.”

Hoyer said Democrats would keep an open mind “but piecemealing it is not what we ought to be doing. … I’m a strong proponent of a big, bold and balanced plan, which includes all elements of expenditures.”

Article source: http://www.rollcall.com/issues/57_113/Eric-Cantor-Tax-Plan-Follows-JOBS-Act-Strategy-213264-1.html

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) attacked House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) on Tuesday for his demand that Senate leaders drop a pending amendment to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im).

“I’m sorry to say that, true to form, the Republican leader [is] once again spoiling for a fight where there shouldn’t be a fight,” said Reid. “Yesterday House Majority Leader Cantor called this bill that we’re dealing with here to reauthorize the Ex-Im Bank a ‘partisan amendment.’

“I don’t know if Mr. Cantor has looked at this legislation,” continued the majority leader. “Why does he want to fight about this?”

On Monday, Cantor blasted the amendment to raise the lending limit of the Ex-Im Bank to $140 billion, calling it a partisan distraction from the GOP jobs bill, which was passed with an overwhelming majority in the House last week. 

“Rather than making eleventh-hour claims about phantom investor protection issues or adding partisan amendments, like the Ex-Im Bank reauthorization, that threaten to derail the bill, the Senate should pass the JOBS Act and get it to the president’s desk immediately,” Cantor said.

“Senate Democrats need to stop playing politics and act quickly to make sure this bipartisan job-creation measure becomes law,” he added.

But Reid, on Tuesday, countered that the amendment enjoys bipartisan support from members like Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who called it a “good idea” and said Cantor was simply “picking a fight” with his comments. 

“We can engage in yet another unnecessary, unproductive battle as Cantor is picking a fight,” said Reid. “We’re not — he’s challenged a fight. We’re not going to fight.”

A vote on two amendments that would extend the borrowing limit of the Ex-Im Bank and a vote on the underlying legislation are set to begin in the Senate after 4 p.m. on Tuesday. 

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Article source: http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/senate/216951-reid-slams-cantor-for-picking-a-fight-over-ex-im-amendment

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) announced a Facebook application on Tuesday that allows users to track legislation as it moves through the House.

The Citizen CoSponsor app enables users to pick the bills they are interested in and then receive updates as the bills move through the legislative process. Users can become “co-sponsors” of the bills they support.

The app also allows users to read the full the text of legislation.

“We are dedicated to modernizing the way Congress connects with the American people,” Cantor said. “Citizen Cosponsor breaks ground by directly connecting people with the work the House is doing every day. With the simple click of a button, Citizen Cosponsors will become a part of the deliberative process, using the same social networks they already rely on in their everyday lives.”

The app is built using Facebook’s Open Graph software, which allows third-party websites to interact with Facebook.

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Article source: http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/217063-cantor-launches-citizen-cosponsor-facebook-app

ILLINOIS: “Rep. Don Manzullo (R-Ill.) said House Majority Leader Eric Cantor should step down from his leadership position for interfering in Tuesday’s primary,” The Hill writes. “The 10-term congressman said he was ‘outraged’ that Cantor (R-Va.) endorsed freshman Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) in the battle between the two lawmakers, which is growing nastier by the day.”

MASSACHUSETTS: Did Scott Brown rip off a joke from Conan O’Brien?

UTAH: Roll Call looks at how Sen. Orrin Hatch (R) turned around his prospects for reelection.

VIRGINIA: Political Wire: “A new Quinnipiac poll in Virginia shows Tim Kaine (D) leading George Allen (R) in the U.S. Senate race, 47% to 44%. Also interesting: President Obama leads Mitt Romney by eight points in a general election match up, 50% to 42%, and tops Rick Santorum by nine points, 49% to 40%.”

Article source: http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/20/10774264-more-2012-manzullo-cantor-should-step-down

Article source: http://hamptonroads.com/2012/03/va-representative-cantor-rips-senate-over-jobs-bill

The U.S. House recently passed, by an overwhelming margin, a bill ostensibly intended to make it easier for start-up companies to raise capital.

“What this bill does is, it provides a real shot in the arm to entrepreneurs, small-business men and women, removes red tape, allows small businesses an easier time to go about starting up, as well as retaining and creating jobs,” Eric Cantor, the House majority leader.

The Jump-Start Our Business Start-Ups Act sailed through the House on a 390-to-23 vote. All 23 opponents were Democrats.

The House bill, which is supported by Senate Democrats and in many respects mirrors a proposal from President Obama, has been almost universally hailed in terms similar to those Cantor used, and it does contain measures aimed at improving small companies’ access to capital markets.

But some investors, analysts and securities law experts say the bill, more than helping small companies, will in fact free most companies, including very large corporations, from important oversight and disclosure requirements for several years after going public.

Much of the concern arises from Title I of the bill, which defines certain kinds of companies that go public as emerging growth companies. These companies would no longer have to provide some information that investors have come to expect in a prospectus.

For instance, they will have to supply only two years of audited financial data rather than three. The bill would also effectively repeal Securities and Exchange Commission regulations and the financial industry’s own rules that separate the activities of securities analysts from those of their investment banking colleagues at companies that underwrite initial public offerings for these emerging growth companies.

Once its stock is publicly traded, an emerging growth company would be exempted from disclosure and shareholder approval rules on executive compensation passed as part of Dodd-Frank and auditing standards imposed by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

‘Billion’ with a ‘b’

And what precisely is an emerging growth company? It is any company with annual revenue of less than $1 billion. That’s “billion,” with a “b.”

“It’s just too broad a definition — every company winds up being an emerging growth company,” said John C. Coffee Jr., a securities law professor at Columbia University.

Kathleen Smith, chairwoman of Renaissance Capital, a firm based in Greenwich, Conn., that analyzes, tracks and invests in initial public offerings, told the Senate Banking Committee at a hearing last Tuesday, “By this definition, we would be giving relief to over 90 percent of the companies going public,” including “companies with very large market capitalizations.” Lynn Turner, a forensic accounting consultant with the California-based firm LitiNomics, testified at the same hearing that 98 percent of all initial public offerings since 1970 would have qualified as emerging growth companies.

Smith said that the definition of an emerging growth company should be limited to relatively small companies, with public offerings of about $50 million and total market capitalizations, including shares held by insiders, of about $250 million.

But Coffee said the market for offerings of $100 million or less is disappearing, and “it’s beyond the reach of legislation to change that.”

The institutional investors who are the main players in the I.P.O. market, he said, demand high liquidity — and “in their judgment they only get high liquidity when the market capitalization is about $300 or $500 million.”

Moreover, he added, small IPOs are relatively expensive. “If all you want is money, it’s much cheaper to do a private placement.”

A separate provision in the bill aims to cut IPO costs for smaller companies by increasing the limit on public offerings that do not have to be registered with the S.E.C. to $50 million, from $5 million.

Other measures in the bill truly directed at small companies would allow them to advertise a private stock offering that would not require registration and to “crowd-fund” up to $2 million a year, depending on how much financial information the corporation provides investors.

© 2012 El Paso Inc.. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Article source: http://www.elpasoinc.com/news/border_business/article_c9761e96-71de-11e1-ab48-0019bb30f31a.html

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), left, and House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) plan to hold votes this week on bills to repeal part of the 2010 health-care reform law.
(Joshua Roberts – BLOOMBERG)
Friday will mark the second anniversary of the passage of President Obama’s signature health-care reform law, and House Republicans plan to spend considerable time this week focused on tearing down elements of the legislation and raising doubts about the broader reforms.

The House plans to vote Tuesday on a bill that would repeal the Independent Payment Advisory Board, a 15-member panel established as part of the health-care law that would convene in 2014 and make recommendations to Congress on how to change Medicare if the program’s costs begin growing faster than gross domestic product. The panel is a non-starter for most Republicans, who call it an “unelected rationing board” and a prime example of federal overreach. (Despite the GOP jab, the 2010 law explicitly bans the board from making any recommendation “to ration health care.”)

The repeal legislation enjoyed notable Democratic support until last week, when GOP leaders announced plans to link it to another proposal to limit certain medical malpractice awards.

The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments for and against elements of the health-care reform law next week.
(Evan Vucci/Associated Press)
Still, the measures should attract support from Republicans and moderate/vulnerable Democrats to pass the House. Attention would shift next to the Senate, where Democrats are more resistant to changing the law. (The 60 Plus Association, a conservative-leaning advocacy group for seniors, plans to use a new multimillion-dollar ad campaign that targets five vulnerable Democratic senators to apply pressure in the Senate.)

Make no mistake: Republican voters — and many independents — are still skeptical of the health-care law, and an exhaustive new study released last week found that the reforms cost Democrats seats in the 2010 midterm elections. With the Supreme Court slated to hear three days of oral argument next week on elements of the law, this week’s votes on Capitol Hill are just part of a multi-pronged Republican plan to draw more attention to the issue in hopes of eating away at growing support for Obama and congressional Democrats ahead of November’s elections.

Ryan’s budget plan

But even as GOP lawmakers plan to unify around opposition to health-care reform, schisms should begin to appear Tuesday, when House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) plans to announce his spending proposal for fiscal 2013.

House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.).
(Joshua Roberts – BLOOMBERG)
As The Washington Post’s Rosalind S. Helderman reports, Ryan’s plan is likely to restart the spending fight that consumed Washington for most of last summer.

The plan is expected to propose slashing agency budgets below spending levels established during last year’s debt-ceiling negotiations, a non-starter for the White House, congressional Democrats and even some Republicans on the House Appropriations Committee, who hope to avoid another possible government shutdown when the fiscal year ends on Sept. 30, a time when the election will loom large. But tea party-aligned lawmakers and the conservative Club for Growth say the deeper cuts are a must to make significant dents in the federal deficit. (Side note: If you haven’t read The Post’s definitive account, published Sunday, of how last summer’s “grand bargain” fell apart, you must.)

Meanwhile, over in the Senate . . .

Senators this week plan to continue considering a modified version of the JOBS Act, a bipartisan bill that easily cleared the House with White House support. The bill will not sail as easily through the Senate, as Democrats plan to amend it by reauthorizing the Export-Import Bank. Although the amendment has some support from Senate Republicans, several House Republicans, including Majority Leader Eric Cantor (Va.), have raised concerns about extending the borrowing authority of the tiny agency. Still, other House Republicans have said they can still support the measure if reauthorizing the Ex-Im is the only major change.

Indeed, congressional aides anticipate eventual passage of the jobs measure — just when and with what amendments attached remains unclear.

Marking a milestone

Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.).
(Mark Gail/The Washington Post)
Senators this week also plan to honor Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), who on Saturday became the longest-serving woman in congressional history. Mikulski, 75, was elected to the House in 1976 and to the Senate in 1986. Her streak now trumps that of the late Rep. Edith Nourse Rogers (R-Mass.), who served from 1925 to 1960.

Capitol Hill Irishfest

Despite the disagreements over health-care reform and spending, House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) plans to host President Obama, Vice President Biden and Irish Prime Minister (or Taoiseach) Enda Kenny on Tuesday at the Capitol for the annual Friends of Ireland luncheon.

Afghanistan in focus

Gen. John Allen, commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, is set to testify before the House and Senate armed services committees this week, as details begin trickling out about Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, who allegedly shot and killed 16 unarmed Afghan civilians on March 11. Allen’s appearance is likely to reignite debate over how quickly U.S. forces should leave Afghanistan.

Who’s next to go?

Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.) on Thursday became the 15th Democrat to announce his retirement from the House this cycle, shocking his constituents and Empire State political observers. In addition to the 15 retiring Democrats, eight others are seeking a different office. One Democrat, Donald Payne, died unexpectedly two weeks ago. Nine House Republicans are retiring, and seven others are seeking higher office.

Follow Ed O’Keefe on Twitter: @edatpost

Further reading from PostPolitics:

Obama’s high-dollar donations lagging

Obama’s evolution: Behind the failed ‘grand bargain’ on the debt

Afghan rampage suspect Robert Bales was a soldier strained by deployments

Romney appeals to women on campaign trail in Illinois

Article source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/2chambers/post/gop-turns-attention-to-health-care-law/2012/03/15/gIQAnE7jLS_blog.html

Eric Cantor’s embrace of rookie Rep. Adam Kinzinger over veteran Rep. Donald Manzullo shows that the majority leader is more than willing to rip apart the party’s political playbook.

The Virginia Republican’s endorsement of the freshman lawmaker — followed up by a $52,000 advertisement buy by the Cantor-aligned Young Guns super PAC – has infuriated the 10-term Manzullo, leading to tense phone calls between him and leadership, revealing another divide in strategy among top House leaders.

Continue Reading

At its rawest form, Cantor’s endorsement — in a Republican-on-Republican primary — represents the latest round of a generational battle within the House Republican Conference: A war between the younger conservative set of rabble-rousers, and the older, grayer Republicans.

Cantor says the calculus was simple: He committed to Kinzinger long ago.

“I gave him my word that I’d be with him long before it was a member-on-member race,” Cantor told POLITICO in a brief interview Monday. “I always try to be a man of my word.”

But he revealed his endorsement less than two weeks ago — long after it was clear the two would be running against each other. It’s a move to clearly align himself against the older set, and with the younger generation of conservatives that he helped usher into Washington. Folks like Kinzinger make up Cantor’s power base.

Other Republican leaders see the race completely differently. Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) made sure to give money to both candidates. When Manzullo called Boehner over the weekend to gripe about the Cantor endorsement, Boehner returned the call and said he was staying neutral in the race. Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) also distanced himself from the endorsement and the YG Action Fund advertisement buy in a phone call with Manzullo, according to sources.

The National Republican Congressional Committee is also avoiding any involvement in the intraparty fight. The NRCC recently told four companies working to unseat incumbent lawmakers that it could not do business with them anymore. The firms are doing work on behalf of the Campaign for Primary Accountability, a nonpartisan super PAC that has been targeting members of both parties in primaries.

Speaking at a news conference Monday, NRCC Chairman Pete Sessions declined to comment on Cantor’s decision to enter the race, adding that his committee would stay out of party fights.

“The NRCC will get involved in the races I determine they get involved in, and right now I have determined that we will not get involved in member-versus-member races,” Sessions said.

The Congressional Leadership Fund, a separate super PAC backed by Boehner and other leaders, says it won’t pick sides like Cantor and the YG Action Fund.

“The Congressional Leadership Fund will consider primaries on a case-by-case basis, but to preserve its core mission of defending and growing the House Republican Majority, it is not inclined to engage in primaries between incumbent members of the House Republican Conference,” said Brian Walsh, president of the political action committee.

For Cantor, the decision to get involved in the race presents a major risk — not to mention the possibility of embarrassment. Public polling has showed Manzullo and Kinzinger nearly tied heading into the final days of the contest. Manzullo has also previously represented more of the newly drawn 16th District than Kinzinger.

Former Speaker Dennis Hastert, who endorsed his longtime friend Manzullo, blamed Democrats for mucking up the Illinois district map, but he also disagrees with Cantor’s tactics.

Article source: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/74205.html

Cantor’s Big-Time Political Blunder

As Scott’s excellent rundown of tomorrow’s Illinois primaries shows, the contest between Reps. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill, and Don Manzullo, R-Ill., will be a very important test of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor‘s clout – and, even more importantly, his political judgment.

Cantor took the unusual step of taking sides in the Republican primary contest endorsing Kinzinger, an up-and-coming freshman, over the crusty conservative Manzullo, who has been an occasional thorn in leadership’s side. Raising the stakes of the gamble, a super PAC tied to Cantor (YG Action Fund) spent $50,000 worth of radio ads endorsing Kinzinger – in the group’s first advertising foray.

The move was designed to promote a young, telegenic congressman whose military background and willingness to be a team player makes him an ideal member, in Cantor’s view. But it is looking like it could backfire, big-time. Republican operatives tracking the race said that Manzullo has moved into a narrow five-point lead over the past week, after starting the contest behind. Cantor’s endorsement prompted outside conservative groups (FreedomWorks, RedState) to engage in the race on behalf of Manzullo, irked by leadership’s bigfooting over a reliably conservative member.

For a leader who touts his relationships with the tea party movement, Cantor’s endorsement suggests he doesn’t fully grasp the forces animating the conservative grassroots. The 2010 midterms demonstrated the folly of Washington Republicans intervening in intraparty primary fights, with the establishment’s favored candidates losing in Nevada, Colorado, Delaware and Kentucky primaries. The NRCC learned its lesson earlier, taking a hands-off approach when its favored candidate in a 2009 New York special election (Dede Scozzafava) imploded, with many Republicans voting for a third-party conservative instead. In all those races, activist antipathy over a political establishment trying to handpick their favored candidates played a major role in their defeats.

A Republican leadership aide said Cantor’s public backing of Kinzinger over Manzullo “is raising the hackles of a number of members,” and there are worries that leadership is trying to influence the Arizona primary pitting incumbents Ben Quayle and Dave Schweikert against each other.

“A lot of us thought we’d learned our lesson about taking sides in primaries, after that New York race,” said the aide. “There has been an understanding not to do so.”

Cantor’s risky gamble could have serious ramifications. For one, if Manzullo wins re-election (there is no Democratic candidate running in the district), he’ll probably be even less of a reliable Republican vote – and fully steamed at his own party’s leadership for trying to oust him. Other more-senior Republicans may start worrying they could be falling out of favor, and may be less amenable to being team players.

Second, the optics of spending money against a member of your own party is never good, especially when GOP leadership has been critical of conservative outside groups for occasionally targeting too-moderate incumbents. There’s been debate within GOP circles on how much money the YG Action Fund will have to spend in Congressional races. Many Republican operatives believe the limited resources would have been better saved against a Democratic candidate in a general election.

And it’s not like Manzullo was the safest member to bet on, given the political makeup of the district in the first place. The newly-drawn 16th District contains 44 percent of Manzullo’s old district, and 31 percent of Kinzinger’s old seat. Kinzinger began this race from behind. The congressman’s own campaign was underwhelming, burdened by poorly-produced television ads that underplayed the freshman’s impressive biography.

Third, if Cantor was going to take the bold step of endorsing against a colleague, he should’ve gone all in. The super PAC’s five-figure radio buy on Kinzinger’s behalf was enough money to draw significant attention, but not significant enough to make a real dent in the race.

And perhaps most importantly, Cantor’s own standing within the caucus could be adversely impacted. Manzullo raised the specter of House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy being steamed with Cantor over his involvement in this race, in an interview with Politico. A Boehner aide noted that the speaker has given to both Manzullo and Kinzinger — first to Kinzinger and then, on March 16 to Manzullo, just as conservative groups starting raising hell about Cantor’s involvement.

Billy House contributed to this report.

Article source: http://hotlineoncall.nationaljournal.com/archives/2012/03/cantors-bigtime.php?mrefid=freehplead_2

Eric Cantor’s embrace of rookie Rep. Adam Kinzinger over veteran Rep. Donald Manzullo shows that the majority leader is more than willing to rip apart the party’s political playbook.

The Virginia Republican’s endorsement of the freshman lawmaker — followed up by a $52,000 advertisement buy by the Cantor-aligned Young Guns super PAC – has infuriated the 10-term Manzullo, leading to tense phone calls between him and leadership, revealing another divide in strategy among top House leaders.

Continue Reading

At its rawest form, Cantor’s endorsement — in a Republican-on-Republican primary — represents the latest round of a generational battle within the House Republican Conference: A war between the younger conservative set of rabble-rousers, and the older, grayer Republicans.

Cantor says the calculus was simple: He committed to Kinzinger long ago.

“I gave him my word that I’d be with him long before it was a member-on-member race,” Cantor told POLITICO in a brief interview Monday. “I always try to be a man of my word.”

But he revealed his endorsement less than two weeks ago — long after it was clear the two would be running against each other. It’s a move to clearly align himself against the older set, and with the younger generation of conservatives that he helped usher into Washington. Folks like Kinzinger make up Cantor’s power base.

Other Republican leaders see the race completely differently. Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) made sure to give money to both candidates. When Manzullo called Boehner over the weekend to gripe about the Cantor endorsement, Boehner returned the call and said he was staying neutral in the race. Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) also distanced himself from the endorsement and the YG Action Fund advertisement buy in a phone call with Manzullo, according to sources.

The National Republican Congressional Committee is also avoiding any involvement in the intraparty fight. The NRCC recently told four companies working to unseat incumbent lawmakers that it could not do business with them anymore. The firms are doing work on behalf of the Campaign for Primary Accountability, a nonpartisan super PAC that has been targeting members of both parties in primaries.

Speaking at a news conference Monday, NRCC Chairman Pete Sessions declined to comment on Cantor’s decision to enter the race, adding that his committee would stay out of party fights.

“The NRCC will get involved in the races I determine they get involved in, and right now I have determined that we will not get involved in member-versus-member races,” Sessions said.

The Congressional Leadership Fund, a separate super PAC backed by Boehner and other leaders, says it won’t pick sides like Cantor and the YG Action Fund.

“The Congressional Leadership Fund will consider primaries on a case-by-case basis, but to preserve its core mission of defending and growing the House Republican Majority, it is not inclined to engage in primaries between incumbent members of the House Republican Conference,” said Brian Walsh, president of the political action committee.

For Cantor, the decision to get involved in the race presents a major risk — not to mention the possibility of embarrassment. Public polling has showed Manzullo and Kinzinger nearly tied heading into the final days of the contest. Manzullo has also previously represented more of the newly drawn 16th District than Kinzinger.

Former Speaker Dennis Hastert, who endorsed his longtime friend Manzullo, blamed Democrats for mucking up the Illinois district map, but he also disagrees with Cantor’s tactics.

Article source: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/74205.html

• By
  Steven T. Dennis
• Roll Call Staff
• March 19, 2012, 12:46 p.m.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) pushed Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) today to abandon efforts to amend his JOBS Act in advance of key Senate votes scheduled for Tuesday.

To continue reading, sign up for a free trial.

Article source: http://www.rollcall.com/news/eric_cantor_tells_senate_democrats_not_to_amend_jobs_act-213199-1.html

Welcome to the Smart Set. Every morning we bring you the gossip coverage, filtered. Today: Kate Middleton first official speech as the Duchess of Cambridge, Jay-Z wants $150 million for Beyoncé’s next tour, and an endorsement from Majority Leader Eric Cantor upsets his caucus.

Ever since Beyoncé gave birth to famous and obstreperous baby Blue Ivy Carter back in January, questions have been circling about when her even more famous mother would get back out on tour. Apparently, that could be happening soon, very soon. Sources say that Jay-Z, Beyoncé’s husband and Blue Ivy’s papoose, “approached Live Nation about a $150 million deal for Beyoncé to tour following the birth of their child in January,” but that Live Nation folks countered with a lower offer, which might not matter, since apparently Beyoncé would very much like to get back on tour this year. [Page Six]

Kate Middleton made her first official speech as a member of the Royal Family today at the opening of the children’s hospice in Ipswitch, just outside of London. In the speech, which she reportedly wrote herself, she praised the charity’s “inspirational” efforts that created “feelings of love and hope.” Roughly 600 people were on hand for the address, where Kate sported “an electric blue Reiss belted dress and black heels.” Afterwards, she did some light planting “adding four spades of soil onto the ground around the base of a tree on the grounds.” [People]

The latest Broadway version of Stephen King’s Carrie is struggling to perfect the whole pig’s blood dumping thing, because the current concoction is sticking to the skins of leads of Molly Ranson and Molly Razzle, and they have to walk home like that, which has been very unnerving for their West Village neighbors. Those poor neighbors! Per a Carrie rep, director Rick Sordelet is testing out a new fake blood formula that might yet yet easier to wash off, but “definitely smells like cocoa butter.” [Page Six]

Roll up your yard signs, remove the bumperstickers, and tell the Adjustment Bureau they need not bother altering the course of Emily Blunt’s life: Matt Damon swears he has no interest in ever running for president, ever. Had Damon won the the White House, he would have been the first presidential Matthew in American history.  [Inside Track]

The rumor last week that Lindsay Lohan might have gently grazed a club manager with her car appeared all set to die a normal, gossipy death with the media and members of the Los Angeles Police Department, but the actress apparently isn’t content to let that happen. Reportedly, she’s put the manager of the Hookah Lounge in West Hollywood on notice that if he does file a civil lawsuit against her the alleged Porsche-scraping, she will “counter-sue and will hold him responsible for the allegations he has made.” Then maybe she’ll get the lead in Lovelace back! [Radar] 

Well this is nice: Keith Richards and Mick Jagger apparently settled their latest batch of differences last week following a “heart-to-heart meeting” in New York. Jagger was apparently smarting over the none-too-nice things Richards said about him in his 2010 memoir, particularly the claim that the Rolling Stones frontman had a “tiny todger.” [The Daily Mirror]

Ten-term GOP Rep. Don Manzullo of Illinois is hopping mad at Majority Leader Eric Cantor for endorsing his primary opponent, Rep. Adam Kinzinger, earlier this month. The breach in leadership protocol was followed by the Cantor-affiliated Young Guns Super PAC spending $50,000 in support of Kinzinger. (The two sitting GOP congressman are running against each other because Illinois 16th Congressional District was redrawn after the last census.) Manzullo says Cantor’s endorsement prompted southern Illinois Rep. Tim Johnson to break neutrality and endorse his candidacy. According to Manzullo, GOP leadership also isn’t thrilled with Cantor. Manzulo says Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy of California called him to distance himself from Cantor’s endorsement. “McCarthy’s madder than hell at Cantor,” Manzullo told Politico. “He said, ‘I’m fighting with Cantor.’  I said, ‘Well, that’s interesting.’” Also not delighted with Cantor, per Manzullo: Speaker John Boehner, who reportedly “said he would talk to his deputy” about the situation. The primary is tomorrow. [Politico]

Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments
or send an email to the author at
rgustini at theatlantic dot com.

You can share ideas for stories on the Open Wire.

Ray Gustini

Article source: http://www.theatlanticwire.com/entertainment/2012/03/beyonce-tour-talk-kates-speech/50038/

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) on Monday called on the
Senate to drop an attempt to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im).

The Senate will take up a four-year bank reauthorization of Ex-Im on Tuesday as an amendment to the House-passed JOBS Act. Cantor blasted the effort as a partisan distraction.

“Rather than making 11th hour claims about phantom investor protection issues or adding partisan amendments, like the Ex-Im Bank reauthorization that threaten to derail the bill, the Senate should pass the JOBS Act and get it to the president’s desk immediately,” Cantor said.

“Senate Democrats need to stop playing politics and act quickly to make sure this bipartisan job creation measure becomes law,” Cantor added.

The Senate amendment reauthorizing Ex-Im is backed by Republicans as well as Democrats. GOP Sens. Richard Shelby (Ala.), Mark Kirk (Ill.) and Lindsey Graham (S.C.) are co-sponsors.

Cantor backs a different approach to the Export-Import Bank that would reauthorize the bank for one year, and set a loan limit of $113 billion. The Senate amendment would set the loan limit at $140 billion.

Cantor’s draft bill also instructs President Obama to seek an end to export financing — a position strongly advocated by Delta Airlines.

Delta last November sued the Ex-Im Bank for loan guarantees it made in connection with airplane sales to Air India.

The Senate effort is backed heavily by Boeing, the largest beneficiary of Export-Import Bank financing, and the Chamber of Commerce. These groups note that Ex-Im makes money for the government.

Conservative groups like Club for Growth are opposed to the Bank, arguing it is a form of corporate welfare.

back to top

Article source: http://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/1005-trade/216707-cantor-calls-on-senate-to-drop-partisan-export-import-bank-effort

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor is urging the Senate to keep his JOBS Act intact.

The Virginia Republican, who spearheaded the initiative aimed at allowing small businesses to more easily raise capital, said Monday that moves by the Senate to add more safeguards for investors or to renew the Export-Import Bank were needlessly bogging down the popular bill.

“Over the past week, [Senate Majority] Leader [Harry] Reid and Senate Democrats have worked overtime to find excuses not to pass the bipartisan JOBS Act despite support of 390 members in the House, the President, and job creators across the country,” Cantor said in a statement Monday.

Several Democratic senators raised concerns last week about various elements of the JOBS Act and warned of weakened protections for investors and consumers if the bill were to be signed into law. The measure is a collection of six bills that ease various Securities and Exchange Commission regulations.

Senate Democrats also want to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank, which helps finance sales of U.S. products overseas and whose mandate is set to expire in May. Democrats say reauthorizing the agency, as well as boosting its lending cap to $140 billion from its current $100 billion, will help create jobs.

In his statement Monday, Cantor said the concerns about investor protection are “phantom” and called the amendment that would reauthorize the Export-Import Bank “partisan,” although it is sponsored by Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Richard Shelby of Alabama.

“Republicans, Democrats and the White House vetted the provisions in this bill, which will help small businesses and startups grow, expand and create jobs right away,” Cantor said. “Senate Democrats need to stop playing politics and act quickly to make sure this bipartisan job creation measure becomes law.”

Votes on the JOBS Act in the Senate are scheduled for Tuesday.
 

Read more about:

Economy,
Eric Cantor,
House Republicans,
Jobs Bill

Article source: http://www.politico.com/blogs/on-congress/2012/03/cantor-to-senate-stop-messing-with-jobs-bill-117901.html

Senate:

• ME-Sen: Now that Thursday’s major-party filing deadline has passed, the field in Maine’s wide-open Senate race is all but set… and remarkably, for Democrats, we’re exactly back to where we started when Olympia Snowe was still running for re-election. Team Blue’s roster consists of former Secretary of State Matt Dunlap, state Sen. Cynthia Dill, state Rep. Jon Hinck and home builder Benjamin Pollard—all of whom were preparing bids before Snowe said she’d retire. The low profile of all of these candidates certainly makes it seem like the DSCC will try to support independent ex-Gov. Angus King, as rumored. But let’s see how he actually fares on the campaign trail before anyone coronates him. (As an independent, King doesn’t have to file until June.)

The Republican lineup is also as we expected: Secretary of State Charlie Summers, Attorney General William Schneider, Treasurer Bruce Poliquin, former state Senate president Rick Bennett, Assistant Senate Majority Leader Debra Plowman, and tea partier Scott D’Amboise. While some of these people have a bit of name rec, SoS, AG, and treasurer are not elected positions in Maine, so most start out relatively unknown. Even Poliquin and Summers, the most prominent of the bunch, were question marks for almost half of voters in PPP’s poll (PDF).

• MO-Sen: Well, it’s definitely time to put Scott Rasmussen back in his own containment pool. Dem Sen. Claire McCaskill in the lows 40s I can believe. A schnook like Sarah Steelman, who raised less money than a Some Dude House candidate last quarter, at 51%, though? No chance, Scottie.

• NY-Sen: All three Republican Senate contenders scored 25% of the vote at the state party convention on Friday afternoon, assuring each of them of a spot on the ballot. Conservative activist Wendy Long did best, winning 47%—just shy of the 50% threshold to become the party’s official nominee (though I don’t think, in practice, that such a designation gets you very much). As for the other two contenders, Nassau County Comptroller George Maragos took 27%, and Rep. Bob Turner barely made the cutoff with 25%. Now this trio can tear each other apart ahead of the June 26 primary, before Dem Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand steamrolls the lucky winner into oblivion.

At least one latecomer decided he didn’t want any part of this mess, though: Hedge fund manager and Rye town supervisor Joe Carvin bailed shortly before the convention, even though he only announced his entry in the first place on Feb. 29. That was quick! Politicker’s Colin Campbell speculates that Turner’s decision to run for Senate crowded Carvin out, since the two men have some of the same consultants.

• TX-Sen: Republican Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, despite being richer than god, is only now going up with his first TV ad, reportedly just a “light buy” on Fox News. Dewhurst has a brilliant theme: Blame the baby boom generation (you know, people who vote) for the country’s current fiscal crisis. Not kidding—I never kid! In this line of work, you don’t need to make up ridiculous stories—they just happen on their own. See for yourself:

• UT-Sen: While we can’t say for sure, it seems like Sen. Orrin Hatch fared pretty well on Thursday night, when some 125,000 Republican caucus-goers met to elect 4,000 delegates to the statewide convention next month. Due to superior organizing, Hatch won all three delegates in the home precinct of former state Sen. Dan Liljenquist, his strongest rival, and also apparently enjoyed “strong support” in the caucus of his other challenger, state Rep. Chris Herrod. We won’t know for certain how things went, though, until those 4,000 delegates cast their votes in April.

Gubernatorial:

• MD-Gov: Some Republican’s gonna have to run for governor in Maryland in 2014, and Frederick County Board of Commissioners president Blaine Young says it might be him.

• MT-Gov: Another amazing catch by Montana Cowgirl: Republican gubernatorial candidate Neil Livingstone literally wrote a book that included a chapter with advice on how to pick up hookers. I’m not making this up, not at all. And no, this wasn’t some ironic, jokey, Colbert Report-esque pamphlet. It’s for real. You’ll have to click the link if you don’t trust me—and even if you do, you should click the link, because it’s freakin’ hilarious that this guy is running for office.

House:

• CA-08: Seems like a bit of a writeup fail here, as the Barstow Desert Dispatch refers to a Republican pollster working for a candidate in the race as “an independent political consulting firm.” Not so much: Blair Biggs Campaigns’ client list is pure GOP, and the survey they’ve conducted is for Victorville Councilwoman Angela Valles, who is running for this open seat. Nevertheless, the poll finds Democrat Jackie Conaway nominally leading with 18%, while Valles and San Bernardino County Supervisor Brad Mitzelfelt are tied at 15 apiece. Don’t get too excited about the possibility of Team Blue winning in this hostile red district: The poll included far more Republican names than Democratic ones, so the right-leaning vote got split. Even if Conaway is lucky enough to make it past the top-two primary, winning the general would be an extremely tall order.

• CA-30: Unlike Loretta Sanchez, who tried to give her backing to Howbrad Shberman, Rep. Adam Schiff does not seem confused. He’s come off the fence and endorsed Rep. Howard Berman in the hotly contested CA-30 Democratic primary.

• IL-13: Matt Goetten’s final TV ad is one of those “compare-and-contrast” spots, in which he starts out with an attack on his Democratic primary rival, David Gill, accusing him of “lying” and smearing Goetten, and then finishes with the usual positive pablum. The production values aren’t awesome, but they’re at least better than what we saw in Goetten’s first ad. Anyhow, you can watch at the link.

• NJ-10: Newark councilman Ron Rice became the first Democrat to say he’d run to succeed the late Rep. Donald Payne, who died earlier this month. (Rice had long been preparing to challenge Payne in the primary.) He was quickly joined by a second candidate, state Sen. Nia Gill, whose name hadn’t really come up in prior discussions of potential office-seekers. Whoever wins the Dem primary here will be all but guaranteed of winning in November in this dark blue district.

• NY-06: So after Thursday night’s craziness—when Assemblyman Rory Lancman dropped out of the race, followed just hours later by Rep. Gary Ackerman saying he would retire—Lancman is, predictably, hopping back into the Democratic field. A lot of other names say they’re considering: Assemblywoman Grace Meng, City Councilman Mark Weprin, state Sen. Tony Avella (who got double-bunked in redistricting), and, believe it or not, Assemblyman David Weprin, who of course lost badly in last year’s NY-09 special election. A few more Great Mentioner possibilities include 2009 city council candidate S.J. Jung, Councilman Jim Gennaro, and Councilwoman Liz Crowley. For the GOP, the options are slim, but one potential candidate is Councilman Dan Halloran.

One Democrat is taking his name off the table, though: Rep. Joe Crowley, who will, as expected, seek re-election in the redrawn 14th. That district is heavily Hispanic, though, so I suppose there was some small chance he might prefer to run in the 6th—but he only represents a tiny portion of the 6th, and what’s more, it’s heavily Asian. That’s why it’s notable that Meng, the only Asian-American legislator in the state, is looking at the seat—though of course “Asian” covers a very broad array of ethnic and national groups. (Meng is of Chinese ancestry, though she’s won the support of Korean groups in the past.)

• OH-02: Meow! Charlie Cook on soon-to-be-ex-Rep. Jean Schmidt’s primary loss:

[S]he was apparently behind the door when God handed out the charm and gregariousness that most elected officials possess. Schmidt is an acquired taste that many in her district and on Capitol Hill never managed to acquire.

• PA-12: Rep. Jason Altmire is out with a new internal poll from Anzalone Liszt, which shows him extending his lead over fellow Rep. Mark Critz in the Democratic primary. The new survey has Altmire up 55-31, whereas his January poll had him up 50-34. The primary is April 24.

Meanwhile, Critz won’t appeal a judge’s ruling that his Democratic primary rival, Rep. Jason Altmire, can stay on the ballot in spite of a challenge to his signatures. This was probably the right move, since the judge’s decision hinged on a determination of witness credibility—not the kind of thing an appeals court likes to second-guess. But I think Critz’s mistake here was not gunning harder at the trial court level when he had the chance, to try to undermine the testimony of a key petition-gatherer that Altmire’s entire case depended on. In any event, now Critz just has to put his head down and hope that the unions in his corner can somehow help him overcome his sharp geographic disadvantage here.

• WA-01: It seems like there’s some confusion in Washington over how to handle the special election to replace Dem Rep. Jay Inslee, who is resigning later this month. State law says that the special won’t take place until November, and ordinarily, there would just be a single election both for the unexpired final two months of Inslee’s term and the full term starting in January. (Many states separate the two in this circumstance.) But because of redistricting, Washington likely can’t hold just one election, because the old 1st District (which would apply to the stub term) has different lines than the new 1st (which would apply to the full two-year term). So officials might have to conduct two parallel elections, or they just might not fill the unexpired term at all.

Other Races:

• IN-SoS: It looks like a major chapter in the long-running Charlie White saga has finally come to an end. Gov. Mitch Daniels has now appointed a replacement for the disgraced former Secretary of State: state Sen. Connie Lawson, described by the AP as a “moderate,” for whatever that’s worth.

• WI Recall: Huge news out of Wisconsin, where GOP state Sen. Pam Galloway, who is facing a recall, has instead resigned her post. Galloway, first elected just a year and a half ago by less than 5%, cited health issues in her family. Her decision leaves the Senate evenly split between 16 Republicans and 16 Democrats, which in turn means that the two parties will now share power in the chamber and be evenly represented on committees. The recall will also still go forward, and Democrats have a strong candidate, state Rep. Donna Seidel. The GOP, on the other hand, will now have to recruit someone new. Possible options include state Reps. Jerry Petrowski and Mary Williams.

Grab Bag:

• North Carolina: Thanks to PPP’s relentless monthly polling, North Carolina must be the most extensively surveyed state in the nation. As per usual, Tom Jensen’s out with their standard batch of sports-and-random politicians miscellany. Also this month: The Tarheel State hates Rush Limbaugh.

• WATN?: Former Illinois Dem Gov. Rod Blagojevich began serving a his sentence for corruption in a Colorado federal prison on Thursday, but if you want a chilling view of what the next 14 years of his life will look like, I strongly encourage you to read Jeff Smith’s piece in which he gives advice to Blago on how to survive in jail. Smith spent a year incarcerated himself, after lying to law enforcement officials investigating negative campaign materials he put out in 2004 attacking Russ Carnahan, when both were running in the Democratic primary for the open MO-03 seat. (Carnahan narrowly won.) Mostly Smith exhorts Blagojevich to be “humble,” something I have a hard time seeing him capable of being.

Article source: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/03/19/1075592/-Daily-Kos-Elections-Morning-Digest-Eric-Cantor-s-super-PAC-backs-Adam-Kinzinger

Senate:

• ME-Sen: Now that Thursday’s major-party filing deadline has passed, the field in Maine’s wide-open Senate race is all but set… and remarkably, for Democrats, we’re exactly back to where we started when Olympia Snowe was still running for re-election. Team Blue’s roster consists of former Secretary of State Matt Dunlap, state Sen. Cynthia Dill, state Rep. Jon Hinck and home builder Benjamin Pollard—all of whom were preparing bids before Snowe said she’d retire. The low profile of all of these candidates certainly makes it seem like the DSCC will try to support independent ex-Gov. Angus King, as rumored. But let’s see how he actually fares on the campaign trail before anyone coronates him. (As an independent, King doesn’t have to file until June.)

The Republican lineup is also as we expected: Secretary of State Charlie Summers, Attorney General William Schneider, Treasurer Bruce Poliquin, former state Senate president Rick Bennett, Assistant Senate Majority Leader Debra Plowman, and tea partier Scott D’Amboise. While some of these people have a bit of name rec, SoS, AG, and treasurer are not elected positions in Maine, so most start out relatively unknown. Even Poliquin and Summers, the most prominent of the bunch, were question marks for almost half of voters in PPP’s poll (PDF).

• MO-Sen: Well, it’s definitely time to put Scott Rasmussen back in his own containment pool. Dem Sen. Claire McCaskill in the lows 40s I can believe. A schnook like Sarah Steelman, who raised less money than a Some Dude House candidate last quarter, at 51%, though? No chance, Scottie.

• NY-Sen: All three Republican Senate contenders scored 25% of the vote at the state party convention on Friday afternoon, assuring each of them of a spot on the ballot. Conservative activist Wendy Long did best, winning 47%—just shy of the 50% threshold to become the party’s official nominee (though I don’t think, in practice, that such a designation gets you very much). As for the other two contenders, Nassau County Comptroller George Maragos took 27%, and Rep. Bob Turner barely made the cutoff with 25%. Now this trio can tear each other apart ahead of the June 26 primary, before Dem Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand steamrolls the lucky winner into oblivion.

At least one latecomer decided he didn’t want any part of this mess, though: Hedge fund manager and Rye town supervisor Joe Carvin bailed shortly before the convention, even though he only announced his entry in the first place on Feb. 29. That was quick! Politicker’s Colin Campbell speculates that Turner’s decision to run for Senate crowded Carvin out, since the two men have some of the same consultants.

• TX-Sen: Republican Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, despite being richer than god, is only now going up with his first TV ad, reportedly just a “light buy” on Fox News. Dewhurst has a brilliant theme: Blame the baby boom generation (you know, people who vote) for the country’s current fiscal crisis. Not kidding—I never kid! In this line of work, you don’t need to make up ridiculous stories—they just happen on their own. See for yourself:

• UT-Sen: While we can’t say for sure, it seems like Sen. Orrin Hatch fared pretty well on Thursday night, when some 125,000 Republican caucus-goers met to elect 4,000 delegates to the statewide convention next month. Due to superior organizing, Hatch won all three delegates in the home precinct of former state Sen. Dan Liljenquist, his strongest rival, and also apparently enjoyed “strong support” in the caucus of his other challenger, state Rep. Chris Herrod. We won’t know for certain how things went, though, until those 4,000 delegates cast their votes in April.

Gubernatorial:

• MD-Gov: Some Republican’s gonna have to run for governor in Maryland in 2014, and Frederick County Board of Commissioners president Blaine Young says it might be him.

• MT-Gov: Another amazing catch by Montana Cowgirl: Republican gubernatorial candidate Neil Livingstone literally wrote a book that included a chapter with advice on how to pick up hookers. I’m not making this up, not at all. And no, this wasn’t some ironic, jokey, Colbert Report-esque pamphlet. It’s for real. You’ll have to click the link if you don’t trust me—and even if you do, you should click the link, because it’s freakin’ hilarious that this guy is running for office.

House:

• CA-08: Seems like a bit of a writeup fail here, as the Barstow Desert Dispatch refers to a Republican pollster working for a candidate in the race as “an independent political consulting firm.” Not so much: Blair Biggs Campaigns’ client list is pure GOP, and the survey they’ve conducted is for Victorville Councilwoman Angela Valles, who is running for this open seat. Nevertheless, the poll finds Democrat Jackie Conaway nominally leading with 18%, while Valles and San Bernardino County Supervisor Brad Mitzelfelt are tied at 15 apiece. Don’t get too excited about the possibility of Team Blue winning in this hostile red district: The poll included far more Republican names than Democratic ones, so the right-leaning vote got split. Even if Conaway is lucky enough to make it past the top-two primary, winning the general would be an extremely tall order.

• CA-30: Unlike Loretta Sanchez, who tried to give her backing to Howbrad Shberman, Rep. Adam Schiff does not seem confused. He’s come off the fence and endorsed Rep. Howard Berman in the hotly contested CA-30 Democratic primary.

• IL-13: Matt Goetten’s final TV ad is one of those “compare-and-contrast” spots, in which he starts out with an attack on his Democratic primary rival, David Gill, accusing him of “lying” and smearing Goetten, and then finishes with the usual positive pablum. The production values aren’t awesome, but they’re at least better than what we saw in Goetten’s first ad. Anyhow, you can watch at the link.

• NJ-10: Newark councilman Ron Rice became the first Democrat to say he’d run to succeed the late Rep. Donald Payne, who died earlier this month. (Rice had long been preparing to challenge Payne in the primary.) He was quickly joined by a second candidate, state Sen. Nia Gill, whose name hadn’t really come up in prior discussions of potential office-seekers. Whoever wins the Dem primary here will be all but guaranteed of winning in November in this dark blue district.

• NY-06: So after Thursday night’s craziness—when Assemblyman Rory Lancman dropped out of the race, followed just hours later by Rep. Gary Ackerman saying he would retire—Lancman is, predictably, hopping back into the Democratic field. A lot of other names say they’re considering: Assemblywoman Grace Meng, City Councilman Mark Weprin, state Sen. Tony Avella (who got double-bunked in redistricting), and, believe it or not, Assemblyman David Weprin, who of course lost badly in last year’s NY-09 special election. A few more Great Mentioner possibilities include 2009 city council candidate S.J. Jung, Councilman Jim Gennaro, and Councilwoman Liz Crowley. For the GOP, the options are slim, but one potential candidate is Councilman Dan Halloran.

One Democrat is taking his name off the table, though: Rep. Joe Crowley, who will, as expected, seek re-election in the redrawn 14th. That district is heavily Hispanic, though, so I suppose there was some small chance he might prefer to run in the 6th—but he only represents a tiny portion of the 6th, and what’s more, it’s heavily Asian. That’s why it’s notable that Meng, the only Asian-American legislator in the state, is looking at the seat—though of course “Asian” covers a very broad array of ethnic and national groups. (Meng is of Chinese ancestry, though she’s won the support of Korean groups in the past.)

• OH-02: Meow! Charlie Cook on soon-to-be-ex-Rep. Jean Schmidt’s primary loss:

[S]he was apparently behind the door when God handed out the charm and gregariousness that most elected officials possess. Schmidt is an acquired taste that many in her district and on Capitol Hill never managed to acquire.

• PA-12: Rep. Jason Altmire is out with a new internal poll from Anzalone Liszt, which shows him extending his lead over fellow Rep. Mark Critz in the Democratic primary. The new survey has Altmire up 55-31, whereas his January poll had him up 50-34. The primary is April 24.

Meanwhile, Critz won’t appeal a judge’s ruling that his Democratic primary rival, Rep. Jason Altmire, can stay on the ballot in spite of a challenge to his signatures. This was probably the right move, since the judge’s decision hinged on a determination of witness credibility—not the kind of thing an appeals court likes to second-guess. But I think Critz’s mistake here was not gunning harder at the trial court level when he had the chance, to try to undermine the testimony of a key petition-gatherer that Altmire’s entire case depended on. In any event, now Critz just has to put his head down and hope that the unions in his corner can somehow help him overcome his sharp geographic disadvantage here.

• WA-01: It seems like there’s some confusion in Washington over how to handle the special election to replace Dem Rep. Jay Inslee, who is resigning later this month. State law says that the special won’t take place until November, and ordinarily, there would just be a single election both for the unexpired final two months of Inslee’s term and the full term starting in January. (Many states separate the two in this circumstance.) But because of redistricting, Washington likely can’t hold just one election, because the old 1st District (which would apply to the stub term) has different lines than the new 1st (which would apply to the full two-year term). So officials might have to conduct two parallel elections, or they just might not fill the unexpired term at all.

Other Races:

• IN-SoS: It looks like a major chapter in the long-running Charlie White saga has finally come to an end. Gov. Mitch Daniels has now appointed a replacement for the disgraced former Secretary of State: state Sen. Connie Lawson, described by the AP as a “moderate,” for whatever that’s worth.

• WI Recall: Huge news out of Wisconsin, where GOP state Sen. Pam Galloway, who is facing a recall, has instead resigned her post. Galloway, first elected just a year and a half ago by less than 5%, cited health issues in her family. Her decision leaves the Senate evenly split between 16 Republicans and 16 Democrats, which in turn means that the two parties will now share power in the chamber and be evenly represented on committees. The recall will also still go forward, and Democrats have a strong candidate, state Rep. Donna Seidel. The GOP, on the other hand, will now have to recruit someone new. Possible options include state Reps. Jerry Petrowski and Mary Williams.

Grab Bag:

• North Carolina: Thanks to PPP’s relentless monthly polling, North Carolina must be the most extensively surveyed state in the nation. As per usual, Tom Jensen’s out with their standard batch of sports-and-random politicians miscellany. Also this month: The Tarheel State hates Rush Limbaugh.

• WATN?: Former Illinois Dem Gov. Rod Blagojevich began serving a his sentence for corruption in a Colorado federal prison on Thursday, but if you want a chilling view of what the next 14 years of his life will look like, I strongly encourage you to read Jeff Smith’s piece in which he gives advice to Blago on how to survive in jail. Smith spent a year incarcerated himself, after lying to law enforcement officials investigating negative campaign materials he put out in 2004 attacking Russ Carnahan, when both were running in the Democratic primary for the open MO-03 seat. (Carnahan narrowly won.) Mostly Smith exhorts Blagojevich to be “humble,” something I have a hard time seeing him capable of being.

Article source: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/03/19/1075592/-Daily-Kos-Elections-Morning-Digest-Eric-Cantor-s-super-PAC-backs-Adam-Kinzinger

(AP Photo)

ROCKFORD, Ill. — Locked in the fight of his political life, a visibly perturbed Rep. Don Manzullo unloaded on Majority Leader Eric Cantor for intervening on behalf of his opponent in their contentious GOP primary and revealed that Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy phoned him to convey distance from Cantor’s moves.

“McCarthy’s madder than hell at Cantor,” Manzullo told POLITICO in an interview.  “He said, ‘I’m fighting with Cantor.’  I said, ‘Well, that’s interesting.’”

Manzullo also accused Cantor of ripping apart the GOP caucus due to his glowing endorsement of freshman Rep. Adam Kinzinger in the 16th Congressional District primary here.

“Cantor is divisive.  He’s divided Republicans.  And we understand he’s after other members in member to member races,” Manzullo charged.

Manzullo’s frustration with House GOP leadership appeared to boil over when a super PAC aligned with Cantor dropped $50,000 on a radio ad supporting Kinzinger.  The Young Guns PAC is run by former top aides to Cantor. 

The ten-term veteran lawmaker said McCarthy called him to assure him he had nothing to do with advertisement — a gesture that appears to be just a formality since law prohibits lawmakers from coordinating with such super PACs.

Manzullo said the call by McCarthy was followed by a call from Speaker John Boehner, who said he would talk to his deputy.

“The Speaker called and I said, ‘I want that ad pulled.’  The Speaker said, ‘I’m going to call McCarthy,’” Manzullo recalled.

McCarthy spokeswoman Sarah Pompei reiterated in a statement that McCarthy has “no involvement with the Young Guns PAC and whatever they do is completely independent.”

But Manzullo apparently doesn’t buy the argument that Cantor and McCarthy — who has stayed neutral in the primary – had no influence over that spending decision.

“That’s McCarthy’s PAC as much as it is Cantor’s.  I assume McCarthy would have the right to stop spending,” he said.

While in disbelief of McCarthy’s explanation, Manzullo trained most of his fire on Cantor.

“Cantor raised $50,000 from Republicans to defeat Democrats.  And he used that money to try to defeat another Republican,” he steamed. 

“That’s his guy,” he said referring to Kinzinger.   ”And it’s ripped the conference in half.  I’ve never seen members of Congress so outright mad and outraged in my life.  Absolute total outrage.  Outrage to the point that they want to dump Cantor.  That’s what the people tell me.  They want to get rid of him because they think he’s divisive.”

Former top Cantor aid John Murray — who runs the super PAC — declined to respond to Manzullo’s missives.  A spokeswoman in Cantor’s office also passed on an opportunity to address Manzullo’s barbs.

But without naming names, Manzullo said that many members of the GOP caucus are upset with Cantor’s involvement and believe he should’ve stayed neutral.

“Cantor’s from Virginia.  He needs to take care of Virginia politics, not out here.  It’s unheard of and the conference is really upset.  This is not Chicago,” he said.

Article source: http://www.politico.com/blogs/david-catanese/2012/03/manzullo-mccarthys-madder-than-hell-at-cantor-117837.html

(AP Photo)

ROCKFORD, Ill. — Locked in the fight of his political life, a visibly perturbed Rep. Don Manzullo unloaded on Majority Leader Eric Cantor for intervening on behalf of his opponent in their contentious GOP primary and revealed that Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy phoned him to convey distance from Cantor’s moves.

“McCarthy’s madder than hell at Cantor,” Manzullo told POLITICO in an interview.  “He said, ‘I’m fighting with Cantor.’  I said, ‘Well, that’s interesting.’”

Manzullo also accused Cantor of ripping apart the GOP caucus due to his glowing endorsement of freshman Rep. Adam Kinzinger in the 16th Congressional District primary here.

“Cantor is divisive.  He’s divided Republicans.  And we understand he’s after other members in member to member races,” Manzullo charged.

Manzullo’s frustration with House GOP leadership appeared to boil over when a super PAC aligned with Cantor dropped $50,000 on a radio ad supporting Kinzinger.  The Young Guns PAC is run by former top aides to Cantor. 

The ten-term veteran lawmaker said McCarthy called him to assure him he had nothing to do with advertisement — a gesture that appears to be just a formality since law prohibits lawmakers from coordinating with such super PACs.

Manzullo said the call by McCarthy was followed by a call from Speaker John Boehner, who said he would talk to his deputy.

“The Speaker called and I said, ‘I want that ad pulled.’  The Speaker said, ‘I’m going to call McCarthy,’” Manzullo recalled.

McCarthy spokeswoman Sarah Pompei reiterated in a statement that McCarthy has “no involvement with the Young Guns PAC and whatever they do is completely independent.”

But Manzullo apparently doesn’t buy the argument that Cantor and McCarthy — who has stayed neutral in the primary – had no influence over that spending decision.

“That’s McCarthy’s PAC as much as it is Cantor’s.  I assume McCarthy would have the right to stop spending,” he said.

While in disbelief of McCarthy’s explanation, Manzullo trained most of his fire on Cantor.

“Cantor raised $50,000 from Republicans to defeat Democrats.  And he used that money to try to defeat another Republican,” he steamed. 

“That’s his guy,” he said referring to Kinzinger.   ”And it’s ripped the conference in half.  I’ve never seen members of Congress so outright mad and outraged in my life.  Absolute total outrage.  Outrage to the point that they want to dump Cantor.  That’s what the people tell me.  They want to get rid of him because they think he’s divisive.”

Former top Cantor aid John Murray — who runs the super PAC — declined to respond to Manzullo’s missives.  A spokeswoman in Cantor’s office also passed on an opportunity to address Manzullo’s barbs.

But without naming names, Manzullo said that many members of the GOP caucus are upset with Cantor’s involvement and believe he should’ve stayed neutral.

“Cantor’s from Virginia.  He needs to take care of Virginia politics, not out here.  It’s unheard of and the conference is really upset.  This is not Chicago,” he said.

Article source: http://www.politico.com/blogs/david-catanese/2012/03/manzullo-mccarthys-madder-than-hell-at-cantor-117837.html

(AP Photo)

ROCKFORD, Ill. — Locked in the fight of his political life, a visibly perturbed Rep. Don Manzullo unloaded on Majority Leader Eric Cantor for intervening on behalf of his opponent in their contentious GOP primary and revealed that Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy phoned him to convey distance from Cantor’s moves.

“McCarthy’s madder than hell at Cantor,” Manzullo told POLITICO in an interview.  “He said, ‘I’m fighting with Cantor.’  I said, ‘Well, that’s interesting.’”

Manzullo also accused Cantor of ripping apart the GOP caucus due to his glowing endorsement of freshman Rep. Adam Kinzinger in the 16th Congressional District primary here.

“Cantor is divisive.  He’s divided Republicans.  And we understand he’s after other members in member to member races,” Manzullo charged.

Manzullo’s frustration with House GOP leadership appeared to boil over when a super PAC aligned with Cantor dropped $50,000 on a radio ad supporting Kinzinger.  The Young Guns PAC is run by former top aides to Cantor. 

The ten-term veteran lawmaker said McCarthy called him to assure him he had nothing to do with advertisement — a gesture that appears to be just a formality since law prohibits lawmakers from coordinating with such super PACs.

Manzullo said the call by McCarthy was followed by a call from Speaker John Boehner, who said he would talk to his deputy.

“The Speaker called and I said, ‘I want that ad pulled.’  The Speaker said, ‘I’m going to call McCarthy,’” Manzullo recalled.

McCarthy spokeswoman Sarah Pompei reiterated in a statement that McCarthy has “no involvement with the Young Guns PAC and whatever they do is completely independent.”

But Manzullo apparently doesn’t buy the argument that Cantor and McCarthy — who has stayed neutral in the primary – had no influence over that spending decision.

“That’s McCarthy’s PAC as much as it is Cantor’s.  I assume McCarthy would have the right to stop spending,” he said.

While in disbelief of McCarthy’s explanation, Manzullo trained most of his fire on Cantor.

“Cantor raised $50,000 from Republicans to defeat Democrats.  And he used that money to try to defeat another Republican,” he steamed. 

“That’s his guy,” he said referring to Kinzinger.   ”And it’s ripped the conference in half.  I’ve never seen members of Congress so outright mad and outraged in my life.  Absolute total outrage.  Outrage to the point that they want to dump Cantor.  That’s what the people tell me.  They want to get rid of him because they think he’s divisive.”

Former top Cantor aid John Murray — who runs the super PAC — declined to respond to Manzullo’s missives.  A spokeswoman in Cantor’s office also passed on an opportunity to address Manzullo’s barbs.

But without naming names, Manzullo said that many members of the GOP caucus are upset with Cantor’s involvement and believe he should’ve stayed neutral.

“Cantor’s from Virginia.  He needs to take care of Virginia politics, not out here.  It’s unheard of and the conference is really upset.  This is not Chicago,” he said.

Article source: http://www.politico.com/blogs/david-catanese/2012/03/manzullo-mccarthys-madder-than-hell-at-cantor-117837.html

Article source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2012/03/15/gIQAHyyfJS_story.html

A new post from the Common Blog:

In February, Common Cause wrote to House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, asking for an explanation about an apparently unreported $1,350 gift from the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) in 2009. Cantor’s office immediately responded, claiming our inquiry was without foundation, but last week his office quietly amended his financial disclosures to include the gift from ALEC.

At that time, I wrote about Cantor’s failure to disclose:

‘ALEC, the so-called “free market, small government” lobby group underwritten by some of the nation’s largest corporations, reported in its tax filings for 2008 and 2009, making “cash grants” to the recipients of several annual awards. Common Cause has identified 22 legislators who received ALEC awards in those two years, including Rep. Cantor, who ALEC records indicate received $1,350 in 2009 as part of their Thomas Jefferson Freedom Award.’

Cantor responded within hours, saying no cash changed hands, but that he received a bust of Thomas Jefferson from ALEC, pictured above. But, under House Ethics Rules this type of award can only be received by a Member of Congress if it is disclosed, which Cantor did not do. This appears to be a clear ethics violation, and we have asked the Office of Congressional Ethics to investigate. Prompted by Common Cause, Cantor has now very quietly amended his 2009 Financial Disclosure Report to include the ALEC gift. He also amended his 2010 report to include another bust given to him by the Associated Builders and Contractors trade group. We had no idea about this second award, but now we do.

Read the rest of our update on the Common Blog.

Article source: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/03/16/1075179/-Cantor-quietly-admits-failure-to-disclose

           Now that the Protective-Trans-Vaginal-Ultrasound-for-Under-Age-Female-Citizens Act has passed the House, and despite a threatened veto by the president should the Senate act in kind, Republican leaders announced today that the Women’s-Micro-Chip-Implant Act of 2012 has survived a Health Committee vote and will go to the House floor.

     The Micro-Chip-Implant Act provides what Eric Cantor, House Majority Leader believes, “…is a somewhat more certain method by which civil and religious authority may better monitor women from their earliest fecundive years… their predispositions toward sexuality that may not bear the prior sanction or imprimatur of their fathers, priests, rabbis, ministers, or imams.”

     The sub-dermal implant law, argues Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, “maintains the crucial element of choice in that girls and women ten and older may decide to have the chip implanted vaginally or in an armpit. Of course, girls younger than ten-years-old,” the Kansas Senator went on, “must have the device trans-vaginally implanted because they are simply too immature for the serious responsibility that the choice confers on a woman. Over time, then, all females will be trans-vaginally implanted.”

     As you may have read, the Micro-Chip registers each instance of female sex and transmits the attendant information to state data-banks and to one national data-bank. Represenative Cantor explains that this is a safeguard for women in that “if the number of sexual acts a girl or a woman has, say, is recorded in a flawed manner by her state  –  I hasten to say that the technology is really very sound but we are determined to be fair and concede that the technology is rather new –  and the state levies upon her the fine and/or follows through on the sentence required under law, it is important that the national data-base serve as a check, as a backstop.”

     The Virginia Republican says further, “While it’s true that the chip in its current state of development cannot distinguish between sex between a man and a woman, sex between two women, and what I have been told is known as ‘female self-pleasuring’, know that the Congress has enlisted the National Institutes of Health to refine the process and we are hopeful for a breakthrough in the near term.” Anticipating concerns Mr. Cantor quickly added, “The fact that females may have to undergo a second implant, or a third, or more, as the science moves forward, is something we have anticipated; there ought to be little concern, paticularly on the part of or for females who maintain self-control.”

Article source: http://open.salon.com/blog/jlw1/2012/03/16/the_proposed_female_micro-chip_implant_act_of_2012

YG (Young Guns) Action Fund, the super PAC allied with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, is backing Illinois freshmen Rep. Adam Kinzinger in his GOP primary against 10-term Rep. Don Manzullo. The two incumbents must face each other because of redistricting.

YG Action Fund, run by former top Cantor aide John Murray, is putting $50,000 to work for a radio ad that calls Kinzinger a “conservative rock in the fight against runaway government spending,” according to a script obtained by Politico.

The ad never mentions the 67-year-old Manzullo by name but it includes Kinzinger as part of “the next generation of conservative leaders.”

In a statement given to Politico, the super PAC’s president, John Murray, said: “He’s cut spending, held the line against liberal efforts to raise taxes, and he’s voted to repeal Obamacare. To change Washington and get the country back on track, we need young guns like Adam there to fight.”

Cantor personally endorsed Kinzinger a week ago. “He helped us turn the tide in the House of Representatives and reconnect with our tried and true conservative principles,” the majority leader said in a statement. “Only when he and his fellow Republican freshmen arrived have we been able to change the debate in Washington from how much more are we going to spend to how much are we going to cut.”

© 2012 Newsmax. All rights reserved.

Article source: http://www.newsmax.com/Politics/Cantor-Kinzinger-Illinois-Republican/2012/03/16/id/432849

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor proved in February you don’t have to be an actor to make big money in New York and Los Angeles.

The Virginia Republican banked $294,902 for his “victory committee” last month, most of it in Manhattan and Southern California, according to a report filed Friday with the Federal Election Commission.

The committee collects large checks from single donors and then distributes the money proportionally to Cantor’s campaign committee, his political action committee, the National Republican Congressional Committee, and a state-level political committee.

Cantor collected $157,100 from 17 donors in New York. The big money came from billionaire Marc Rowan of Apollo Management and his wife, Carolyn, who combined to give $49,100. Marc Rowan, 50, ranks No. 309 on the Forbes 400.

Oscar Schafer of OSS Capital Management kicked in $25,000.

On the left coast, Cantor picked up $46,800 from a list of five donors, headlined by Heritage Provider Network chief Richard Merkin, who contributed $25,000. B. Wayne Hughes Jr., an heir to his father’s public storage empire, gave $20,000.

With all that money, it’s no wonder Cantor slept in the lap of luxury: He shelled out nearly $2,500 for a fundraising dinner and lodging at the Beverly Hilton.

Article source: http://www.politico.com/blogs/on-congress/2012/03/cantor-rakes-in-big-bucks-in-ny-la-117714.html

The super PAC aligned with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy is putting $50,000 behind Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger in his nasty primary against fellow GOP Rep. Don Manzullo.

It’s the YG Action Fund’s first advertisement purchase: a radio spot that will run Friday through Tuesday evening declaring Kinzinger — a freshman — a “conservative rock in the fight against runaway government spending,” according to a script obtained by POLITICO.

Continue Reading

The advertisement is significant for several reasons. It lays bare that the super PAC — run by former top Cantor aide John Murray — isn’t afraid to get involved in divisive primaries between lawmakers on the same side of the aisle.

Without ever mentioning the 67-year-old Manzullo by name, the ad attempts to paint him as a part of the Washington of yesteryear – dubbing Kinzinger “the next generation of conservative leaders.”

“Adam Kinzinger is an important part of the next generation of conservative leaders,” YG Action Fund president John Murray said in a statement to POLITICO. “He’s cut spending, held the line against liberal efforts to raise taxes and he’s voted to repeal Obamacare. To change Washington and get the country back on track, we need Young Guns like Adam there to fight.”

The ad will air exactly one week after Cantor personally endorsed Kinzinger. In a statement, Cantor praised Kinzinger as “a new breed of conservative. He helped us turn the tide in the House of Representatives and reconnect with our tried and true conservative principles. Only when he and his fellow Republican freshmen arrived have we been able to change the debate in Washington from how much more are we going to spend—to—how much are we going to cut.”

The Kinzinger buy is the first of many upcoming pushes for the YG Action Fund, officials with the group said.

As the Supreme Court readies to take up the constitutionality of the new health care law, the super PAC and its charitable arm are currently polling the issue, preparing an advertisement and are planning an event for the end of the month to present the Republicans’ alternative proposals.

They also plan a push around Cantor’s small business tax cut, which will hit the floor in the coming weeks.

The idea is to have the YG Action Fund as an outpost of Cantor and McCarthy’s priorities, without the constraints of the Capitol. Supporting candidates like Kinzinger could help further solidify the standing of the No. 2 and No. 3 House Republicans with the younger tier of the party.

The super PAC has been quiet until now — it raised $255,000 in the final three months of 2011, with Murray setting its foundation. Brad Dayspring, who left Cantor’s Hill office earlier this month, will begin at the super PAC soon, and they’ll begin playing in Republican politics inside and outside the Beltway.

Article source: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/74084.html

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-7th, said today during a lunch meeting of Greater Richmond Chamber members that he’ll unveil legislation to provide for a 20-percent small business tax cut.

“It doesn’t matter how you are organized… it is money straight to the bottom line of the small businessman and woman to be able to retain more of the monies earned to be able to invest back in those businesses and create more jobs,” he told nearly 30 high-level chamber members at The Jefferson Hotel.

His legislation, which would track the Small Business Administration’s definition of small businesses having 500 employees or fewer, is expected to come before the House of Representatives for a vote in mid-April, around the tax deadline.

During his remarks, Cantor talked up the JOBS Act –- the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act –- a package of bills that are supposed to make it easier for companies to get access to capital. The bill recently passed the House with bipartisan support. The Senate has not taken up the legislation.

On regulatory reform, Cantor said he’d like to move forward on an effort for a moratorium on regulations other than those required for health and an emergency.

Article source: http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/2012/mar/14/cantor-says-hell-introduce-legislation-small-busin-ar-1766085/

The super PAC aligned with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy is putting $50,000 behind Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger in his nasty primary against fellow GOP Rep. Don Manzullo.

It’s the YG Action Fund’s first advertisement purchase: a radio spot that will run Friday through Tuesday evening declaring Kinzinger — a freshman — a “conservative rock in the fight against runaway government spending,” according to a script obtained by POLITICO.

Continue Reading

The advertisement is significant for several reasons. It lays bare that the super PAC — run by former top Cantor aide John Murray — isn’t afraid to get involved in divisive primaries between lawmakers on the same side of the aisle.

Without ever mentioning the 67-year-old Manzullo by name, the ad attempts to paint him as a part of the Washington of yesteryear – dubbing Kinzinger “the next generation of conservative leaders.”

“Adam Kinzinger is an important part of the next generation of conservative leaders,” YG Action Fund president John Murray said in a statement to POLITICO. “He’s cut spending, held the line against liberal efforts to raise taxes and he’s voted to repeal Obamacare. To change Washington and get the country back on track, we need Young Guns like Adam there to fight.”

The ad will air exactly one week after Cantor personally endorsed Kinzinger. In a statement, Cantor praised Kinzinger as “a new breed of conservative. He helped us turn the tide in the House of Representatives and reconnect with our tried and true conservative principles. Only when he and his fellow Republican freshmen arrived have we been able to change the debate in Washington from how much more are we going to spend—to—how much are we going to cut.”

The Kinzinger buy is the first of many upcoming pushes for the YG Action Fund, officials with the group said.

As the Supreme Court readies to take up the constitutionality of the new health care law, the super PAC and its charitable arm are currently polling the issue, preparing an advertisement and are planning an event for the end of the month to present the Republicans’ alternative proposals.

They also plan a push around Cantor’s small business tax cut, which will hit the floor in the coming weeks.

The idea is to have the YG Action Fund as an outpost of Cantor and McCarthy’s priorities, without the constraints of the Capitol. Supporting candidates like Kinzinger could help further solidify the standing of the No. 2 and No. 3 House Republicans with the younger tier of the party.

The super PAC has been quiet until now — it raised $255,000 in the final three months of 2011, with Murray setting its foundation. Brad Dayspring, who left Cantor’s Hill office earlier this month, will begin at the super PAC soon, and they’ll begin playing in Republican politics inside and outside the Beltway.

Article source: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/74084.html

A sleepy Export-Import Bank debate in Congress has blossomed into a corporate political brawl matching the powerful Boeing Co. lobby against Delta Air Lines, represented here by a close friend and supporter of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor.

The issues are bigger than the personalities, affecting billions of dollars in U.S.-backed loan guarantees supporting the overseas sale of Boeing aircraft. But with pivotal Senate votes now scheduled for Tuesday, Cantor is without a doubt the crucial broker for the House. And Boeing is hammering away at his close ties with Delta lobbyist and confidante Andrea Newman — even as it fields a small army of its own.

Continue Reading

If it seems David vs. Goliath, Newman, as Delta’s senior vice president for government affairs, comes with a BlackBerry instead of a slingshot. In an anecdote Cantor’s office denied Friday, he is said to have once emailed her about an aviation bill while still in a members-only meeting with the White House on the subject. And the two enjoy what’s described as a genuine family — University of Michigan — friendship even as she helps him raise campaign funds.

Hanging in the balance is the Ex-Im Bank itself, a small, often-ignored agency that’s become a top priority for President Barack Obama in his efforts to boost the economic recovery. Since the 2008 financial collapse, the bank has greatly increased its activity, so much so that it is now close to bumping up against its $100 billion cap. And the White House is now backing a Senate bill that would authorize a $40 billion, 40 percent increase in Ex-Im’s loan limit and a four-year extension of the current authorization, due to expire at the end of May.

Tea party conservatives are up in arms but appear to have slept through a June public meeting last year of the House Financial Services Committee, which backed an even bigger $60 billion, four-year expansion on a simple voice vote with no opposition.

When the GOP leadership awoke to what happened, the issue was thrust into the lap of Cantor’s office to broker a substitute, and what’s emerged is a draft 38-page bill that allows for a one-year extension and a loan cap of $113 billion through fiscal 2013 — just a third of the increase proposed by the Senate.

The goal is to allow a pause of sorts — time for a study by the Comptroller General of Ex-Im’s future role. But also included is language backed by Delta to rein in the aircraft side of the Ex-Im portfolio so important to Boeing.

It’s estimated that at least 40 percent of the bank’s lending activity has been in support of aircraft sales, and Delta would argue that this low-cost financing is helping foreign carriers, like Air India, at the expense of American airlines like itself that seek to compete on international routes.

“The U.S. and the European Union have a similar interest in allowing the market to operate without subsidies,” Ben Hirst, Delta’s general counsel, told POLITICO. “When we talk to Boeing or Airbus, each says they are only for export financing because the other does it. … If that is the attitude of the major players, why are they not embracing this?”

Article source: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/74092.html

A sleepy Export-Import Bank debate in Congress has blossomed into a corporate political brawl matching the powerful Boeing Co. lobby against Delta Air Lines, represented here by a close friend and supporter of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor.

The issues are bigger than the personalities, affecting billions of dollars in U.S.-backed loan guarantees supporting the overseas sale of Boeing aircraft. But with pivotal Senate votes now scheduled for Tuesday, Cantor is without a doubt the crucial broker for the House. And Boeing is hammering away at his close ties with Delta lobbyist and confidante Andrea Newman — even as it fields a small army of its own.

Continue Reading

If it seems David vs. Goliath, Newman, as Delta’s senior vice president for government affairs, comes with a BlackBerry instead of a slingshot. Cantor is said to have once emailed her about an aviation bill while he was still in a White House meeting on the subject. And the two enjoy what’s described as a genuine family — University of Michigan — friendship even as she helps him raise campaign funds.

Hanging in the balance is the Ex-Im Bank itself, a small, often-ignored agency that’s become a top priority for President Barack Obama in his efforts to boost the economic recovery. Since the 2008 financial collapse, the bank has greatly increased its activity, so much so that it is now close to bumping up against its $100 billion cap. And the White House is now backing a Senate bill that would authorize a $40 billion, 40 percent increase in Ex-Im’s loan limit and a four-year extension of the current authorization, due to expire at the end of May.

Tea party conservatives are up in arms but appear to have slept through a June public meeting last year of the House Financial Services Committee, which backed an even bigger $60 billion, four-year expansion on a simple voice vote with no opposition.

When the GOP leadership awoke to what happened, the issue was thrust into the lap of Cantor’s office to broker a substitute, and what’s emerged is a draft 38-page bill that allows for a one-year extension and a loan cap of $113 billion through fiscal 2013 — just a third of the increase proposed by the Senate.

The goal is to allow a pause of sorts — time for a study by the Comptroller General of Ex-Im’s future role. But also included is language backed by Delta to rein in the aircraft side of the Ex-Im portfolio so important to Boeing.

It’s estimated that at least 40 percent of the bank’s lending activity has been in support of aircraft sales, and Delta would argue that this low-cost financing is helping foreign carriers, like Air India, at the expense of American airlines like itself that seek to compete on international routes.

“The U.S. and the European Union have a similar interest in allowing the market to operate without subsidies,” Ben Hirst, Delta’s general counsel, told POLITICO. “When we talk to Boeing or Airbus, each says they are only for export financing because the other does it. … If that is the attitude of the major players, why are they not embracing this?”

Article source: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/74092.html

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-7th, said today during a lunch meeting of Greater Richmond Chamber members that he’ll unveil legislation to provide for a 20-percent small business tax cut.

“It doesn’t matter how you are organized… it is money straight to the bottom line of the small businessman and woman to be able to retain more of the monies earned to be able to invest back in those businesses and create more jobs,” he told nearly 30 high-level chamber members at The Jefferson Hotel.

His legislation, which would track the Small Business Administration’s definition of small businesses having 500 employees or fewer, is expected to come before the House of Representatives for a vote in mid-April, around the tax deadline.

During his remarks, Cantor talked up the JOBS Act –- the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act –- a package of bills that are supposed to make it easier for companies to get access to capital. The bill recently passed the House with bipartisan support. The Senate has not taken up the legislation.

On regulatory reform, Cantor said he’d like to move forward on an effort for a moratorium on regulations other than those required for health and an emergency.

Article source: http://godanriver.com/ar/1766085/

In a sunny meeting room at Richmond’s Jefferson Hotel yesterday, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) addressed a select group of Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce members about what the House is doing to stimulate the economy. Even with fresh news that Virginia’s economy seems to be recovering, the folks in the room are at the mercy of the national economy. They want to know what Congress is doing to clean that stable.

Cantor gave them a three-point plan. One of them has already passed the House — the Jobs Act. Another, which Cantor is set to roll out next week, is a proposed 20 percent tax cut for small businesses. The third is likely to be a series of bills aimed at curbing what Cantor called “overly aggressive” regulation, particularly environmental strictures that conservatives view as being motivated by ideology, not science.

But this being Congress, even the issues the parties agree upon are fodder for dispute. Take the Jobs Act.

The measure, which would ease some of the Sarbanes-Oxley rules for start-ups to ease their access to capital, passed the House 390-23. It earned praise from the White House and even murmurs of assent from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). But that was last week. Since then, Reid has toyed with the idea of adding an extension of the Export-Import Bank to the legislation. The cover is that the Ex-Im Bank helps spur American exports. The reality is that many Senate conservatives see the bank as corporate welfare and want it eliminated. Attaching this extension to the Jobs Act gives Reid leverage over the rest of the bill and a nice talking point (see, Democrats really are on corporate America’s side) and splits the GOP between its corporatist and populist wings.

That’s quite a trifecta. But it gets better. If the Jobs Act grinds to a halt in the Senate, as so many other House-approved economic measures have, it’s Republicans who will be saddled with the blame.

When I asked Cantor about this yesterday, he said the bank’s renewal was a separate issue and should be dealt with as such.

But that, too, was yesterday…

[Continue reading Norman Leahy’s post at Bearing Drift.]

Norman Leahy blogs at Bearing Drift. The Local Blog Network is a group of bloggers from around the D.C. region who have agreed to make regular contributions to All Opinions Are Local.

Article source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/all-opinions-are-local/post/cantor-the-jobs-act-and-the-democrats/2011/03/10/gIQABkhBES_blog.html

In a sunny meeting room at Richmond’s Jefferson Hotel yesterday, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) addressed a select group of Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce members about what the House is doing to stimulate the economy. Even with fresh news that Virginia’s economy seems to be recovering, the folks in the room are at the mercy of the national economy. They want to know what Congress is doing to clean that stable.

Cantor gave them a three-point plan. One of them has already passed the House — the Jobs Act. Another, which Cantor is set to roll out next week, is a proposed 20 percent tax cut for small businesses. The third is likely to be a series of bills aimed at curbing what Cantor called “overly aggressive” regulation, particularly environmental strictures that conservatives view as being motivated by ideology, not science.

But this being Congress, even the issues the parties agree upon are fodder for dispute. Take the Jobs Act.

The measure, which would ease some of the Sarbanes-Oxley rules for start-ups to ease their access to capital, passed the House 390-23. It earned praise from the White House and even murmurs of assent from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). But that was last week. Since then, Reid has toyed with the idea of adding an extension of the Export-Import Bank to the legislation. The cover is that the Ex-Im Bank helps spur American exports. The reality is that many Senate conservatives see the bank as corporate welfare and want it eliminated. Attaching this extension to the Jobs Act gives Reid leverage over the rest of the bill and a nice talking point (see, Democrats really are on corporate America’s side) and splits the GOP between its corporatist and populist wings.

That’s quite a trifecta. But it gets better. If the Jobs Act grinds to a halt in the Senate, as so many other House-approved economic measures have, it’s Republicans who will be saddled with the blame.

When I asked Cantor about this yesterday, he said the bank’s renewal was a separate issue and should be dealt with as such.

But that, too, was yesterday…

[Continue reading Norman Leahy’s post at Bearing Drift.]

Norman Leahy blogs at Bearing Drift. The Local Blog Network is a group of bloggers from around the D.C. region who have agreed to make regular contributions to All Opinions Are Local.

Article source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/all-opinions-are-local/post/cantor-the-jobs-act-and-the-democrats/2011/03/10/gIQABkhBES_blog.html

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-7th, said today during a lunch meeting of Greater Richmond Chamber members that he’ll unveil legislation to provide for a 20-percent small business tax cut.

“It doesn’t matter how you are organized… it is money straight to the bottom line of the small businessman and woman to be able to retain more of the monies earned to be able to invest back in those businesses and create more jobs,” he told nearly 30 high-level chamber members at The Jefferson Hotel.

His legislation, which would track the Small Business Administration’s definition of small businesses having 500 employees or fewer, is expected to come before the House of Representatives for a vote in mid-April, around the tax deadline.

During his remarks, Cantor talked up the JOBS Act –- the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act –- a package of bills that are supposed to make it easier for companies to get access to capital. The bill recently passed the House with bipartisan support. The Senate has not taken up the legislation.

On regulatory reform, Cantor said he’d like to move forward on an effort for a moratorium on regulations other than those required for health and an emergency.

Article source: http://www2.newsadvance.com/news/2012/mar/14/cantor-says-hell-introduce-legislation-small-busin-ar-1766085/

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-7th, told members of the Greater Richmond Chamber on Wednesday that he’ll unveil legislation next week to provide for a 20 percent small business tax cut.

“It doesn’t matter how you are organized. … It is money straight to the bottom line of the small businessman and woman to be able to retain more of the monies earned to be able to invest back in those businesses and create more jobs,” he told nearly 30 high-level chamber members at a luncheon at The Jefferson Hotel.

His legislation, which would track the Small Business Administration’s definition of small businesses having 500 or fewer employees, is expected to come before the House of Representatives for a vote in mid-April, around Tax Day.

During his remarks, Cantor talked up the JOBS Act — the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act — a package of bills designed to make it easier for companies to get access to capital. The bill recently passed the House with bipartisan support. The Senate has not taken up the bill.

On regulatory reform, Cantor said he’d like to move forward on legislation to create a moratorium on regulations other than those required for health and emergency.

Article source: http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/2012/mar/15/tdbiz04-cantor-expects-to-introduce-bill-for-small-ar-1766555/

WASHINGTON — The second-ranking Republican in the House is throwing his support behind Mitt Romney in the GOP presidential race.

Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia says Romney is the only candidate who has come out with “a bold pro-growth, pro-jobs plan for the future.”

The endorsement from the House majority leader comes ahead of Tuesday’s big vote in 10 states, including Cantor’s home state of Virginia — where only Romney and Texas Rep. Ron Paul qualified to be on the primary ballot.

Cantor says Romney is the candidate best able to create jobs, make people feel better about the future and beat President Barack Obama.

Cantor also tells NBC’s “Meet the Press” that he’s not interested in being considered as a running mate.

Article source: http://bostonherald.com/news/us_politics/view/20120304house_majority_leader_eric_cantor_endorses_mitt_romney

The winners would have written the history of the dramatic debt-reduction deal struck last summer — had it happened.

Instead, the losers — all of Washington’s power players — are now lobbying historians to take their side.

Continue Reading

Vice President Joe Biden told folks at a posh Georgetown fundraiser Monday night that Speaker John Boehner, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) all shook hands on debt deals and then walked away from them — a bit of revisionism his office has not offered any support for in the hours since.

But Biden’s remarks seemed to be an answer to Boehner’s assertion in an interview with Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan last week that the president “moved the goal posts, and blew up negotiations,” which is one version of the story.

Nearly everyone in Washington’s power corridors is talking — on the record or off it — to a series of reporters who are digging into the debt-limit talks in forthcoming stories and books: Matt Bai of the New York Times, Robert Draper of GQ, Bob Woodward of the Washington Post and, separate from Woodward, Lori Montgomery and Peter Wallsten of the Post.

It’s all created quite a buzz about the deal that never was — and a good bit of apprehension in House Republican circles about how Boehner and other leaders will be portrayed by some of the nation’s finest feature men.

“The missing piece that everyone seems to be trying to get is between the speaker’s office and the White House,” said one source who was involved in multiple interviews.

Boehner can’t let the White House version — that he was too chicken or too powerless to follow through on a deal — go without a response. If he does, he’ll be pilloried in dozens of copycat stories as the villain who foiled Obama’s best laid plans. And that’s just how Obama needs the story to be told if he hopes to turn the epic failure of his 2008 campaign promise to transcend partisanship into a reason to re-elect him.

Boehner told Noonan that he extended his deal-making hand as far as he could, even making his own aides nervous, and that it was Obama who flinched. The president “spun this thing that I walked away from this,” Boehner told Noonan. “He lost his courage… . He just couldn’t bring himself to do what he had to do.”

In the end, most of Washington’s top power brokers and policy wonks have participated in interviews re-creating the debt-limit talks, from Vice President Joe Biden’s working group on the topic to the president’s discussions with Boehner to the failed supercommittee. The novelty of this brand of tick-tock is that it tells the story of a deal that fell apart. Usually, folks are more than willing to talk in detail about the game-changing moments only when a deal comes together and there is glory to be shared, not blame to be cast.

Bai spoke to dozens of sources involved in the debt-limit discussions — all on the condition of anonymity — and there’s now a palpable concern on Capitol Hill about what will be revealed from documents he’s obtained and new accounts that contradict more sanitized official versions of how Boehner and Obama let the “grand bargain” slip away.

Article source: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/73994.html

By David Lawder

WASHINGTON, March 13 (Reuters) – Republican leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives are ready to break a hard-fought budget deal with Democrats as they try to quell a revolt by conservatives who are insisting on deeper spending cuts ahead of the November elections.

House Republican aides said on Tuesday that House Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Eric Cantor were pressing for a modest $19 billion reduction of discretionary spending caps in this year’s Republican budget plan.

The August 2011 deal to end a summer debt limit drama – which nearly prompted a first-ever default on U.S. Treasury debt – called for a $1.047 trillion cap on discretionary spending for fiscal 2013. Conservative House Republicans last week launched an effort to reduce that amount by as much as $116 billion, presenting Boehner a new leadership challenge.

But even the $1.028 trillion compromise figure that Boehner and Cantor were insisting that members in the Republican-controlled House support would cause problems with spending bills later this year, Republican aides said.

Democrats would not support even a small reduction from last year’s carefully crafted agreement, and $19 billion in cuts is not likely to be deep enough to draw the support of the most conservative Republicans, especially those backed by the conservative Tea Party movement.

“I’d say that’s probably not going to be enough for my boss,” said an aide to a congressman involved in the budget negotiations who is a senior member of the conservative Republican Study Committee. The group pressed for a considerably lower cap of $931 billion.

Republican lawmakers pressing for more aggressive deficit reduction now insist that the spending cap in the August deal is a ceiling, not a floor – there is nothing illegal about spending less. Democrats see the cap as part of a binding budget law.

But both Republican and Democratic aides fear an impasse on spending bills that would threaten a potential government shutdown battle just weeks before the November election. The current spending authority expires on Sept. 30.

Standard Poor’s rating agency cited gridlock in Congress over spending and deficit reduction issues in its historic decision last year to downgrade the U.S. credit rating a notch from Triple-A status.

“Our economy cannot afford another one of these senseless demonstrations by the Tea Party. The American people are sick of these manufactured crises,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said as he castigated House Republicans on Tuesday for trying to back away from prior commitments.

“I’m really disappointed that they’re considering a budget – violating the budget agreement that is now the law of this country. This was designed to avoid another government shutdown or a threat of a shutdown.”

Aides for Boehner and Cantor referred questions about the budget negotiations to House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, who is preparing a budget plan to be unveiled next week.

A spokesman for Ryan would only say that the budget plan was “on track and on schedule”.

SPENDING-CUT CAMPAIGNS

Conservative House members want to be able to demonstrate a more proactive approach to cutting deficits to use in their re-election campaigns, a senior House Republican aide said.

Many of the 87 first-term Republicans, for example, were elected on promises to slash wasteful federal spending, and some have voted against all spending bills.

After bruising battles on payroll tax extensions and contraception issues, talking about spending cuts and deficits may prove more effective for Republicans.

But the Ryan budget resolution is not binding and Reid vowed that it would die in the Senate.

“It’s a symbolic, substance-free vote with substantive consequences for the appropriations process,” the senior Republican aide said of support for deeper discretionary cuts.

But there was some room for conservatives to support the compromise $1.028 trillion cap – if the Republican budget contains enough savings on mandatory spending programs like Medicare and Social Security to reach balance within 10 years, another Republican aide said.

Copyright 2012 Thomson Reuters. Click for Restrictions.

Earlier on HuffPost:

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Article source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/14/john-boehner-eric-cantor-spending-cap_n_1344317.html?ref=politics

Speaker of the House John Boehner, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and their fellow House Republicans should claim credit for this jobs recovery. It never would have happened had they not stopped the counter-productive fiscal policies of the Obama Administration — starting with blocking the job killing increase in personal income tax rates that otherwise would have taken place on January 1, 2011, and then last fall refusing to vote for yet another round of wasteful “stimulus” spending and money losing investments in “green jobs.”

Remember last August when the Administration charged that the House Republican show-down over increasing the federal government’s debt limit without meaningful spending reductions threatened the recovery and Vice President Joe Biden called opponents of an increase in the debt limit “terrorists”? And then how the President last fall demanded House Republicans pass “now” $400 billion in new stimulus spending, relabeled a “jobs bill,” or be held accountable for the coming slow-down in economic growth?

Well, here is what putting a stop to Obamanomics has produced: The strongest six months of employment growth since the President took office.

According to the February employment report released last Friday, non-farm payrolls have increased by 1.2 million jobs since last August. By contrast, between the beginning of Obamanomics with the passage of his stimulus bill in March 2009 and August, employment fell by 1.3 million. That’s right, just saying “no” to bad policies has in six months recovered nearly all of the jobs that had been lost in the prior 2.5 years.

In addition, the official unemployment rate in February was 8.3%, down from 9.1% in August while the U-6 measure of unemployment, which includes frustrated job seekers and those who are being forced to work part time has fallen to a still high 14.9%, compared to 16.2% in August. Both measures of unemployment are now at their lowest level since the Obama administration launched its trillion dollar increase in government spending and investments in “green jobs.”

February’s 227,000 gain in non-farm payrolls made it the third consecutive month in which non-employment growth has exceeded 200,000, the amount generally considered necessary to bring down the unemployment rate. It was also the second consecutive month in which the work-force grew, and the second month since last July in which the civilian labor force participation rate increased.

The improving jobs picture is consistent with a growing body of academic research that demonstrates increased government spending reduces, rather than increases, economic growth. Summarizing the research in his December, 2010 Wall Street Journal article Stanford Professor Michael Boskin wrote:

“But economic theory, history and statistical studies reveal that more taxes and spending are more likely to harm than help the economy. Those who demand spending control and oppose tax hikes hold the intellectual high ground.”

The massive increase in federal spending under Obamanomics, for example, appears to have sucked the job creating strength out of the rest of the economy. Between February 2009 and August, 2011, federal employment increased by 52,000. But, total government employment fell by more than half a million employees as state and local governments, faced with the failure of the stimulus program to produce growth, were forced to cut payrolls in order to balance their budgets.

During that same period, private sector employment fell by 834,000. And, lest you think that all that “investment” in infrastructure and shovel ready jobs worked, employment in the construction sector alone fell by more than 900,000.

Meanwhile, the non-provable claim by the advocates of Obamanomics, that the increased spending saved jobs, is belied by what has happened since the policy was stopped. Since August, federal employment has fallen by 26,000, but the rate of layoffs in state and local government has slowed by half. And, private sector employment has surged 1.3 million workers.

But, there is much left to be done. The rapid growth in the regulatory burden under President Obama, and the Administration’s weak dollar/high oil price monetary policy are on-going impediments to full employment, especially among minorities and those without college educations. The unemployment rate for blacks stands at 14.1%, nearly double the unemployment rate for whites, and those without a college education are more than twice as likely to be unemployed as those with a diploma.

Article source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/charleskadlec/2012/03/12/the-house-gop-authors-a-jobs-recovery/

By David Lawder

WASHINGTON, March 13 (Reuters) – Republican leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives are ready to break a hard-fought budget deal with Democrats as they try to quell a revolt by conservatives who are insisting on deeper spending cuts ahead of the November elections.

House Republican aides said on Tuesday that House Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Eric Cantor were pressing for a modest $19 billion reduction of discretionary spending caps in this year’s Republican budget plan.

The August 2011 deal to end a summer debt limit drama – which nearly prompted a first-ever default on U.S. Treasury debt – called for a $1.047 trillion cap on discretionary spending for fiscal 2013. Conservative House Republicans last week launched an effort to reduce that amount by as much as $116 billion, presenting Boehner a new leadership challenge.

But even the $1.028 trillion compromise figure that Boehner and Cantor were insisting that members in the Republican-controlled House support would cause problems with spending bills later this year, Republican aides said.

Democrats would not support even a small reduction from last year’s carefully crafted agreement, and $19 billion in cuts is not likely to be deep enough to draw the support of the most conservative Republicans, especially those backed by the conservative Tea Party movement.

“I’d say that’s probably not going to be enough for my boss,” said an aide to a congressman involved in the budget negotiations who is a senior member of the conservative Republican Study Committee. The group pressed for a considerably lower cap of $931 billion.

Republican lawmakers pressing for more aggressive deficit reduction now insist that the spending cap in the August deal is a ceiling, not a floor – there is nothing illegal about spending less. Democrats see the cap as part of a binding budget law.

But both Republican and Democratic aides fear an impasse on spending bills that would threaten a potential government shutdown battle just weeks before the November election. The current spending authority expires on Sept. 30.

Standard Poor’s rating agency cited gridlock in Congress over spending and deficit reduction issues in its historic decision last year to downgrade the U.S. credit rating a notch from Triple-A status.

“Our economy cannot afford another one of these senseless demonstrations by the Tea Party. The American people are sick of these manufactured crises,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said as he castigated House Republicans on Tuesday for trying to back away from prior commitments.

“I’m really disappointed that they’re considering a budget – violating the budget agreement that is now the law of this country. This was designed to avoid another government shutdown or a threat of a shutdown.”

Aides for Boehner and Cantor referred questions about the budget negotiations to House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, who is preparing a budget plan to be unveiled next week.

A spokesman for Ryan would only say that the budget plan was “on track and on schedule”.

SPENDING-CUT CAMPAIGNS

Conservative House members want to be able to demonstrate a more proactive approach to cutting deficits to use in their re-election campaigns, a senior House Republican aide said.

Many of the 87 first-term Republicans, for example, were elected on promises to slash wasteful federal spending, and some have voted against all spending bills.

After bruising battles on payroll tax extensions and contraception issues, talking about spending cuts and deficits may prove more effective for Republicans.

But the Ryan budget resolution is not binding and Reid vowed that it would die in the Senate.

“It’s a symbolic, substance-free vote with substantive consequences for the appropriations process,” the senior Republican aide said of support for deeper discretionary cuts.

But there was some room for conservatives to support the compromise $1.028 trillion cap – if the Republican budget contains enough savings on mandatory spending programs like Medicare and Social Security to reach balance within 10 years, another Republican aide said.

Copyright 2012 Thomson Reuters. Click for Restrictions.

Earlier on HuffPost:

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Article source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/14/john-boehner-eric-cantor-spending-cap_n_1344317.html

By David Lawder

WASHINGTON, March 13 (Reuters) – Republican leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives are ready to break a hard-fought budget deal with Democrats as they try to quell a revolt by conservatives who are insisting on deeper spending cuts ahead of the November elections.

House Republican aides said on Tuesday that House Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Eric Cantor were pressing for a modest $19 billion reduction of discretionary spending caps in this year’s Republican budget plan.

The August 2011 deal to end a summer debt limit drama – which nearly prompted a first-ever default on U.S. Treasury debt – called for a $1.047 trillion cap on discretionary spending for fiscal 2013. Conservative House Republicans last week launched an effort to reduce that amount by as much as $116 billion, presenting Boehner a new leadership challenge.

But even the $1.028 trillion compromise figure that Boehner and Cantor were insisting that members in the Republican-controlled House support would cause problems with spending bills later this year, Republican aides said.

Democrats would not support even a small reduction from last year’s carefully crafted agreement, and $19 billion in cuts is not likely to be deep enough to draw the support of the most conservative Republicans, especially those backed by the conservative Tea Party movement.

“I’d say that’s probably not going to be enough for my boss,” said an aide to a congressman involved in the budget negotiations who is a senior member of the conservative Republican Study Committee. The group pressed for a considerably lower cap of $931 billion.

Republican lawmakers pressing for more aggressive deficit reduction now insist that the spending cap in the August deal is a ceiling, not a floor – there is nothing illegal about spending less. Democrats see the cap as part of a binding budget law.

But both Republican and Democratic aides fear an impasse on spending bills that would threaten a potential government shutdown battle just weeks before the November election. The current spending authority expires on Sept. 30.

Standard Poor’s rating agency cited gridlock in Congress over spending and deficit reduction issues in its historic decision last year to downgrade the U.S. credit rating a notch from Triple-A status.

“Our economy cannot afford another one of these senseless demonstrations by the Tea Party. The American people are sick of these manufactured crises,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said as he castigated House Republicans on Tuesday for trying to back away from prior commitments.

“I’m really disappointed that they’re considering a budget – violating the budget agreement that is now the law of this country. This was designed to avoid another government shutdown or a threat of a shutdown.”

Aides for Boehner and Cantor referred questions about the budget negotiations to House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, who is preparing a budget plan to be unveiled next week.

A spokesman for Ryan would only say that the budget plan was “on track and on schedule”.

SPENDING-CUT CAMPAIGNS

Conservative House members want to be able to demonstrate a more proactive approach to cutting deficits to use in their re-election campaigns, a senior House Republican aide said.

Many of the 87 first-term Republicans, for example, were elected on promises to slash wasteful federal spending, and some have voted against all spending bills.

After bruising battles on payroll tax extensions and contraception issues, talking about spending cuts and deficits may prove more effective for Republicans.

But the Ryan budget resolution is not binding and Reid vowed that it would die in the Senate.

“It’s a symbolic, substance-free vote with substantive consequences for the appropriations process,” the senior Republican aide said of support for deeper discretionary cuts.

But there was some room for conservatives to support the compromise $1.028 trillion cap – if the Republican budget contains enough savings on mandatory spending programs like Medicare and Social Security to reach balance within 10 years, another Republican aide said.

Copyright 2012 Thomson Reuters. Click for Restrictions.

Earlier on HuffPost:

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Article source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/14/john-boehner-eric-cantor-spending-cap_n_1344317.html

Tue Mar 13, 2012 11:18pm EDT

* Boehner, Cantor press for $1.028 trillion discretionary
cap

* Republican aides say cuts may not be enough for
conservatives

* Spending bill impasse, September shutdown battle feared

By David Lawder

WASHINGTON, March 13 (Reuters) – Republican leaders in
the U.S. House of Representatives are ready to break a
hard-fought budget deal with Democrats as they try to quell a
revolt by conservatives who are insisting on deeper spending
cuts ahead of the November elections.

House Republican aides said on Tuesday that House Speaker
John Boehner and Majority Leader Eric Cantor were pressing for a
modest $19 billion reduction of discretionary spending caps in
this year’s Republican budget plan.

The August 2011 deal to end a summer debt limit drama -
which nearly prompted a first-ever default on U.S. Treasury debt
- called for a $1.047 trillion cap on discretionary spending for
fiscal 2013. Conservative House Republicans last week launched
an effort to reduce that amount by as much as $116 billion,
presenting Boehner a new leadership challenge.

But even the $1.028 trillion compromise figure that Boehner
and Cantor were insisting that members in the
Republican-controlled House support would cause problems with
spending bills later this year, Republican aides said.

Democrats would not support even a small reduction from last
year’s carefully crafted agreement, and $19 billion in cuts is
not likely to be deep enough to draw the support of the most
conservative Republicans, especially those backed by the
conservative Tea Party movement.

“I’d say that’s probably not going to be enough for my
boss,” said an aide to a congressman involved in the budget
negotiations who is a senior member of the conservative
Republican Study Committee. The group pressed for a considerably
lower cap of $931 billion.

Republican lawmakers pressing for more aggressive deficit
reduction now insist that the spending cap in the August deal is
a ceiling, not a floor – there is nothing illegal about spending
less. Democrats see the cap as part of a binding budget law.

But both Republican and Democratic aides fear an impasse on
spending bills that would threaten a potential government
shutdown battle just weeks before the November election. The
current spending authority expires on Sept. 30.

Standard Poor’s rating agency cited gridlock in Congress
over spending and deficit reduction issues in its historic
decision last year to downgrade the U.S. credit rating a notch
from Triple-A status.

“Our economy cannot afford another one of these senseless
demonstrations by the Tea Party. The American people are sick of
these manufactured crises,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid
said as he castigated House Republicans on Tuesday for trying to
back away from prior commitments.

“I’m really disappointed that they’re considering a budget -
violating the budget agreement that is now the law of this
country. This was designed to avoid another government shutdown
or a threat of a shutdown.”

Aides for Boehner and Cantor referred questions about the
budget negotiations to House Budget Committee Chairman Paul
Ryan, who is preparing a budget plan to be unveiled next week.

A spokesman for Ryan would only say that the budget plan was
“on track and on schedule”.

SPENDING-CUT CAMPAIGNS

Conservative House members want to be able to demonstrate a
more proactive approach to cutting deficits to use in their
re-election campaigns, a senior House Republican aide said.

Many of the 87 first-term Republicans, for example, were
elected on promises to slash wasteful federal spending, and some
have voted against all spending bills.

After bruising battles on payroll tax extensions and
contraception issues, talking about spending cuts and deficits
may prove more effective for Republicans.

But the Ryan budget resolution is not binding and Reid vowed
that it would die in the Senate.

“It’s a symbolic, substance-free vote with substantive
consequences for the appropriations process,” the senior
Republican aide said of support for deeper discretionary cuts.

But there was some room for conservatives to support the
compromise $1.028 trillion cap – if the Republican budget
contains enough savings on mandatory spending programs like
Medicare and Social Security to reach balance within 10 years,
another Republican aide said.

Article source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/14/usa-politics-budget-idUSL2E8EE0DO20120314

David Lawder

Reuters

10:33 p.m. CDT, March 13, 2012

Article source: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/sns-rt-us-usa-politics-budgetbre82d06v-20120313,0,6332718.story

WASHINGTON — Vice President Joe Biden trashed congressional Republican leaders on Monday night for their failure to deliver on a debt deal last summer, saying that House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) even shook hands with him on an agreement only to later back off because he said he would lose his leadership position over it.

Aides to GOP leaders are refuting Biden’s recollection of events, however.

During a fundraiser in Washington, D.C., Biden recalled his negotiations with House and Senate Republican leaders last summer over raising the debt ceiling.

“There’s nobody in charge,” Biden told attendees at the fundraiser, according to a White House pool report. He said he “made three deals” on a way to raise the debt ceiling — one with Cantor, one with House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and one with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) — but none came to fruition.

The vice president said he first went to Cantor and the two shook hands on an agreement. But then, Cantor called him later and said, “I can’t do it. I’ll lose my position.”

Biden went on to say he struck a similar deal with McConnell, but then he, too, backed out. Biden said he then made a deal with Boehner, but after six hours, Boehner called back to say, “I can’t do it,” according to the pool report.

“I don’t criticize these guys because they meant what they said,” said the vice president. “But then they went and they couldn’t get it done.”

Cantor spokeswoman Laena Fallon denied that the two ever shook hands on a deal and said Biden’s comments were simply untrue.

“Leader Cantor and Vice President Biden developed a strong working relationship which shows that things are possible even in a divided Washington. Working together, Leader Cantor and the Vice President identified over two trillion in potential spending cuts, establishing a framework for the most achievable and realistic compromise. The sticking point for both sides that prevented an agreement has always been clear: raising taxes on families and small businesses is a non starter for Republicans, just as repeal of ObamaCare is a non starter for the White House,” Fallon said in a statement to The Huffington Post.

Similarly, Boehner spokesman Michael Steel said Biden’s portrayal of events wasn’t accurate.

“On what planet did these negotiations take place? That’s a shameless fabrication that everyone knows cannot be substantiated. The Vice President should explain his wild claim or take it back,” Steel said.

McConnell spokesman Don Stewart said there were no debt limit agreements made by anyone, “not even tentative agreements,” that weren’t ultimately signed into law. “So it remains a mystery to us what the VP meant in his fundraiser speech,” he said.

Lawmakers ultimately reached an August agreement to raise the debt limit by $2.4 trillion after a months-long, grueling, partisan fight over spending priorities and proposed cuts. But the ceiling was only raised by $2.1 trillion in the end after the congressional “Super Committee” failed to reach a deal on long-term spending cuts that were part of the final agreement.

Also on HuffPost:

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Article source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/13/joe-biden-eric-cantor-debt-deal_n_1341365.html

WASHINGTON — Vice President Joe Biden trashed congressional Republican leaders on Monday night for their failure to deliver on a debt deal last summer, saying that House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) even shook hands with him on an agreement only to later back off because he said he would lose his leadership position over it.

Aides to GOP leaders are refuting Biden’s recollection of events, however.

During a fundraiser in Washington, D.C., Biden recalled his negotiations with House and Senate Republican leaders last summer over raising the debt ceiling.

“There’s nobody in charge,” Biden told attendees at the fundraiser, according to a White House pool report. He said he “made three deals” on a way to raise the debt ceiling — one with Cantor, one with House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and one with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) — but none came to fruition.

The vice president said he first went to Cantor and the two shook hands on an agreement. But then, Cantor called him later and said, “I can’t do it. I’ll lose my position.”

Biden went on to say he struck a similar deal with McConnell, but then he, too, backed out. Biden said he then made a deal with Boehner, but after six hours, Boehner called back to say, “I can’t do it,” according to the pool report.

“I don’t criticize these guys because they meant what they said,” said the vice president. “But then they went and they couldn’t get it done.”

Cantor spokeswoman Laena Fallon denied that the two ever shook hands on a deal and said Biden’s comments were simply untrue.

“Leader Cantor and Vice President Biden developed a strong working relationship which shows that things are possible even in a divided Washington. Working together, Leader Cantor and the Vice President identified over two trillion in potential spending cuts, establishing a framework for the most achievable and realistic compromise. The sticking point for both sides that prevented an agreement has always been clear: raising taxes on families and small businesses is a non starter for Republicans, just as repeal of ObamaCare is a non starter for the White House,” Fallon said in a statement to The Huffington Post.

Similarly, Boehner spokesman Michael Steel said Biden’s portrayal of events wasn’t accurate.

“On what planet did these negotiations take place? That’s a shameless fabrication that everyone knows cannot be substantiated. The Vice President should explain his wild claim or take it back,” Steel said.

McConnell spokesman Don Stewart said there were no debt limit agreements made by anyone, “not even tentative agreements,” that weren’t ultimately signed into law. “So it remains a mystery to us what the VP meant in his fundraiser speech,” he said.

Lawmakers ultimately reached an August agreement to raise the debt limit by $2.4 trillion after a months-long, grueling, partisan fight over spending priorities and proposed cuts. But the ceiling was only raised by $2.1 trillion in the end after the congressional “Super Committee” failed to reach a deal on long-term spending cuts that were part of the final agreement.

Also on HuffPost:

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Article source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/13/joe-biden-eric-cantor-debt-deal_n_1341365.html

The Agenda

How small-business issues are shaping politics and policy.

Bipartisanship returned, however briefly, to Capitol Hill on Thursday, when the House passed, by an overwhelming margin, a bill ostensibly intended to make it easier for start-up companies to raise capital. “What this bill does is, it provides a real shot in the arm to entrepreneurs, small-business men and women, removes red tape, allows small businesses an easier time to go about starting up, as well as retaining and creating jobs,” Eric Cantor, the House majority leader, said after the Jump-Start Our Business Start-Ups Act sailed through the House on a 390-to-23 vote. (All 23 opponents were Democrats.)

The House bill, which is supported by Senate Democrats and in many respects mirrors a proposal from President Obama, has been almost universally hailed in terms similar to those Mr. Cantor used, and it does contain measures aimed at improving small companies’ access to capital markets. But some investors, analysts and securities law experts say the bill, more than helping small companies, will in fact free most companies, including very large corporations, from important oversight and disclosure requirements for several years after going public.

