Mr. President, When Courting the GOP: You Can’t Hurry Love
In no uncertain terms, yesterday evening, the House Republicans rebuffed the President on their first real date. They were unanimous in the snub by sharply rejecting his, in their view, overly large fiscal stimulus package (see yesterday’s posting). Not a single Republican was smitten with Obama’s courtly smile either.
And today, GOP Senators seemed just as underwhelmed by Obama come-a-courtin‘ and vowed to keep their distance. Even after an apparently pleasant enough luncheon date with the new President, Senators Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Jon Kyl (R-AZ), Tom Coburn (R-OK), and others of the GOP leadership held a press conference to discuss the encounter, and its topic: the economic stimulus legislation. With unanimity, they.did.NOT.like.it.
Senator Kyl swooned “bittersweet” about their luncheon get together with the President, and rejected him even though, for dessert, he had proffered their equivalent of a bouquet of flowers and Godiva chocolates, i.e. numerous tax cuts. Unimpressed, the Senator observed, “Just because you call something a tax cut doesn’t make it a tax cut!” He felt “rejected” even though the President has been chasing them down with hefty tax cuts with all the fervor of a desperate suitor. Well, they’re not a low maintenance date, Mr. President.
Among the spurned and spurning, Senator James Inhofe (R-OK) was the most outspoken, asserting that as far as being stimulating the President had a lot to learn. “We know what stimulation is,” the Senator said, “We know what works. John Kennedy did it. It worked. Ron Reagan did it. It worked.” So Mr. President, it appears that the Senate GOP is just not that into you, or your huge fiscal stimulus package, despite your dynamite dancing.
Well, as we all learn fairly early in our adolescence, you simply cannot hurry love, Mr. President. You’re just toddling through the first ten days of your tenure, so don’t give up yet. Perhaps, as tonight you tend to your disappointed heart, you might have a listen to the Supremes and their 1966 iconic tribute to the waiting game called not-yet-requited love, “You Can’t Hurry Love”. . .
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