AirCongress The Online Voice Of Capitol Hill

The National Republican Congressional Committee, which is the campaign arm of House Republicans, has produced a series of videos that features GOP lawmakers making the case for putting them in charge of Congress again.

The last of the series, titled “Rediscovering Your Party,” went online Friday. “We’re returning to our roots of fiscal discipline, traditional values, reform, and defense and homeland security,” says Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana.

Other participants in the series were: Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee; Minority Whip Roy Blunt of Missouri; Minority Leader John Boehner of Ohio; NRCC Chairman Tom Cole of Oklahoma; Jeb Hensarling of Texas; Kevin McCarthy of California; Patrick McHenry of North Carolina; and Candice Miller of Michigan.

The earlier videos covered topics like: earmarks in spending bills; accountability and transparency for federal spending; opposition to the “fairness doctrine” that once required equal time for competing viewpoints on the airwaves; and the Republicans’ prospects for regaining the House majority in 2008.

Categories: Military, House, California, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Politics, Kevin McCarthy, Terrorism, Budget, Economy, Roy Blunt, John Boehner, Social Policy, Marsha Blackburn, Patrick McHenry, Candice Miller, Tom Cole, Jeb Hensarling

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Majority Whip Roy Blunt, R-Mo., is confident about Republican prospects for retaking control of on the House in the 2008 election for two reasons: 1) Republicans are “learning from the time we’re spending in the penalty box here that we need to be more of who we’re supposed to be, and 2) “the American people are being reminded of who the Democrats are.”

Blunt noted in an interview on Heading Right Radio that Democrats currently occupy seats in 61 districts that President Bush carried in both 2000 and 2004, and if Republicans win as few as 16 of those contests next fall, they can regain the majority in the House.

Blunt also talked about tax cuts and other issues, and he said Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York is the “likely nominee” for Democrats. “I do think if Mrs. Clinton’s their nominee, that mobilizes conservatives and Republicans in the country quicker than anything else would,” Blunt said.

Categories: Missouri, Politics, Taxes, House 2008, Roy Blunt

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The House erupted in chaos late Thursday after a procedural vote that Republicans said they won 215-213, but Democrats said the vote ended in a loss on a 214-214 tie. More than 100 GOP members walked out of the chamber in protest.

The National Republican Congressional Committee put video of the episode online under this description: “Democrats strongarm their vulnerable members into flip-flopping on taxpayer benefits for illegal immigrants as chaos ensues.”

Minority Whip Roy Blunt, R-Mo., addressed the controversy the next morning in a one-minute floor speech: “I have left the House frustrated; I have left the House encouraged; I have left the House proud; I have left the House not so proud. But I never left the House ashamed before. … The remedy for the House that would solve this problem is to let the vote stand.”

And earlier in the week, Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, accused House Democrats of imposing “martial law to further stifle the voices of those of us in the minority who represent nearly half of the American people.”

Categories: House, Missouri, Ohio, Producer's Picks, Democrats, 110th Congress, Roy Blunt, John Boehner

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With Senate Democrats vowing to force Republicans into a literal filibuster over the Iraq war rather than a procedural one, House Democrats apparently don’t want to miss out on all of the fun. The leadership in the lower chamber coordinated a series of “one-minute speeches” at the beginning of today’s floor debate.

The Gavel, the blog maintained by the staff of Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., published video and pullout quotes of some of the speeches, and Pelosi’s office posted more of them to YouTube. Here are links:

• Russ Carnahan of Missouri
• Steve Cohen of Tennessee
• Keith Ellison of Minnesota
• Hank Johnson of Georgia
• John Hall of New York
• Zoe Lofgren of California
• Frank Pallone of New Jersey
• John Sarbanes of Maryland
• Albio Sires of New Jersey
• Tom Udall of New Mexico

Categories: Maryland, New York, California, Georgia, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, Tennessee, Iraq, Democrats, Steve Cohen, Keith Ellison, John Hall, Hank Johnson, John Sarbanes, Albio Sires, Russ Carnahan, Frank Pallone, Tom Udall, Zoe Lofgren

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Categories: New York, Florida, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico, Politics, Vern Buchanan, Kirsten Gillibrand, John Hall, HotlineTV, House 2008, Nancy Boyda, Sam Graves, Heather Wilson

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