Much of the concern arises from Title I of the bill, which defines certain kinds of companies that go public as emerging growth companies. These companies would no longer have to provide some information that investors have come to expect in a prospectus. For instance, they will have to supply only two years of audited financial data rather than three. The bill would also effectively repeal Securities and Exchange Commission regulations and the financial industry’s own rules that separate the activities of securities analysts from those of their investment banking colleagues at companies that underwrite initial public offerings for these emerging growth companies. Once its stock is publicly traded, an emerging growth company would be exempted from disclosure and shareholder approval rules on executive compensation passed as part of Dodd-Frank and auditing standards imposed by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

And what precisely is an emerging growth company? It is any company with annual revenue of less than $1 billion. (That’s “billion,” with a “b.”) “It’s just too broad a definition — every company winds up being an emerging growth company,” said John C. Coffee Jr., a securities law professor at Columbia. Kathleen Smith, chairwoman of Renaissance Capital, a firm based in Greenwich, Conn., that analyzes, tracks and invests in initial public offerings, told the Senate Banking Committee at a hearing last Tuesday, “By this definition, we would be giving relief to over 90 percent of the companies going public,” including “companies with very large market capitalizations.” Lynn Turner, a forensic accounting consultant with the California-based firm LitiNomics, testified at the same hearing that 98 percent of all initial public offerings since 1970 would have qualified as emerging growth companies.

In an interview, Ms. Smith said that the definition of an emerging growth company should be limited to relatively small companies, with public offerings of about $50 million and total market capitalizations, including shares held by insiders, of about $250 million. But Mr. Coffee said the market for offerings of $100 million or less is disappearing, and “it’s beyond the reach of legislation to change that.” The institutional investors who are the main players in the I.P.O. market, he said, demand high liquidity — and “in their judgment they only get high liquidity when the market capitalization is about $300 or $500 million.”

Moreover, he added, small I.P.O.’s are relatively expensive. “If all you want is money, it’s much cheaper to do a private placement.”

A separate provision in the bill aims to cut I.P.O. costs for smaller companies by increasing the limit on public offerings that do not have to be registered with the S.E.C. to $50 million, from $5 million. Other measures in the bill truly directed at small companies would allow them to advertise a private stock offering (that would not require registration) and to “crowd-fund” up to $2 million a year, depending on how much financial information the corporation provides investors. The crowd-funding proposal in particular has won strong support from some entrepreneurs, but it raises questions — about what kinds of businesses might benefit from this type of fund-raising and whether investors would suffer — that will receive further scrutiny from The Agenda soon.

Meanwhile, others warned that the Title I provisions could dampen enthusiasm for larger I.P.O.’s, too. Some of the rules that would be curbed for emerging growth companies “are in part designed to strengthen investor confidence in those companies,” said Jeff Mahoney, general counsel to the Council of Institutional Investors, a trade association. Jay Ritter, a finance professor at the University of Florida who specializes in I.P.O.’s, added: “Taking rights away from minority investors is not a way to give minority investors a willingness to pay a higher price.”

Under Title I, a corporation could retain emerging growth status until five years after its I.P.O., or until it achieves $1 billion in revenue, or until its publicly traded equity — known as the public float — exceeds $700 million, whichever comes first. Once it loses emerging status, it would no longer be exempt from the reporting rules and other corporate governance requirements.

However, Mr. Coffee said that yet another section of the bill might ultimately encourage companies to skip regular reporting altogether. Title V raises the number of shareholders of record that prompt a company to have to register with the S.E.C. to 2,000, from 500. While that change might seem innocuous, Mr. Coffee said, most individual stockholders are not shareholders of record but beneficial owners whose shares are held by a brokerage firm, which is the owner of record. As a result, companies worth billions of dollars and with thousands of beneficial owners — but fewer than 2,000 holders of record — could decline to register at all with the S.E.C. and then choose to trade on private networks rather than the major exchanges.

“This represents a major retreat — the largest in the history of securities law — from the principle of transparency,” Mr. Coffee said. “Stocks will trade in the dark because the only disclosures that a company will make will be voluntary disclosures when it wants to say something.

“The real question is whether the federal securities laws can survive election years.”

Article source: http://boss.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/13/in-latest-jobs-bill-a-billion-dollar-business-is-now-small/

WASHINGTON — Vice President Joe Biden trashed congressional Republican leaders on Monday night for their failure to deliver on a debt deal last summer, saying that House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) even shook hands with him on an agreement only to later back off because he said he would lose his leadership position over it.

Aides to GOP leaders are refuting Biden’s recollection of events, however.

During a fundraiser in Washington, D.C., Biden recalled his negotiations with House and Senate Republican leaders last summer over raising the debt ceiling.

“There’s nobody in charge,” Biden told attendees at the fundraiser, according to a White House pool report. He said he “made three deals” on a way to raise the debt ceiling — one with Cantor, one with House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and one with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) — but none came to fruition.

The vice president said he first went to Cantor and the two shook hands on an agreement. But then, Cantor called him later and said, “I can’t do it. I’ll lose my position.”

Biden went on to say he struck a similar deal with McConnell, but then he, too, backed out. Biden said he then made a deal with Boehner, but after six hours, Boehner called back to say, “I can’t do it,” according to the pool report.

“I don’t criticize these guys because they meant what they said,” said the vice president. “But then they went and they couldn’t get it done.”

Cantor spokeswoman Laena Fallon denied that the two ever shook hands on a deal and said Biden’s comments were simply untrue.

“Leader Cantor and Vice President Biden developed a strong working relationship which shows that things are possible even in a divided Washington. Working together, Leader Cantor and the Vice President identified over two trillion in potential spending cuts, establishing a framework for the most achievable and realistic compromise. The sticking point for both sides that prevented an agreement has always been clear: raising taxes on families and small businesses is a non starter for Republicans, just as repeal of ObamaCare is a non starter for the White House,” Fallon said in a statement to The Huffington Post.

Similarly, Boehner spokesman Michael Steel said Biden’s portrayal of events wasn’t accurate.

“On what planet did these negotiations take place? That’s a shameless fabrication that everyone knows cannot be substantiated. The Vice President should explain his wild claim or take it back,” Steel said.

McConnell spokesman Don Stewart said there were no debt limit agreements made by anyone, “not even tentative agreements,” that weren’t ultimately signed into law. “So it remains a mystery to us what the VP meant in his fundraiser speech,” he said.

Lawmakers ultimately reached an August agreement to raise the debt limit by $2.4 trillion after a months-long, grueling, partisan fight over spending priorities and proposed cuts. But the ceiling was only raised by $2.1 trillion in the end after the congressional “Super Committee” failed to reach a deal on long-term spending cuts that were part of the final agreement.

Also on HuffPost:

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Article source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/13/joe-biden-eric-cantor-debt-deal_n_1341365.html

Speaker of the House John Boehner, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and their fellow House Republicans should claim credit for this jobs recovery. It never would have happened had they not stopped the counter-productive fiscal policies of the Obama Administration — starting with blocking the job killing increase in personal income tax rates that otherwise would have taken place on January 1, 2011, and then last fall refusing to vote for yet another round of wasteful “stimulus” spending and money losing investments in “green jobs.”

Remember last August when the Administration charged that the House Republican show-down over increasing the federal government’s debt limit without meaningful spending reductions threatened the recovery and Vice President Joe Biden called opponents of an increase in the debt limit “terrorists”? And then how the President last fall demanded House Republicans pass “now” $400 billion in new stimulus spending, relabeled a “jobs bill,” or be held accountable for the coming slow-down in economic growth?

Well, here is what putting a stop to Obamanomics has produced: The strongest six months of employment growth since the President took office.

According to the February employment report released last Friday, non-farm payrolls have increased by 1.2 million jobs since last August. By contrast, between the beginning of Obamanomics with the passage of his stimulus bill in March 2009 and August, employment fell by 1.3 million. That’s right, just saying “no” to bad policies has in six months recovered nearly all of the jobs that had been lost in the prior 2.5 years.

In addition, the official unemployment rate in February was 8.3%, down from 9.1% in August while the U-6 measure of unemployment, which includes frustrated job seekers and those who are being forced to work part time has fallen to a still high 14.9%, compared to 16.2% in August. Both measures of unemployment are now at their lowest level since the Obama administration launched its trillion dollar increase in government spending and investments in “green jobs.”

February’s 227,000 gain in non-farm payrolls made it the third consecutive month in which non-employment growth has exceeded 200,000, the amount generally considered necessary to bring down the unemployment rate. It was also the second consecutive month in which the work-force grew, and the second month since last July in which the civilian labor force participation rate increased.

The improving jobs picture is consistent with a growing body of academic research that demonstrates increased government spending reduces, rather than increases, economic growth. Summarizing the research in his December, 2010 Wall Street Journal article Stanford Professor Michael Boskin wrote:

“But economic theory, history and statistical studies reveal that more taxes and spending are more likely to harm than help the economy. Those who demand spending control and oppose tax hikes hold the intellectual high ground.”

The massive increase in federal spending under Obamanomics, for example, appears to have sucked the job creating strength out of the rest of the economy. Between February 2009 and August, 2011, federal employment increased by 52,000. But, total government employment fell by more than half a million employees as state and local governments, faced with the failure of the stimulus program to produce growth, were forced to cut payrolls in order to balance their budgets.

During that same period, private sector employment fell by 834,000. And, lest you think that all that “investment” in infrastructure and shovel ready jobs worked, employment in the construction sector alone fell by more than 900,000.

Meanwhile, the non-provable claim by the advocates of Obamanomics, that the increased spending saved jobs, is belied by what has happened since the policy was stopped. Since August, federal employment has fallen by 26,000, but the rate of layoffs in state and local government has slowed by half. And, private sector employment has surged 1.3 million workers.

But, there is much left to be done. The rapid growth in the regulatory burden under President Obama, and the Administration’s weak dollar/high oil price monetary policy are on-going impediments to full employment, especially among minorities and those without college educations. The unemployment rate for blacks stands at 14.1%, nearly double the unemployment rate for whites, and those without a college education are more than twice as likely to be unemployed as those with a diploma.

Article source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/charleskadlec/2012/03/12/the-house-gop-authors-a-jobs-recovery/?feed=rss_home

Vice President Joe Biden said he made three deals with GOP lawmakers on the debt ceiling last summer, but none was able to deliver the votes.

Biden told attendees at a fundraiser for President Barack Obama’s reelection in Washington on Monday that he first sealed a deal with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor. Then Cantor called and said, “I can’t do it. I’ll lose my position,” Biden recalled, according to a pool report.

He then struck an agreement with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, but he, too, backed out, Biden said. Finally, Biden said he reached a deal with House Speaker John Boehner. Sure enough, Biden said, six hours later the speaker called to say, “I can’t do it.”

“I don’t criticize these guys because they meant what they said,” Biden said, according to the pool report. “But then they went and they couldn’t get it done.”

Biden made the remarks at the Georgetown home of Senator John Kerry, where some 87 guests paid a minimum of $10,000 per couple to dine on char-grilled grass-fed New York strip steaks and white truffle mashed potatoes beneath a tent basked in soft pink lighting. Biden told attendees that he is confident about Obama’s reelection because Republicans are being open about their intent to cut programs important to a large swatch of the electorate — the middle class.

“These guys don’t have a sense of the average folks out there,” he said. “They don’t know what it means to be middle class.”

Pool reporter Tracy Jan of The Boston Globe noted some high-profile guests at the fundraiser, including “Elizabeth Bagley, former ambassador to Portugal and attorney specializing in trade and international law; Matthew Barzun, former Ambassador to Sweden who Obama has tapped to be his 2012 campaign finance chairman; Steven Green, former ambassador to Singapore; Bob Barnett, a Washington attorney who’s worked on eight national presidential campaigns helping candidates prepare for debates; Tom McMillen, former Maryland congressman; and Jack Manning, co-founder of Boston Capital.”

Article source: http://www.politico.com/politico44/2012/03/biden-slams-gop-lawmakers-for-failure-of-debt-deals-117225.html

Local tea partyers are turning up the heat on House Republicans to move faster on investigating the Operation Fast and Furious gun-tracking operating that ended with the death of a border patrol agent.

The sluggish pace of the probe has galvanized tea party activists to action in the home districts of House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio; Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va.; and Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., The Hill reports.

The tea party groups say their representatives should be fighting harder against President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder on the issue. Dayton Tea Party President David Lewis, who ran unsuccessfully against Boehner in the Ohio GOP primary this month, is one of those urging him to do more.

“At a minimum I would like to see the speaker be very vocal about this scandal, because there are people who are dead because of it, and I think Mr. Boehner should be calling for possible criminal prosecution of Mr. Holder,” Lewis told The Hill. “It seems like there’s so much public outcry right now. I think he needs to be much more vocal, and Mr. Holder needs to be held accountable for his actions or his inactions to foresee this debacle that happened.”

© 2012 Newsmax. All rights reserved.

Article source: http://www.newsmax.com/US/Fast-Furious-Boehner-Cantor/2012/03/12/id/432258

The Republican counterpoint was given by a man.

Virginia Rep. Eric Cantor, the House majority leader, argued on the program that the issue was one of religious freedom, not one of denying access to health care.

Republicans had been criticized 10 days earlier for holding a hearing on contraceptive coverage that lacked any women testifying. Yet there were no elected Republican women appearing on the political shows that Sunday to support the party’s position. In politics, that’s called “bad optics.”

To be sure, the networks, not the parties, select guests for Sunday shows, and women of any political persuasion are underrepresented: They generally make up about one-fifth of guests. On Sunday, Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., appeared as part of the NBC program’s roundtable discussion.

Last week’s disparity illustrates a challenge the GOP faces in the “war on women” controversy and, come fall, in combating President Obama‘s strength among female voters: The party is in something of a rebuilding season for its roster of prominent spokeswomen.

Two of the five Republican women in the Senate are retiring, and the House members and female governors the party would like to put forward are still freshmen yet to establish much name recognition. The two best-known Republican women, Sarah Palin and Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, have been preoccupied with presidential candidacies — actual or contemplated — and so are less available to promote a party message. (Palin appears regularly on Fox News Channel but is not widely available to the media; to get a comment from her last week, CNN staked out the Super Tuesday Republican caucus in her hometown of Wasilla, Alaska.)

“It’s slim pickings when the Republicans find themselves in a situation like this,” says Jennifer Lawless, director of the Women and Politics Institute at American University in Washington, D.C. “That’s been a public relations debacle on the part of the GOP.”

Nor could the Republicans call on two of their five female senators when the Senate voted March 1 on a measure that would have allowed employers to opt out of providing coverage for anything to which they had a moral objection — the measure Democrats characterized as anti-women. Maine’s Olympia Snowe voted against it, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said afterward that she wished she had.

Republican Party officials say they have a strong team of elected women who personify the party’s support of women. Four of the six female governors are Republican, and one of the eight House Republican leadership positions is held by Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington. “We have a bench full of smart, conservative women who love America, love our party and love their jobs,” said Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee. “They’re going to be out there fighting every day to set the record straight.”

Republicans are at a numerical disadvantage: 90 of 535 members of the House and Senate are female. Of those women, two-thirds are Democrats. The GOP has 29 women in the House and Senate, before several high-profile departures. Snowe announced her retirement last month, and Texas Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, formerly a member of Senate leadership, is also stepping down.

Although Republican women are considered contenders in Senate races in Hawaii and New Mexico, in the House, Republican Rep. Jean Schmidt of Ohio won’t be coming back: She lost her party primary Tuesday.

“What we’ve been watching over time is a kind of flatlining for (elected) women overall, but a large part of it is … no growth to loss on the Republican side,” says Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for Women and Politics at Rutgers University in New Jersey. “There is a real challenge for the Republican Party if they want to be seen as a party that is inclusive and has women’s representation in it.”

Some of the women Republicans hope will become stars are still building national name recognition, including Gov. Nikki Haley of South Carolina, Gov. Susana Martinez of New Mexico, Sen. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire and Rep. Kristi Noem of South Dakota, who was named to a new leadership post for freshmen.

“It’s not that they are dissing women candidates or not actively pursuing them, but right now, they’re sort of in a dry spell,” Jennifer Duffy of the Cook Political Report says.

Republicans are “highly sensitized,” to the importance of having visible female leaders, says Penny Nance, president of Concerned Women for America, which supports conservative female candidates.

“It’s essential that there are strong accomplished Republican women voices out front. I think they’re out there,” Nance says.

On the day the Senate voted on the religious exemption amendment, Nance’s organization held a news conference supporting the Republican position, featuring Blackburn, Schmidt and other Republican congresswomen. “It was exactly on point; it was exactly on message,” Nance says. “And yet it wasn’t covered the way it should have been.”

On the five Sunday chat shows, women made up less than 22% of guests during 2011, according to the American University Women and Politics Institute. According to a tally kept by the newspaper Roll Call, the elected official with the most appearances on Sunday chat shows last year, regardless of gender, was Bachmann, who appeared 20 times last year. Wasserman Schultz appeared eight times.

Of the eight women who appeared on the five chat shows March 4, four were journalists, one was a Democratic strategist, two were right-leaning columnists. But there were no elected Republican women on Sunday shows that morning. In the absence of female elected officials, “what they end up doing is looking at the punditry class and the columnists,” Duffy says.

Republicans views are more often represented by cable pundits such as Liz Cheney, daughter of former vice president Dick Cheney, former Bush campaign strategist Mary Matalin and Reagan speechwriter-turned-columnist Peggy Noonan.

That is not as helpful, Lawless says.” If your best spokespeople for the party are pundits, you have a problem, because they’re not accountable to anybody. We saw that with Rush Limbaugh.”

Article source: http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/story/2012-03-08/gop-republican-party-women-spokeswomen/53491306/1

This afternoon, Mayor Michael Bloomberg says he plans to talk to House Majority Leader Eric Cantor about the importance of a commuter tax credit to New York City.

“You know, the biggest thing that we really I think could get done with him, because it probably fits in with what the politics are on both sides of the aisle in Washington at the moment, I’d like to see if we can’t get some help in getting a tax credit for commuters,” Bloomberg said during an appearance at the Council on Foreign Relations. “The highway bill helps you if you drive, but it doesn’t help mass transit and we’re very dependent on that.”

Bloomberg is scheduled this afternoon to give Cantor, who as a rule opposes federal subsidies for public transportation, a tour of the Sept. 11 memorial plaza at the World Trade Center.

Senator Chuck Schumer has been lobbying hard for the reinstatement of a $230 tax credit for mass-transit users. A tax credit for drivers made it through the bruising federal transportation bill negotiations unscathed.

Asked about his February lunch with President Obama, which was first reported by the New York Times today, the mayor said, ”He was very interested in what’s going on in New York City and what we need from the federal government to continute to grow. And then we, you know, a little bit of conversation about golf. But it was a very pleasant lunch.”

Following up, a reporter asked Bloomberg whether he’d gotten any sense that Obama wanted him to join the administration.

“No,” said the mayor. “We never talked about anything remotely in that direction, nor should we.”

Would he like to be a presidential adviser after leaving office?

“No.”

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Article source: http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/politics/2012/03/5457871/bloomberg-says-hell-talk-about-commuter-tax-credit-cantor-wont-say-

This afternoon, Mayor Michael Bloomberg says he plans to talk to House Majority Leader Eric Cantor about the importance of a commuter tax credit to New York City.

“You know, the biggest thing that we really I think could get done with him, because it probably fits in with what the politics are on both sides of the aisle in Washington at the moment, I’d like to see if we can’t get some help in getting a tax credit for commuters,” Bloomberg said during an appearance at the Council on Foreign Relations. “The highway bill helps you if you drive, but it doesn’t help mass transit and we’re very dependent on that.”

Bloomberg is scheduled this afternoon to give Cantor, who as a rule opposes federal subsidies for public transportation, a tour of the Sept. 11 memorial plaza at the World Trade Center.

Senator Chuck Schumer has been lobbying hard for the reinstatement of a $230 tax credit for mass-transit users. A tax credit for drivers made it through the bruising federal transportation bill negotiations unscathed.

Asked about his February lunch with President Obama, which was first reported by the New York Times today, the mayor said, ”He was very interested in what’s going on in New York City and what we need from the federal government to continute to grow. And then we, you know, a little bit of conversation about golf. But it was a very pleasant lunch.”

Following up, a reporter asked Bloomberg whether he’d gotten any sense that Obama wanted him to join the administration.

“No,” said the mayor. “We never talked about anything remotely in that direction, nor should we.”

Would he like to be a presidential adviser after leaving office?

“No.”

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Article source: http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/politics/2012/03/5457871/bloomberg-says-hell-talk-about-commuter-tax-credit-cantor-wont-say-

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In this photo taken Jan. 31, 2012, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Va., speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. Sunday, March 4, 2012, Cantor, the second-ranking Republican in the House said he is throwing his support behind Mitt Romney in the GOP presidential race. He said Romney is the only candidate who has come out with “a bold pro-growth, pro-jobs plan for the future.” (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

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Looking to clear space on the legislative calendar for more important work, House Republicans promised last year to ban purely commemorative legislation, like resolutions honoring sports teams or designating awareness days — but that seemingly innocuous move has left some groups frustrated.

“This is a piece of paper but it’s huge in our world of education,” said Linda Reinstein, co-founder of the Los Angles-based Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization. After working with the Senate for nearly a decade to pass resolutions calling attention to asbestos, she said a stamp of approval from Congress is an invaluable tool to educate people about its dangers.

“That gives us leverage to raise awareness,” she said. “For us, it’s huge.”

Before the ban, the House typically devoted the first few days each week it was in session to passing symbolic resolutions: Giving official recognition to things like the fabled Battle of Marathon or the 50th anniversary of the Miles Davis classic “Kind of Blue.”

But after voters handed them the majority in 2010, Republicans said the practice was silly, wasteful and not what the Founding Fathers intended.

“I do not suspect that Jefferson or Madison ever envisioned Congress honoring the 2,560th anniversary of the birth of Confucius or supporting the designation of national ‘Pi’ day,” Majority Leader Eric Cantor wrote in a letter to colleagues at the time.

The symbolic votes went on as usual in the Senate in 2011, but the lower chamber fell in line with Mr. Cantor: the House usually passes more than 400 resolutions each year, it approved 132 in 2011.

Some feel the House should have drawn a distinction between resolutions that recognize a local accomplishment — like congratulating a sports team — and resolutions that could help an advocacy group further their message or give honor to a U.S. ally.

Frustrated with the situation, Joseph Grano blasted out an email last week after the D.C. City Council officially recognized the 150th anniversary of Italy’s unification. President of the Rhodes Tavern-DC Heritage Society, the Italian-American activist was upset that the ban prevented the House from doing the same.

Mr. Grano feels Italy deserves recognition because the country has been a NATO ally for decades, hosts numerous U.S. military bases and sent troops to Afghanistan after 9/11. And the White House, the Capitol and the Supreme Court all bear the influence of Italian architecture, he added.

He feels so strongly about the matter that he picketed outside the Capitol building last fall, he said.

“The House GOP leadership in its attempt to ban frivolous resolutions from coming to a vote has also frustrated attempts to introduce meaningful resolutions — a clear example of throwing out the baby with the bath water,” he said.

Despite the ban, some lawmakers have continued to introduce resolutions. Even though they aren’t voted on, they’re still added to the public record and lawmakers are occasionally allowed to tout them on the House floor.

That’s enough to satisfy most constituents back home said Amanda Fitzgerald, director of public policy for the American School Counselor Association (ASCA).

“Truthfully, if you tell the average person out there the House bill has a number but it didn’t pass, people don’t understand the intricacies of it, people say no, it doesn’t really matter,” she said. “The same purpose is going through with it.”

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Article source: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/mar/11/dropping-symbolic-votes-raises-a-howl/

Local Tea Party activists are pressing House Republican leaders to pursue their investigation into the Operation Fast and Furious gun-tracking effort more aggressively.

The top three House Republicans have been slow to lead the charge of the GOP’s criticism of the botched operation.

As a result, local Tea Party groups in the home districts of House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), and Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) are turning up the heat on the lawmakers.

The groups say their representatives maintain the most powerful positions in the lower chamber and should be more critical of President Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder.

The president of the local Dayton Tea Party in Boehner’s home district has criticized the lawmaker repeatedly over his silence on Fast and Furious. Local Tea Party candidate David Lewis hammered Boehner on the issue during his campaign to oust the top ranking Republican, though he only managed to garner 16 percent of the vote in Tuesday’s primary.

“At minimum I would like to see the Speaker be very vocal about this scandal because there are people who are dead because of it and I think Mr. Boehner should be calling for possible criminal prosecution of Mr. Holder,” said Lewis in an interview with The Hill.

“It seems like there’s so much public outcry right now. I think he needs to be much more vocal and Mr. Holder needs to be held accountable for his actions or his inactions to foresee this debacle that happened.”

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) has led Congress’s investigation of Fast and Furious for the past year, repeatedly grilling Holder before his House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, and blasting the Justice Department (DOJ) for what he says are continual attempts to stonewall his probe.

Issa’s frustrations and findings have led to more than 100 House Republicans, including Tea Party Caucus chairwoman Rep. Michele Bachmann (Minn.), signing on to a resolution expressing a lack of confidence in Holder because of Fast and Furious. None of the top House GOP leaders have signed onto the measure.

Boehner has been largely silent on the issue, making his first major public comments on Fast and Furious on Feb. 16 at his weekly press conference.

“Chairman Issa and members of the committee have done a very good job of investigating this abuse of government power and I continue to support their efforts and believe that this Justice Department must be held accountable,” said Boehner at the time.

Issa’s office said Boehner and the rest of the House Republican leadership has been extremely supportive of its continuing investigation.

But by playing the supportive role and not leading the charge against the administration over Fast and Furious, it opens Republican leaders up to critics who are clamoring to can Holder.

Colleen Owens, a Tea Party activist in Cantor’s Virginia district with the Richmond Tea Party, said she would like to see Cantor be more vocal about getting to the truth of who authorized Fast and Furious. Owens said if the party roles were reversed, Democrats would be out for political blood over the issue.

“Nobody can get to the bottom of this except Congress, and it’s [Cantor’s] responsibility as a leader in the House of Representatives to help make that happen,” said Owens, who emphasized that she is not a spokesperson for the group.

“I’m not sure why Republican leadership is not doing more on this, but I don’t think they will unless they hear from enough people asking about it. If this was George W. Bush’s administration, Nancy Pelosi and the Democratic leadership would not be so passive about this.”

Cantor’s office said he has maintained a constant opinion that he is “deeply concerned” about Fast and Furious and supports Issa’s investigation. Though Cantor’s office could not point to any public statements made on the issue, they stressed that he has conveyed his opposition to the administration’s handling of Fast and Furious numerous times to constituents when asked about it.  

“I find it very troubling that Attorney General Eric Holder and the Department of Justice have not been more forthcoming with information regarding this failed gun walking operation and at times seem to have contradicted what appears to be factual evidence,” said Cantor in a statement.

“The Attorney General should provide more clarity on this issue to alleviate the concerns that are clouding over the Justice Department. That is why I fully support the House Oversight and Government Reform and Judiciary Committees’ continued investigations into this important issue.”

Similarly, McCarthy has been taking heat on the issue as well. McCarthy’s office said he has spoken out against Fast and Furious and the way the administration has handled it on several local radio programs.

But Alfred Hernandez, a spokesman and activist with the Bakersfield Tea Party in McCarthy’s home district, said the group wants the Majority Whip to be “very vocal” about Fast and Furious and who should take responsibility for the failed operation.

“When you see that he’s been quiet on the subject of Fast and Furious, it really isn’t all that surprising,” said Hernandez. “More than likely he’s on a short leash with Mr. Boehner and Mr. Boehner stands quiet on this.”

In a statement McCarthy raised his concerns again, voicing his full support of Issa’s investigation and characterizing Holder’s responses to Congress as “astounding.”

“The lack of transparency and cooperation from the Justice Department and Attorney General Eric Holder regarding Operation Fast and Furious is astounding,” said McCarthy.

“Those behind this failed program must be held accountable for their actions and I am confident that the committee’s continued pursuit of this issue will ensure that happens.”

The issue of Fast and Furious has gotten increasingly more attention as Issa’s investigation has broadened over the months, and according to Republican strategist Matt Mackowiak it could play as a key issue for voters in November.

“The heat on this issue is only going to increase,” said Mackowiak, founder and president of the Potomac Strategy Group “Most people look at this and say that Holder is an embarrassment to the country. What he’s demonstrated on this is so far below what we should have in that particular role in terms of competency and integrity. This one does have legs.”

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Article source: http://thehill.com/homenews/house/215363-tea-party-steps-up-heat-on-house-gop-leaders-over-fast-and-furious-probe

From the campaign to re-elect Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R, Illinois 16th District)…

Cantor regarded as leader of conservatives in the U.S. House of Representatives

Shimkus, second Illinois Congressman to endorse Kinzinger

Adam Kinzinger is hands down the candidate the conservative cause needs to win the primary for Congress on March 20th and he has our enthusiastic endorsement for a second term in Congress.

The outcome of this primary election will have vital consequences for our ability to fight and win on the monumental policy decisions this country will make in the crucial years ahead. Only with strategic, thoughtful and inspirational Representatives like Adam Kinzinger will we be able to win the day on the direction our country takes and cementing our majority.

Adam Kinzinger is a new breed of conservative. He helped us turn the tide in the House of Representatives and reconnect with our tried and true conservative principles. Only when he and his fellow Republican Freshmen arrived have we been able to change the debate in Washington from how much more are we going to spend—to—how much are we going to cut.

Indeed, THE ONLY budget that Congressman Adam Kinzinger has voted for in his brief 14 months of service in Congress CUT spending below the levels spent the year before. Adam Kinzinger was key in helping us accomplish that unprecedented feat of actually spending fewer dollars, not just cutting back proposed increases in spending.

In addition to his demonstrated legislative ability, Adam Kinzinger is a talented, inspiring and articulate Congressman, able to do battle on the national stage with left-wing Democrats and win the argument. He thoughtfully communicates principled positions on the issues. We cannot win legislative battles if the American people are not behind us. It is up to us to take our message over the heads of the national media straight to the people. Adam Kinzinger is one of our most positively appealing and powerful communicators—we cannot allow him to be silenced.

Both of us have long been noted for our loyalty to our conservative principles. That is demonstrated in our voting records. Adam Kinzinger is one of us. The more we get to know him, the more we are impressed by the depth of his convictions and willingness to act upon his principles. That is why he volunteered to serve in the Armed Forces and why he stepped up to run for Congress. He is passionate about fighting for our country.

It is another vital concern of ours to help develop the next generation of conservative leaders. We both worked hard to help Adam in his campaign to defeat ultra-liberal Congresswoman Debbie Halvorson. Since then we have been enormously impressed with how hard Adam has continued to fight for our shared conservative principles.

Adam Kinzinger’s potential was immediately recognized when he was selected as one of four freshmen to serve on the Transition Team from Nancy Pelosi’s Democrat Majority to the new Republican Majority. It is why Adam earned selection to the Republican Whip Team. It is why he was appointed as a freshman to one of the most powerful committees in Congress—the House Energy and Commerce Committee, responsible for an enormous array of cutting edge issues, including healthcare, energy and the repeal of Obamacare.

As a movement, we need to continue moving forward, not back. We need to prepare for the future, not cling to the past. We need to celebrate the forward thinking members of our team. We will indeed have no future, if we indulge in extinguishing the promising talent that we have in Adam Kinzinger. Few outcomes would make liberals and national Democrats happier than Republicans snuffing out the service of one of our conservative movement’s most promising members.

Adam Kinzinger is a courageous conservative and a valued member of our movement. In 2010, while he was in the midst of his own campaign to defeat a liberal incumbent Democrat, he found himself in a better position financially than Bobby Schilling, who was battling left-winger Congressman Phil Hare in Western Illinois. Adam stepped up and gave $5,000 from his own campaign to help Bobby Schilling pay for a crucial mailing that helped him win that race. Again, before being elected himself, Adam provided invaluable assistance to Republican candidates for State Representative and Senate. That selfless sacrifice is a window into the principled man that is Adam Kinzinger. It is a character trait all too rare in Congress.

At the age of 20, Adam defeated a 12 year incumbent Democrat for the McLean County Board. He has been a huge asset to other Republican candidates. It is no wonder that Adam Kinzinger leads in Republican County Chair endorsements by 10 to 1—they rely on his leadership to advance our cause.

We work on a regular basis with both Adam Kinzinger and his opponent. We join our colleague Congressman Aaron Schock of Illinois in the judgment that Adam Kinzinger is the right choice to keep advancing our conservative movement.

Adam Kinzinger is a rock as we fight Nancy Pelosi in the epic battle to rein in government and out of control spending. He has done a great job and we ought to keep him.

Our endorsement is not perfunctory. Adam Kinzinger is a key member of our team and has our total support in his campaign for a second term in the United States House of Representatives.

http://www.electadam.com/

Article source: http://www.chicagonow.com/publius-forum/2012/03/house-leader-eric-cantor-rep-john-shimkus-endorse-kinzinger/

WASHINGTON — In a one-two punch, Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) threw their support behind Mitt Romney today, calling him the best candidate to reboot America’s stalled economy.

Both fiscal conservatives, the lawmakers carry considerable weight among the conservative base, a group Romney has had a tough time wooing despite his greatest efforts.

“You know, Mitt Romney is the only candidate in the race who’s put forward a bold, pro-growth, pro jobs plan for the future,” Cantor said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

“In fact, I cast my vote already in Virginia for Mitt Romney and I’m here today to tell you that I’m endorsing Mitt Romney in his candidacy for the presidency of the United States,” he said.

Cantor, the second highest ranking member in the House of Representatives, called Romney on Wednesday to say he would support him. His endorsement will not likely impact the race in his home state — only Romney and Ron Paul are on the ballot after Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum failed to qualify.

Speaking to reporters aboard a plane to Georgia, Romney senior adviser Eric Fehrnstrom called the Cantor endorsement a “pleasant surprise” and said Romney would be the best name at the top of the ticket to maintain a Republican majority in the House. ”Republicans want coattails, not concrete shoes. Rick Santorum is a concrete shoe for Republicans who are running for the Senate or for the House.”

Coburn also touted Romney’s private sector experience, saying his “25 years in the private sector is precisely what we need” in a president.

Known in the Senate as “Dr. No” for his tendency to hold up or vote against legislation, Coburn went further in an editorial to The Oklahoman newspaper, criticizing Romney’s opponents for sometimes taking the easy way out on votes.

“On too many occasions I have seen each behave like career politicians rather than leaders. The most important test for anyone in public life is what they do with power. Too often, the other candidates displayed political expediency rather than moral courage and rationalized poor decisions that put Republicans ahead of the republic.”

To read more, go to Fox News.

Article source: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/national/eric_cantor_endorses_mitt_romney_vrn6hcWcVXYxjWD4895v6K?utm_medium=rss&utm_content=%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20National

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Showing that they can on occasion work together, House lawmakers on Thursday overwhelmingly passed a package of bills making it easier for small businesses and startups to raise the capital they need to grow and hire new workers.

Republicans praised what they referred to as the JOBS Act, insisting that President Barack Obama’s support for it shows they can work with him in the nation’s interest. “It is a welcome sign that we can put our differences aside and work together to produce results to help boost the economy and get people back to work,” House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., said.

Democrats, while saying the legislation deserved a yes vote, said the measure was a modest effort by Republicans to prove they can accomplish something in an otherwise do-nothing Congress.

Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., said that while the measure would free up capital flow for startups, “it’s not a jobs solution for our country, it’s not a jobs bill.”

“In fact, I think the frustration of some is that to a certain extent it represents the spinning of the wheels that has typified this Congress,” Polis said.

Of the six bills in the package, four had already passed the House by large margins. The legislation now goes to the Senate, where Democratic leaders have said they will soon put forth a similar small business promotion package. The House vote was 390-23.

The bills would make it easier for small companies to go public by providing them a temporary reprieve from Securities and Exchange Commission regulations; remove SEC restrictions preventing small businesses from using advertisements to solicit investors; and remove SEC restrictions on “crowdfunding” so entrepreneurs can raise equity capital from a large pool of small investors.

They also raise from $5 million to $50 million the ceiling for shares a private company can sell as part of a public offering before having to register with the SEC, raise the SEC registration threshold from 500 to 1,000 shareholders and increase the number of shareholders permitted to invest in a community bank from 500 to 2,000.

Republican freshman Rep. Stephen Fincher of Tennessee, who sponsored the package, cited reports that the United States now ranks 12th in the world in terms of ease of access to venture capital. “Reducing these regulations will help small companies raise capital, grow their business and create private jobs for Americans,” he said.

White House spokeswoman Amy Brundage said Obama had proposed many of the same ideas in the jobs bill he introduced last fall and in legislation promoting startups. “Today’s vote shows both sides should be able to find common ground on this issue and the president urges them to pass a bill and bring it to his desk without delay,” she said.

Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., a member of the Senate Democratic leadership, said at a Senate Banking Committee hearing Tuesday that he expected the Senate to act soon on a similar package. “The Senate version could even go a little further than the House version, and I would also hope that we take some needed precautions on investor protection,” he said.

All six of the bills came to the floor this week with Republican sponsors, although one — increasing the number of people who can invest in a community bank before it has to register with the SEC — passed 420-2 last November in almost identical form under the co-sponsorship of a Democrat, Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut. The new version is sponsored by Arizona Republican Rep. Ben Quayle, who is now engaged in a tough primary battle.

The otherwise cordial debate on the bill Wednesday was interrupted when Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., referred to GOP statements on the Quayle bill as “hypocritical and dishonest.” Frank, senior Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, was barred from speaking on the floor for the rest of the day.

The two sides remain far apart on more comprehensive job creation proposals, with Republicans rejecting administration ideas on infrastructure spending and Democrats opposed to GOP bills that would boost development of domestic energy resources or curb environmental and other federal agency regulations.

House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, who voted for the bill, said it was “meager” as a jobs bill and prodded Republicans to act on a stalled highway infrastructure bill that could foster thousands of construction jobs.

Cantor said small businesses drive most job creation in the country and that the bill would remove red tape that has discouraged them from expanding. He also acknowledged that “congressional performance in producing results has been brought into question” and said bill would help regain the confidence of voters.

Article source: http://www.timesunion.com/news/article/House-passes-bipartisan-bill-to-help-startups-3391988.php

In an unusual nod from a Republican House leader in a member-on-member primary, Representative Eric Cantor of Virginia has endorsed Representative Adam Kinzinger, a freshman from Illinois, over Representative Donald A. Manzullo, who was elected in 1992.

The two were drawn into competition after Congressional redistricting resulted in the loss of Mr. Kinzinger’s district, and the creation of a new Republican-packed district in the state.

“Adam Kinzinger is hands down the candidate the conservative cause needs to win the primary for Congress on March 20th, and he has our enthusiastic endorsement for a second term in Congress,” said Mr. Cantor, in a joint statement with Representative John Shimkus of Illinois.

They added: “Adam Kinzinger is a new breed of conservative. He helped us turn the tide in the House of Representatives and reconnect with our tried and true conservative principles. Only when he and his fellow Republican freshmen arrived have we been able to change the debate in Washington from how much more are we going to spend — to — how much are we going to cut.”

Mr. Shimkus, who as an eight-term congressman would be considered by many to be an old breed of conservative, joins Representative Aaron Schock, also a member of the Illinois delegation, in endorsing Mr. Kinzinger, a winsome military pilot who has charmed much of the Republican conference.

The two congressmen also took a shot at Mr. Manzullo in their statement: “We work on a regular basis with both Adam Kinzinger and his opponent. We join our colleague Congressman Aaron Schock of Illinois in the judgment that Adam Kinzinger is the right choice to keep advancing our conservative movement.”

Article source: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/08/cantor-picks-a-favorite-in-illinois-primary/

The often ice-cold relationship between President Obama and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor is beginning to thaw.

The sudden cooperation between the Virginia Republican and the Obama White House is surprising, most notably because it’s happening during an election year. 

On Tuesday afternoon, the White House issued its official statement of support for a GOP jobs package that Cantor has been touting. Shortly thereafter, Cantor’s office released a statement on Obama’s endorsement. 

“We got a heads-up from their legislative staff,” a source in Cantor’s office said. 

The House is expected to overwhelmingly pass the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act on Thursday. 

There have been side skirmishes on the JOBS Act, and there might be more if and when the Senate takes the measure up. Regardless, the Cantor-Obama alliance on the bill could represent a turning point in the GOP’s relationship with the president.

Democrats on Capitol Hill have criticized the legislation as small in scope, saying it will do little to lower the nation’s high unemployment rate. The fact, however, that Cantor and the White House are working hand in hand on a jobs bill was unthinkable in October, when the majority leader dubbed the president’s overall jobs package dead on arrival.

Interestingly, Cantor’s improving rapport with Obama comes as the president’s relationship with Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) has been strained.

Boehner last year admitted that things had gotten “frosty” between him and Obama. 

The Speaker this year has taken the lead in passing a partisan transportation bill, a measure Obama has vowed to veto. 

Cantor announced the JOBS Act as Republicans were scrambling for votes on the highway legislation, a dynamic that still exits. 

Obama and Cantor are certainly not going to become drinking buddies any time soon. Cantor regularly criticizes the Obama administration on issues ranging from healthcare to foreign policy to tax reform. 

But it is striking how far the relationship has come in just a short amount of time. 

Just six months ago, Cantor huddled with his staff to discuss why the president “hates him so much,” according to a profile of the majority leader in New York magazine. 

Last summer, Obama stormed out a meeting with Cantor and other lawmakers during the debt-limit negotiations. Before departing, Obama told Cantor, “Don’t call my bluff.”

At Obama’s healthcare reform summit in 2010, the president expressed his irritation that Cantor brought the 2,400-page Senate bill to the White House meeting. In front of the cameras, Obama chided Cantor for playing politics with the “prop.”

A year earlier, at a fiscal responsibility summit, Obama said, “I’m going to keep on talking to Eric Cantor. Some day, sooner or later, he’s going to say, ‘Boy, Obama had a good idea.’ ”

Amid laughter, Obama said, “It’s going to happen. You watch.” 

The Obama-Cantor détente might have something to do with other people in the White House. Cantor has had strong working relationships with Vice President Biden and White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew. 

In early November, Biden, Cantor and their spouses had a “personal” dinner. And at various times last year, the two leaders exchanged public compliments.

Cantor on Wednesday told The Hill that he ran into Lew last week at a restaurant and thanked him for praising the JOBS bill in White House press releases. 

The six-term lawmaker said he told Lew that “we’re going to try to keep the fights in the arena where they need to be and try and do the work in this arena.”

Throughout Obama’s term, Cantor has been one of the White House’s leading critics. But since last summer, Cantor has occasionally praised the administration. 

For example, Cantor in November praised Obama’s nominee to lead the agency that heads Medicare and Medicaid. Cantor noted at the time that he worked well with Marilyn Tavenner when she served as Virginia health secretary.

Cantor tackled the president’s challenge earlier this year to send him jobs legislation, a goal Obama outlined in his State of the Union address. 

While routinely knocking the Senate for not moving House-passed bills on the economy, Cantor knew he had to shift tactics to have a chance of getting a jobs bill signed into law this year.

He worked with former AOL CEO Steve Case, a member of Obama’s job council, to find common ground. Cantor asked Case to talk to Democrats to rally support for the measures that ultimately were included in the JOBS Act. Case did so, and a bipartisan bill was born, albeit a package of what some Democrats have labeled “old bills” bundled together. 

House GOP leadership Chairman Greg Walden (Ore.) on Wednesday said that Republicans have long wanted to work with the White House on job-creation measures. 

Asked when was the last time — before the JOBS Act — that the administration had worked cooperatively with the GOP on jobs, Walden responded, “This would be it.” 

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Article source: http://thehill.com/homenews/house/214865-obama-cantor-relationship-warming-up

» 24 comments

Appearing on Fox Business Network’s Cavuto Thursday night, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor spoke with host Neil Cavuto — but got his wires crossed in the process and thought he was talking with Bret Baier .

Cavuto was questioning Cantor over his going “out on a limb” to endorse Mitt Romney. “I’ll tell you this Bret,” said Cantor. “Mitt Romney is the only candidate in the race…who has put forward a pro-growth plan to get this economy back on track!”

RELATED: Inside the Business Anchor’s Studio: Super Tuesday Interview With Neil Cavuto

Cavuto took the error in stride, letting the Congressman know that he was, in fact, Neil Cavuto at the end of the broadcast.

“Eric Cantor, I know you talk to a lot of people. You called me Bret. That’s ok,” Cavuto acknowledged.

“Oh Neil, I’m sorry!” Cantor apologized.

“No you talk to Brett, and then call him Neil,” said Cavuto “It will drive him nuts. He has an ego the size of the Chrysler Building!”

Watch below via Fox Business Network:

Follow us on Twitter.

Sign up for Mediaite’s daily newsletter.

• Cantor only remembers the names of those who give 6 figure checks or higher. And Grover Norquist.

• there’s a difference?

• Sometimes I can’t tell the difference between them all, as I here a lot of crap coming out of their mouth.

• When Cantor sends over the questions he wants to be asked during Fox appearances he just does an email blast to all so the name of the particular host is irrelevant.

• Cavuto is the one who vibrates.

• I’m willing to bet you don’t watch a lot of Fox.

• Cute. This is why FNC wins every time. They are informative and fun. Oh and unafraid

• That’s a bet you’d easily lose.

• It’s easy to hedge yourself as being contrarian on an online forum. It’s typically–a vast majority of the time–those who are ignorant of the Fox broadcasting model that speak about “LAWL CRAP.”

• Well, it looks like you are projecting. To be a good critic, you need to know about the issue at hand.

• It would look like I’m projecting to someone so obviously trying to cover up their own faults. It’s an understandable effort, albeit last-resort material.

• I sometimes get confused between the blonds on Fox. 

• Ahh! Projecting means you are placing your own ignorance/actions on someone else’s. If I don’t know about Fox, how would I comment about them. Come on, reason with me here.

• “My sons are all adults and they’ve made decisions about their careers and they’ve chosen not to serve in the military and active duty and I respect their decision in that regard. One of the ways my sons are showing support for our nation is helping me get elected because they think I’d be a great president.”

• “You sit down with your attorneys and tell you what you have to do, but obviously the president of the United States has to do what’s in the best interest of the United States against a potential threat.”

• “I’m not a big-game hunter. I’ve made that very clear. I’ve always been a rodent and rabbit hunter. Small varmints, if you will.”

• Not to mention they spread falsehoods and half truths to fit thier needs!

• That was my way of saying you’re projecting by saying my projecting. It was the nice, intelligent way of saying “Nuh-uh, you are.” Ignorance has never stopped man from commenting on things throughout history.

• Eric Cantor is having a hard time keeping his own seat!

• So what hard piece of evidence do you have that I do not watch Fox. I bet you are the type that thinks he can review a piece of literature without having a clue about what it’s about.

• An overcrowded chicken farm produce fewer eggs.

• That’s ok Eric I confuse Steve Doocy with Spongebob all the time. 

• You know that things are going bad when even the politicians are confused. You spin a story
  so many times that you confuse yourself. Nice going Cantor.

• seriously…you think this was worth writing an article about ? Do you love fox news that much James where you want to cover a story like this instead of all the other lies they spew ?

Article source: http://www.mediaite.com/tv/oops-eric-cantor-mixes-up-neil-cavuto-with-bret-baier/

Article source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/eric-cantors-first-amendment-arguments-against-contraception-mandate/2012/03/08/gIQAf7EE1R_blog.html

» 22 comments

Appearing on Fox Business Network’s Cavuto Thursday night, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor spoke with host Neil Cavuto — but got his wires crossed in the process and thought he was talking with Bret Baier .

Cavuto was questioning Cantor over his going “out on a limb” to endorse Mitt Romney. “I’ll tell you this Bret,” said Cantor. “Mitt Romney is the only candidate in the race…who has put forward a pro-growth plan to get this economy back on track!”

RELATED: Inside the Business Anchor’s Studio: Super Tuesday Interview With Neil Cavuto

Cavuto took the error in stride, letting the Congressman know that he was, in fact, Neil Cavuto at the end of the broadcast.

“Eric Cantor, I know you talk to a lot of people. You called me Bret. That’s ok,” Cavuto acknowledged.

“Oh Neil, I’m sorry!” Cantor apologized.

“No you talk to Brett, and then call him Neil,” said Cavuto “It will drive him nuts. He has an ego the size of the Chrysler Building!”

Watch below via Fox Business Network:

Follow us on Twitter.

Sign up for Mediaite’s daily newsletter.

• Cantor only remembers the names of those who give 6 figure checks or higher. And Grover Norquist.

• there’s a difference?

• Sometimes I can’t tell the difference between them all, as I here a lot of crap coming out of their mouth.

• When Cantor sends over the questions he wants to be asked during Fox appearances he just does an email blast to all so the name of the particular host is irrelevant.

• Cavuto is the one who vibrates.

• I’m willing to bet you don’t watch a lot of Fox.

• Cute. This is why FNC wins every time. They are informative and fun. Oh and unafraid

• That’s a bet you’d easily lose.

• It’s easy to hedge yourself as being contrarian on an online forum. It’s typically–a vast majority of the time–those who are ignorant of the Fox broadcasting model that speak about “LAWL CRAP.”

• Well, it looks like you are projecting. To be a good critic, you need to know about the issue at hand.

• It would look like I’m projecting to someone so obviously trying to cover up their own faults. It’s an understandable effort, albeit last-resort material.

• I sometimes get confused between the blonds on Fox. 

• Ahh! Projecting means you are placing your own ignorance/actions on someone else’s. If I don’t know about Fox, how would I comment about them. Come on, reason with me here.

• “My sons are all adults and they’ve made decisions about their careers and they’ve chosen not to serve in the military and active duty and I respect their decision in that regard. One of the ways my sons are showing support for our nation is helping me get elected because they think I’d be a great president.”

• “You sit down with your attorneys and tell you what you have to do, but obviously the president of the United States has to do what’s in the best interest of the United States against a potential threat.”

• “I’m not a big-game hunter. I’ve made that very clear. I’ve always been a rodent and rabbit hunter. Small varmints, if you will.”

• Not to mention they spread falsehoods and half truths to fit thier needs!

• That was my way of saying you’re projecting by saying my projecting. It was the nice, intelligent way of saying “Nuh-uh, you are.” Ignorance has never stopped man from commenting on things throughout history.

• Eric Cantor is having a hard time keeping his own seat!

• So what hard piece of evidence do you have that I do not watch Fox. I bet you are the type that thinks he can review a piece of literature without having a clue about what it’s about.

• An overcrowded chicken farm produce fewer eggs.

• That’s ok Eric I confuse Steve Doocy with Spongebob all the time. 

Article source: http://www.mediaite.com/tv/oops-eric-cantor-mixes-up-neil-cavuto-with-bret-baier/

Article source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/eric-cantors-first-amendment-arguments-against-contraception-mandate/2012/03/08/gIQAf7EE1R_blog.html?wprss=rss_politics

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said Thursday that he opposes legislation that would provide tax credits to spur transition to using natural-gas fuel in heavy trucking fleets, dealing a strong blow to the bill’s prospects.

“I am not supportive of the Nat Gas Act,” Cantor, referring to the bill’s title, told E2 in the Capitol. “I think the policy behind that is Washington again picking winners and losers.”

The Senate will vote as soon as Thursday on an amendment to transportation legislation that’s aimed at expanding use of natural gas as a transportation fuel, especially in the oil-thirsty heavy-trucking industry.

Billionaire energy magnate T. Boone Pickens has long waged an aggressive PR campaign in favor of providing billions of dollars in tax credits to spur natural gas-powered trucking.

The idea has a number of Democratic and Republican backers, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who co-sponsored legislation the Senate amendment is based on with Sens. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Robert Menendez (D-N.J.).

Rep. John Sullivan (R-Okla.) sponsored a bipartisan House version of the legislation last year.

But Cantor, the No. 2 House Republican, on Thursday called it bad policy.

“Given the situation that we have with the budget and given the fact that natural gas prices are now at least at a 10-year low, I don’t even see the sense in that policy, not to mention just the overall aspect of Washington coming in, picking winners and losers, that’s what we are trying to get away from,” he said.

A suite of conservative groups including Americans for Prosperity, Heritage Action (an arm of the Heritage Foundation), the Competitive Enterprise Institute, Freedom Action and the Club for Growth oppose the tax credits, calling the proposal unneeded government meddling into energy markets.

“Natural gas prices are at historically low levels. This means that major companies are already investing in building the infrastructure needed to fuel natural gas vehicles,” the group’s said in a letter to senators this week ahead of the amendment vote.

“The goals of the NAT GAS Act are being achieved by the free market without the additional government involvement mandated by the NAT GAS Act,” the letter states.

While Sullivan’s bill introduced a year ago has a bipartisan mix of 181 co-sponsors, a campaign against the measure by conservative groups had eroded some support. Twenty Republicans have withdrawn their sponsorship since last May.

Backers of the plan say it’s a way to boost energy security by using ample domestic gas supplies to displace oil imports. Pickens touted the natural-gas bill in a letter to The Wall Street Journal this week.

“There
are about 8 million heavy trucks in the U.S. If we moved all of them
from burning diesel to running on natural gas tomorrow, we would reduce
imports by 3 million barrels a day. At $105 per barrel, that’s $315
million per day we can recycle into the U.S. economy rather than sending
it to Venezuela and Saudi Arabia,” he wrote.

President Obama touted his own plans for natural-gas vehicle tax credits in a speech Wednesday. A White House spokesman couldn’t be reached for comment on the Senate proposal.

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Article source: http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/215019-cantor-opposes-natural-gas-vehicles-bill-dimming-prospects

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor appeared on Fox Business Thursday night to discuss a range of topics including job growth and the Republican primary race with host Neil Cavuto.

The interview seemed like any standard cable news appearance, until about half way through the six-minute segment. Cavuto asked Cantor why he was the only top Republican in the House of Representatives to “go out on a limb” and support GOP candidate Mitt Romney. Cantor laughed and said, “I’ll tell you this Bret, Mitt Romney is the only candidate in the race…who has put forward a pro-growth plan to get this economy back on track.”

Cavuto did not immediately acknowledge that Cantor confused him with his Fox colleague, host Bret Baier, but did address the gaffe at the end of the segment.

“Eric Cantor, I know you talk to a lot of people. You called me Bret. That’s ok,” Cavuto said. “Oh Neil, I’m sorry,” Cantor responded. Cavuto encouraged Cantor to call Baier Neil the next time he sees him. “It will drive him nuts. He has an ego the size of the Chrysler Building,” Cavuto joked. Watch Cantor’s gaffe in the video below, which comes at 3:50.

WATCH:

Watch the latest video at video.foxbusiness.com

(H/T Johnny$).

