Blog Post

Today the House will be voting on a Republican bill (H.J.Res. 2) to amend the constitution with a "Balanced Budget Amendment" (BBA) which which would destroy jobs, drastically cut Medicare and Social Security, and give federal judges power to raise taxes and make spending decisions. Major impacts of the bill:

Risks default by the United States by requiring a supermajority to raise the debt limit

Destroys 15 million jobs and doubles unemployment to 18 percent:

Today, Congress bestowed the Congressional Gold Medal--the highest civilian award given by Congress--to legendary astronauts Neil A. Armstrong, Edwin E. "Buzz" Aldrin, Jr., Michael Collins, and John H. Glenn, Jr for their exploration into the new frontier. Sen. John Glenn became the first American to orbit Earth in 1962 and in 1969, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins made history by landing on the moon.

Today, I join my colleague Senator Grassley in a bipartisan call for the Supreme Court proceedings on the Affordable Care Act to be publicly available through real-time video and audio. When the Affordable Care Act is placed before the highest court in our country, all Americans will have a stake in the debate; therefore, all Americans should have access to it.

Americans demand that Congress focus on solving our nation's job crisis – but the GOP do-nothing Congress isn't interested in solving this problem.

The House GOP's refusal to bring President Obama's American Jobs Act – which includes crucial provisions to extend the payroll tax cut for workers and small businesses and continue jobless benefits – to the floor for a vote comes with a high price tag for American families. From the Wall Street Journal:

Today, the United States Supreme Court announced it would consider legal challenges to the Affordable Care Act.

Today Speaker Boehner rolled out the GOP's 'Protect Billionaires and Big Oil' go-to list of conservative economists in an attempt to paper over their failure to offer a jobs agenda after 308 days of being in the majority. But the Republicans' insistence on their special interest agenda – the "Faux 15" and then some – is out of sync with the priorities of the American people:

From a new National Journal poll:

From the New York Times today--Staring Into the Budget's Abyss, excerpts: