What was wrong with congress before the November election is STILL WRONG.

[PHILIP SCHNEIDER]

Democrats have stalled the spending bills until the last minute and cajoled the Republicans into thinking they were getting the Bush TAX CUTS for free . . . . . guess again.

Reid threatens to keep Congress into next year

New spending bill totals $575.13 million per page

By Stephen Dinan-The Washington Times

Forget about going quietly into the night.

Senate Democrats on Tuesday unveiled a broad agenda for an end-of-session sprint that, in other years, could be a whole year's worth of activity — ranging from an arms-reduction treaty with Russia to a major immigration bill to overturning the ban on gay troops.

And that's not to mention the nearly 2,000-page, $1.1 trillion massive spending bill Senate Democrats said they'll try to push through. The bill contains hundreds of pork-barrel spending projects and new rules governing everything from airport baggage to detainees at the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

"We're not through. Congress ends on Jan. 4," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Nevada Democrat.

The omnibus spending bill is likely to get the most attention, spanning 1,924 pages and spending an average of $575.13 million per page.

**FILE** Sen. Harry Reid

It stands in contrast to the House, which last week passed a streamlined bill freezing fiscal 2011 government spending at 2010's level. The Senate bill, though, boosts spending by $16 billion — a tough sell at a time when deficits and debt already are dominating the policy debate in Washington.

In some cases the spending bill not only rejects President Obama's proposed cuts, it actually boosts spending. For example, Mr. Obama earlier this year told Congress to cut funding for the health and welfare package targeting Mississippi's Delta region, which in 2010 received about $26 million. But the Senate bill includes funding and actually increases it to nearly $35 million in 2011.

Senators also picked up the slack for their House colleagues, whose bill was devoid of pork-barrel earmarks, by including House lawmakers' requests in the Senate's own bill. Still, earmarks total less than 1 percent of the bill's spending.

Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, Hawaii Democrat, who is Appropriations Committee chairman, said that doing a full omnibus bill will help make sure spending is targeted and appropriate.

"While I appreciate the work that the House has done in producing a full-year Continuing Resolution, I do not believe that putting the government on autopilot for a full year is in the best interest of the American people," Mr. Inouye said.

In a memo, the Appropriations Committee said the House approach fails to make $10.2 billion in cuts to wasteful military programs and also fails to increase spending for new needs that have popped up in the past year, such as more oversight of offshore oil-drilling rigs.

But the measure also takes care of smaller needs, such as specifically authorizing the secretary of health and human services to purchase six new government sedans.

The push comes as many lawmakers already are eyeing the door.

Mr. Reid, though, said Congress will stay until he tries to tackle issues he says have been unfairly stalled by the GOP.

"I hate to report all this to you — but you know, there's still Congress after Christmas," he told reporters. "So if the Republicans think that because they can stall and stall and stall that we take a break, we're through, we're not through."

All that, no more "earmarking" and deficit spending and transparency and new "change" we heard about, . . . . forgedabouddit ! The democrats STILL have the majority and they're not about to bow out gracefully. They are spending OUR tax money to make sure of the 2012 elections and you can bet conservatives aren't going to benefit (much) from that money. They are about to pass another of those monstrous bills with thousands of pages of largess leaving the Republicans and the rest of the nation only days to analyze where the money goes.It becomes apparent why the democrats had the FED printing money . . . . without new money they wouldn't have been able to spend like they will with this new legislation.

I for one, am horrified and pissed off!

[PHILIP SCHNEIDER]

Lanyon, you're right. We've got to blog like there's no tomorrow . . . . .actually if we don't and the "Old Republicans" continue the way they did during Bush, there WILL BE NO TOMORROW.

2011 has to be the start of a paradigm shift away from big government and spending that has no limit and no logic.

How can a government spend money from taxpayers that hasn't been earned yet??? AND without their permission???

My shoulders are sore from shrugging ! My face hurts from contorting. My _ _ _ hurts from being kicked too often by politicians. GIVE ME A BREAK!

[LANYON]

I believe that all of us on the conservative side need to send a STRONG messade to the GOP, especially the Old leaders, that we will not put up with "more of the same".....   as Barney Fife said: "Nip it in the bud"!