Also on HuffPost:

Fox News’ hosts:

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Article source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/09/eric-cantor-fox-news-neil-cavuto-bret-baier_n_1334360.html?ref=politics&ir=Politics

Article source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/eric-cantors-first-amendment-arguments-against-contraception-mandate/2012/03/08/gIQAf7EE1R_blog.html

On February 18, 2011, 98 Republicans joined with the whole of the Democratic Caucus in the House to defeat legislation offered up by Representative Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee designed to ensure the House GOP lived up to is “$100 billion in cuts” pledge to nowhere.

As I noted at the time, “Blackburn’s amendment, by its own description, would have ‘reduce[d] spending by 5.5% in 8 non-securiy spending subsections of the bill and reduce[d] Legislative Branch appropriations by 11%.’”

Ushering Republicans across the aisle to join with Democrats in a refusal to cut the budget was House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and House Republican Whip Kevin McCarthy.

It was the first major vote that separated the men from the boys. It showed who the fiscally responsible were and who the fiscally irresponsible were. Eric Cantor himself had co-sponsored the same Blackburn measure three separate times. But this time, the tea party had the votes to actually get it passed. So Cantor led squishy Republicans to the Democrats. And our debt soon went up to over $15 trillion.

Standing with Marsha Blackburn and the conservatives wanting to cut the size and scope of Washington was Congressman Don Manzullo of Illinois.

Following Eric Cantor across the aisle to join the Democrats was Adam Kinzinger, who campaigned as a tea party congressman intent on reducing Washington. His vote showed clearly he really did not mean it.

Illinois has redistricted Manzullo and Kinzinger into the same district. Yesterday, Eric Cantor endorsed Kinzinger. Conservatives better fight back and support Manzullo.

The day before Adam Kinzinger and Eric Cantor walked across the aisle to join the Democrats, Kinzinger went by himself. On February 17, 2011, the House voted on a measure to strip from the budget an earmark requested by Nancy Pelosi for San Francisco. Pretty much every Republican in the House of Representatives, including Eric Cantor and Don Manzullo both, voted to strip the earmark from the budget.

But Adam Kinzinger joined Nancy Pelosi, Jesse Jackson, Jr., and even Barney Frank to give Nancy Pelosi the money she wanted. They lost the vote.

RedState supported Adam Kinzinger in 2010 against Debbie Halvorson. The whole of the tea party in Illinois went to bat for the young veteran who said he would go fight for the tea party in Washington.

Not long after getting there, reporters started buzzing that Kinzinger was one of the critics behind closed doors of the earmarks ban. In vote after vote, Kinzinger lined up with the Republican leaders in silly deal after silly deal. Reporters noticed that many of those who ran under the tea party banner went straight into a voting pattern similar to the very same Republicans the tea party opposed.

Adam Kinzinger had not become a tea party leader, but a leadership flunky. His voting record is a disappointment

Republican Leaders in Washington have been at war with conservatives this past year for daring to hold Republicans accountable for their promises. Leadership staffers complained about the Heritage Foundation. The Leadership staff ridiculed conservatives opposed to Planned Parenthood.

Adam Kinzinger stood with that leadership. In fact, roughly 70% of the tea party backed congressmen fell in line behind the leadership betraying the people who sent them there.

Consider, if you will, that Eric Cantor has a 60% rating in the Heritage Action for America scorecard. It is, more so than the American Conservative Union or any other ratings list, the best indicator of conservatives in Congress.

Adam Kinzinger only rates 3 percentage points higher than Cantor, coming in at 63%. Don Manzullo, however, is at 84%.

In the American Conservative Union rankings, Don Manzullo rates 92%. Adam Kinzinger only rates 72%.

In the Club for Growth scorecard, Don Manzullo earns an 85% score and Adam Kinzinger has a 56% score.

This race should be a no brainer for conservatives, fiscally or socially. We must support Don Manzullo. If we are unwilling to stand up for a man who stands up for conservatives even against his own party, then why should we ever expect any man to stand with the movement against the party?

Article source: http://www.redstate.com/erick/2012/03/09/conservatives-should-mobilize-to-help-don-manzullo-against-adam-kinzinger-in-illinois/

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-VA., praised passage of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act on Thursday and criticized House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., for deriding it.

“We have to start somewhere,” Cantor said during an interview on Special Report with Bret Baier. “For Nancy Pelosi to make the comments she did, make a comments to a man or woman that benefits from this bill and can start up a new business, by the way, if she would like to say those comments to the people who actually get a job because of this bill, you know, I think she would get a different reaction.”

Unlike all of the other jobs bills passed by House Republicans, the one passed Thursday is the first with support from President Obama.

Cantor expressed optimism that the House could continue to work successfully with a president from the opposing party, despite the odds of election-year politics.
“That is why today is the first step what I hope is both sides learning to put aside their differences and come together where we can,” Cantor said.

Touching on the issue of rising gas prices, Cantor said the Obama administration’s policies hindered the potential for increased domestic energy production.

While the U.S. produces more energy than when Obama took office, Cantor said that it could be further improved by issuing more drilling permits.
“We should be doing everything we can to unleash the energy potential here at home. My issue with the administration’s energy policy they are hostile to fossil fuels,” Cantor said.

Days after announcing his support for Mitt Romney for the Republican presidential nomination, Cantor made another surprise endorsement on Thursday for freshman Representative Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, who faces Donald Manzullo, R-Ill., in a brutal incumbent-versus-incumbent battle.

Kinzinger and Manzullo’s race is one of many similar intra-party fights due to congressional redistricting this year.

It’s rare for Congressional leaders to pick sides in a member-versus-member fight. But Cantor said he was part of the effort to recruit Kinzinger to run in 2010. So he wanted to throw his support behind one of his many protegees.

Manzullo has served in Congress since 1993.

“This is not about Donald Manzullo. It’s about Adam Kinzinger and the confidence I have in him,” Cantor said.

The Virginia Republican declined to say whether he would make endorsements in any other upcoming primaries.

Article source: http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/2012/03/08/cantor-praises-passage-jobs-act-criticizes-pelosi-deriding-it

President Barack Obama’s relationship with House Speaker John Boehner may have deteriorated. But it has improved with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, and in an election year at that, The Hill reports.

The latest evidence of the rapprochement was a White House statement of support Tuesday for a Republican jobs proposal spearheaded by Cantor. Following the White House statement, Cantor’s office released a statement of its own touting Obama’s backing, The Hill reports. The Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act should pass the House easily, though it may encounter trouble in the Senate.

Despite the progress, Obama and Cantor haven’t suddenly turned into close allies. Cantor still attacks the administration on healthcare, tax reform, and foreign policy. But the relationship has taken a huge turn since Cantor discussed with his staff why Obama “hates him so much” six months ago, as New York magazine reported. Cantor’s collegial ties with Vice President Joe Biden and new White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew have helped smooth the relationship, The Hill reports.

House Republican leadership Chairman Greg Walden of Oregon said Wednesday that the GOP has sought to cooperate with the White House on job-creation proposals for some time.

Asked when the White House had last worked cooperatively with Republicans on the issue, Walden said, “This would be it.”

© 2012 Newsmax. All rights reserved.

Article source: http://www.newsmax.com/Politics/Eric-Cantor-Obama-relations/2012/03/08/id/431877

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-VA., praised passage of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act on Thursday and criticized House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., for deriding it.

“We have to start somewhere,” Cantor said during an interview on Special Report with Bret Baier. “For Nancy Pelosi to make the comments she did, make a comments to a man or woman that benefits from this bill and can start up a new business, by the way, if she would like to say those comments to the people who actually get a job because of this bill, you know, I think she would get a different reaction.”

Unlike all of the other jobs bills passed by House Republicans, the one passed Thursday is the first with support from President Obama.

Cantor expressed optimism that the House could continue to work successfully with a president from the opposing party, despite the odds of election-year politics.
“That is why today is the first step what I hope is both sides learning to put aside their differences and come together where we can,” Cantor said.

Touching on the issue of rising gas prices, Cantor said the Obama administration’s policies hindered the potential for increased domestic energy production.

While the U.S. produces more energy than when Obama took office, Cantor said that it could be further improved by issuing more drilling permits.
“We should be doing everything we can to unleash the energy potential here at home. My issue with the administration’s energy policy they are hostile to fossil fuels,” Cantor said.

Days after announcing his support for Mitt Romney for the Republican presidential nomination, Cantor made another surprise endorsement on Thursday for freshman Representative Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, who faces Donald Manzullo, R-Ill., in a brutal incumbent-versus-incumbent battle.

Kinzinger and Manzullo’s race is one of many similar intra-party fights due to congressional redistricting this year.

It’s rare for Congressional leaders to pick sides in a member-versus-member fight. But Cantor said he was part of the effort to recruit Kinzinger to run in 2010. So he wanted to throw his support behind one of his many protegees.

Manzullo has served in Congress since 1993.

“This is not about Donald Manzullo. It’s about Adam Kinzinger and the confidence I have in him,” Cantor said.

The Virginia Republican declined to say whether he would make endorsements in any other upcoming primaries.

Article source: http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/2012/03/08/cantor-praises-passage-jobs-act-criticizes-pelosi-deriding-it

Adam Kinzinger is hands down the candidate the conservative cause needs to win the primary for Congress on March 20^th and he has our enthusiastic endorsement for a second term in Congress.

The outcome of this primary election will have vital consequences for our ability to fight and win on the monumental policy decisions this country will make in the crucial years ahead. Only with strategic, thoughtful and inspirational Representatives like Adam Kinzinger will we be able to win the day on the direction our country takes and cementing our majority.

Adam Kinzinger is a new breed of conservative. He helped us turn the tide in the House of Representatives and reconnect with our tried and true conservative principles. Only when he and his fellow Republican Freshmen arrived have we been able to change the debate in Washington from how much more are we going to spend—to—how much are we going to cut.

Indeed, THE ONLY budget that Congressman Adam Kinzinger has voted for in his brief 14 months of service in Congress CUT spending below the levels spent the year before. Adam Kinzinger was key in helping us accomplish that unprecedented feat of actually spending fewer dollars, not just cutting back proposed increases in spending.

In addition to his demonstrated legislative ability, Adam Kinzinger is a talented, inspiring and articulate Congressman, able to do battle on the national stage with left-wing Democrats and win the argument. He thoughtfully communicates principled positions on the issues. We cannot win legislative battles if the American people are not behind us. It is up to us to take our message over the heads of the national media straight to the people. Adam Kinzinger is one of our most positively appealing and powerful communicators—we cannot allow him to be silenced.

Both of us have long been noted for our loyalty to our conservative principles. That is demonstrated in our voting records. Adam Kinzinger is one of us. The more we get to know him, the more we are impressed by the depth of his convictions and willingness to act upon his principles. That is why he volunteered to serve in the Armed Forces and why he stepped up to run for Congress. He is passionate about fighting for our country.

It is another vital concern of ours to help develop the next generation of conservative leaders. We both worked hard to help Adam in his campaign to defeat ultra-liberal Congresswoman Debbie Halvorson. Since then we have been enormously impressed with how hard Adam has continued to fight for our shared conservative principles.

Adam Kinzinger’s potential was immediately recognized when he was selected as one of four freshmen to serve on the Transition Team from Nancy Pelosi’s Democrat Majority to the new Republican Majority. It is why Adam earned selection to the Republican Whip Team. It is why he was appointed as a freshman to one of the most powerful committees in Congress—the House Energy and Commerce Committee, responsible for an enormous array of cutting edge issues, including healthcare, energy and the repeal of Obamacare.

As a movement, we need to continue moving forward, not back. We need to prepare for the future, not cling to the past. We need to celebrate the forward thinking members of our team. We will indeed have no future, if we indulge in extinguishing the promising talent that we have in Adam Kinzinger. Few outcomes would make liberals and national Democrats happier than Republicans snuffing out the service of one of our conservative movement’s most promising members.

Adam Kinzinger is a courageous conservative and a valued member of our movement. In 2010, while he was in the midst of his own campaign to defeat a liberal incumbent Democrat, he found himself in a better position financially than Bobby Schilling, who was battling left-winger Congressman Phil Hare in Western Illinois. Adam stepped up and gave $5,000 from his own campaign to help Bobby Schilling pay for a crucial mailing that helped him win that race. Again, before being elected himself, Adam provided invaluable assistance to Republican candidates for State Representative and Senate. That selfless sacrifice is a window into the principled man that is Adam Kinzinger. It is a character trait all too rare in Congress.

At the age of 20, Adam defeated a 12 year incumbent Democrat for the McLean County Board. He has been a huge asset to other Republican candidates. It is no wonder that Adam Kinzinger leads in Republican County Chair endorsements by 10 to 1—they rely on his leadership to advance our cause.

We work on a regular basis with both Adam Kinzinger and his opponent. We join our colleague Congressman Aaron Schock of Illinois in the judgment that Adam Kinzinger is the right choice to keep advancing our conservative movement.

Adam Kinzinger is a rock as we fight Nancy Pelosi in the epic battle to rein in government and out of control spending. He has done a great job and we ought to keep him.

Our endorsement is not perfunctory. Adam Kinzinger is a key member of our team and has our total support in his campaign for a second term in the United States House of Representatives.

Article source: http://www.politico.com/blogs/david-catanese/2012/03/cantor-endorses-kinzinger-over-manzullo-116869.html

In an unusual nod from a Republican House leader in a member-on-member primary, Representative Eric Cantor of Virginia has endorsed Representative Adam Kinzinger, a freshman from Illinois, over Representative Donald A. Manzullo, who was elected in 1992.

The two were drawn into competition after Congressional redistricting resulted in the loss of Mr. Kinzinger’s district, and the creation of a new Republican-packed district in the state.

“Adam Kinzinger is hands down the candidate the conservative cause needs to win the primary for Congress on March 20th, and he has our enthusiastic endorsement for a second term in Congress,” said Mr. Cantor, in a joint statement with Representative John Shimkus of Illinois.

They added: “Adam Kinzinger is a new breed of conservative. He helped us turn the tide in the House of Representatives and reconnect with our tried and true conservative principles. Only when he and his fellow Republican freshmen arrived have we been able to change the debate in Washington from how much more are we going to spend — to — how much are we going to cut.”

Mr. Shimkus, who as an eight-term congressman would be considered by many to be an old breed of conservative, joins Representative Aaron Schock, also a member of the Illinois delegation, in endorsing Mr. Kinzinger, a winsome military pilot who has charmed much of the Republican conference.

The two congressmen also took a shot at Mr. Manzullo in their statement: “We work on a regular basis with both Adam Kinzinger and his opponent. We join our colleague Congressman Aaron Schock of Illinois in the judgment that Adam Kinzinger is the right choice to keep advancing our conservative movement.”

Article source: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/08/cantor-picks-a-favorite-in-illinois-primary/

WASHINGTON — House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said Republicans are coalescing around Mitt Romney’s candidacy and looking for ways to work together to defeat President Barack Obama.

Cantor, who endorsed Romney over the weekend, said Monday that despite the prolonged GOP presidential primary, Republicans are beginning to set aside their differences and focus on winning back the White House.

Cantor, in a CNN interview, said, “What we’re doing is we’re coalescing around Mitt Romney’s plan to actually address the economic challenges we have.”

Cantor said Republicans are trying to find ways to work together and bring people together.

Romney, Cantor said, “is the only person in the race who has ever created a job.” He predicted Romney will do well in Tuesday’s 10-state Super Tuesday contests.

Cantor said Sunday that he already cast his vote for Romney in Virginia, which holds its primary Tuesday. Only Romney and Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) qualified for the Virginia ballot.

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Article source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/05/eric-cantor-mitt-romney-endorsement_n_1320626.html

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor pushed to get a bill passed to make it easier for start-up companies to go public.

WASHINGTON (CNNMoney) — In a rare moment of bipartisanship, the House overwhelmingly passed a bill Thursday aimed at making it easier for small companies to grow and go public.

The House voted 390-23 to pass the bill easing certain rules that the Securities and Exchange Commission enforces on small companies going through the process of becoming a publicly traded company. The Senate is working on a similar version of the bill, and President Obama has indicated he supports it.

The package is en route to becoming one of the few pieces of legislation aimed at boosting job creation and the economy to be signed into law in the past few years.

That said, the bill isn’t without critics. Union groups, consumer advocate groups and advocates for retired people AARP have written to lawmakers saying they’re concerned parts of the measure may strip valuable protections for those looking to invest in initial public offerings, or IPOs.

The bill is named the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act and Republicans have been referring to it as the JOBS Act, the same acronym as a different and more ambitious White House initiative aimed at spurring jobs.

“This bill makes it easier for start-up businesses to happen again in America,” said House Majority Leader Eric Cantor after the bill passed. “By having a win like this, I think we can demonstrate that (both political parties) really can work together.”

The bill would relax SEC rules on small and medium sized companies with less than a billion dollars in gross revenue that go public, putting new rules into effect over five years instead of all at once. After five years, or if the company’s gross revenue exceeds $1 billion, the company would have to abide by SEC deadlines and rules.

Remarkable hiring stories

The bill would also allow small companies to advertise and solicit investors when going public, which is currently prohibited. And it would allow them to raise more money from larger numbers of small, less sophisticated investors.

Republicans took turns on the House floor making promises that the bill would help jump start the economy. The measure would be “creating new growth opportunities for America’s small businesses, for start-up companies and for entrepreneurs,” said Rep. Spencer Bachus, an Alabama Republican who chairs the Financial Services Committee.

However, experts who testified at a Senate hearing Tuesday on similar measures said they doubted the bill’s ability to create jobs and were concerned about easing of important investor protections.

Lynn E. Turner, a former Securities and Exchange Commission chief accountant, said the package would fundamentally change the kind of information companies provide the public in an IPO and make it easier for sell-side analysts to pair up with investment bankers.

“The problem is they’re not going to create jobs. IPOs don’t drive the economy, the economy drives IPOs,” said Turner. “You’re creating a much easier situation for fraudsters to step in and take advantage of people.”

In a March 7 letter to Senate Majority Letter Harry Reid, an AARP lobbyist opposed efforts to open the door for more investing by less sophisticated shareholders, saying it could lead to “the new turbo-charged pump-and-dump boiler room operations of the Internet age.”

“Money that could have been invested in small companies with real potential for growth would be siphoned off into these financially shakier, more speculative ventures,” wrote Joyce A. Rogers, senior vice president for government affairs at AARP. “The net effect would likely be to undermine rather than support sustainable job growth.”

Democrats groused about the legislation’s “JOBS” acronym, and they tried to introduce an amendment that would have forced bigger companies to detail how many employees they have in the United States versus abroad.

“We have one of the foolish acronyms that’s not very helpful,” said Rep. Barney Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi called the bill “meager” on Thursday, when asked by CNN.

“OK, already. We’ve done it. It’s good. Let’s do it again. But let’s not mistake it for what we need. . .a real, serious, comprehensive jobs bill for our country,” Pelosi said.

The Senate Banking Committee has been working on a similar piece of legislation and Majority Leader Harry Reid indicated the Senate would take up the bills next week. If the Senate passes the bill, then the two chambers would work out the difference in a conference committee, according to a Senate aide.

“We’ve been working on this bill for months,” said Adam Jentleson, a Reid spokesman. “We’re all for (House Majority Leader) Cantor coming around to working with us after him blocking us at every turn.”

– CNN’s Kate Bolduan contributed to this report. 

Article source: http://money.cnn.com/2012/03/08/smallbusiness/House-startup-bill/

House Republicans on the Budget Committee were still at odds Thursday over the shape of a 2013 budget after a long meeting with Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.).

Members had hoped Cantor would smooth a budget compromise, but they are still divided over whether to follow the August debt-ceiling deal’s top-line spending level of $1.047 trillion next year, or to cut discretionary spending more deeply.

They said that they now are waiting for Congressional Budget Office baseline budget estimates to resolve the dispute. Those estimates will be released Tuesday and will be discussed by telephone during next week’s recess.

Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-Kan.) said only with CBO numbers in place can members assess when the budget based on a $1.047 trillion cap or lower numbers will balance.

The 2012 House budget would not have balanced for at least 26 years, and some conservatives were not comfortable with that. They want to see if a compromise budget based on the 2012 numbers, which had $1.028 trillion in spending in 2013, can be made to balance sooner before agreeing to it.

Meeting participants said they were confident that the impasse can be resolved by the end of March.

A budget would have to pass this month to meet the statutory April 15 deadline because Congress has a two-week recess early next month.

House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) hopes to have a committee markup by the week of March 19.

“We had a very productive meeting today,” Cantor said Thursday. “We’re looking forward to seeing the markup occur on schedule and the budget on the floor by the end of this month.”

Ryan said: “We are on track and on schedule.”

Reps. Scott Garrett (R-N.J.) and Mick Mulvaney (R-S.C.), who are leading a fight to bring discretionary spending to less than $931 billion next year, said they believe the debate can be resolved on time.

“There is one thing there is consensus on, and that is that we need to have a budget,” Garrett said.

These Republican Study Committee members want $931 billion because that number represents the 2012 Ryan budget number minus the $97 billion in automatic cuts triggered by the failure of the debt supercommittee last year. President Obama’s budget assumes this cut is replaced by tax increases and entitlement cuts.

Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), who is leading the fight to cut mandatory spending rather than bring the appropriations level below $1.047 trillion, said he did not know when the conflict would be resolved.

Rep. James Lankford (R-Okla.) said no areas of the budget have been resolved, including how to deal with Medicare and Social Security.

One possibility being floated is whether to include reconciliation instructions in the resolution that outline a way to replace the $97 billion in automatic discretionary budget cuts. Those instructions could be taken up as a fast-track legislative vehicle in a lame-duck session when the automatic cuts loom before Congress. 

Reconciliation measures can be taken up in the Senate, and are immune from filibusters.
 
When asked if the budget would use the reconciliation process to address Medicare, Ryan simply said, “You’ll see when we release our budget.”

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Article source: http://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/budget/214991-cantor-meeting-fails-to-resolve-gop-budget-impasse

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), left, and House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) are the main sponsors of the JOBS Act.
(Jacquelyn Martin – AP)
The House approved a measure Thursday designed to make it easier for small businesses to launch initial public offerings, solicit new investors and eventually hire workers.

The JOBS Act (Jumpstart Our Business Startups) passed 390 to 23, with bipartisan support, a move that House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) said should compel the Senate to consider the bill “in an expeditious fashion.”

Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) said Thursday he would introduce similar legislation next week and “move as quickly as we can” to pass it, but said a highway bill current under consideration in the Senate would create more jobs faster than the House proposal. The two-year, $109 billion deal would create or sustain almost 3 million jobs in the next two years, according to its backers, which include Democrats, Republicans, labor unions and business groups.

The House bills passed Thursday would make it easier for small businesses to go public by lifting SEC restrictions on running advertisements soliciting new investors and permit “crowdfunding” so that entrepreneurs can raise equity capital from larger pools of small investors. Small private companies also would be able to sell up to $50 million in shares as part of a public offering before having to register with the SEC, and could have as many as 1,000 shareholders, up from the current cap of 500.

Four of the bills included in the package had already passed the House by wide margins. And despite its name, Republican leaders couldn’t say how many jobs the bill would help create.

“This is something that you measure later for down the road,” House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) told reporters this week. “We know there are jobs that aren’t being created because of the red tape.”

The issue of job creation — a key election year priority — has spawned effusive praise from both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue in recent days.

On Monday, the White House said President Obama “is encouraged to see there is common ground between his approach and some of the proposals” in the measure, which is a combination of six separate measures that tweak or update Securities and Exchange Commission regulations dating to the 1960s.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), a frequent Obama foe, called the White House support “good news” for small businesses.

Though most House Democrats voted for the bill Thursday, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) called the proposal “so meager” and much less effective at creating jobs when compared to transportation funding bills under consideration in the House and Senate.

Regardless, Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.), a key backer of the bill, said Republicans would be introducing similarly modest legislation through the rest of the year.

“We’re taking pieces at a time,” McHenry said Tuesday. “One thing I’ve found inside this place is that big bills just collapse. So let’s just focus on small business, that’s the core of job creation. Let’s do a piece of that, and then we’ll come back.”

Follow Ed O’Keefe on Twitter: @edatpost

More from PostPolitics:

Why Newt Gingrich shouldn’t drop out

Dennis Kucinich’s most memorable moments

GOP race takes toll on front-runner Romney

This post has been updated since it was first published.

Article source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/2chambers/post/congresss-new-favorite-four-letter-word-jobs/2012/03/06/gIQAGPzexR_blog.html

Enlarge image

Hedge Funds Could Get Break in GOP Small Business Tax Cut

Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Representative Eric Cantor, the House majority leader, told House members in a memo last month that “every” business with fewer than 500 employees would be able to deduct 20 percent of its profits.

Representative Eric Cantor, the House majority leader, told House members in a memo last month that “every” business with fewer than 500 employees would be able to deduct 20 percent of its profits. Photographer: Mark Wilson/Getty Images

A Republican proposal to give small
businesses an extra 20 percent tax deduction may yield cuts for
some multibillion-dollar hedge funds, law firms and other
enterprises that create significant profits with few employees.

Republicans hope to release details of the bill during the
week of March 19, said Laena Fallon, a spokeswoman for
Representative Eric Cantor, the House majority leader. Cantor
told House members in a memo last month his plan would let
“every” business with fewer than 500 employees deduct 20
percent of its profits.

That approach would depart from restrictions in an earlier
version. Legislation introduced when Republicans were
campaigning to take over the House majority in 2010 would have
prevented companies in health, law, finance, architecture and
other industries from qualifying for the break.

Abandoning those limits would let professional sports
teams, liquor stores and hedge funds including Renaissance
Technologies LLC and Och-Ziff Capital Management Group LLC (OZM) claim
the tax break.

“It’s never simple with tax policy,” said Representative
Dave Camp, a Michigan Republican and chairman of the House Ways
and Means Committee. Camp and Fallon said the latest version of
the proposal hasn’t been completed.

“I don’t want to enumerate what that might be,” Camp said
in a March 6 interview when asked what limits Republicans might
include. “One of the considerations you have to have as you
look at any tax bill is how far-reaching it’s going to be.”

Campaign Agenda

The deduction proposal was part of Republicans’ 2009
alternative to the Democrats’ economic stimulus, and in 2010 it
became part of House Republicans’ campaign agenda. The House has
passed other parts of that plan, including bills to repeal the
2010 health-care law and require congressional approval of major
regulations.

The small-business tax cut hasn’t advanced. Republicans
want to pass it before the April 17 tax filing deadline for
individuals.

“That’s what we want to do to make it easier for these
small businesses to start up,” Cantor said Feb. 19 on “Fox
News Sunday.”

The proposal would be a giveaway to people who make tens of
millions of dollars a year, said Bob McIntyre, director of
Citizens for Tax Justice.

“They’re just trying to cut taxes for people with a lot of
money,” said McIntyre, whose Washington-based group favors
higher taxes on top earners and corporations. “That’s what they
always do. That’s what they are.”

Contributions to Cantor

In the 2012 election cycle, Cantor has received more than
$1 million in campaign contributions from the finance, insurance
and real estate industries, the second-most of sitting House
members, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a
Washington group that tracks political spending.

A broader version of the tax cut would be welcome, said
Andrew Goldberg, managing director of government relations and
outreach for the American Institute of Architects. In the
previous version of the measure, architects wouldn’t have been
eligible.

