Monday, February 09, 2009

Lugar Turns Down Ride On Air Force One

Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN) apparently has wisely decided that he doesn't want to be used by President Barack Obama the way he was by candidate Obama. From Politico:

My colleague Carol Lee reports that Indiana Republican Senator Dick Lugar won't accompany President Obama to his home state tomorrow, despite an invitation from the president.

Indiana's other senator, Democrat Evan Bayh, will be aboard Air Force One, along with six current and former members of Congress, one of whom, Brad Ellsworth, voted against the House bill.

A White House official confirmed that Lugar had been invited; a Lugar spokesman didn't respond to a question of why the senator would not be present.

Also on the trip: Rep. Fred Upton, who represents a district in Michigan along the Indiana border, who voted against the stimulus package in the House. But he also immediately issued a statement afterwards signaling he could be persuaded.

Obama lapdog Brian Howey will just be in tears over this news.

Perhaps Sen. Lugar is skeptical about voting for a plan Bloomberg tells us will provide up to $5.7 trillion more in bailout spending for the nation's financial system. Remember my post from Friday on Obama's Three Card Monte Game?

8 comments:

Mike Kole said...

Skeptical is the best Lugar can offer? How anyone can be for this borrow-and-spend madness is beyond me.

I love how the Obama supporters who cheered their candidate's accurate derision for Bush's borrow-and-spend lunacy as 'failed economic policy' are now conspicuously silent. If it was failed policy three months ago, how did it suddenly become tolerable?

Sean Shepard said...

Now if only Lugar hadn't co-sponsored the national newborn DNA database which does not require parental notification or permission (note: Senator Coleman [R - MN] also was one other Republican cross over to sponsor this bill with a slew of a Democrats)

And if only Lugar didn't support LOST (Law of the Sea's Treaty) which would abdicate U.S. authority on international waters to the United Nations.

And oddly, Lugar, who campaigned in 1996 on the idea of massive tax reform along the ideas of moving to consumption taxes has been strangely missing on The Fairtax.

I don't know why Lugar is worried about being 'used by' or associated with authoritarian leftists, he has joined them in many ways.

Gary R. Welsh said...

Sean, I think Lugar under-estimated the reaction of members of his own party to his tacit support of Obama last year. The support for such an extremist leftist cannot be countenanced with Lugar's overall record in the Senate. I agree with you that he has had a number of disappointing votes, but his overall record has been pretty good on fiscal issues. I hope at his age he doesn't think he should have yet another term in the Senate. I think it's time for him to retire and give that spot up to someone else.

Covenant60 said...

Lugar can always be counted on when it matters. The question I have is whether Evan Bayh will ever face the music in SOME way for the positions he has taken in support of the far left leadership of the Dem Party. Like on this spending bill, for example.

He always holds himself out as some sort of "hold the line on spending" fiscal conservative with "Hoosier values".

So...... when and how will Evan be called on this?

Sean Shepard said...

Michael, how does Lugar not just voting for, but sponsoring, a bill to require the secretive capture of each newborn's DNA and it's databasing by the federal government any way being able to "count on him" ??

This is like fingerprinting everyone before they have committed a crime, without their permission and in secret.

That by itself is one of those unforgivable violations of individual rights and privacy that immediately calls into question whether anyone who believes in the laws of our land should ever vote for him.

The bill passed by "unanimous proclamation" which is what Congress does when nobody wants to go on record supporting something, but most of them do.

To your point on Bayh. You're absolutely right that he markets himself as something he really isn't. Elected officials depend on the average person never bother to look up what they actually vote for.

Covenant60 said...

I don't know anything about the obscure issue you are talking about.... but when it comes to major issues like this spending bill, tax cuts, judges, labor issues, treaties, war powers, etc etc.... when it is time to pick between conservatism and being fawned over by the NY Times as a RINO, Lugar is always on the right side of the issue.

Just like Dan Burton.

You never have to worry about either of them. They always vote correctly even if their public musings (Lugar) or persona (Burton) cause some vexation.

That is what I look for and appreciate in a candidate when I send my campaign contributions and cast my vote.

Sean Shepard said...

And there is the rub "obscure issues".

The media generally only focuses on a handful of issues that are recurring every election cycle. There are hundreds of issues and there is so much done in Congress that never gets brought up.

If you think taking a DNA fingerprint of every newborn without the parents knowledge or permission is an "obscure" issue not worth of consideration then I don't know what to say.

How about his vote for reauthorization of SCHIP? He voted to allow telecommunications companies retroactive immunity for providing private call detail records to the government in violation of prior law.
Voted YES on the Patriot Act.

There are LOTS of 'obscure' issues including those associated with the United Nations that do make me wonder if the Republicans need to find someone different.

Again, where is his much needed voice on significant tax reform or downsizing the federal government?

All I'm suggesting is that it's important to pay attention to more than just taxes, abortion (not as currently argued a Federal issue), same-sex marriage (not a Federal issue), foreign interventionism, and spending (probably our biggest problem).

You mention Burton. I understand that, as above, it is easy to nitpick all of these guys, but I will agree with you that fiscally Burton is better than many give him credit. Pence is probably the most fiscally conservative from Indiana.

Of course, any of them voting for even one of those big spending omnibus bills and the 'fiscal conservative' claim pretty much becomes just a marketing slogan not based in reality.

Covenant60 said...

As a recovering Libertarian (vbg) I have no problem with the Patriot Act or any measure to intercept suspected terrorist communications either to or within US borders.

But on the issues you mention, yes, Lugar is almost always (I didnt know about SCHIP) with me when he votes on them.

I have always liked Burton because even with his idiosyncracies, he always (again... almost always) votes the right way and doesn't give a rat's arse what the New York Times (or even the Indianapolis Star!!) thinks or says about him.

You know what they say.....

a bird in hand....

I remember about 10 years ago or so I was leaving my building for an appt and when I got off the elevator there was Dan Burton looking at the building directory. It was a small building so it was just him and me in the small lobby.

As I was opening the front door to leave I stopped, turned and approached him. "Congressman Burton?" I asked. He looked just a bit startled and hesitant toward me... not knowing what I was about to say (or scream?) at him.

I told him that I was a constituent of his and that I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank him for his stands and votes in Congress and that I greatly appreciated them. I then told him that I go to the polls each May and November in part to specifically vote for him.

In turn, his face lit up and he thanked me very much.

You could tell I made his day.