“Anything that provides some relief, especially as things
are struggling to get back to a good point, is something
worthwhile,” Goldberg said. “If one of the goals of this
process is really to create jobs and help small business create
jobs, then there are few better job creators than the design and
construction industry.”

U.S. Tax Code

The previous bill, sponsored by Cantor and Camp, prohibited
certain industries and businesses from qualifying for the tax
break by referencing other sections of the U.S. tax code that
had similar restrictions.

The list of excluded businesses included golf courses,
massage parlors, gambling operations, farms, hotels,
restaurants, engineering firms, accounting firms and producers
of pornography.

The 500-employee threshold is used in some circumstances by
the U.S. Small Business Administration. The federal government
and lawmakers have multiple definitions of small business.

According to 2008 figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, of
the 5.9 million companies that weren’t sole proprietorships,
18,469, or 0.3 percent, had 500 or more workers. Those larger
companies employed 50.6 percent of the nation’s work force.

Och-Ziff had 434 employees as of Dec. 31, according to the
fund’s website. Renaissance reports having 275 employees.

Other hedge funds, such as DE Shaw Co. LP and Bridgewater
Associates LP, report having more than 1,000 employees.

Steve Hinkson, a spokesman for the Managed Funds
Association, the Washington-based trade group for the hedge fund
industry, declined to comment on the plan because details aren’t
available.

To contact the reporter on this story:
Richard Rubin in Washington at
rrubin12@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Jodi Schneider at
jschneider50@bloomberg.net

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Article source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-03-08/hedge-funds-could-get-break-in-republican-small-business-20-tax-cut-plan.html

Tom Williams/Getty Images

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Virginia, officially threw his support behind Mitt Romney Sunday morning, becoming the highest ranking Member of Congress to endorse a GOP presidential candidate.

Cantor, the No. 2 Republican in the House, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that with the economy being the top priority in this election, Romney was the candidate best suited to fix the country’s fiscal problems.

“Mitt Romney is the only candidate in the race who’s put forward a bold pro-growth, pro-jobs plan for the future.,” Cantor said. “America has a critical leadership role [globally] and we have to fix our ailing economy and Mitt Romney’s plan does that.”

Cantor’s endorsement comes just two days before voters in his home state of Virginia head to the polls on Super Tuesday.

The Republican leader said he was confident Romney will do “very well” in Virginia, but did not say if the former Massachusetts governor could lock up his lead in the GOP race on Super Tuesday, where 10 states will vote and 419 delegates are up for grabs.

“That’s for the pundits to answer,” Cantor said. ”It’ll be a hard fought race to the end.”

Cantor stopped short of saying that Romney’s chief rivals, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum, should drop out of the race.

“I think that our race and our system allows anyone to participate in the process,” Cantor said. “But I do believe Mitt Romney will win our nomination and will win the presidency in November.”

Romney’s senior campaign adviser Eric Fehrnstrom said Cantor called Romney on Wednesday – the day after Romney’s clutch wins in the Michigan and Arizona primaries – to inform him of his support.

“It was a pleasant surprise,” Fehrnstrom said, adding that GOP congressional leaders such as Cantor are probably  looking for a presidential candidate that can lead Republicans to big victories in Congress as well as the White House.

“I gotta believe in the back of his mind he’s also thinking about maintaining a Republican majority in the house,” Fehrnstrom said. “Elected Republicans are looking for someone who has coat tails and not concrete shoes and I think nominating a person who doesn’t have any experience in the private sector,  has been a Washington insider all his life like Rick Santorum, is not a good contrast for the Republican Party to put up against Barack Obama.”

Article source: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/03/eric-cantor-house-majority-leader-endorses-mitt-romney/

By Ken Odor
jodor@goochlandgazette.com

A few months ago he was just another citizen of Goochland County.

But last Friday, new District 2 supervisor Manuel Alvarez was sitting at the head table of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s annual breakfast fundraiser at the Richmond Convention Center, along with Cantor and another up and comer, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, who is often mentioned as a possible GOP vice-presidential candidate.

Rubio was the keynote speaker at the breakfast.

Alvarez and Rubio have something in common: they both have roots in Cuba. Alvarez fled the island as a teenager; Rubio was born in the U.S. after his parents fled the Batista regime even before Castro came to power in the 1959 revolution.

In fact, Alvarez said, after having had a chance to chat with Rubio at a reception the night before the Cantor breakfast, their families may have known each other in Cuba.

Alvarez was tapped to lead the crowd of more than 1,800 in the Pledge of Allegiance Friday morning.

“It was a terrific honor to represent Goochland,” said Alvarez, who became a naturalized citizen in 1974. He said he wasn’t nervous when he took to the stage to lead the crowd in the pledge, although he did admit to standing in the wrong spot outside the range of the camera.

Cantor called Alvarez “a shining example of the American dream in action – a Cuban immigrant, whose story is truly inspiring. 

“Like so many others, he came to this country to pursue the American dream, worked hard and earned his own success and continues to give back to the community through his commitment to public service.”

Alvarez said he first learned the pledge in the process of becoming a U.S. citizen.

“At first I didn’t feel like a citizen,” he recalled. The fact was that many Cuban refugees hoped to return to their homeland after Castro was gone.

That hope faded as the Castro regime lasted decade after decade.

“This country has given me everything,” said Alvarez.  “I’d love to go back to visit, but it’s not my home anymore. Goochland is my home now.”

Alvarez said Rubio and he chatted partly in Spanish at the Thursday evening reception and Rubio told him that he is not interested in being vice-president.

But that didn’t dampen Alvarez’s opinion of Rubio. “He’s an inspirational speaker – it just flows – there’s no teleprompter.”

“I think he has real potential,” said Alvarez. “If I was going to bet on it he could be the first Hispanic president,” he predicted.

Alvarez himself said he has no plans to seek higher office. In fact, he said he is leaning toward serving only one term on the Goochland Board of Supervisors, with a second term a possibility.

“Two terms would definitely be the max for me,” he said.

Article source: http://www.goochlandgazette.com/index.php/news/article/alvarez_leads_pledge_at_cantor_breakfast/27231/

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor unveils JOBS Act

In a move designed to make it easier for smaller businesses to raise money for expansion and job creation, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R–VA) has announced that he intends to package together six existing smaller bills into a bipartisan package. The combination, to be known as the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act, is expected to be joined by similar legislation in the Senate.

Cantor’s package provides growing small businesses with relief from a series of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations that sharply limit their ability to raise money by selling stock. In most cases, selling stock is considerably cheaper in the long run than borrowing for business expansion. Of the six specific bills, three have already passed the House by huge bipartisan majorities; two have been approved by the House Finance Services Committee by similar margins; and the sixth has been referred to that committee but not considered.

The six parts of the JOBS Act are:

• The Reopening American Capital Markets to Emerging Growth Companies Act introduced by Representative Stephen Fincher (R–TN), which would make it easier for smaller businesses to go public by providing temporary relief from certain SEC regulations. The House Financial Services Committee approved the bill by a vote of 54–1. A Senate version introduced by Senators Pat Toomey (R–PA) and Chuck Schumer (D–NY) also exists.
• The Access to Capital for Job Creators Act introduced by Representative Kevin McCarthy (R–CA) removes an SEC regulatory ban that says small businesses cannot use advertisements to attract investors. It passed the House by a 413–11 vote. Senator John Thune (R–SD) has introduced a Senate version.
• The Entrepreneur Access to Credit Act introduced by Representative Patrick McHenry (R–NC) would eliminate SEC restrictions on “crowdfunding,” an increasingly popular way for small businesses to raise money from a large pool of individual investors. It passed the House by a 407–17 vote.
• The Small Company Capital Formation Act introduced by Representative David Schweikert (R–AZ) would increase the threshold of companies that are exempted from SEC regulation to $50 million from $5 million. This bill passed the House by 421–1. A Senate version was introduced by Senator Jon Tester (D–MT).
• The Private Company Flexibility and Growth Act, also introduced by Schweikert, would expand the number of shareholders that a smaller business can have before it must meet SEC registration requirements to 1,000 from 500. It was approved by the Financial Services Committee by a voice vote. Senator Pat Toomey (R–PA) introduced a Senate version.
• The Capital Expansion Act introduced by Representative Ben Quayle (R–AZ) would change an SEC requirement to increase the number of shareholders allowed to invest in a community bank to 2,000 from 500. The bill has not been considered.

These seemingly technical bills would greatly increase the ability of smaller businesses to grow and to create jobs, while signaling that both Congress and the Obama Administration are serious about dealing with unemployment.

Article source: http://blog.heritage.org/2012/03/07/cantor-jobs-bill-would-help-small-businesses-grow/

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney may not be very popular among the GOP base, but delegate math will make it very difficult for either Rick Santorum or Newt Gingrich to topple him. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor pointed to the front-runner’s strength Wednesday, Politico reports.

“Mitt Romney is going to win this race,” the Virginia Republican said on CBS’ “This Morning” program. “Mitt Romney is the only one with a clear path toward that nomination.”

Cantor lauded Romney’s economic credentials. “[His opponents] have not demonstrated the ability to do what needs to be done. Mitt Romney has clearly demonstrated that he’s got the organization and that he has the actual record to show that he understands how to solve problems,” the majority leader said. “He understands the problems facing this country and knows how to get people back to work again.”

As for Romney’s performance Tuesday, he “did what he had to do,” Cantor said. “He racked up more delegates than any of the other candidates. He won six out of the 10 states that were up.”

Cantor isn’t worried about an extended primary campaign. “If you look at what was going on four years ago on the Democratic side of the aisle, you had this same issue going on between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton,” he said. “There was a debate that went forward. The parties are supposed to engage in a debate of ideas.”

© 2012 Newsmax. All rights reserved.

Article source: http://www.newsmax.com/Politics/Eric-Cantor-delegates/2012/03/07/id/431740

Cantor said Romney, who was a businessman before being elected Massachusetts governor, is the only candidate who knows how to create jobs. He also praised Romney’s economic plan.

“He is the only one in the race who has put forward these kinds of solutions, and I think he can beat Barack Obama in November,” Cantor said.

Romney and Texas Representative Ron Paul are the only candidates who will appear on the Republican ballot in Virginia’s Tuesday primary, and Romney is widely expected to win that race.

Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn also endorsed Romney today, writing in The Oklahoman newspaper that Romney is a “leader” rather than a “career politician.”

“What Romney has done in his 25 years in the private sector is precisely what we need a president to do in Washington,” Coburn wrote.

Oklahoma also votes on Tuesday.

Shira Schoenberg can be reached at sschoenberg@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @shiraschoenberg.

Article source: http://articles.boston.com/2012-03-04/boston/30482367_1_mitt-romney-romney-today-massachusetts-governor

(CBS News) – On the morning after 10 states voted in the Republican presidential nominating contest, the number two Republican in the House of Representatives came out swinging in support of Mitt Romney.

On “CBS This Morning,” House Majority Leader Eric Cantor rejected claims that the former Massachusetts governor lacked the ability to excite the Republican base and seal the nomination. Cantor said Romney had a successful Super Tuesday by winning six of the 10 states and picking up a majority of the delegates, and he predicted that he will be the Republican nominee.

“Mitt Romney did what he had to do last night,” Cantor said.

Romney handily won Cantor’s state of Virginia, though he and Rep. Ron Paul were the only candidates on the ballot. He also easily won his home state of Massachusetts, neighboring Vermont, Idaho and Alaska. Romney also squeaked out a win in the crucial general election battleground state of Ohio.

But Romney’s close wins in key states like Ohio and his inability to capture southern states (except Florida) continues to plague the candidate.

Full CBS coverage of Super Tuesday.

However, the Virginia congressman, who endorsed Romney earlier this week, said Romney’s winding road to the nomination is becoming a little clearer.

“You’re seeing an increasing flow towards Mitt Romney,” Cantor said, pointing to his economic experience and organizational strength.

Full CBSNews.com coverage: Election 2012

“The reason voters are going to elect him is because he is the only candidate in the race who has a plan to turn the economy around.”

Cantor defended Romney’s economic chops both against his Republican opponents and against the president.

“He’s the only individual in the race, including the president, who has a record of creating jobs,” Cantor said.

As for the long, bitter primary, which former first lady Barbara Bush called the “worst she’s ever seen,” Cantor disagreed. He said it shows that the Republican Party is “a robust party with many ideas.”

Cantor also hit the president over Iran, an issue of growing concern as the international community tries to thwart Iran’s progress toward a nuclear weapon. President Obama has tried to convince Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who visited the White House earlier this week, to delay a possible pre-emptive strike in order to give sanctions and diplomacy more time work. Sources have said Netanyahu hasn’t made a decision on striking Iran, but he has signaled his impatience with diplomatic efforts.

Mr. Obama’s push for further diplomacy has come under fire from his potential Republican rivals, who argue the president hasn’t been as fully supportive of Israel as he should.

Cantor dismissed a statement by Mr. Obama during a news conference Tuesday where he criticized “the casualness with which some of these folks talk about war.”

Cantor rejected anyone is talking about war casually. “I don’t think anybody downplays the gravity of sending our men and women into harms way,” Cantor said.

To see the Cantor interview, which was conducted by “CBS This Morning” co-hosts Charlie Rose and Erica Hill, click on the video in the player above.

Article source: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505263_162-57392194/eric-cantor-romney-did-what-he-had-to/

(CBS News) – On the morning after 10 states voted in the Republican presidential nominating contest, the number two Republican in the House of Representatives came out swinging in support of Mitt Romney.

On “CBS This Morning,” House Majority Leader Eric Cantor rejected claims that the former Massachusetts governor lacked the ability to excite the Republican base and seal the nomination. Cantor said Romney had a successful Super Tuesday by winning six of the 10 states and picking up a majority of the delegates, and he predicted that he will be the Republican nominee.

“Mitt Romney did what he had to do last night,” Cantor said.

Romney handily won Cantor’s state of Virginia, though he and Rep. Ron Paul were the only candidates on the ballot. He also easily won his home state of Massachusetts, neighboring Vermont, Idaho and Alaska. Romney also squeaked out a win in the crucial general election battleground state of Ohio.

But Romney’s close wins in key states like Ohio and his inability to capture southern states (except Florida) continues to plague the candidate.

Full CBS coverage of Super Tuesday.

However, the Virginia congressman, who endorsed Romney earlier this week, said Romney’s winding road to the nomination is becoming a little clearer.

“You’re seeing an increasing flow towards Mitt Romney,” Cantor said, pointing to his economic experience and organizational strength.

Full CBSNews.com coverage: Election 2012

“The reason voters are going to elect him is because he is the only candidate in the race who has a plan to turn the economy around.”

Cantor defended Romney’s economic chops both against his Republican opponents and against the president.

“He’s the only individual in the race, including the president, who has a record of creating jobs,” Cantor said.

As for the long, bitter primary, which former first lady Barbara Bush called the “worst she’s ever seen,” Cantor disagreed. He said it shows that the Republican Party is “a robust party with many ideas.”

Cantor also hit the president over Iran, an issue of growing concern as the international community tries to thwart Iran’s progress toward a nuclear weapon. President Obama has tried to convince Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who visited the White House earlier this week, to delay a possible pre-emptive strike in order to give sanctions and diplomacy more time work. Sources have said Netanyahu hasn’t made a decision on striking Iran, but he has signaled his impatience with diplomatic efforts.

Mr. Obama’s push for further diplomacy has come under fire from his potential Republican rivals, who argue the president hasn’t been as fully supportive of Israel as he should.

Cantor dismissed a statement by Mr. Obama during a news conference Tuesday where he criticized “the casualness with which some of these folks talk about war.”

Cantor rejected anyone is talking about war casually. “I don’t think anybody downplays the gravity of sending our men and women into harms way,” Cantor said.

To see the Cantor interview, which was conducted by “CBS This Morning” co-hosts Charlie Rose and Erica Hill, click on the video in the player above.

Article source: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505267_162-57392194/eric-cantor-romney-did-what-he-had-to/

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said Wednesday that House Republicans were “looking to make sure [Senate Majority Leader] Harry Reid follows through” on the JOBS Act, a series of measures targeted at helping small businesses that earned the blessing of the White House Tuesday.

“Yesterday we heard from the White House that the president supports the JOBS Act. We are looking to make sure Harry Reid follows [(D-Nev.)] through with what the president is asking,” Cantor said during an interview with Bloomberg TV. “Let’s see if we can produce some results altogether. Let’s make sure that Republican or Democrat, we are all in it for the American people so we can do something to produce a result to get this economy back on track and create some jobs.”

Republicans are hoping the legislation — which incorporates some bills championed by House Democrats and the White House — can provide a political win heading into the spring and effectively neutralize Democratic talking points arguing that Republicans have been reluctant to act on jobs. But Cantor said he was hopeful that the bill wouldn’t be the last bipartisan effort of the legislative year.

“I certainly hope this is only the beginning. There is a real window of opportunity here, and that is why we are bringing the jobs out to the floor today, it will be voted on tomorrow in the House,” Cantor said. “This is to jump-start our business start-ups. What it does it gets right to the heart of the issue in America today. It is just too difficult for small businessmen and -women to start up a business or to retain and create jobs. What it does is it removes red tape from getting in the way so we can see entrepreneurial activity and investment begin again as far as the regulations like Sarbanes-Oxley and others that are burdening the ability for investment to occur.” 

Cantor also reiterated his support for Mitt Romney — whom he endorsed over the weekend — saying the former Massachusetts governor “did what he had to do” on Super Tuesday.

“He put away six out of the ten states that were up, and as you indicated, the primary concern of voters going to the polls yesterday on Super Tuesday was the economy,” Cantor said. “And Mitt Romney is the only candidate in this contest that will be able to stand up against the president because he has a jobs plan. He is the only one who has a bold pro-growth plan to get the economy back on track, the only one with a record of actually creating jobs. That is why Mitt Romney will take the nomination and we will be able to win against the president in November.”

Cantor also dismissed the probability of Rick Santorum’s candidacy distracting voters or hurting Romney’s general-election prospects.

“Primary contests happen in both parties. If you look back to the last cycle, in 2008 when the Democrats were having their primary battle, you saw a similar kind of robust debate on that side. This is just a process through which our party will go and we will coalesce around the issues that is most important to this country to win this election — that is jobs and the economy,” Cantor said.

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Article source: http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/214671-cantor-gop-looking-to-make-sure-harry-reid-follows-through-on-jobs-act

WASHINGTON — The No. 2 House Republican says Mitt Romney, despite some setbacks, will emerge from the GOP presidential nominating fight as the party’s standard-bearer against President Barack Obama.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor tells CBS “This Morning” that Romney’s ascension to the top is inevitable, saying his two closest rivals, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich, “have not demonstrated an ability to do what needs to be done” to lock down the nod.

Cantor says Romney will ultimately be chosen as the party’s nominee “because he’s the only candidate in this race who’s got a plan to turn this economy around.”

The Virginia Republican, who has endorsed Romney, calls the former Massachusetts governor the man who has “outperformed all the other candidates.” He says, “You’re seeing an increasing flow toward Mitt Romney.”

Article source: http://www.bostonherald.com/news/us_politics/view/20120307eric_cantor_mitt_romney_ultimately_will_be_the_gop_nominee/srvc=home&position=recent

(CBS News) – On the morning after 10 states voted in the Republican presidential nominating contest, the number two Republican in the House of Representatives came out swinging in support of Mitt Romney.

On “CBS This Morning,” House Majority Leader Eric Cantor rejected claims that the former Massachusetts governor lacked the ability to excite the Republican base and seal the nomination. Cantor said Romney had a successful Super Tuesday by winning six of the 10 states and picking up a majority of the delegates, and he predicted that he will be the Republican nominee.

“Mitt Romney did what he had to do last night,” Cantor said.

Romney handily won Cantor’s state of Virginia, though he and Rep. Ron Paul were the only candidates on the ballot. He also easily won his home state of Massachusetts, neighboring Vermont, Idaho and Alaska. Romney also squeaked out a win in the crucial general election battleground state of Ohio.

But Romney’s close wins in key states like Ohio and his inability to capture southern states (except Florida) continues to plague the candidate.

Full CBS coverage of Super Tuesday.

However, the Virginia congressman, who endorsed Romney earlier this week, said Romney’s winding road to the nomination is becoming a little clearer.

“You’re seeing an increasing flow towards Mitt Romney,” Cantor said, pointing to his economic experience and organizational strength.

Full CBSNews.com coverage: Election 2012

“The reason voters are going to elect him is because he is the only candidate in the race who has a plan to turn the economy around.”

Cantor defended Romney’s economic chops both against his Republican opponents and against the president.

“He’s the only individual in the race, including the president, who has a record of creating jobs,” Cantor said.

As for the long, bitter primary, which former first lady Barbara Bush called the “worst she’s ever seen,” Cantor disagreed. He said it shows that the Republican Party is “a robust party with many ideas.”

Cantor also hit the president over Iran, an issue of growing concern as the international community tries to thwart Iran’s progress toward a nuclear weapon. President Obama has tried to convince Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who visited the White House earlier this week, to delay a possible pre-emptive strike in order to give sanctions and diplomacy more time work. Sources have said Netanyahu hasn’t made a decision on striking Iran, but he has signaled his impatience with diplomatic efforts.

Mr. Obama’s push for further diplomacy has come under fire from his potential Republican rivals, who argue the president hasn’t been as fully supportive of Israel as he should.

Cantor dismissed a statement by Mr. Obama during a news conference Tuesday where he criticized “the casualness with which some of these folks talk about war.”

Cantor rejected anyone is talking about war casually. “I don’t think anybody downplays the gravity of sending our men and women into harms way,” Cantor said.

To see the Cantor interview, which was conducted by “CBS This Morning” co-hosts Charlie Rose and Erica Hill, click on the video in the player above.

Article source: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505267_162-57392194/eric-cantor-romney-did-what-he-had-to/

Nation

March 6, 2012

JTA

Eric Cantor

Congressional leaders introduced legislation that would reiterate U.S. policy affirming Israel’s right to self-defense.

U.S. House Majority Leader Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.) and Democratic Whip Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), with House Foreign Affairs Chairwoman Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) and the House committee’s ranking member, Rep. Howard Berman (D-Calif.), on Monday introduced the U.S.-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act, which calls security cooperation between the two countries a national interest.

“The ties that bind the United States and Israel are cemented by our mutual dedication to freedom, opportunity and democracy,” Cantor said in a statement. “We must support our ally and send a message that the United States and Israel will always stand together.”

Hoyer said that the bill “reflects the immutable and enduring bond between our two nations.”

“It is a bond that reflects the shared values of our people and our shared interests in preserving stability in the Middle East,” he added.

AIPAC policy conference delegates will discuss the legislation when they attend 530 lobbying meetings with members of Congress on Tuesday afternoon. 

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Article source: http://www.jewishjournal.com/articles/item/congress_members_introduce_legislation_affirming_us-israel_ties_20120306/

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said Wednesday that Mitt Romney has emerged as the only Republican candidate who could win the nomination.

“Mitt Romney is going to win this race,” the Virginia Republican said on CBS’s “This Morning” after the Super Tuesday contests in 10 states. “Mitt Romney is the only one with a clear path towards that nomination.”

Continue Reading

Cantor, who has endorsed Romney, emphasized Romney’s focus on the economy and problem-solving capabilities.

“[His opponents] have not demonstrated the ability to do what needs to be done. Mitt Romney has clearly demonstrated that he’s got the organization and that he has the actual record to show that he understands how to solve problems, he understands the problems facing this country and knows how to get people back to work again,” he said.

Given the Super Tuesday results, Cantor said, Mitt Romney has outperformed the other candidates and “will be our nominee.”

“Mitt Romney did what he had to do last night. He racked up more delegates than any of the other candidates. He won six out of the 10 states that were up last night,” the Virginia Republican noted. “He won my state of Virginia in a very handy way.”

Cantor also dismissed suggestions that a drawn-out nominating process would hurt the Republican Party.

“If you look what was going on four years ago on the Democratic side of the aisle, you had this same issue going on between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. There was a debate that went forward — the parties are supposed to engage in a debate of ideas,” he said.

Article source: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/73722.html

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) accused the Obama
administration of sending “mixed messages” to Israel’s enemies in a speech to
the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) Monday, as President Obama
and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sought to show a publicly
coordinated front at the White House.

Cantor said confusion has raised questions
about where the United States stands on numerous conflicts in the Middle East, adding
that “strength” is the only message the country’s enemies understand. 

“Let us not
send mixed messages when it comes to Israel. That only serves to confuse the
world, including Israel’s enemies,” Cantor said, according to prepared remarks
of Cantor’s speech. The speech itself was closed to the press.

“Confusion about where America
stands has raised questions about what some of our leaders in Washington are
willing to put up with,” he said. “That’s not just about Iran, it’s about
Syria, it’s about Iraq, it’s about Egypt and it’s about Libya.”

Cantor also chastised the Obama
administration over its policy toward Israel, saying that “America’s job should
not be to micromanage Israel.”

Speaking at the same event, House Minority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said that Obama has upheld the commitment to Israel’s security, just like past presidents of both parties.

“No one should misconstrue difference of opinion or emphasis as in any way weakening a bond forged by principles, values, history, and common interests,” Hoyer said.

Cantor’s address continued his
criticism of Obama from Monday morning, when he questioned Obama’s “resolve” and
commitment to keeping Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

Obama and Netanyahu, meanwhile, emphasized their unity Monday ahead of an
Oval Office meeting that’s focused on the threat of a nuclear Iran. “We face
common enemies,” Netanyahu said. “Iran’s leaders know that, too.”

Obama has said that he “has Israel’s
back” and that all options are on the table to stop Iran from obtaining nuclear
weapons, including military ones. He warned about the “loose talk of war” in his speech to AIPAC. 

But Republicans have been critical of
Obama’s policy toward Iran, accusing him of appeasement for not taking a harder
line. Republican presidential front-runner Mitt Romney has said that Iran will
obtain nuclear weapons if Obama is reelected, but not if he’s elected.

Cantor warned of the dire threat Iran
poses to Israel if the Iranians are able to acquire nuclear weapons.

“In the Middle East, now is the time to be realists — to wake up, before all dreams turn into an unbearable nightmare,” Cantor said. “To minimize the Iranian threat is to fall into the same trap that led to the Holocaust — a lack of imagination about how far evil can go.”

While Cantor and Hoyer were delivering different messages about the Obama administration, the two have teamed up to introduce legislation this week that’s titled the “U.S.-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act.”

Updated at 2:14 p.m.

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Article source: http://thehill.com/blogs/defcon-hill/policy-and-strategy/214149-cantor-obama-sending-mixed-messages-to-israels-enemies

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Article source: http://thebottomline.as.ucsb.edu/2012/03/super-tuesday-approaches-for-republican-candidates

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) on Monday questioned President Obama’s “resolve” in his commitment to keeping Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and protecting Israel. 

“What I think is going on right now is, not only some of us here in this country are questioning where the resolve is,” Cantor said on MSNBC. “I’ve spoken with many allies in the region, and that includes many Arab governments, and it is they that are also questioning where the resolve is. If you look at what is going on in the region, the question of American influence and leadership is a real one.” 

For the full article on The Hill’s DEFCON blog, click here.

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Article source: http://thehill.com/video/house/214083-rep-cantor-questioning-where-the-resolve-is-on-iran